Accelerating Progress on SDGs Requires Greater Focus on SDG Implementation Policies and Budgets in Specific Goal & Target Areas

SDGs are off track, but the HLPF’s follow-up and review (FUR) process, especially reviews of Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs), does not systematically examine the reasons. This paper recommends that SDG progress reviews should focus more on analysing national SDG implementation policies and budgets. Regarding the environment, for example, this includes policies on renewable energy, resource efficiency, air and water pollution standards, and initiatives for cleaner production, and circular economy, etc. More concrete policy analysis would also help to develop policy trackers to monitor SDG implementation more systematically. Recommendations to accelerate SDG progress should focus more on concrete measures to strengthen policies, implementation, and budgets in specific areas. However, most existing VNR studies do not assess countries’ implementation policies and budgets. Instead, they focus on other issues such as achievement levels, topics discussed in the VNRs, and VNR preparation processes. This leads to recommendations to improve VNRs and their preparation, but this has limited potential to stimulate more transformative actions. Of course, analysing policy effectiveness in many policy areas in many countries is very complex, and mobilizing sufficient analytical capacity is not easy. However, getting the SDGs back on track requires more substantial recommendations for more ambitious policies and effective implementation.