By Anders Hylander
Today, the UN High Level Panel tasked with advising UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on the post-2015 development framework meets in London. The post-2015 process will establish the global development agenda that will follow on from the Millennium Development Goals that expire in 2015.
The meeting is hosted by UK Prime Minister and co-chair of the panel, David Cameron. Alongside Mr Cameron will be two further co-chairs, President Ellen Sirleaf Johnson of Liberia and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia, as well as other members of the 26-strong panel.
This meeting is the first of four before the panel presents its report and recommendations for a post-2015 framework in May 2013.
The HelpAge global network is actively engaging with the post-2015 and High Level Panel discussions in a number of ways:
- Affiliates of the HelpAge global network are participating in national and regional discussions to highlight the importance of population ageing.
- Working closely with disability organisations, HelpAge is ensuring the voices of the marginalised are heard and included.
- We are submitting papers and evidence to the task teams that support the High Level Panel.
- In preparation for the London meeting, we have participated in an online consultation.
Human rights and life-course approach
The overall focus of the London meeting is poverty at the individual and household level, through human development and livelihoods. These mirror the topics discussed at the online consultation last week, where participants were asked to input their ideas on a number of issues, including among others:
- How to ensure the most vulnerable and marginalised have the food, water, energy, healthcare and education they need.
- Lessons learned from the current Millennium Development Goals.
To achieve a future for all ages, HelpAge recommends a development framework that is based on explicit human rights standards and responds to all stages of the life course.
Ageing expert participates in civil society discussion
During the two day meeting, the panel will meet with representatives from the private sector and civil society in a number of roundtable discussions.
HelpAge board member and ageing expert, Isabella Aboderin has been selected to attend the civil society roundtables with the High Level Panel members. Ms Aboderin brings with her huge expertise on ageing issues from all over the world. She will emphasise the importance of having an inclusive new development framework with policies that respond to the life course and support the contributions of older people to poverty elimination and to social development.
Both Isabella Aboderin and HelpAge’s Head of Strategic Alliances, Sylvia Beales, will also attend a plenary event with 250 representatives from civil society, trade unions, faith-based organisations, diaspora groups, business, young people, the science community and a number of the High Level Panel members.
You can watch the event through an online live-stream and follow updates on Twitter via the #post2015 and #post2015HLP hashtags. HelpAge’s representatives will be tweeting from the event on the HelpAge twitter feed @helpage.
HelpAge network to attend follow up meetings
The next meeting of the High Level Panel is in early 2013 in Monrovia. Last week, our Kenyan Affiliate, HelpAge Kenya, participated in an African civil society forum on the post-2015 process in Monrovia which President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf attended and acknowledged the importance of responding to population ageing.
HelpAge’s Indonesian Affiliate, Yayasan Emong Lansia, will be attending the third meeting in Bali, which will focus on the global partnership for development and sustainability.
- Download our latest discussion paper and send us your feedback.
- Read more about HelpAge’s work to influence the post-2015 process.
- Register on the worlwwewant2015 website to follow the post-2015 process.