The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) organized an informal briefing for Member States and stakeholders on the outcomes of the expert group meetings (EGMs) to share key messages and solutions in support of preparations for the in-depth review of five SDGs at the July session of the 2025 UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF).

Held on the theme, ‘Advancing sustainable, inclusive, science- and evidence-based solutions for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals for leaving no one behind,’ HLPF 2025 will conduct in-depth review of SDG 3 (good health and well-being), SDG 5 (gender equality), SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth), SDG 14 (life below water), and SDG 17 (partnerships for the Goals).

In preparation for the review, DESA, with UN partners, organized EGMs on SDGs 3, 5, and 8, convening stakeholders from academia, civil society, international organizations, youth, and the private sector. The meetings assessed progress to date, highlighted challenges and opportunities for accelerating achievements, and presented innovative solutions for advancing interlinked progress across these and other SDGs.

Lotta Tahtinen, Director, Office of Intergovernmental Support and Coordination for Sustainable Development, DESA, offered introductory remarks. She highlighted HLPF 2025 as an opportunity to rally around the SDGs. “With collective action and political will, we can still make huge strides, in the time remaining till 2030,” she said.

Among the central themes that emerged from the EGMs, Tahtinen identified the need to: build on the intertwined and synergistic nature of the Goals and targets, reflective of the holistic vision of the 2030 Agenda; form diverse coalitions to deliver multilateral solutions; and strengthen the means of implementation. She called on participants to leverage the agreement reached at the Summit of the Future (SoF) and to tap into the ongoing efforts around the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4), the Third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) and the Second World Summit for Social Development.

Igor Pokanevych, Senior External Relations Officer, World Health Organization (WHO) Office at the UN, and Ayman Abdelmohsen, Chief Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Branch, UN Population Fund (UNFPA) shared key messages from the EGM on SDG 3, which was held in Geneva, Switzerland, on 12 February.

They emphasized that with 4.5 billion people lacking essential health services and 2 billion suffering financial hardship to access health, SDG 3 targets are off track. Among other recommendations, they identified the need to: enhance health financing and investments; strengthen the health workforce; re-prioritize sexual, reproductive, and maternal health; close data gaps for informed decision making; leverage science, innovation, and technology; and foster collaboration beyond the health sector.

Sarah Hendricks, Director, Policy Programme and Intergovernmental Division, UN Women, presented key messages from the EGM on SDG 5, which convened in New York, US, from 21-22 January. Highlighting gender equality as “a cornerstone for sustainable development across all sectors,” she said the discussions drew “vital synergies” with the 30th Anniversary of Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, UNOC3, FfD4, and the Second World Summit for Social Development. As “the environment in which we must pursue gender equality” is reshaping, Hendricks described “a mixed landscape of challenges and opportunities,” with “grassroots movements provid[ing] a hopeful counterbalance.”

Dino Corell, Senior Multilateral Relations Officer, International Labour Organization (ILO), outlined the main takeaways from the EGM on SDG 8, which took place in New York from 6-7 February. Among the key recommendations, he highlighted:

• To foster inclusive and sustainable economic growth, macroeconomic strategies that generate employment, reduce inequalities, and empower women economically should be considered.
• To align the digital transformation with decent work, it is essential to improve working conditions and strengthen protections in the digital and platform economy, while promoting access to digital skills and technology.
• To enhance labor rights and eliminate exploitation, it is essential to promote poverty eradication, access to education, and social protection.

Astra Bonini, Chief, Integrated Policy Analysis Branch, Division for Sustainable Development Goals, DESA, delivered crosscutting messages for the SDGs in focus and their interlinkages with other SDGs. Highlighting the need to take advantage of positive synergies among SDG targets, as called for in the 2019 and 2023 editions of the Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR), she noted agreement across the EGMs that “radically changing course over the five years ahead to 2030 will require strong political leadership, and interventions that align with systemic change rather than incremental and siloed approaches.”

The event concluded with an open discussion of the EGMs’ key messages.

The briefing was held on 27 February at UN Headquarters in New York. [Briefing Concept Note] [Expert Group Meetings for 2025 HLPF Thematic Review]