In connection with their participation at the  High Level Political Forum on the Sustainable Development Goals in New York, IDSN member in Nepal, FEDO, has produced a valuable briefing paper on the Sustainable Development Goals and how they are directly related to the situation of Dalits, and in particular of Dalit women. The paper offers key insight into the relevance of the SDGs and their implication at the national and local level.

The paper has been compiled by the Feminist Dalit Organization (FEDO) of Nepal in consultation with Dalit women’s groups also serves to inform those monitoring the SDGs. It lays out the situation for Dalit women in Nepal, including the protections, the achievements and the challenges, and makes recommendations to governments and donors on the implementation of the gender provisions of the SDGs, to ensure that Dalit women’s rights are achieved and that no-one is left behind.

In connection with the meeting in New York, Durga Sob of FEDO, who is a member of the Access to Justice Commission in Nepal, wrote an OP-ED in national media outlet Ekantipur commenting that,

“We had high expectations of agencies like the UNDP when the MDGs were introduced, but our expectations weren’t met. It looks like the agencies need to change their strategies to meet the SDGs. Donor agencies coordinate their programmes only with the government. Such programmes haven’t been effective. Considering the shortcomings in meeting the MDGs, donor agencies should coordinate their programmes not just with the government, but also with the civil society. Our government’s structures aren’t transparent, accountable and committed. There have been some improvements lately, but they aren’t sufficient. As such, meeting the goal to reduce inequality requires donor agencies to collaborate with the civil society as well.”

Please download the paper in full here