Ireland: Voluntary National Review 2018 Report on the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda to the UN High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development
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Ireland: Voluntary National Review 2018 Report on the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda to the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development Table of Contents Message from an Taoiseach 3 Minister’s Foreword 4 1. Introduction 6 Ireland’s Starting Position for Implementing the SDGs 7 2. National Policy and Institutional Architecture 9 Policy Background 9 Translating the SDGs into a National Context 12 Supporting the SDGs Globally 15 Mainstreaming Gender Equality 16 Governance Arrangements 16 Stakeholder Engagement 17 Communication Activities 19 Data and the Role of National Statistical Office 19 3. Methodology and process for preparation of the Voluntary National Review 21 4. Goals and Targets 23 Goal 1: No Poverty 23 Goal 2: Zero Hunger 28 Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages 31 Goal 4: Quality Education 37 Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls 43 Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation 50 Goal 7: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all 53 Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth 58 Goal 9: Industry, Innovation, Infrastructure 64 Goal 10: Reduce inequality within and among countries 67 Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities 71 Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production 75 Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts 79 Goal 14: Life Below Water 86 Goal 15: Life on Land 89 Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions 92 Goal 17: Partnership for Goals 100 5. Conclusions and Next Steps 103 Appendices 105 Annex I: Statistical Annex 105 Annex II: Ireland’s 2030 Vision 216 Annex III: Summary Report of the VNR Stakeholder Consultation Workshop 218 Annex IV: SDG Policy Map 222 Annex V: Acronyms 290 Annex VI: List of Tables, Figures and Text Boxes 296 Voluntary National Review 2018 1 2 Voluntary National Review 2018 FOREWORD Message from An Taoiseach On behalf of the Government of Ireland, I warmly welcome the publication of Ireland’s first Voluntary National Review. Ireland believes that the Sustainable Development Goals have the potential to dramatically improve our world. They represent a call to action for the international community to meet global challenges with ambition, determination and a sense of urgency. Ireland is proud to have played a leading role in negotiating the 2030 Agenda, and we are determined now to work with our partners and stakeholders internationally, and at home to effectively implement the Goals. Earlier this year Ireland published its first National Implementation Plan, setting out a comprehensive approach to achieving these ambitions. This Voluntary National Review allows us to take stock of Ireland’s progress to date, and to reflect on the efforts we still need to make. We welcome the opportunity provided by the review process to share our experience with the international community, and to learn valuable lessons from other UN Member States. I strongly believe we can only achieve the Goals through cooperation and partnership, both within our societies and as part of the international community. Leo Varadkar, T.D. Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Voluntary National Review 2018 3 FOREWORD Foreword by Minister The Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs] set out a bold vision for a safer, fairer, more prosperous and sustainable world by 2030. The SDGs must be achieved for everyone if they are to be achieved at all. Ireland is therefore committed to leaving no one behind as it implements the SDGs, and to reaching the furthest behind first. Ireland has adopted a ‘whole-of-Government’ approach to implementing the SDGs. This is in recognition of the fact that achieving the transformative change set out in the SDGs requires Government to adopt new approaches to collaboration across Departments, and also to facilitate innovative solutions coming from communities and stakeholders. Every Government Minister in Ireland has been assigned specific responsibilities in relation to one or more of the Goals. As Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, I have overall responsibility for ensuring coherent implementation of the SDGs across Government, and I launched Ireland’s first SDGs National Implementation Plan in April this year. The SDG National Implementation Plan reflects Ireland’s long-established recognition of the importance of sustainable development, and our deep commitment to global cooperation and multilateralism. The strategic priorities of the Plan are increasing public awareness of the SDGs in Ireland, providing stakeholders with meaningful opportunities to engage with and participate in national implementation, supporting communities to make their own contributions to achieving the Goals, and aligning national policy with the SDGs. The delivery of this Voluntary National Review [VNR] to the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development is an important milestone in Ireland’s implementation of the SDGs and a demonstration of Ireland’s ongoing commitment to fully addressing the Goals at home and to contributing to their successful implementation internationally. This VNR will also provide a baseline for Ireland’s future SDG reporting at national, regional and international levels. The VNR addresses each of the 17 SDGs and, for each Goal, discusses Ireland’s national performance in detail, highlighting where we are doing well but being equally frank about the challenges we face. The VNR also presents information about Ireland’s global contribution to every Goal, in many cases through the work of our official programme for overseas development assistance, Irish Aid. This detailed discussion of the 17 Goals, together with an extensive statistical annex, is intended to provide a comprehensive, honest and transparent assessment of Ireland’s SDG performance. 4 Voluntary National Review 2018 FOREWORD Every Government Department has contributed to the preparation of the VNR, and the VNR process has been a useful learning experience for Ireland, and has undoubtedly increased the level of engagement with the SDGs across Government. It has also highlighted the potential to further break down policy silos between Departments and to develop more effective, interlinked, policies. The lessons learned from this VNR will inform how Ireland implements the SDGs in the years ahead. Ireland has also benefitted, throughout the preparation of both the SDG National Implementation Plan and this VNR, from positive and constructive engagement from national stakeholders, and I want to make sure that stakeholders are provided with greater opportunities to engage with and participate in the SDG reporting process in subsequent reporting cycles. This is one of the reasons why I have established a national SDG Stakeholder Forum which met for the first time in June this year. Achieving the SDGs will not be easy, but the Goals are a challenge that the global community, working together, can and must meet if we are to provide our children and future generations with the bright future they deserve. Through this first VNR, Ireland is demonstrating how we are playing our part to meet that global challenge. Denis Naughten T.D. Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment Voluntary National Review 2018 5 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1. Introduction Ireland is proud to have played a significant role in the development and adoption of the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development as co-facilitator, together with Kenya, of the 2030 intergovernmental negotiations. As a country we want to continue to show leadership as the Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs] are implemented, both at home and across the world. While Ireland adopted its first National Sustainable Development Strategy more than two decades ago, the SDGs require a step change in the integration of national social, economic and environmental policy. In addition, the SDGs underline the linkages between sustainable development in Ireland and our global engagement, particularly through the work of our overseas development programme, Irish Aid. Ireland recognises the transformative ambition of the SDGs and considers that the 2030 Agenda, taken together with the Paris Agreement, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, provides a framework for achieving a sustainable, prosperous and peaceful future for the world and its peoples. While the SDGs represent a global response to global challenges, Ireland also considers them to be nationally relevant and capable of having a transformative, positive impact on quality of life throughout Ireland. In implementing the SDGs, Ireland will be guided by the following principles: u That every person is entitled to a life of dignity in which they can fulfil their full potential; and u That the economic, social and environmental requirements of such a life are fundamentally linked and interdependent on each other. In putting these principles into practice, Ireland pledges that no one will be left behind and that we will endeavour to reach the furthest behind first. Ireland has adopted a ‘whole-of-Government’ approach to the SDGs, and adopted its first SDG National Implementation Plan in March 2018. The SDG National Implementation Plan includes an ambitious ‘2030 Vision’ for Ireland to fully achieve the SDGs at home and to support their implementation around the world. The SDG National Implementation Plan builds on Ireland’s current national Sustainable Development Strategy Our Sustainable Future and Ireland’s Policy for International Development One World,