sustainable development 20 years on from the ... - José Eli da Veiga

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(b)
Strengthen policies designed to empower people and promote human security
People should be provided with the means, material resources and education to achieve
empowerment and self-reliance, realize their potential and participate fully in decision-making. They need
to be resilient enough to prepare for, withstand and recover from events that critically threaten their
security. Their most essential needs should be met and their subsistence and dignity guaranteed.
To that end, it is essential that national social protection systems be strengthened. A protection and
empowerment strategy requires concerted efforts to establish legal frameworks, processes and institutions that
systematically tackle human security issues, protect people against critical, widespread threats and foster
suitable environments in which they can satisfy their needs and obtain appropriate, <strong>sustainable</strong> livelihoods.
(c)
Implement disaster risk reduction strategies that include the expansion of social protection
mechanisms such as conditional transfers, temporary job creation schemes and
microinsurance, and incorporate the nutritional dimension
National governments and subregional and regional intergovernmental organizations, such as the
Central American Integration System and the Andean Community, have established multi-stakeholder (at
the community, national and regional levels) policy frameworks conducive to making progress towards
reducing the risks of disasters and adapting to climate change. These initiatives should, moreover, focus
on food security, nutrition and social protection and should target children under two <strong>years</strong> of age,
pregnant or breastfeeding women and other groups at a potential disadvantage. More attention also needs
to be paid to the link between disaster risk reduction and adaptation to climate change and smallscale
farming.
National stakeholders and the international community should work together to support the
<strong>development</strong> of a multisectoral approach to integrate social protection and local production strategies with
food security, nutrition, disaster risk reduction and adaptation to climate change.
(d)
Promote a social and fiscal covenant to facilitate the above measures
A social and fiscal covenant is required to finance the above measures. Such a covenant should
include a reform of tax regimes designed to broaden social protection and internalize environmental and
health-related costs at the national level (see guideline 3). This reform may be achieved by shifting tax
burdens from labour and investment towards the environment and natural resources.
Guideline 2
Measure the sustainability of <strong>development</strong>
The indicators usually used to measure economic activity, such as GDP, are used as an approximate
measure of well-being. But they do not reflect the negative impact of economic activity on natural or
social heritage. Moreover, they do not take into account critical factors for the survival and well-being of
various groups of people and future generations. As a result, leaders and decision makers pursue only
partial objectives. Remedying this entails heightening the visibility of the environmental and social costs
and therefore making headway in measuring heritage, which includes human and natural capital.