A/HRC/34/25 19. The United Nations system is called upon to be “fit for purpose” in its support for Member States in meeting this imperative, and in relation to this, the United Nations system is putting the imperative to combat inequalities and discrimination at the heart of its policies and operational work. More specifically, under the auspices of the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and UN-Women have been leading the development of a shared framework for action on combating inequalities and discrimination as a universally applicable, coherent, strategic and whole-of-system plan of action that is operationally-oriented and fully grounded in the normative standards of the United Nations, including the Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, relevant international treaties and conventions and in the Sustainable Development Goals themselves. The purpose of the shared framework for action is to establish a common understanding within the United Nations system of the challenges of rising inequalities and pervasive discrimination, to identify the separate and joint actions needed to combat it, and to promote the systematic integration of equality and non-discrimination issues in United Nations support for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. IV. Accountability 20. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development commits Governments to establishing a robust, voluntary, effective, participatory, transparent and integrated followup and review framework, and sets out important principles to guide the review process at all levels, including gender sensitivity and respect for human rights. As part of its follow-up and review mechanisms, the 2030 Agenda encourages Member States to conduct regular and inclusive reviews of progress at the national and subnational levels which are countryled and country-driven. These national reviews are expected to serve as a basis for the regular reviews by the high-level political forum meeting under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council. As stipulated in the 2030 Agenda, regular reviews by the high-level political forum are to be voluntary, State-led, undertaken by both developed and developing countries, and involve multiple stakeholders. 21. Accountability is a cornerstone of the human rights framework and a litmus test for the human rights-based implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The human rights framework defines who is responsible for what and towards whom, and clarifies the nature of obligations – to take steps to the maximum of their available resources to achieve progressively the full realization of economic, social and cultural rights – as well as those that are of an immediate nature, notably to remove discriminatory laws, policies and other measures, and to assure minimum essential levels of each of the rights to assist those left furthest behind. It then establishes the conditions to hold duty-bearers answerable to rightsholders for their decisions and omissions, and provides mechanisms through which people can endorse their rights, monitor progress transparently, sanction poor performance and seek redress for human rights violations. 7 22. An accountability framework for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda must therefore be strengthened at the global, regional and national levels and linked with relevant accountability mechanisms for human rights and other international norms and standards. Country and thematic reviews should systematically draw upon information and recommendations from United Nations human rights mechanisms as a means to achieve the 7 6 See also OHCHR and the Center for Economic and Social Rights, Who Will Be Accountable? Human Rights and the Post-2015 Development Agenda, United Nations, 2013.