"Beyond 2008"

Looking Beyond: towards a stronger partnership with civil society organizations on drugs and crime

The project "Beyond 2008" ended with an independent external evaluation that brought to light the lessons learned and successful practices of this project. The evaluation was commissioned by UNODC to measure the results achieved by "Beyond 2008" in bringing the voice of NGOs to the 10-year review of the twentieth special session of the General Assembly. The project was evaluated in the basis of the following criteria; relevancy, participation, representation, efficiency, effectiveness, lessons learned, good practices and recommendations for the future.

The second phase of "Beyond 2008", entitled "Looking beyond: towards a stronger partnership with civil society organizations on drugs and crime", will pick up the best practices on global partnerships and further reach out to civil society organizations working on crime prevention, criminal justice, anti-corruption and human trafficking.

Civil Society gives a Unified Voice on Illicit/Harmful Drug Use at the High Level Segment, 11-12 March 2009

At the opening of the High Level Segment (HLS),Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden spoke on the crucial role of NGOs and their contributions through the "Beyond 2008". She said: "As is well known it is only through an effective partnership between Member States, the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, UN Organizations and NGOs that we can make a true difference in the lives of those affected by drug abuse". H.M. Queen Silvia speech

The Chair of "Beyond 2008", Mr. Michel Perron, presented at the HLS the Beyond 2008 Declaration and the three Resolutions.  Mr. Michel Perron interview

 

A side event on "NGO Contributions to the High Level Segment" was organized in honour of H.M. Queen Silvia and moderated by Mr. David Turner, Chair of the NGO Committee on Narcotic Drugs.  In his opening remarks, Mr. Sandeep Chawla, Director of the Division for Policy Analysis and Public Affairs, UNODC, said: "I am pleased that through the "Beyond 2008" project the NGO Committee on Narcotic Drugs, together with the support of my team, has succeeded in bringing the voices of NGOs at this important Summit".

Other NGO representatives spoke about the regional impact of "Beyond 2008". This included Mr. Barnabe D'Souza, Shelter Don Bosco India (SDB), Mr. Roger Kasirye, Uganda Youth Developmenty Link (UYDL), Ms. Carmen Fernandez, Centros Integracion Juvenil Mexico (CIG), Mr. Ross Bell, New Zealand Drug Policy Foundation (NDPF).

 

NGO GLOBAL FORUM 7-9 July, 2008

"Beyond 2008" the Global NGO forum on the 1998-2008 review of the United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on Illicit Drugs was held on July 7-9, 2008 at the United Nations Office in Vienna. The event included an exhibition to highlight NGO work and achievements on drug control. Antonio Maria Costa, The Executive Director of UNODC, opened the Global NGO Forum  with the following remarks "Though there are divergent views among NGOs as there are among states, moving drug control beyond 2008 requires solidarity - among states taking a shared responsibility, between governments and civil society working together, and among all of humanity to ensure that no one falls through the cracks because of drug dependence!"

The three-day NGO forum was a unique and historic event.  It gathered over 300 NGOs from across the world, gave recognition to the important contribution of civil society  towards the 1998 UNGASS targets, and enabled them to express opinion and speak with a unified voice.  It also marked an important milestone of NGO participation in formulation of international drug policy.  A number of governmental representatives participated as observers, demonstrating a strong interest in the NGO deliberations on Drugs. The Forum ended with the adoption of a global declaration and three resolutions  which were presented  at the intergovernmental expert working group on drug demand  reduction held in Vienna from 15-17 September 2008. A number of recommendations were incorporated in the outcome document which will be submitted to the CND Ministerial Session in March 2009. The Declaration highlights what has been achieved by NGOs, and identifies opportunities for future cooperation and collaboration between governments, NGOs, IGOs, and civil society partners in the post-UNGASS period.

Three key themes that emerged from the deliberations:

Shared responsibility and accountability. Governments, at all levels, need to leverage the experience, reach, professionalism and passion of NGOs.  In the past five years NGOs have become more focused, disciplined, inter-connected and organized around how to take on this global problem.  NGOs are well placed to contribute - but only if their experience, reach, impact and commitment is engaged.  As Eva Tongue, Chairperson of the Vienna NGO Committee on Narcotic Drugs commented in her opening remarks "Money alone is not enough.  Governments need to recognize that the fieldwork done by the NGOs is fundamental to success in all aspects of this matter."

Giving the most affected a voice.  This is an issue that has to be addressed at the human level.  The Declaration and Resolutions represent many different voices - individuals, families, and communities - from around the globe.  This voice needs to be heard because it brings a fundamental understanding on how to achieve demonstrable progress to reduce illicit/harmful drug use and its adverse health, social and economic consequences.

