UN General Assembly formed UN Forum to Boost Sustainable Development Efforts

The United Nations General Assembly on 9 July 2013 established a new High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) to replace the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (UNCSD). The decision was taken with an aim to boost efforts to tackle global economic, social and environmental challenges.

The new resolution was adopted with consensus in the 193-member Assembly with an emphasis towards development of an improved and more effective institutional framework for sustainable development. The assembly also decided that the Forum should provide a dynamic platform for regular dialogue and for stocktaking and agenda-setting to advance that process.

The decision of the General Assembly is based on the key recommendation of the Rio+20’s outcome document of 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development, the Future We Want. The decision on Forum marks a major step forward in implementing 'The Future We Want'.

This forum would play a major role in providing the political leadership and action-oriented recommendations that need to be followed based on the Rio Recommendation. This will help in meeting urgent global social, economic and environmental challenges.

The Forum would assemble once in a year at the ministerial level under the sponsorship of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). The heads of state will also be brought together every four year to add momentum for the sustainable development agenda by the Forum.

For the first the High-Level Political Forum will meet in September 2013 at the time of General Assembly’s 68th Session.

Tasks Assigned to the High-Level Political Forum
• The forum will be responsible to provide political leadership, guidance and recommendations for sustainable development
• Reviewing progress in the implementation of related commitments
• Enhancing integration of the three dimensions of sustainable development - economic, social and environmental

The Forum will replace the Commission on Sustainable Development, which was formed after the 1992 Earth Summit and helped to generate action on a range of issues that led to international agreements or treaties.

Rio+20 Conference: the future we want
The Rio+20 conference on sustainable development, which took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in June 2012 was the biggest UN conference ever and a major step forward in achieving a sustainable future – the future we want.