As the world continues to recover from the havoc brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the threat of the virus remains. The destruction of the environment, increased incidences of poverty and hunger, intensified land and resource conflicts, and the shrinking democratic spaces in a number of countries in the region have slowed down the progress of the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
More than ever, civil society organizations (CSOs) continue to be agents of democratic expression in search for a more just, sustainable, and inclusive approaches to sustainable development. With limited mobility and interactions with communities done through online means, the monitoring role that CSOs perform remain critical to increase transparency and accountability.