Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how they plan to facilitate the involvement of civil society organisations in reporting on the UK’s progress in implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Answered by Lord Bates
Reporting processes agreed at the UN mean that it is the national statistics office of each Member State that is responsible for reporting national data to the UN on progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. In the UK, this role is undertaken by the independent Office for National Statistics, which carried out a public consultation on its approach to reporting last summer.
The Government is committed to delivering the Sustainable Development Goals and has embedded the Goals across all of its work. We will present the UK’s voluntary national review of progress towards the Goals in 2019, and will be consulting with a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including civil society organisations, as we develop our plans.
Civil society organisations have a vital role to play with regard to both contributing to delivery of the Goals to ensure no-one is left behind, and in communicating their importance to keep up momentum on implementation.
For example, the Leave No One Behind Partnership, founded by CIVICUS, Project Everyone and Development Initiatives with DFID support, has supported national dialogues with civil society platforms in thirty countries to raise awareness of the Goals, as well as discuss priorities and good practice for delivery. We are keen to ensure these important contributions are captured.
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have committed to the World Health Organisation's goal to eliminate viral hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030.
Answered by Lord Bates
The UK supports the goal of eliminating viral hepatitis through multiple channels. Provision of clean water, sanitation and hygiene promotion reduces the risk of transmission of Hepatitis A and E. DFID supports the immunisation of over 300 million children against Hepatitis B through Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. Support to UNITAID helps to improve access to better diagnostics for Hepatitis C and DFID’s contribution to the Global Fund supports programmes that reduce transmission of both HIV and Hepatitis C.