10 October 2019: UN General Assembly (UNGA) President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande will soon launch intergovernmental consultations on the 2020 theme for the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), as well as the process for reviewing the HLPF.

In a meeting on 4 October 2019, Muhammad-Bande and Mona Juul, President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), discussed preparations for the 2020 HLPF, as well as the intergovernmental review of the HLPF that is mandated to take place during the UNGA’s 74th session (2019-2020).

On preparing for the 2020 HLPF, the Presidents acknowledged the urgency of identifying a theme in order to allow time for preparations. By UNGA resolution 72/305 agreed in 2018, the UNGA adopts only one theme for the HLPF and the year-long cycle of ECOSOC overall. Muhammad-Bande said he will launch the intergovernmental process on the 2020 theme “very soon.”

Also in preparation for the 2020 HLPF, Juul said she will convene a workshop for the countries presenting voluntary National Reviews (VNRs). The workshop will take place from 19-20 November 2019, in Oslo, Norway. As of 10 October 2019, there are 50 countries intending to participate in the VNRs in 2020. Additional countries had volunteered to present, but the ECOSOC Bureau has agreed to give priority to first- and second-time presenters and to those that did not present in 2019.

On the intergovernmental review of the HLPF, Muhammad-Bande said he will formally launch the process “in the next few weeks.” In addition, ECOSOC and the UN Foundation will hold a retreat on the HLPF on 1 November 2019, according to the memo of the two Presidents’ meeting.