The High-Level Political Forum 2021 was held from July 6-15 under the theme “Sustainable and resilient recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic that promotes the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development: forging an inclusive and effective pathway for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda in the context of the Decade of Action and results for sustainable development”. A total of 42 countries presented their Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) in this space, considered the most relevant at the global level for monitoring progress in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Cepei followed up on the main sessions of the HLPF, and Voluntary National Review presentations from Latin America and the Caribbean countries, after which it published an analysis on its main outcomes.
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Some context about the HLPF 2021
The main results of the HLPF can be found in the document High-Level Political Forum 2021: The crisis will not be overcome with words.
This year, the SDGs under thematic review were: 1. End Poverty; 2. Zero Hunger; 3. Health and well-being; 8. Decent work and economic growth; 10. Reduced inequalities; 12. Responsible production and consumption; 13. Climate Action; 16. Peace, justice and strong institutions and 17. Partnerships for the Goals.
In addition, the most frequently mentioned development gaps were those of gender, technology, social protection and access to health services, including vaccines and clinical treatments for COVID-19.
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21 targets of the 2030 Agenda were not achieved
In the analysis The SDG 2020 Targets: Rehearsing for the future, Cepei presents the 2020 targets of the Sustainable Development Goals that should have been achieved last year, but are still far from doing so. “The failure to achieve the targets particularly affects the SDGs with the highest environmental content, given that they constituted 20% of the targets of SDG 13 (Climate Action); 40% of SDG 14 (Submarine Life) and 42% of SDG 15 (Lives of Terrestrial Ecosystems)”.
Strengthening evidence-based decision making is necessary to achieve the SDGs by 2030 as proposed by the sustainable development agenda.
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Latin America and the Caribbean presented their progress on the 2030 Agenda
Eleven countries from Latin America and the Caribbean presented their Voluntary National Reviews, some of them such as Colombia, Mexico, Guatemala and Uruguay did so for the third time, while Cuba, Bolivia and Antigua and Barbuda presented their progress for the first time.
What measures did countries put in place to fight against the consequences of the pandemic and how will they address a sustainable and resilient recovery that promotes the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development?
The following reports contain highlights of the presentations (in Spanish):