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SDGs in the region

Commitment to the SDGs in the UNECE region

 Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs): Where we stand.

VNRs Where we stand 2016-2023

55 out of the 56 UNECE member states will have undertaken a Voluntary National Review (VNR) by 2023 which accounts for more than 98% of its membership. Specifically, 15 countries have presented their VNRs for the first time, 38 for the second time and 2 for the third time since 2016.

At the 2023 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), 16 UNECE member states (all for their second time) are presenting their voluntary national reviews. They are Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Croatia, France, Iceland, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. In 2023, the European Union also presents a Voluntary Review for the first time.

Voluntary National Reviews (2016-2023) by UNECE member States:

(Click the links to see VNRs and focal points of each member state and the European Union)

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Albania

Latvia

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Andorra

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Liechtenstein

Armenia

Lithuania

Austria

Luxembourg

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Azerbaijan

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Malta

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Belarus

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Monaco

Belgium

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Montenegro

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Bosnia and Herzegovina

Netherlands

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Bulgaria

Norway

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Canada

North Macedonia

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Croatia

Poland

Cyprus

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Portugal

Czech Republic

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Republic of Moldova

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Denmark

Romania

Estonia

Russian Federation

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Finland

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San Marino

France

Serbia

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Georgia

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Slovakia

Germany

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Slovenia

Greece

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Spain

Hungary

Sweden

Iceland

Switzerland

Ireland

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Tajikistan

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Israel

Turkey

Italy

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Turkmenistan

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Kazakhstan

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Ukraine

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Kyrgyz Republic

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United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

 

 

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Uzbekistan

 

 

 

 

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European Union

 

 

 

 



Background: What are Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs)?

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development encourages all UN member states to review their national and sub-national progress in implementing and integrating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs), including successes, challenges, and lessons learned.

These country-led and country-driven VNRs serve as a basis for the regular reviews by the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) – the central UN platform for the follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda and SDGs at the global level under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). As stipulated in paragraph 84 of the 2030 Agenda, regular reviews by the HLPF are to be voluntary, state-led, undertaken by both developed and developing countries, and involve multiple stakeholders.

The UNECE region’s high participation in VNRs is proof of the strong efforts by member states to translate the SDGs into policy actions.