Social Watch Philippines (SWP) - Alternative Budget Initiative Health Cluster (SWP - ABI) held a three-day capacity-building workshop on budget and policy advocacy and campaigns for water, sanitation, and hygiene at Hive Hotel and Convention Center, Quezon City on November 23-25, 2022. The activity was also accessible online via Zoom. The workshop training was participated by civil society organizations working on health, environment, and human rights, and those representing persons/children with disability, older persons, and urban poor communities.

The UN established the category of least developed countries (LDCs) in 1971, as many developing countries were navigating a path to development in the post-colonial period. The classification identified specific development challenges faced by these countries.

This GPW Round Up #3, CSO Participation at the UN: Perspectives on CSO Engagement in UN Processes, highlights some insights, analyses, commentary and advocacy regarding civil society organizations engaging in UN multilateral processses. From the Member States to the UN Secretary-General, CSOs are frequently exalted as an integral part of multilateral policy-making processes; yet, whether their calls and analyses are genuinely heeded is up for debate. Some Member States and CSOs have called for improvements in CSO participation, supported by recommendations from experts on reforms to CSO engagement.

In September 2022, heads of state and government spoke at the UN Headquarters on the theme “A watershed moment: transformative solutions to interlocking challenges”.

Secretary-General António Guterres’s message was clear: “Our world is in peril and paralyzed". He launched the High-level General Debate bluntly: “Our world is in big trouble. Divides are growing deeper. Inequalities are growing wider. Challenges are spreading farther.” He urged, “We need action across the board.”

The video of the session The event End Austerity Now! is now available.

85% of the world’s population is expected to be under some sort of austerity measures in 2023, according to analysis of IMF projections. But austerity cuts are not inevitable and alternatives exist. In this event, some of the world’s leading experts provided short, powerful and inspiring statements on why we need to end austerity now.