UN80: Endorse This Letter
Civil Society Inclusion in the UN80 Initiative: an open letter
The UN80 process could be a historic opportunity to reimagine multilateralism. But right now, civil society and community voices are being left out of critical discussions that will shape the future of the UN.
We are inviting organisations worldwide to endorse this letter. Let us together urge the UN Secretary-General to include civil society in UN80 decision-making processes.
To read and endorse the letter, please click here (links to Google form). You can also read the letter on this page:
Your Excellencies,
Mr. António Guterres, Secretary-General, Ms. Annalena Baerbock, President of the 80th General Assembly, and Mr. Guy Bernard Ryder, Head of the UN80 Task Force
We, the undersigned, seek to ensure that civil society engagement as well as health, mental health, HIV and AIDS, other communicable and non-communicable diseases, and universal health coverage are central within the UN80 process. We are writing to express our concern that civil society and communities – particularly national and local actors – have so far been excluded from the UN80 Initiative, as demonstrated by the UN 80 Ad Hoc Working Group on Mandate Implementation and the Shifting Paradigms report. Civil society and community participation must be a non-negotiable pillar of the UN80 Initiative.
We welcome your leadership on the UN80 Initiative, and urge you to ensure that this Initiative not only addresses the current UN system financial crisis but also re-imagines the UN to drive transformational reforms and address today’s challenges. Every day, our organisations serve people facing shrinking access to life-saving services and increased human rights violations. Our frontline work and engagement in multilateral processes demonstrate that civil society engagement and community-led responses are critical for efficient and people-centred decision-making.
As the way forward, we urge that the UN80 Initiative adopts the following recommendations and key next steps to ensure the necessary inclusion of civil society and community expertise in shaping the future of the UN:
Our first recommendation is to urgently establish meaningful civil society and communities’ representation and engagement across the UN80 Initiative, including the UN80 Task Force, workstreams and clusters, including those reviewing mandates and coordination structures. It is critical to ensure participatory governance is a core pillar of UN renewal processes.This includes the following key steps:
1.1 We ask you to engage civil society in the work of the UN 80 Ad Hoc Working Group on Mandate Implementation and the UN80 Task Force.
While we welcome the establishment of the UN 80 Ad Hoc Working Group on Mandate Implementation, it is alarming that the inaugural meeting discussion on inclusivity made no reference to civil society engagement. This omission signals a risk of reforms designed without the very voices that ensure accountability, legitimacy, and effectiveness.
1.2 We urge you to reconsider the proposal to prematurely close UNAIDS and meet with the NGO Delegation to the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board.This proposal significantly jeopardises progress on SDG 3. We need a multilateralism that delivers progress rather than abandons communities who need support the most, such as LGBTIQ communities, women and girls, people who use drugs, sex workers and other key populations affected by HIV. UNAIDS is the unique and essential UN initiative which has demonstrated best practices and impact around community leadership and civil society engagement. Over 1000 community-led and civil society organisations have signed on to the UNAIDS Program Coordinating Board NGO Delegation letter opposing the premature closing of UNAIDS.
1.3 We ask you to co-design together with us, the civil society advisory mechanism to the UN80 Initiative and other key UN reform processes.We urge you to draw on the unique models of UNAIDS, the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria and Gavi, where civil society and communities have key roles in governance and decision-making.
Our second recommendation is to ensure the UN80 Initiative and the UN renewal processes guarantee access to information and participation for civil society and communities.
This includes the following key steps:
2.1 Publish clear information in relation to consultations and timelines, including key decision points and supporting information.
It is critically important to have information available via accessible channels for organisations and communities working in the Global South with the most vulnerable groups.
2.2 Make consultations accessible for civil society, including through remote participation and community feedback mechanisms.
Transparency around consultations will strengthen the quality of the processes, increase accountability, and support participation of affected communities and civil society. This will help to ensure the acceptability and legitimacy of the UN80 Initiative outcomes.
2.3 To facilitate effective civil society participation, we ask you to implement recommendations outlined in this zero draft proposal of the United Nations Code of Conduct for Interacting with Civil Society in Standard-Setting and Research Talks (UN CCIC-SSTART).
The expense of travel to in-person meetings and persisting challenges obtaining visas to the United States, Switzerland, and other key UN venues obstruct civil society’s equitable participation in the UN80 and other UN decision-making processes.
