Historic Commitments Made to Adolescent Girls and Their Futures

Article Date

05 August 2015

Article Author

Erin Kelly

Media Contact

Anne McPherson

Vice President, Global Communications email [email protected]

After years of intense debate between member states and numerous consultations with civil society, the United Nations has released the world’s next set of development goals – the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – which set forward an ambitious agenda for governments, donors, and NGOs around the world for the next 15 years.

ICRW joined other leading global institutions around the world to make sure that girls’ unique needs and priorities, as well as their capabilities to transform the future, were not left out of these global goals. The framework, which was released last week, includes 17 goals that are designed to reduce poverty and inequality and promote peace and sustainability worldwide. ICRW and partners worked hard to ensure that there was a specific goal to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls, and that other commitments to girls and women were incorporated throughout the agenda. 

Below is a statement by ICRW and partners on the importance of the adoption of the SDGs and the inclusion of women and girls throughout the framework.
 

The Girl Declaration Joint Advocacy Group welcomes the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals Outcome document – “Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” – on August 2, 2015 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

The framework guides development between now and 2030 and places women, and importantly, girls, at the center of an agenda meant to truly improve the lives of all people, particularly the most marginalized populations. Throughout the document, girls are explicitly noted as an important stakeholder group, not just as recipients of aid but as agents of change who can help drive forward this historic and ambitious Agenda.

We congratulate Post-2015 Negotiations co-facilitators Macharia Kamau, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations, and David Donoghue, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Ireland to the United Nations, and their respective staffs, Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon and Special Advisor to the Secretary-General Amina Mohammed on the successful adoption of the 2030 Agenda. We particularly applaud them for leading an inclusive process that engaged and listened to civil society on the importance of including girls, particularly adolescent girls, in this agenda.

This is a landmark moment in the history of diplomacy and development for the rights of women and girls. If we can realize the investments and partnership needed for effective implementation of the agenda, with full engagement at all levels with and for adolescent girls, we will make significant progress towards gender equality and sustainable development by 2030.

To read the statement and see the full list of signatories, click here.