The 2024 UN Civil Society Conference Nairobi 9-10
CCIVS President Ratherford Mwaruta attended this event on behalf of CCIVS along with Linus Omondi for KVSO Kenya. The following is a report from Ratherford:
Since 1947, sixty-eight civil society conferences have resulted in successful outcomes due to previous interactions with civil society organizations. The United Nations Civil Society Conference which is the premier event on the civil society calendar at the United Nations was hosted on the Africa Soil for the first time in history. The Conference offers civil society organizations an opportunity to put a global perspective on a specific issue and brings together senior UN System officials, prominent international civil society organizations, youth change makers, academia, public opinion makers, and international media to discuss issues of global concern. The Nairobi international forum, hosted +1500 participants, who provided preliminary discussions and data ahead of the Summit of the Future in September 2024 at the UN Headquarters in New York. High on the agenda during the conference was the backsliding and inequality when it comes to the implementation of sustainable goals adopted by all member states in 2015 under their 2030 Agenda, climate disasters, financial crises, food insecurity, poverty, digital transformation and wars to mention but just a few of the complex global systems that are currently in place are not capable of dealing with such inequality when it comes to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
The conference created a very conducive environment for civil society to contribute across continents concerning the priorities of reforming world governance and policies to address current global challenges. The conference tackled policy areas such climate, environment, social issues, digital transformation, trade, supply chains as well as reforming the global financial architecture and UN’s institution. Based on the aforementioned it is clear there is a gap between the global challenges in front of us and the current global governance system, Hence the dire need for the A Summit of the Future to reform global governance system and adopt a Pact For the Future, where global leaders will recommitted to deliver a just global society. This is unique once in a generation opportunity to reinvent global governance so as to cope with the new situation prevailing
In a nutshell, this Conference provided a platform for civil society to contribute to the preparatory process for the Summit of the Future, this was a unique opportunity for the Coordinating Committee For International Voluntary Services to come together with other players in the civil society, engage and advocate for our common priorities to be reflected in the “Pact for the Future”.
Ratherford Mwaruta, CCIVS President and National Coordinator of Zimbabwe Workcamps Association