Sustainable Development Goals policy coherence & Malaysian society

The 2030 agenda has now become the most significant global agenda for human wellbeing. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted by all the United Nations member states on September 25, 2015 Including Malaysia who has also integrated a major SDG-related thrust into the Eleventh Malaysia Plan (2016-2020). In addition, Malaysia has presented the Voluntary National Review (VNR) on July 18, 2017 at the UN in New York during the 2017 High Level Political Forum (HLPF). It is currently preparing for the SDG National Roadmap.

Malaysian Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), academicians and think tanks have been very active in providing input and participating at the national SDG forums in 2016 by way of providing feedback and suggestions including concrete examples of CSO participation in the SDGs.

In this context of policy input, review and analysis, the ASLI-Centre for Public Policy Studies (CPPS) and the Malaysian CSO-SDG Alliance have partnered together to host a series of four RoundTable discussions on SDGs in 2017. These discussions focused on cross cutting themes and agenda for delivery & implementation. Too often SDGs are discussed in silos, however, SDGs must be viewed from a multi-dimensional view especially in noting commonalities and convergence. SDGs are not meant to be viewed in singular tracts but as a whole cross-cutting issue.

At the heart of the SDGs is the integration of economic, social and environmental dimensions. The SDGs are built on the five key principles of people, planate, prosperity, peace and partnerships. Human rights play an important role in noting each SDG target and indicator, and in ensuring that ‘no one is left behind’ or discriminated.

The four discussions focused on different themes which were:

• A discussion on the National SDG Roadmap from CSO Reflections on the theme “leaving no one behind”, held on March 14, 2017

• A discussion on navigating through Vision 2020, SDGs 2030 & the National Transformation 2050, held on July 3, 2017

• A discussion on the sustainability agenda – undergirding a framework for SDGs in the National Implementation Programme, held on May 22, 2017

• A discussion on harnessing science, technology & innovation for the SDGs, held on September 28, 2017