HLPF 2025: Civil Society Leads Change, Not Just Service Delivery

TANGO (The Gambia), supporting communities in the North Bank Region, through distribution of improved cooking stoves.

As delegates gather in New York over the coming weeks for the 2025 High-Level Political Forum (HLPF), this moment serves as a test—whether world leaders are serious about rescuing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) or are content to let the promises of Agenda 2030 quietly drift into irrelevance.

For ten years, governments have pledged to “leave no one behind.” But that promise rings hollow when those at the center of sustainable development—civil society and communities—are excluded from decision-making, denied funding, and sidelined in monitoring processes. The credibility of the SDG agenda now hinges on one urgent question: will the world get serious about #UNMuting civil society and enabling it to fully play its role at all levels?

The evidence is stark. In 2024, Official Development Assistance (ODA) fell by 7.1% (approximately $16 billion). Projections for 2025 suggest additional drops of up to 17% (approximately $38 billion). Civil society organisations in many countries recently surveyed report funding cuts. At the same time, the enabling environment continues to shrink, especially in fragile or repressive contexts, limiting civil society’s ability to operate, as shown in recent EU SEE alerts. While global declarations reaffirm the importance of partnerships, local organisations—particularly feminist, youth-led, and community-based groups—continue to operate at the margins of power and resources.

This year’s High-Level Political Forum focuses on reviewing SDGs 3 (health), 5 (gender equality), 8 (decent work), 14 (life below water), and 17 (partnerships for the Goals). These are not abstract targets—they are linked to everyday realities communities and civil society across the globe confront and act upon for a better future.

Globally, civil society is not waiting for permission to lead. We are co-creators of solutions, watchdogs of accountability, and stewards of public interest. In Vanuatu, Fale mobilised rapidly after the 2024 earthquake, coordinating shelter, food, and psychological support where institutional response lagged. In Mexico, local networks spotlighted how legal barriers and discrimination exclude indigenous and migrant communities from accessing public services. In Nepal, young activists from the NGO Federation of Nepal are working to make health, education, and employment policies more inclusive of persons living with disabilities. These are not just stories of service delivery—they are blueprints for equity, agency, and justice from the ground up.

Yet such models remain largely invisible in global discussions—not because they lack impact, but because they lack recognition, access, and resourcing. Civil society’s role is routinely framed as consultative or complementary. It is time to move beyond visibility and tokenism. Recognition must translate into resourcing, influence, and leadership.

As Silla Ristimäki, Adviser on Global Justice at Finnish Development NGOs (Fingo), puts it: “Global trends of closing civic space must be countered at all levels. A free, diverse, and independent civil society lays the foundation for lasting peace, stable societies, and sustainable development.”

Communities, civil society, and their partners are advancing the SDGs from the ground up. Forus’ newly released report, Unlocking the Power of Localisation and Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships, reveals that over 65% of SDG targets rely on local delivery. Yet most global financing, planning, and monitoring systems remain top-down and disconnected from the realities of local actors.

The report highlights over 15 case studies—from Fiji to Morocco, Zambia to Argentina—where CSOs are driving Voluntary Local Reviews (VLRs), engaging in budget advocacy, and developing citizen monitoring tools that track public services. Without long-term, flexible financing and stronger multilevel governance, these efforts risk disappearing.

Despite being at the forefront of local action and deeply embedded in communities, civil society organisations—especially feminist and youth-led groups—continue to operate at the margins of power and financing. The “March With Us” campaign, launched by Forus in 2021, has amplified powerful voices such as Hala al Karib in Sudan and Dianah Kamande in Kenya—women and civil society leaders who are peace builders and system changers.

If governments and multilateral institutions are serious about accelerating SDG progress, gender must not be seen as a standalone goal, but as a lens across all policies—especially financing. It must be mainstreamed across all SDG implementation and financing strategies—from public development banks to national budgets.

That is why Forus, on the occasion of the fourth international conference on financing for development (FfD4) in Seville, called for a re-imagination of financial architecture—one that recognises the legitimacy of civil society as both actor and agenda setter for transformative change.

Civil society is doing more than delivering services—it is building trust. Forus invests in storytelling, civic diplomacy, and digital governance to counter disinformation and revitalize democratic participation. Their Local Power Working Group and We Are Leaving No One Behind campaign uplift lived experiences that show not just what is wrong with current systems—but what is possible.

These are not “human interest” stories; they are powerful contributions to shaping policies for just and sustainable development.

As the world moves into the final five years before 2030, the window for course correction is rapidly closing. At the 2025 High-Level Political Forum, Forus urges governments, donors, and international institutions to:

Fund civil society through long-term, flexible, and core support—not project crumbs.

Recognise community-led monitoring and data as legitimate contributions to SDG review and accountability.

Invest in localisation, not just through technical support but through the transfer of power and resources.

Embed civil society in financing and planning systems for development— including financing for development and public development bank strategies—not as observers, but as architects of change.

Shift power—not just through consultation, but through redistribution of voice, visibility, and resources.

In a world of growing polycrisis and democratic erosion, civil society is not optional. It is an essential part of the ecosystem for social justice, resilience, and transformation. If the SDGs are to be saved, it will not be through declarations—but through redistribution: of resources, voice, and power.