High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development
11-20 July, UN Headquarters, New York
The United Nations’ High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) is happening 11-20 July at UN Headquarters in New York. It’s the essential platform for guiding global efforts to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, adopted by all member states in September 2015.
This year’s forum is the first since the adoption of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. The session will include voluntary reviews of 22 countries and thematic reviews of progress already made toward the Goals—and some significant progress truly has been made. To draw attention to this forward progress and the forum, we’ll highlight the work done in one country toward each of the 17 SDGs every day from 4 July until the forum concludes on 20 July. You can follow the conversation on our Twitter and Facebook accounts using hashtag #17days17goals.
Check back every day through 20 July to find out what the UN, its agencies, Member States and civil society are doing for the SDGs!
Visit the official High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development website: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/hlpf
Visit the related ECOSOC 2016 High-level Segment website: https://www.un.org/ecosoc/en/events/2016
Member State inputs to the 2016 HLPF: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/hlpf/inputs
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#17days17goals
Goal 1: No Poverty
4 July 2016
Country: Georgia
Under the European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD), UNDP promotes agriculture development in Georgia’s Ajara Autonomous Republic as a foundation for food security, sustainable production and rural employment. The programme, expected to be completed by mid-2016, focuses on the assistance to small farmers and runs in close cooperation with the Ajara Government and the Ajara Agroservice Centre.
- Read more about this project on the UNDP website.
- Read Georgia’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
Goal 2: Zero Hunger
5 July 2016
Country: Philippines
According to the Philippines’ input to the HLPF, local civil society organizations this spring held a Voters’ Education Forum on Food and Nutrition Security which identified food and nutrition security policy proposals for prioritization in the legislative agenda of the next Congress.
- Read more about WFP efforts in the Philippines.
- Read about an April policy forum by the Philippine Legislators’ Committee on Population and Development, in partnership with the WFP-Philippines, entitled “Ways forward: Sustaining the policy agenda on food and nutrition security for the next government.”
- Read the Philippines’ input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being
6 July 2016
Country: Republic of Korea
In 2016, the Republic of Korea launched its “Safe Life for All” initiative, which builds on the goals to make this world safe and secure from infectious diseases. It aims to support the enhancement of health security partner countries to proactively prevent infectious diseases, detect them as early as possible, and respond rapidly to public health crises.
- Read the Republic of Korea’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- More on Korea’s “Safe Life for All” initiative.
- Read a speech from the Foreign Minister of Korea on the topic.
Goal 4: Quality Education
7 July 2016
Country: Norway
According to Norway’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum, global education—particularly girls’ education and education in emergencies—is one of their top priorities. The country announced recently it intends to allocate NOK 400 million (USD 48 million) for education in Syria and its neighbouring countries Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq for the period 2016–2018. It is planned that NOK 200 million of this funding, channelled through UNICEF, will be provided this year.
- Read Norway’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read about Norway’s plans for education funding in Syria.
- Read Norway Prime Minister Erna Solberg’s Guardian op-ed about global education.
Goal 5: Gender Equality
8 July 2016
Country: Samoa
Last February, Samoans elected outright four women to its parliament—the most women ever—and the country’s ruling Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP) selected Fiame Naomi Mata’afa to be the country’s first female deputy prime minister.
- Read Samoa’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read about Samoa’s 2016 election results.
Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation
9 July 2016
Country: Sierra Leone
A UNICEF-supported rehabilitation project, with the help of NGO partner Living Water, brought clean water to the Harry C. Primary School in Masorie, Sierra Leone, this April for the first time in a decade. In its input document to the 2016 High-level Political Forum, Sierra Leone says access to safe drinking water increased from 36.7 percent in 1990, to 62.6 percent in 2015.
- Read Samoa’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read about the UNICEF/Living Water project in Masorie, Sierra Leone.
