DECA Equipo Pueblo, CPDE’s CSO focal point in Mexico, designed the EDC Mexico Observatorio Project on SDG 16 – Peace, justice and strong institutions) and SDG 17 – Partnerships for the Goals).
The initiative is part of CPDE’s efforts to improve country-level effective development cooperation (EDC) monitoring and knowledge-sharing, throughsupporting country-level Observatorio projects led by CSOs. These observatorios are characterised by their independence from government entities in their data-gathering and analysis, in order to monitor, evaluate and influence certain policies or processes related to EDC, the 2030 Agenda and other development cooperation frameworks adhered to by states.
For DECA Equipo Pueblo project in particular, the aim was to identify the progress achieved and the shortcomings, as well as to propose measures and/or policies aimed at SDG implementation, and partnerships to promote the progress of the 2030 Agenda in Mexico, within the EDC framework. Therefore, both the SDGs and the Istanbul Principles were used to measure the progress of Mexico’s development policies.
Challenges: limited recognition of CSO role and knowledge of 2030 Agenda
Although Mexico has been active in promoting the 2030 Agenda, especially with regard to SDG 17, there have been many challenges in its implementation; this despite the Mexican government publishing and disseminating the National Strategy for the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda in 2019. The overall assessment in the government’s performance is that the means of implementation* are not yet sufficient to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
The evidence generated from Mexico’s CSO observatorio contributed to DECA Equipo Pueblo’s selection as co-chair of the government’s Monitoring and Strategy Committee. This along with other government initiatives to include CSOs in political processes, such as being part of the Official Delegation of the Mexican government in the UN High-Level Political Forum and the LAC-CSO Participation Mechanism in the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), demonstrate a certain level of CSO inclusion, at least on paper. However, in practice there is still very little recognition and validation of the role of CSOs in promoting the public good, according to the report
As for advances in localisation, interviews and surveys with CSOs in Mexico reveal that most local government officials are unaware or have little knowledge of the 2030 Agenda, due to scant resources to train, raise awareness and share knowledge, as well as a lack of transparency on the part of the authorities to inform and debate with citizens (for instance, in the form of an open town hall or other participatory mechanisms).
With regard to the Istanbul Principles on CSO Development Effectiveness, 90% considered that the federal government has not carried out any dissemination, promotion and/or training activities to make CSOs aware of the Istanbul Principles; and those who answered in the affirmative mentioned workshops to strengthen CSOs by the federal body: the National Institute for Social Development (INDESOL), now attached to the Ministry of Welfare, which in the current administration has limited its actions to strengthen CSOs.
According to the report, CSO work has been increasingly struggling with the continued closure of its civic spaces as reflected in the violations of rights to freedom of association, freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression. There has been an escalation in extrajudicial killings, intimidation of activists, indigenous peoples and other human rights defenders, the closure of spaces for dialogue with the government and reduction of resources and support for CSOs’ work.
Recommendation: strengthened multistakeholder dialogue
In the face of growing gap between civil society and the state, the report recommends that the national, sub-regional and local governments work hand in hand with civil society as a group of strategic actors that contribute to development by attending to and making visible social demands in terms of human rights. To this end, DECA Equipo Pueblo advocates strengthening dialogue and actions between government, diverse communities and civil society.
Check out the report in Spanish here.
*The notion of ‘Means of implementation’ describes the interdependent mix of financial resources, technology development and transfer, capacity‐building, inclusive and equitable globalisation and trade, regional integration, as well as the creation of a national enabling environment required to implement the new sustainable development agenda, particularly in developing countries.
