Part 1. Introduction
1.1
In 2015, all United Nations members adopted Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (the 2030 Agenda) and its 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs). The SDGs came into effect on 1 January 2016 with the aim of being achieved by the end of 2030. They cover social, environmental, and economic sustainable development (see Figure 1).
Figure 1
The United Nations sustainable development goals
Source: The United Nations.
1.2
The United Nations describes the concept of sustainable development as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs".1 The 2030 Agenda states that eradicating poverty is the biggest challenge and fundamental for sustainable development.
1.3
The United Nations' previous development efforts were focused on developing nations and driven through the eight Millennium Development Goals. The 2030 Agenda builds on the Millennium Development Goals, is ambitious, and requires developing and developed countries to act. The 2030 Agenda seeks to improve life for current and future generations, prioritising those that it describes as being "the furthest behind". These might include indigenous populations, disabled people, children and youth, older people, and migrants.
1.4
The 2030 Agenda acknowledges that achieving the SDGs will need to include central government, indigenous peoples, local government, non-governmental organisations, human rights institutions, the private sector, and the public.
1.5
The 2030 Agenda states that the SDGs are interrelated. Policies and initiatives need to be cohesive and consider all three "dimensions" (social, environmental, and economic) of sustainable development. For example, a proposal for economic growth should consider how it could also benefit society and the environment, now and in the long term, and how any harmful impacts will be addressed.
1.6
The 2030 Agenda includes the pledge that "no one will be left behind".2 It also reaffirms previous international agreements, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Declaration on the Right to Development, and the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development. The United Nations has subsequently acknowledged that other international agreements, such as the Paris Agreement in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, are also integral to the success of the 2030 Agenda.
1.7
Each SDG has a number of targets, and each target has a set of global indicators to measure progress. Overall, there are 169 targets and 231 indicators for the 17 SDGs. Some targets require a specific and measurable level of improvement (for example, "By 2030, reduce at least by half the proportion of men, women and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to national definitions").3 Other targets are more general or are about implementing or strengthening policies or initiatives (see Figure 2).
Figure 2
Examples of different types of global targets for the sustainable development goals
| Goal | Targets identifying a specific level of improvement |
|---|---|
| No poverty | By 2030, reduce at least by half the proportion of men, women and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to national definitions. |
| Decent work and economic growth | By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value. |
| Sustainable cities and communities | By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums. |
| Life below water | By 2020, conserve at least 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas, consistent with national and international law and based on the best available scientific information. |
| Goal | Targets identifying general improvement |
|---|---|
| Clean water and sanitation | By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimising release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally. |
| Industry, innovation and infrastructure | Significantly increase access to information and communications technology and strive to provide universal and affordable access to the Internet in least developed countries by 2020. |
| Responsible consumption and production | By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse. |
| Peace, justice and strong institutions | Significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere. |
| Goal | Targets focused on policies or initiatives |
|---|---|
| Good health and well-being | Strengthen the capacity of all countries, in particular developing countries, for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks. |
| Reduced inequalities | Adopt policies, especially fiscal, wage and social protection policies, and progressively achieve greater equality. |
| Climate action | Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning. |
| Partnerships for the goals | Enhance policy coherence for sustainable development. |
Source: United Nations. Targets categorised by the Office of the Auditor-General.
1.8
The 2030 Agenda is not legally binding. This means that countries are free to determine how best to implement it. However, the United Nations expects governments to establish national frameworks to achieve the SDGs. The 2030 Agenda also states that governments might want to set their own SDG targets and indicators that are relevant to their country's circumstances.
1.9
Countries that signed up to the 2030 Agenda also committed to producing at least two Voluntary National Reviews (voluntary reviews) that report on a country's progress towards implementing the SDGs. The voluntary reviews are presented at a United Nations High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. New Zealand's first voluntary review – He waka eke noa – Towards a better future, together: New Zealand's progress towards the SDGs 2019 – was presented at the 2019 United Nations High Level Political Forum.
