Our Work on the Sustainable Development Goals in Eswatini

Eswatini is committed to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and acknowledges the importance of achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The country has made strides towards creating an environment that enables the achievement of these goals by revising the national Development Strategy (Vision 2022) to incorporate emerging regional and global development issues. Since 2015, the Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini has been working on the administrative stages of mainstreaming the Sustainable Development Goals into its Development Framework and got the opportunity to present its first-ever Voluntary National Review (VNR) on SDGs during the 2019 High-Level Political Forum. The report was derived from desk reviews and stakeholder consultations with ministries, civil society, private sector, academia, donors, youth, women and persons living with disabilities. It has been presented at the local, regional, and international level. Based on the country’s needs and priorities, the United Nations in Eswatini together with government counterparts in a collaborative and consultative manner designed the United Nations Development Framework (UNDAF) 2016-2020. The UNDAF aims at ensuring Government ownership and is aligned with Government priorities as defined in the National Development Strategy (Vision 2022). The priority areas in the UNDAF are also strongly aligned with the 17 SDGs. The UN in Eswatini and the Government are now working together on developing the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperative Framework (UNSDCF) for 2021-2025. The UN Programme and Policy Support Group (PPSG) is the primary driver of the UNSDCF design and implementation and is there to provide technical support to the UNCT. The PPSG serves as a vehicle for UN support to national development instruments and is largely responsible for supporting the UNCT in ‘Delivering as One’ and helping effectively implement the SDGs in Eswatini. The National steering committee has also been established to provide strategic guidance and oversight to the One programme implementation. The committee is co-chaired by a Senior Government Representative and the UN Resident Coordinator. The steering committee is also imperative to the implementation of the 17 SDGs and ensures that funding gaps and/or evolving priorities in Eswatini are addressed.