The voluntary national review (VNR) is a process through which countries assess and present national progress made in implementing the 2030 Agenda. As part of its follow-up and review mechanisms, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development encourages member states to "conduct regular and inclusive reviews of progress at the national and sub-national levels, which are country-led and country-driven". These national reviews are expected to serve as a basis for the regular reviews by the high-level political forum (HLPF) meeting under the auspices of ECOSOC. The VNR aims to facilitate the sharing of experiences, including successes, challenges and lessons learned, with a view to accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The VNR also seek to strengthen policies and institutions of governments and to mobilize multistakeholder support and partnerships for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
All countries in North and Central Asia have completed and reported at least one VNR. Kazakhstan reported their second VNR in 2022, whereas Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are preparing their second VNR to be reported in 2023. While reporting on the specific context of each country, the VNR also outline challenges, many of which are similar across countries. The VNRs are not only a reporting mechanism to periodically take stock, but also a tool for countries to continuously reflect and improve on the SDG implementation process itself. In this regard, this Workshop will facilitate the exchange of good practices in preparing VNR and present ESCAP’s support to countries which are undergoing the VNR process, such as the VNR Twinning Programme. At the end of the workshop there will be an informal VNR clinic for 2023 VNR countries. This will provide an opportunity to countries to ask questions and for ESCAP to provide information about the VNR process. It will also allow space for VNR Twinning Countries to share approaches and ideas.
This workshop is an associated event of the Sixth North and Central Asia Multistakeholder Forum on Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.