Yours sincerely,
Coalition PLUS
International Community of Women Living with HIV
Frontline AIDS
Global Surgery Umbrella, USA and the Netherlands
Zimbabwe Civil Liberties and Drug Network
Centre for Health Science and Law, Canada
European Network of People who Use Drugs, Ireland
Release, UK
Mainline, the Netherlands
AIVL-Australian Injecting & Illicit Drug Users League Association for Humane Drug Policy (FHR), Norway
African Law Foundation (AFRILAW), Nigeria
Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA)
Centro de Orientación e Investigación Integral, Dominican Republic
Instituto RIA, Mexico APDES, Portugal
PREKURSOR Foundation, Poland
Comite/Club Unesco Universitaire Pour La Lutte Contre La Drogue Et Autres Pandemies, (CLUCOD), Cote d’Ivoire
Des Ong De Lutte Contre L’abus De Drogues De Côte d’Ivoire (CONAD-CI)
AIVL (Australian Injecting & Illicit Drug Users League)
Coaliton “I Can Live”, Lithuania
ALCS (Association for the fight against AIDS), Morocco
ZCLDN, Zimbabwe
Women Nest, Kenya
YouthRISE, Global, legally registered in Ireland
Fundación Latinoamérica Reforma, Chile
Centre Stage Media Arts Foundation, Zimbabwe
New York NGO Committee on Drugs (NYNGOC), USA
International Intercambios Civil Association, Argentina
MENANPUD (Middle East & North African Network for People who Use Drugs)
St. Ann’s Corner of Harm Reduction, USA
International Drug Law Advocacy and Resource Center (IDLARC), USA
HIV Legal Network/Réseau juridique VIH, Canada
Institute for Research and Development “Utrip”, Slovenia
la Società della Ragione: Home, Italy
Forum Droghe, Italy
Drug Policy Network South, East Europe
Vijana Aid Africa, Uganda
Awesome Touch Global Educational and leadership Consults and Nigeria
Waila Initiative for Sustainable and Inclusive Development (WISAID), Nigeria
FGS society of Nigeria, Nigeria
Concern Initiative Development for Vulnerable People Jigawa, Nigeria
National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), Nigeria
International Centre for Applied Mathematical Modelling and Data Analytics, Nigeria
Doya Primary Health Care Center Bauchi, Nigeria
Nina Jojer/UNICEF, Nigeria
Federal Teaching Hospital Gombe, Nigeria
Awake Nigeria
Unlimit Health, UK
Harm Reduction International, UK
SURI, Ireland
NPC, South Africa
AIDS-Fondet, Denmark
Lady Mermaid Empowerment Centre, Uganda
Love To Help Organization, Rwanda
ITPC Global, HQ in South Africa
International Treatment Preparedness Coalition In (ITPC-MENA) MENA Region, based in Morocco
Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe, Nigeria
Rialto Community Drug Team UNSPOKEN SMILES, USA
Costa Rica Malawi Network of People living with HIV and AIDS
Sankalp Rehabilitation Trust, India
Center for Supporting Community Development Initiatives
Medibeth Global Health Centre, Nigeria
Wote Youth Development Projects CBO Good Health Community Programmes, Kenya
Resilient40, Africa
Universal Maidens Association, Cameroon (UNIMAC)
Pleaders of Children and Elderly People at risk/ Plaideurs des Enfants et des Personnes Agees a risque (PEPA/NGO), Democratic Republic of Congo Spain Ghana
Welfare of the African Vulnerable and Egalitarian Foundation WAVEF, Nigeria
BasicNeeds Ghana (BNGh),
Civil Society Health Partnership (CSHP), Zambia
Child Way, Uganda
HepaRed Latinoamérica y Caribe, Fundación HCV Sin Fronteras, Argentina
CeSAHA, Nigeria, Canada
Mainstay Healthcare Development Foundation, Nigeria
Union des Éleveurs et Vétérinaires Sans Frontières, Congo
Youth and Women for Change in Eswatini
Association Global Humaniste from Togo
Empower India
InclusHIV Consulting, Canada
Women4GlobalFund, Global
Speak Up Africa, Senegal
Teso Youth Agricultural Production Initiative for Peace (TEYAPI4Peace), County – Uganda
Centre for Ecological and Community Development (CECD) Nigeria
Afrihealth Optonet Association (AHOA) – CSOs global Network and Think-tank
CO “CF “NAHA “ZDOROVI”, Ukraine
Pakachere Institute for Health and Development Communication, Malawi
Fundación Huésped – Argentina
Eurasian Movement for the Right to Health in Prisons (EMRHP)
LHL International Tuberculosis Foundation, Norway
Rural Infrastructure and Human Resource Development Organization (RIHRDO) Pakistan
Paneer HIV positive women’s network trust, Tamilnadu, India
Blossom Trust, India
Rainbow TB forum network trust, India
Global Health Council, USA
TIP Global Health, Rwanda
Gestos – Soropositividade, Comunicação e Gênero, Brazil
ONGD CEPROPHOT ,République Démocratique du Congo Disability Rights India Foundation
ARHR, Ghana
Women for positive actions
STOPAIDS, UK
Unitaid NGO Delegation
Support Persons in Trauma Initiative (SPITI), Nigeria
PAI, United States of America
Dopasi Foundation, Pakistan
Association for Farmers Rights Defense, AFRD Georgia
Health Equity Matters, Australia
CARAM Asia-Coordination of Action Research on AIDS and Mobility in Asia
Uganda Youth Coalition on Adolescent SRHR & HIV (CYSRA-Uganda)
Global Health Advocates, France
International Campaign for Women’s Right to Safe Abortion
University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab (United States of America)
India HIV/AIDS Alliance, India
Muslim Family Counselling Services, Ghana
Infectious Disease Alliance, Denmark
Basic Needs-Ghana, Ghana
Blood Patients Protection Council, Kerala, India
Good Health Community Programmes, Kenya
Rural Aid Foundation, Uganda
Burundi NCD Alliance
MSI Reproductive Choices, Global/UK
NCD Alliance, Global/Switzerland
ASOS (Action Socio-sanitaire Organisation Secours), Madagascar
CAN MH Lanka, Sri Lanka
Advocacy Initiative for Development (AID), USA
Civil Society Engagement Mechanism for UHC2030
WPIUN, INDIA
WeCARE Cameroon
Youth and Women for Change in Eswatini
mothers2mothers, South Africa
LiveWell Initiative LWI Nigeria
AIHMS-GLOBAL, India
VIKASH-SAMUKHYA, India
Opportunity Two Excel Foundation, Ghana
Federal. Medical Centre Kumo Gombe State, Nigeria
Association des Jeunes pour la lutte contre le Sida et la Pauvrete de la République de Djibouti
National Native American AIDS Prevention Center (NNAAPC)
Réseau de Dévéloppement des Femmes Pauvres (RDFP), Rwanda
Mumbo International, Kenya
ONG APS-PEAFPHA, Benin
Union des Amis Socio Culturels d’Action en Developpement, Haiti
Women for positive actions, Monrovia
Unitaid NGO Delegation, Switzerland
Centre for Public Health, Nigeria
International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC)