Latest content: Social development

The Global Sport and SDG Impact Report will be the first global baseline report on the global data available to evidence the contribution that physical education, physical activity and sport make to sustainable development. This policy brief offers a preview of that report, explaining its methodology and indicators, and highlighting areas in which measurable progress has been made and where gaps in the evidence have been found.

This report contributes to the Commonwealth study on online violence against women and girls (OVAWG) and considers the prevalence of online violence and the role of bystanders as well as therelevant laws, institutions, policies and practices to address the problem in the European region of the Commonwealth, namely Cyprus, Malta and the United Kingdom of Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) and Northern Ireland (UK).

As countries recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, and face the compounding challenges of global inflation, debt, climate change and sociopolitical scenarios, there is a need to explore new investment strategies to accelerate economic development, build resilience and balance competing environmental, economic and social pressures. In this context, the concept of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) as a framework for sustainable growth has gained new relevance. This paper discusses the potential benefits of ESG in terms of enabling sustainable economic growth in the Commonwealth, including possible technical assistance, capacity building and policy development on ESG for public debt management and improved public sector sustainability, including collaboration with International Financial Institutions financing standards.

This report provides a summary of the phenomenon of online violence against women in various African Commonwealth membercountries and describes the legal frameworks and their limitations and the challenges these present.

This report focuses on the role of online bystanders in reducing online violence against women and girls (VAWG), including consideration of any related policies or laws.

Online violence is increasing rapidly and is emerging as one of the biggest threats facing the online world today. Acts of online violence take multiple forms, including cyberstalking, cyberbullying, sexual harassment, sex trolling, doxing, hate speech, public shaming and intimidation.

As part of an ongoing commitment to support the development of a more inclusive education system across Commonwealth countries, the Commonwealth Secretariat commissioned documentation to support good policy and practice, particularly on including students with disabilities in mainstream education.

The purpose of this report is to map the prevalence of online violence against women and girls, with a particular focus on so-called innocent bystanders and the state of laws, institutions, policies and practices within the Caribbean and Americas regionof the Commonwealth (Canada).

High-quality and accessible Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) lays the foundation for healthy and well-functioning societies. Effective ECCE systems equip young children with the means to develop to their fullest potential during their formative years, in a safe and inspiring environment, nurtured by well trained professional teachers and carers.

This best practice guide supports Commonwealth member countries to integrate gender into Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) – the documents at the apex of national frameworks for climate mitigation and adaptation actions, through which gender equality outcomes can be progressed.

High-quality and accessible Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) lays the foundation for healthy and well-functioning societies. Effective ECCE systems equip young children with the means to develop to their fullest potential during their formative years, in a safe and inspiring environment, nurtured by well trained professional teachers and carers.

This report, updated from the first edition published in 2021, presents a macro-level overview of the extent of gender integration in Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), and new or revised Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by Commonwealth member countries submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) under the 2021 revision cycle. Since the first edition of this report was published, a further 27 updated NDCs have been submitted, and Gabon and Togo have joined as Commonwealth member countries, bringing the total updated NDCs submitted to 47 of the 56 member countries.