Target 16.7: Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory, and representative decision-making at all levels
Target 16.7 measures both the quality of democratic institutions and the existence of a free environment where participation is possible. Considering this, complementary non-official data shows that relevant indicators – including Clean Elections, Effective Parliament, Impartial Administration and Civil Society Participation – are stagnant or have registered little progress globally, while ‘Civil Liberties’, which enable citizens to participate freely in public life, have declined since 2015. There has been slow progress on official indicators.
Authors of chapter
Context and Interlinkages
Out of all the SDG16 targets, none is as closely related to democracy as Target 16.7. Democracy offers several mechanisms which allow citizens to participate in and influence decision making. Voting, a free press and freedom of assembly, among other rights, can raise awareness of societal needs and exert pressure on governments.1 In contrast, in authoritarian regimes, decisions are taken only by a few people who are impervious to any form of criticism, action or popular control. Inclusive public participation has been at the heart of sustainable development since the adoption of Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration in 1992.
As a result, Target 16.7 is not only important for achieving SDG16, but also contributes to all other SDGs, from ending poverty to reducing inequality. Democracy is not only valuable in itself as it relates to human dignity, but also has an instrumental value.2 As well as enabling moral action,3 democracy enables citizens to speak up and vote which can result in everything from better policies to the prevention of famines.2 When citizens are empowered, it is likely they demand better living and working conditions, including quality education, safe drinking water, reduced inequality and food security.
The target interlinks with other SDG16 targets including 16.6 on accountable institutions, 16.10 on fundamental freedoms, and non-discriminatory laws (16.b) as well as SDG16+ indicators on women’s participation (5.5), political, social and economic inclusion (10.2), equal opportunities (10.3) and policies for greater equality (10.4).
It also interlinks with legal obligations for public participation in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the commitment to gender equality in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA) and the resolutions of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW).
Progress on Indicators
Official Indicators:
- 16.7.1: Proportion of positions in national and local institutions, including legislatures, public service and the judiciary, compared to national distributions by sex, age, persons with disabilities and population groups. (Tier I (a)/Tier II (b, c))
- 16.7.2: Proportion of the population who believes decision making is inclusive and responsive, by sex, age, disability and population group. (Tier II)
Additional Indicators:
- IDEA GSoD indicators
There has been slow progress on making parliaments more diverse (16.7.1). According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), women held 26.5 per cent of seats in national parliaments as of the beginning of 2023, up from 22.1 per cent in 2015 and 11.3 per cent in 1995.4 In a notable development that began in 2022, it can be observed that there are currently no operational parliaments in existence wherein there is an absence of women. However, the IPU estimates that at the current rate, parity will not be reached for 80 years. Members of Parliament under the age of 45 (the UN definition of youth) has also slightly increased to 30 per cent, up from 28 per cent in 2016. Nevertheless, the proportion of members under 30 remains relatively low, standing at just 2.6 per cent in 2021, showing a marginal increase from 1.6 per cent in 2016.5 Leadership positions in parliaments continued to be dominated by men over the age of 46. Minority and ethnic member numbers appear to be low but there is no comprehensive source of data. According to UN Women in 2022, women make up 46 per cent of civil service employees, 16 per cent of police and held 42 per cent of judicial positions in 2017.6
Official data for 16.7.2 on inclusive and responsive decision making is not yet available. UNDP have developed criteria for using surveys to measure “the extent to which people think that politicians and/or political institutions will listen to, and act on, the opinions of ordinary citizens” as a proxy for public participation.7 The Praia Group created a Task Team on Participation in Political and Public Affairs in 2021 which is developing and testing methods on measuring public participation.8
Moreover, the World Values Survey found that in 70 countries surveyed to determine whether people felt they had a say in what the government does, 32 per cent said that they had some impact, 31 per cent said they had a lot or a great deal, and 37 per cent said they had little or no impact.9 Another question, asking about influence on politics, found that 53 per cent said they had no or very little influence while 34 per cent said they had some influence and 13 per cent said they had a lot or a great deal.10
Additional Indicators
The two official indicators are adequate for measuring the extent to which institutions reflect a society’s demographic composition and for assessing the perceptions of various population groups regarding inclusiveness and responsiveness in decision making. However, these indicators are not fully reflective of Target 16.7. Firstly, regarding 16.7.1, while it is important that institutions reflect the diversity of a society, representation and participation go beyond demographic criteria.11 Secondly, regarding 16.7.2, while perceptions are important and can work as a proxy to measure performance,12 it is crucial to understand the quality of institutions themselves. In short, these indicators are necessary, but insufficient because Target 16.7 also depends on having an enabling context in which citizens can participate without restrictions and where democratic institutions listen to and work for the people.
To complement these official measures, the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) offers the following five indicators from its Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Indices13, measuring both the quality of democratic institutions and the existence of a free environment where participation is possible. The indicators cover clean elections, civil liberties, effective parliament, impartial administration, and civil society participation. Using the proposed supplemental data from International IDEA’s GSoD Indices, we can observe that most indicators are stagnant or have experienced small declines since 2015 (and for Civil Liberties there is even a small decline from 2000 levels, when the Millennium Development Goals were set). The exception to this is Impartial Administration, which has registered a slight increase from 0.46 to 0.48, on a scale of 0 to 1.14
Progress on Target 16.17, using supplemental GSoD indicators.
Source: International IDEA, Global State of Democracy Indices, v.6.1
The Global State of Democracy Report (2022) revealed that the number of democracies has stagnated, with progress stalling in attributes such as, representative government, fundamental rights and checks on government.15 In parallel, the report showed that democratic institutions and civic freedoms are under threat, while authoritarian and hybrid regimes are becoming more repressive.
Recommendations
SDG16, and Target 16.7 in particular, are not only important in themselves, but as prerequisites for achieving other SDGs. As previously suggested, democracy provides an enabling environment where people can express themselves, influence policy and hold their leaders accountable. When people can speak up, organise, call their local radio station, sign a petition, protest, contact their member of parliament and vote freely, it is more likely that authorities will pay attention and address society’s needs, from accomplishing zero hunger (SDG2) to providing clean water and sanitation (SDG6).
In a time of ‘permacrisis’16, where strongmen are eager to capitalise on discontent to gain power and weaken democracy from within, national and local governments should enact policies that strengthen democratic institutions, ranging from parliaments, the judiciary and election bodies, to supporting civil society, citizen participation, independent journalism and a free media. More importantly, in a time where social contracts are questioned and polarisation is growing, governments should prioritise the implementation of strategies and policies that reduce corruption and rebuild public trust.15
This is urgent in today’s world. Climate change, the lingering effects of the pandemic, inflation and economic instability represent a fraction of the challenges demanding resolution in our lifetime. The best way to approach them is through a democratic framework that guarantees basic human rights and freedoms.17
