The unique challenges of countries in special situations needed to stay at the forefront of efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development Agenda speakers said on Thursday, 14 July 2016, as the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development continued.

The Forum held three panels exploring the need for statistics in the monitoring and evaluation of the future development agenda, as well as the particular needs of those countries. The panels’ themes were “National mechanisms for monitoring progress and reporting on implementation for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals”; “Making the 2030 Agenda deliver for small island developing States, building on the SAMOA Pathway”; and “Countries in special situations”.

A profound strategic shift would be needed to fulfil the goal of “leaving no one behind” said David Steven, Senior Fellow and Associate Director at the Centre on International Cooperation, New York University, United States. “We must do this work urgently”, he stressed, noting that the 2030 Agenda singled out, in particular, African countries, least developed countries, landlocked developing countries, small island developing States and conflict- and post-conflict countries, as well as middle-income countries. The new agenda was both a promise of what could be achieved and a warning against failing to act now, he emphasized.

Many countries were facing unfulfilled development expectations, said Youba Sokona, Special Adviser on Sustainable Development of the South Centre Least Developed Countries Independent Expert Group. “The window for action is rapidly closing,” he said, adding that there was room for each country, no matter its condition, to take on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

As the world pursued a more sustainable future, small island developing States had every potential to be left behind, warned Anote Tong, former President of Kiribati. Climate change put those countries at particular risk, and without concrete action on climate issues, every other development objective would be meaningless. In that context, he was pleased that climate change and ocean preservation were included as stand-alone elements within the Sustainable Development Goals.

Recalling that the Millennium Development Goals were a “set it and forget it” exercise, Justina Langidrik, Chief Secretary of the Marshall Islands, said that the Sustainable Development Goals were an opportunity for all to do better and should be seen as a benefit and not a burden at the implementation level. With a population of 60,000 people spread over an area the size of Mexico, the Marshall Islands grappled with unique data reporting challenges. Moreover, the islands were almost entirely dependent on bilateral assistance, she said, stressing the need to urgently review those arrangements in the context of the development framework.

David Smith, Coordinator at the University of Consortium for Small Island States and the Institute for Sustainable Development at the University of the West Indies, said there was a need to push forward with an economic transformation to a green economy with more focus on increased markets for goods, services and labour. The private sector and civil society involvement should be promoted. Human capital development through education and training should be undertaken, while science and technology should be mainstreamed into policies.

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Make sustainable development goals relevant to citizens, speakers tell High-level Political Forum, as discussions centre on reaching successful 2030 Agenda results

National-level implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development must be country owned and context specific, with its goals closely linked to national values and priorities, stressed speakers on Wednesday.

The Forum held four panels exploring early national implementation efforts as well as future plans, with panellists and other participants pinpointing examples of good practices and identifying challenges. The panels’ themes were “Creating ownership at the national level”, “Mainstreaming Sustainable Development Goals into national policies, plans and strategies and integrating the three dimensions of sustainable development”, “Vertical cooperation: Local authorities and national Governments working together for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda”, and “Challenges in mobilizing means of implementation at the national level (financing, technology, capacity-building)”.

“We need to begin by making the Sustainable Development Goals relevant and as close to our countries and people as possible,” said Stine Lise Hattestad Bratsberg, Chief Executive Officer of PURE Consulting, who served as a lead discussant. While many countries had made early strides, there was still much work to do in implementing the 2030 Agenda, she said, including raising public awareness of that collective journey.

The notion of public support and the importance of including diverse stakeholders in the implementation process were echoed by a number of speakers throughout the day. Adolfo Ayuso, Deputy Director General for International Affairs in the Office of the President of Mexico, said that his Government had worked to get the message out about the 2030 Agenda to ensure that people understood its purpose and objectives, particularly at the local level. The ability to achieve national ownership would be directly related to the ability to understand the new development framework. There must also be a willingness to participate in implementing the 2030 Agenda through the recognition that it was not only about rights, but also obligations.

Along similar lines, many speakers stressed the need to avoid imposing a “one-size-fits-all” approach on countries as they worked to implement the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. Indeed, some said, while those targets were universal in nature, they must be balanced with national priorities and achieved in ways that made sense on the ground.

Underscoring the importance of striking that balance was Louis Meuleman, Senior Fellow at the University of Massachusetts Boston and Wageningen University, Netherlands. He emphasized that creating national ownership of the 2030 Agenda would only be possible if the Sustainable Development Goals appealed to what people knew, understood and found logical. One could not create ownership by telling stakeholders to forget everything they believed in. Balancing the universal goals with national values and traditions would be vital, he said, stressing that external blueprints – including so-called best practices – should not be applied.

Wardarina Thaib, Programme Officer from the Asia-Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development and Co-Chair of the Asia Pacific Regional CSO Engagement Mechanism, who also represented the major group for women, described promising early implementation efforts taking place across the region. However, there were also many warning signs that the 2030 Agenda’s ambitions would be undermined, including failures to address systemic exclusion and to involve civil society in development planning. Larger and more far-reaching trade treaties had been agreed upon, States were engaging in proxy wars and land-grabbing and there were increasing attacks on human rights defenders, she said.

Along with challenges, panellists also discussed a number of solutions. Joseph Enyimu, economist at the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development of Uganda, emphasized that the 2030 Agenda’s implementation would require mature institutions within countries and adequate policy space. Fiscal discipline would be critical, as funds for the various dimensions of sustainable development often came from the same source and the international community must rally around country-led statistical development.