15 Apr 2020

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The challenge of integrating the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into national policy frameworks is leading to renewed interest in national development planning. Indeed, the 2030 Agenda calls for each Government to “decide how these aspirational and global targets should be incorporated into national planning processes, policies and strategies” and states that “cohesive nationally owned sustainable development strategies, supported by integrated national financing frameworks, will be at the heart of our efforts”. Countries have followed a wide variety of approaches to national planning, and there are indications that there has been a recent rise in the number of countries with some form of national development strategy or plan. For instance, a recent academic study observes that the number of countries with development plans has risen from about 62 in 2006 to 134 in 2018.[1] Along similar lines, an examination of the Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) of 142 countries conducted during the period 2016 to 2019 suggests that the majority have some form of development plan or strategy in place, or were in the process of formulating one.