1.10
The Government has stated that it intends to contribute to the SDGs "through a combination of domestic action, international leadership on global issues and support for developing countries".4 In its first voluntary review, the Government acknowledged several challenges that New Zealand needs to address to be able to achieve the 17 SDGs. These challenges include:
- child poverty;
- mental health and addiction;
- inequalities of outcomes, particularly for Māori and Pacific peoples, and the need to raise incomes for lower income earners;
- improving housing quality and affordability;
- protecting and restoring water ecosystems; and
- mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.
Why we did this work
1.11
The International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) has encouraged its member countries to conduct a review of their government's preparedness to implement the SDGs.5 This includes assessing what their government has done to give effect to its commitment to the 2030 Agenda and the 17 SDGs, as well as how it intends to implement the SDGs.
1.12
We considered that it was important to provide an independent perspective on the Government's preparedness to implement the SDGs. We carried out our review just over a third of the way through the United Nations' time frame for achieving the SDGs.
1.13
Nearly six years after it adopted the 2030 Agenda, we expected the Government to have established a foundation from which to successfully achieve the SDGs by 2030. There is still time for the Government to respond to our recommendations and progress the planning, implementation, and monitoring needed to achieve the SDGs by 2030.
What we looked at
1.14
We assessed the Government's preparedness to implement the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs by looking at:
- how the Government is demonstrating its commitment to the SDGs;
- the governance, monitoring, and reporting arrangements for the SDGs; and
- how the Government is encouraging stakeholders6 and the general public to engage with and progress the SDGs.
1.15
Consistent with the INTOSAI guidelines for preparedness reviews, we did not assess New Zealand's current progress towards achieving the 17 SDGs and the 169 targets.
1.16
We looked at several plans, legislation, strategies, policies, and other initiatives. Our focus was on how they relate to the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. We have not assessed how well they might or might not be achieving their intended outcomes. When determining our future work programmes, we will consider carrying out that assessment.
How we carried out our work
1.17
We looked at a range of documents, surveyed 12 central government agencies (agencies), and carried out interviews with staff and stakeholders of some agencies. We also carried out work to understand how well New Zealand measures for well-being align with the global SDG targets and indicators.
1.18
We reviewed documents from the United Nations as well as other international documentation, Cabinet papers, briefings, meeting minutes, policies, strategic plans, annual reports, monitoring products, and documents about some initiatives related to the SDGs.
1.19
For our survey, we approached the 12 agencies that wrote a chapter about one or more of the 17 SDGs in New Zealand's first voluntary review. For each SDG, we asked the relevant agency about the governance and supporting arrangements for that SDG, as well as the roles and responsibilities for implementing and measuring progress. We also asked these agencies for their views on the SDGs overall, including leadership and co-ordination roles, and what they considered to be the biggest achievements and challenges so far.
1.20
We looked at how the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Ministry of Social Development, and the Treasury contributed to one of the SDGs they are working towards. We interviewed staff from these agencies to further discuss some of the findings from the survey and stakeholder interviews. We also interviewed staff from Statistics New Zealand, the Treasury, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade about the monitoring and reporting arrangements for the SDGs.
1.21
We interviewed Māori and Pacific peoples, local government representative bodies, representatives from the business and voluntary sectors, and academics. We interviewed advocates for human rights, the environment, disabled people, older people, youth, and rural communities. Most of these interviews were with national-level organisations.
Structure of this report
1.22
In Part 2, we discuss how the Government is demonstrating its commitment to the SDGs.
1.23
In Part 3, we discuss the governance, monitoring, and reporting arrangements for the SDGs.
1.24
In Part 4, we discuss how the Government is encouraging stakeholders and the general public to engage with and progress the SDGs.
1: This definition of sustainable development was first described in Brundtland, G. (1987), Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our common future, United Nations General Assembly document A/42/427, page 16.
2: United Nations (2015), Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, page 3.
3: United Nations (2015), Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, page 19.
4: New Zealand Government (2019), He waka eke noa – Towards a better future, together: New Zealand's progress towards the SDGs 2019, page 6.
5: INTOSAI is a global organisation for national government-level audit offices.
6: Stakeholders include central and local government, academia, civil society (including non-governmental organisations and not-for-profit organisations), the private sector, and the general community.