This year South Africa was meant to present its second Voluntary National Review (VNR) report to the United Nations High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) after 2019. The VNR is a process through which countries assess and present national progress made in implementing the 2030 Agenda, including its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the pledge to leave no one behind. South Africa unfortunately did not get the chance to present its report as the report needed to be approved by Cabinet along with the timing of the establishment of the Government of National Unity.
Despite this setback, many lessons came out of South Africa’s VNR process this time around. On 25 September 2024, African Monitor together with Fredrich Ebert Stiftung South Africa, on behalf of the South African Civil Society Organisations Working Group on SDGs held a dialogue on South Africa’s 2024 VNR journey aimed at providing feedback and reflecting on the processes that business, academia, civil society, local government, and the National Planning Commission engaged in. Leading this dialogue, was African Monitor, who formed part of the Writing Team for the 2024 VNR report, representing civil society and who also published the CSOs ‘People’s Report on Sustainable Development Goals’.
The objective of the dialogue was to: provide an overview of the 2024 VNR and Voluntary Local Review (VLR) processes; highlight the challenges and success in the coordination of the processes, and share lessons learned in the coordination and reporting of the VNR and VLR 2024 process.
To read the CSOs People’s Report on Sustainable Development Goals’, click here: AM_SDG_PEOPLES_REPORT_2024.pdf (africanmonitor.org)
