Collen Vixen Kelapile, president of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) said that four additional countries join the previous 11 including Sri Lanka in presenting their Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) to the UN High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Develop (HLPF). The deadline for new EOIs has been set for 17 September 2021.
The VNRs, which have become a sort of centerpiece of the HLPF according to UNDSG Amina Mohammed, provides updates on the efforts of each of the participating countries to reach SDGs as well as the way the face up to challenges and the solutions they have tried.
According to the ECOSOC, as of 24 August, Andorra, Argentina, Belarus, Cote dβIvoire, Djibouti, Eritrea, Philippines, Tuvalu, Senegal, Sri Lanka, and Switzerland were the countries that were listed as interested in presenting their VNRs in 2022 while in a letter from the ECOSOC president on 7 September stated that Botswana, Eswatini, Jordan, and Luxembourg had also expressed their interest. The closure of the list in mid-September is to allow participating countries time to prepare their VNRs.
As of 24 August 2021, 11 countries were listed as interested in presenting a VNR in 2022: Andorra, Argentina, Belarus, Cote dβIvoire, Djibouti, Eritrea, Philippines, Tuvalu, Senegal, Sri Lanka, and Switzerland. In a 7 September letter to UN Member States, ECOSOC President Collen Vixen Kelapile writes that four additional countries have also expressed interest: Botswana, Eswatini, Jordan, and Luxembourg. He intends to close the list in September βto give countries sufficient time to prepare their VNRsβ while the overall number will be limited in order to βmaximize the value of the VNRsβ by optimizing the interactive discussion.
The VNRs have become a key vehicle in monitoring the acquisition of knowledge and the implementation of the 2030 agenda according to Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB). The last sessions of the HLPF in 2021 saw 42 countries presenting their VNRs. The ENB goes on to state that the VNRs are opening doors to better problem solving at the level of each nation with more inclusive and transparent involvement of stakeholders such as civil society, the private sector, local authorities in the overall preparation of the presentations and their review.
The 2022 HLPF will take place from 5-15 July