The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) has updated its handbook for the preparation of voluntary national reviews (VNRs). Together with the UN Secretary-General’s voluntary common reporting guidelines for VNRs, the guidance will support the countries presenting their VNRs at the 2026 session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF).
The handbook provides step-by-step guidance on the process of preparing and presenting a VNR. It also acknowledges that the steps outlined in the handbook are not exhaustive, and many other sources of information may also assist countries in the VNR preparation and reporting process.
A foreword by Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Li Junhua highlights follow-up and review as an essential element of “taking stock of progress and identifying actions needed to accelerate implementation of the SDGs.” “This is especially important at a time when the world continues to face multiple, interlinked global challenges” that range from the intensifying climate change and biodiversity loss to rising debt, conflicts, and widening inequalities between and within countries, he underscores.
The foreword further notes that 402 VNRs have been submitted to the HLPF since 2016. With a view to support the 36 VNRs due to be presented in 2026, the handbook captures ten years of shared experience in undertaking and supporting VNRs at the HLPF. “As more countries prepare their third, fourth or fifth VNRs, attention is shifting toward deepening assessments of progress, identifying persistent gaps, and defining the priority actions needed to realize the SDGs by 2030,’ Li writes.
The handbook includes recommendations on how to initiate a VNR and on how to communicate the intention of conducting one. It offers tips on the organization and preparation of the review and multi-stakeholder participation. Among the key building blocks for preparing the review, the handbook identifies and elaborates on:
- Ownership of the SDGs;
- Incorporation of the SDGs into national frameworks;
- Integration of the three dimensions of sustainable development;
- Leaving no one behind;
- Institutional mechanisms;
- Structural issues;
- Goals and targets;
- Means of implementation; and
- Annexes.
The handbook also addresses: monitoring and review; preparatory workshops and submission of VNRs; presentation of the VNR at the HLPF; and what happens after the presentation. It includes as annexes a VNR preparation checklist and the Secretary-General’s voluntary common reporting guidelines for VNRs.
HLPF 2026 will be held in New York, US, from 6-16 July. [Publication: Handbook for the Preparation of Voluntary National Reviews: 2026 Edition]