Our commitment to SDG 16

Following on from our other blog posts on SDGs, learn how our support contributes to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 16, Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions.

<< TARGET 16.1: Reduce violence everywhere >

• REI funding enables the Karenni Social Development Center (KSDC) Human Rights Program to educate over 575 Karenni students in the last 15 years in camps on the Thai-Myanmar border. 
  • This is the equivalent of roughly 1 in every 500 Karenni people.
•  The more people who can understand their human rights and how to defend them, locally and internationally, the more engaged the people can be during and in the aftermath of the Myanmar Civil War. 

<< TARGET 16.3: Promote the rule of law and ensure equal access to justice >

• KSDC’s Human Rights Program conducts programming for 45-50 Karenni refugee and IDP youth annually. Subjects include: 
  • Human Rights
  • Rule of Law
  • Gender Equality and Perspectives
  • Environment
  • Democracy
• The ripple effect of training has certainly heightened interest in civic issues in communities in Karenni State.

<< TARGET 16.6: Develop accountable and transparent institutions >>

• REI strictly abides by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government regulations for non-profit organizations (NPO’s). 
• Each project is required to submit an annual report describing fund allocation and project activities for the previous fiscal year. 
  • REI’s cumulative finances are reflected in our Annual Review, available here: https://rei-npo.org/en/about/reports/

<< TARGET 16.7: Ensure responsive, inclusive and representative decision-making >>

• REI listens to the voices of refugees, IDPs (internally displaced people), returnees (refugees returning home) and local communities in the host country to understand what they can do and what they want to do.
  Representation and equality matters in REI projects

• The Lebanese Kindergarten Project employs psychosocial support staff, many of whom are refugees themselves. They are uniquely able to identify with the specific trauma concerns of Syrian refugee children and families.
• 61% of core staff for the Thai-Myanmar Border Rehabilitation Program are female

 << TARGET 16.a: Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms  >>

• KSDC prioritizes liaison with partner organizations to promote the protection and preservation of human rights and the environment, as well as to distribute knowledge of these issues. 

A new graduate speaks to the life-changing impact of KSDC training: 

“When I was inside Burma (Myanmar), I didn’t understand what rights I have and what rights I lost under the SPDC (governing junta). I also didn’t understand that I may have accidentally abused other people’s rights, or even that we had rights…Now, [thanks to KSDC Human Rights Training] I realize that the rule of law is an essential for our community to understand and follow. A lack of abidance to laws in our society means we will not be able to get real peace, justice or development…”