Goal 7: Affordable and Clean Energy
10 July 2016
Country: Estonia
In its input to the High-level Political Forum, Estonia points out its success in the heating sector, where a high share of renewable energy is used. Now the Baltic country is pushing ahead with ambitious plans for an offshore wind park in the Baltic Sea.
- Read Estonia’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Learn more about Estonia’s plans for more wind energy.
- Read about how Estonia reached its 2020 energy goal early.
Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
11 July 2016
Country: Togo
Togo and UNDP in January 2016 announced the creation of the Community Development Emergency Programme to provide more than US$250 million over three years for the rural and vulnerable populations who make up nearly 62 per cent of the country’s population. The programme plans to involve communities in the development of basic socioeconomic infrastructures and rural entrepreneurship.
- Read Togo’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (French only).
- Read about the UNDP-Togo plan.
Goal 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
12 July 2016
Country: Venezuela
Venezuela is in the process of implementing its Enabling Act of December 2015, meant to support social investments, infrastructure and public works. In its voluntary input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, Venezuela says about 60 percent of its 2016 national budget has been allocated to social investment.
Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities
13 July 2016
Country: France
Gay men in France can now donate blood after a 30-year ban was lifted in July 2016. Reducing social inequalities at home is a priority for France, which in its input document calls for new social mobility drivers. A particular effort is being made in the most disadvantaged areas to identify the main factors of inequality and reduce them by means of education and training.
- Read France’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read a France 24 story about changes to blood donation rules in France.
Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
14 July 2016
Country: Egypt
Egypt’s Social Housing Programme aims to improve the affordability of formal housing for low-income households. It’s expected to benefit about 3.6 million people in the lowest income groups and replace 150,000 housing units in slum areas by 2018.
- Read Egypt’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read a recent news story about the Social Housing Programme.
Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
15 July 2016
Country: Colombia
Colombia has created an overall green growth strategy that aims for sustainable consumption and production across all regions and industries. In late 2015 the World Bank Board of Executive Directors approved a $700 million loan to support natural resource protection in the country.
- Read Colombia’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read about Colombia’s green growth plan.
Goal 13: Climate Action
16 July 2016
Country: Morocco
Morocco, which is hosting the 2016 UN Climate Change Conference (COP22) in November, is making great strides toward clean energy. The Noor solar project anticipates the construction of five solar power plants by 2020, totalling 2,000 MW of capacity. The first phase of the project, Noor-1 in Ouarzazate, inaugurated in February 2016, covers an area of 450 hectares. Ultimately, the program will save 3.7 million tons of CO2 emissions per year.
- Read Morocco’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read about Morocco’s flagship climate action programmes.
Goal 14: Life Below Water
17 July 2016
Country: Montenegro
Montenegro’s national strategy on integrated coastal zone management is built on data from UNEP, UNDP and the country’s own ecological footprint analysis. A special programme to achieve carbon neutral tourism is also in effect, urging business owners near the Adriatic Sea and in the country’s mountain lake areas to adopt more sustainable practices.
- Read Montenegro’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read a UNDP story about the “Towards Carbon Neutral Tourism in Montenegro” programme.
Goal 15: Life on Land
18 July 2016
Country: Madagascar
Biodiversity hotspot Madagascar, home to more than 70 species of migratory birds, hosted a conference on World Migratory Bird Day in May highlighting the impact of humans on these birds and encouraging more action.
- Read Madagascar’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read about Madagascar’s World Migratory Bird Day events.
Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
19 July 2016
Country: Uganda
Since 2013, UNDP has been working in partnership with UGANET to provide legal and social protection to vulnerable persons, particularly women and girls, on matters related to property and land rights.
- Read Uganda’s input to the 2016 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
- Read about a UNDP Uganda project working for girls’ rights.
Goal 17: Partnerships for the Goals
20 July 2016
Country: Germany
Germany held five public dialogue conferences across the country with representatives of federal, state and communal-level government and those from the private sector, academia and civil society to discuss the requirements for a new Sustainability Strategy. The results were taken into account in the writing Germany’s Sustainable Development Strategy 2016.