Beyond 2008 Forum has created a call for action. The Declaration and resolutions are just the start.  It is a commitment by all of the participants to build on what was achieved here in Vienna as they return to their work and engage with their governments.

In his closing remarks, Mr. Michel Perron, Chairman, Beyond 2008 Steering Committee and CEO, Canadian Centre of Substance Abuse reminded delegates that, "As we go back to our communities and responsibilities let us go knowing that our commitment to consensus over the past three days has created the opportunity for civil society to have a substantive voice here in Vienna."

Substantive documents of the "Beyond 2008"NGO Forum:

Global Summary

List of Participants

Declaration and three resolutions

(Spanish) (French) (Russian) (Arabic) (Chinese)

Beyond 2008 Programme

Antonio Maria Costa's Remarks to the "Beyond 2008"NGO Forum

Background on the "Beyond 2008" NGO Forum

Français English

"Beyond 2008" is an international NGO initiative led by the Vienna NGO Committee on Narcotic Drugs, in partnership with UNODC, with the support of the European Commission and other donors.  It focuses its deliberations on three key objectives:

1. To highlight, through an NGO Questionnaire that has been posted online in all six official UN languages, tangible NGO achievements in the field of drug control with particular emphasis on contributions to the 1998 UNGASS Action Plan such as achievement in policy, community engagement, prevention, treatment, rehabilitation and social integration;

2. To review best practices related to collaborative mechanisms among NGOs, governments and UN agencies in various fields, and to propose new and/or improved ways of working with the UNODC and the CND;

3. To identify key principles within the international drug conventions and highlight how those principles affect the way drug policy is applied locally from day to day; and then adopt a series of high order principles, drawn from the Convention and their commentaries. These will be tabled with the UNODC and CND for their consideration and serve as a guide for future deliberations on drug policy.

Nine regional consultations were held to elicit the experience and ideas of a representative sample of NGOs in North Africa and the Middle East, Sub Saharan Africa, South East Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America, South Asia, North America, Australia and New Zealand, and Western Europe. The work of these consultations will culminate with the "Beyond 2008" Global Forum (see information and draft Agenda - pdf format) scheduled to take place in Vienna, Austria from 7-9 July 2008, when Civil Society Organizations from around the world will finalize the 10-year review of the 1998 UNGASS goals, and make recommendations to the 2009 High Level Segment of the 52nd session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) on how to make further progress with the world's drug problems.

"Beyond 2008" represents a focused and serious effort to provide the CND with unique and forward-looking recommendations from NGOs across the globe who see the UNGASS review as a critically important point in global drug policy stewardship. The initial results of more than 450 completed questionnaires were combined with the findings of the regional consultations and presented in a conference room paper that was distributed at the 51st session of the CND in March 2008.  For more on "Beyond 2008", please download this informational leaflet (pdf), which includes basic information in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.  Please feel free to disseminate it to other interested parties.

Launching of the "Beyond 2008" project

The NGO forum that took place on 13 March 2007 during the 50th session of the CND marked the start of this project undertaken by the Vienna NGO Committee in partnership with UNODC. The project aims at providing a voice to the  NGO community in reflecting on its own achievements at the ten-year review of the UN General Assembly Special Session on Illicit Drugs (UNGASS).

Eighteen lead NGOs representing six regions--North Africa and the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, South East Asia and the Pacific, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean--presented their work on drugs in their respective region.

"Civil Society does not speak with one voice but it certainly constitutes one of the most integral partners in improving the health and the well-being of individuals across the globe. There are many points of consensus among us and it is our intention to mine those for the benefit of all," said Michel Perron, Chief Executive of the Canadian Center on Substance Abuse, who is leading this initiative on behalf of the Vienna NGO Committee.

The Executive Director of UNODC, Antonio Maria Costa, opened the forum. In his closing remarks to CND delegates, he said: "I was particularly impressed by this year's NGO forum. There was lively debate, in a balanced way that enabled all viewpoints to be expressed. Representations from all five continents made it a truly global event ... We should increase interaction between governmental and non-governmental bodies so that your policies can be implemented on the ground with greater impact.

UNODC strengthens collaboration with NGOs in drug control

A Memorandum of Understanding signed by UNODC and the Vienna NGO Committee on 5 February 2007 acknowledges the key role of NGOs in effective drug control.

The funding from the European Commission, Canada, Hungary, Italy, Sweden and the United Kingdom enables NGOs from developing countries to take part in "Beyond 2008", and thereby contribute to UNODC's drug control efforts.