Welcome to the United Nations
Since 2019, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN/DESA) and the International Development Law Organization (IDLO) have collaborated to organize four editions of the global conference on SDG 16, with financial support from the Government of Italy.
The first Conference, titled “Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies: SDG 16 implementation and the path towards leaving no one behind”, was held in Rome in 2019 to inform the first review of SDG 16 at the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) in 2019.
The second conference took place virtually in April 2021, with the theme “Transforming Governance for a more Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Future: SDG 16 as the roadmap to respond to COVID-19 and build back better”.
The third Conference was organized in Rome in a hybrid format from 21 to 22 April 2022, with the theme “People-centred governance in a post-pandemic world”. Around 80 persons attended the Conference in person and more than 900 people followed the discussions online.
The fourth Conference, titled “SDG 16 as a compass for navigating intersecting crises”, was held in Rome in 2023 and featured more than 100 speakers. About 220 participants attended in person, and more than 400 participants followed the conference online. Participants came from 130 different countries, covering all regions.
A fifth edition of the Conference, titled “Peace, justice and inclusive societies for sustainable development”, was held in New York in 2024. It featured more than 30 speakers and gathered more than 300 in-person participants.
The SDG 16 Conferences have provided a global platform for all SDG 16 stakeholders – including governments, civil society, the UN system, academia, and intergovernmental organizations – to address the transformative contribution SDG 16 can make in accelerating progress on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The outcomes of the Conferences have informed reviews of progress at HLPF.
There is high interest in the SDG16+ Community in continuing to regularly take stock of trends, challenges and opportunities in the various dimensions of SDG 16, including its role as a key enabler for SDG implementation.
