On 1 September, the General Assembly adopted a historical resolution (A/69/L.85) welcoming the successful conclusion of the negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda and transmitting to its 70th session an outcome document entitled “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” (annexed to the draft resolution and available in Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish).
The draft outcome document lays out a set of 17 sustainable development goals and 169 associated targets that demonstrate the scale and ambition of the new universal agenda for Sustainable Development and will come into effect on 1 January 2016.
The Goals and targets will stimulate action over the next fifteen years in areas of critical importance for humanity and the planet. They are the result of over two years of intensive public consultation and engagement which paid particular attention to the voices of the poorest and most vulnerable. Many recommendations by the Women’s Major Group (WMG) were taken up in the final document. Gender equality and women’s empowerment is not only recognized and integrated across all the Goals and targets but also as a stand-alone goal with specific targets (Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls’. )
Goal 5 speaks specifically to governments’ commitments to end discrimination and gender-based violence; eliminate child marriage and female genital mutilation; ensure access to sexual and reproductive health care services and education for all; protect women and girls' reproductive rights; eliminate gender disparities in schools and ensure equal access to education; expand women's economic opportunities and recognize their rights to resources; and reduce the burdens of unpaid care work on women and girls.
Discussions on what global indicators will be needed to monitor progress in the implementation of the SDGs will continue until at least March 2016.