A/HRC/45/28 III. Good governance, human rights and sustainable development 12. As pointed out by OHCHR, there is no comprehensive definition of “good governance”, as it encompasses a multitude of notions that vary depending on the field of study and context, such as respect for human rights, the rule of law, effective participation, political pluralism, transparent and accountable processes and institutions, an efficient and effective public sector, political empowerment, equity and sustainability. However, a significant degree of consensus exists that good governance is related to political and institutional processes and outcomes that are deemed necessary to achieve the goals of development. Critically, the true test of good governance is the degree to which it delivers on the promise of human rights: civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights. 4 13. The 2030 Agenda similarly recognized good governance as a cornerstone of the construction of peaceful, just and inclusive societies with a view to achieving sustainable development. 5 Sustainable Development Goal 16 epitomizes the very idea of good governance, and more largely encompasses the human rights dimension of the 2030 Agenda, by stressing the importance of, inter alia, promoting the rule of law, reducing corruption, developing effective, accountable and transparent institutions, ensuring responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making, and ensuring public access to information and protecting fundamental freedoms (targets 16.1–16.10). 14. The Human Rights Council, in its successive resolutions on the role of good governance in the promotion and protection of human rights, has delineated the scope of what good governance is and clearly articulated the interconnection of good governance, human rights and sustainable development. In its latest resolution on the matter, the Council recognized that transparent, responsible, accountable, open and participatory government, responsive to the needs and aspirations of the people, was the foundation on which good governance rested, and that such a foundation was one of the indispensable conditions for the full realization of human rights, including the right to development. 6 Fundamentally, it further recognized the importance of a conducive environment, at both the national and international levels, for the full enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms and of the mutually reinforcing relationship between good governance and human rights. 7 15. The Independent Expert followed with great interest the Council’s intersessional seminar, organized by OHCHR and held on 14 June 2019, on the role of good governance in the promotion and protection of human rights and best practices in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, including Goal 16 in this regard. This seminar was an occasion for experts and other participants to underline that good governance, human rights and achievement of the Goals were indeed interrelated and mutually reinforcing, and that good governance and Goal 16 were the cornerstones of the 2030 Agenda (A/HRC/43/34, paras. 43–44). 16. The concept of good governance is firmly grounded in international human rights law as it requires the realization of several human rights principles and standards, including the right to participate in public affairs, the right to access to information, the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, peaceful assembly, and association, and the right to a remedy. Importantly, it is also linked to the obligations of States to respect and ensure the rights recognized in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and to take steps with a view to achieving progressively the full realization of the rights recognized in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights by all appropriate means. 17. As observed by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, citing a decision of the International Court of Justice, international financial institutions are “bound 4 5 6 7 4 OHCHR, “Good governance and human rights”. Available at www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Development/GoodGovernance/Pages/GoodGovernanceIndex.aspx. General Assembly resolution 70/1, para. 35. Council resolution 37/6, ninth preambular paragraph. Ibid., eighth preambular paragraph.