In September, the United Nations convenes a long awaited “Summit of the Future” at its headquarters in New York. While governments are busy putting final touches on an official outcome document, the Pact for the Future, a platform of civil society groups released its own People’s Pact for the Future.
Published by the Coalition of the UN We Need (C4UN), the document “represents the culmination of nearly two years of work to articulate a set of recommendations, based on numerous civil society-led online, regional, and global consultations, to determine what participants agree is necessary for the United Nations to meet the needs of humanity and the planet today.”
Over 35 pages, the People’s Pact outlines numerous proposals in the areas covered by the summit and the intergovernmental outcome document: sustainable development and financing for development; international peace and security; science, technology, innovation and digital cooperation; children, youth and future generations; as well as transforming global governance.
The People’s Pact is the culmination of two years of consultations
The People’s Pact calls on the UN to recommit to the universal aspirations enshrined in the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Among other things, the civil society document points out that the international community “must shift models of governance” from “defending state-centrism” to “rebalancing decision-making to the local, national, regional, and global levels, under the principle of subsidiarity”.
The Global Futures Forum held in May 2023 was a key event consulting on a People’s Pact. Image: DWB
The document emphasizes that “without democracy, there is no freedom” and “without human rights, there is no justice”.
Recommendations include the introduction of “innovative forms of global taxation and financial re-allocation to finance the Sustainable Development Goals” and the establishment of an International Court for the Environment. A meaningful reform of the UN Security Council would entail “the ultimate objective of abolishing the veto”. The role of the UN General Assembly should be strengthened “to prevent or respond to acts of aggression when the Security Council fails to do so”. The jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice should be expanded.
Strengthening the engagement of young people should be done “by expanding the UN Youth Delegates program, developing an intergenerational Town Hall, and further resourcing the UN Youth Office”. The document calls for “UN Mechanisms on Future Generations: a Special Envoy, a Council for Future Generations, and a Future Generations Fund.”
Enhancing legitimacy and participation
In the field on “transforming global governance”, the People’s Pact recommends the establishment of a UN Parliamentary Assembly to “enhance global governance legitimacy and expand participation.” The new assembly should give “elected representatives, reflecting a broad political and societal spectrum, a formal voice and role at the UN that includes advisory and oversight functions.”
The document endorses the “the participatory mechanism” of a UN World Citizens’ Initiative and says that the UN General Assembly in addition should “convene global citizens’ assemblies, composed of individuals selected by civic lottery and demographically representative of the global population, to deliberate and make recommendations on matters of global concern.”
The People’s Pact recognizes the need for a review of the UN Charter and recommends that a review conference “should be convened as a follow up to the Summit of the Future and commence as soon as possible.”
Democracy Without Borders, which was involved in the consultations on the People’s Pact, strongly welcomed the document’s “bold approach” and “forward-thinking proposals”. At the same time, the organization expressed its disappointment with the current draft of the intergovernmental outcome document. “In the field of participation in global governance, the intergovernmental pact lacks specific recommendations”, said the group’s Executive Director, Andreas Bummel.
Calls for meaningful follow-up mechanisms
Numerous civil society groups participated in the UN’s official consultations on the intergovernmental outcome document. In a joint statement published earlier this year, hundreds voiced concern that their input was being overlooked. Many feel that this has not changed despite the UN’s Civil Society Conference in May which was devoted to the summit and despite ongoing consultations on the outcome document’s revisions. For a proposal to be inserted into the draft, it needs to be put forward by a UN Member State and accepted by consensus.
At this point, calls for continued and meaningful follow up processes after the summit have been moving into the focus. In a recent submission to the co-facilitators of the intergovernmental negotiations, Democracy Without Borders, Iswe Foundation and Democracy International suggested that the Pact for the Future should mandate the UN Secretary-General to present recommendations on the UN’s engagement with parliamentary bodies as well as deliberative and participative mechanisms “based on open and inclusive consultations with relevant experts and stakeholders.”
In July, an open letter signed by dozens of former heads of state, released by C4UN and the Club de Madrid, noted that the Summit of the Future should “establish robust and accountable follow-up mechanisms in order to effectively revitalize global governance with the United Nations at its core.”
C4UN’s Steering Committee includes the Baha’i International Community, Club de Madrid, Global Call to Action Against Poverty, Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict, Group of Women Leaders for Change and Inclusion, the International Alliance of Women, Oxfam International, Stimson Center and others according to their website.
