The President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) informed countries of the maximum number of Voluntary National Reviews that can be presented during the July 2021 session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF).

Writing to UN Member States on 30 July 2020, President Munir Akram indicated that only 42 countries will be able to present VNRs during the Ministerial Segment in 2021. He will close the list once this number has been reached, and will give priority to countries presenting VNRs for the first time.

As of 13 August, 21 countries have expressed interest in presenting VNRs in 2021. They include four first-time presenters: Angola, Bolivia, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Marshall Islands. 

Second-time presenters currently listed are: Bhutan, China, Czech Republic, Germany, Laos, Madagascar, Norway, Pakistan, Paraguay, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, and Zimbabwe. Expressing interest in presenting for a third time are Guatemala, Mexico, and Qatar.

Governments have agreed that the 2021 session of the HLPF will focus on the theme, ‘Sustainable and resilient recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, that promotes the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainable development: Building an inclusive and effective path for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda in the context of the decade of action and delivery for sustainable development.’

It will focus in particular on nine SDGs: Goal 1 (No poverty); Goal 2 (Zero hunger); Goal 3 (Good health and wellbeing); Goal 8 (Decent work and economic growth); Goal 10 (Reduced inequalities); Goal 12 (Responsible consumption and production); Goal 13 (Climate action); Goal 16 (Peace, justice, and strong institutions); and Goal 17 (Partnership for the Goals). 

The reviews will include targets with a 2020 timeline.