Sustainable development goals briefings and statements

Briefings

Libraries and Information Services: The Post-2015 Development Agenda (May 2015)

This briefing paper was written for the Department for International Development (DiFD).

The paper:

• Sets out the contribution of library and information services to the sustainable development agenda
• Explains the importance of Access to information, a human right that underpins the effectiveness of all the sustainable development goals
• Explores a number of the goals that the UK are promoting

Conclusion and recommendations:

The development of post 2015 sustainable development goals is both exciting and challenging. The HIgh Level Panel report recongnised that this is a universal agenda and not just the Least Developed Nations or developing nations. It's first principle is "leave no one behind" [High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons, 2013.

As signatories to the Lyon Declaration [link] CILIP calls on Member states of the United Nations to "....acknowledge that access to infromation, and the skills to use it effectively, are required for sustainable development, and ensure that this is recognised in the post 2015 agenda by:

• Acknowledging the public's right to access information and data, while respecting the right to individual privacy
• Recognising the important role of local authorities, information internediaries and infrastructure such as ICTs and an open internet as a means of implementation
• Adopting policy, standards and legislation to ensure continued funding, integrity, preservation and provision of information by governments, and access by people
• Developing targets and indicators that enable measurement of the impact of access to information and data and reporting on progress during each year of the goals in a Development and Access to Information (DA21 Development and Access to information report)