On 18th January, our Executive Director, Magdalena Sepúlveda, participated in the Sixth Intersessional Meeting of the Human Rights Council on Human Rights and the 2030 Agenda. The meeting topic was ‘Integrating Human Rights into the International Financial Architecture Reforms: A Cornerstone for Realizing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and a Human Rights Economy’. The meeting convened high-level representatives from the UN missions in Geneva. It counted with the participation of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr Volker Türk, the President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) H.E. Ms Paula Narvaez and the Special Advisor to the Minister of Finance, Brazil, Ms Fernanda Cimbra Santiago.

Magdalena participated and moderated the first session, ‘Applying a Human Rights Lens to the Reform of IFIs to Eradicate Poverty and Advance Human Rights and the Sustainable Development Agenda.’

This panel focused on how international financial institutions’ (IFI) policies, operations, analyses and metrics could be aligned with the human rights obligations of Member States and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Speakers at this panel included: 

• Prof. Jayati Ghosh, Professor of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Member of the UN High-Level Advisory Board for Economic and Social Affairs
• Prof. Avinash Persaud, Special Advisor on Climate Change at the Inter-American Development Bank, former Special Envoy to the Prime Minister of Barbados on Investment and Financial Services 
• Mr Robert Powell, Special Representative to the UN, International Monetary Fund 
• Ms Sarah Saadoun, Senior Researcher and Advocate, Poverty and Inequality, Human Rights Watch

You can watch the 1st Meeting of the Sixth Intersessional Meeting of the Human Rights Council on Human Rights and the 2030 Agenda here.