Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 June 2023
1057. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he is aware of a report published by an organisation (details supplied); if he will respond to the recommendations set out in the report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27640/23]
View answerI am aware of the report titled Furthest Behind First, or Falling Behind Further? which was recently published by Coalition 2030 and the recommendations it makes to Government in respect of the implementation of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). I note that most of the recommendations specifically refer to my colleagues in the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications and the Department of the Taoiseach. I will outline here how my Department incorporates the SDGs into our policymaking and strategic processes.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a significant and ambitious framework. A whole-of-Government approach to its implementation has been taken in Ireland.
Ireland’s Second National Implementation Plan for the Sustainable Development Goals, 2022 – 2024 was published in October 2022. The Plan was developed by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications in collaboration with all Government Departments, key stakeholders, and based on input from two public consultation processes. A key objective of the Plan is to achieve greater policy coherence for Sustainable Development (PCSD) with the aim of accelerating achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at all levels of Government.
The Plan is supplemented by two supporting documents: an SDG policy map which identifies the lead Departments and relevant national policies for each of the 169 SDG targets; and a Policy Update document which provides policy updates for each of the SDG targets. These documents are available at www.gov.ie/sdgs
The Central Statistics Office, in collaboration with all Government Departments, has prepared as series of statistical publications which monitor and report on how Ireland is progressing towards meeting its targets under the 17 SDGs. Reports are available for SDGs 1 – 16 and can be found on the central statistics website.
Ireland will present its second Voluntary National Review (VNR) to the United Nations High-Level Political Forum in July 2023. The VNR report will comprise a high-level data section and a more detailed appendix reporting on progress in respect of achieving the SDGs and related targets. My Department has contributed to this review in respect of our areas of responsibility.
My Department is currently progressing plans to integrate the SDGs into our upcoming Statement of Strategy 2023 – 2025. By aligning our Statement of Strategy with the Second National Implementation Plan for the Sustainable Development Goals, we will ensure that the SDGs are a priority in all work carried out by this Department and our aegis bodies. My Department has undertaken to incorporate the SDGs into our policies during development to ensure that they are at the heart of the work we do.
DCEDIY continues to engage with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC), who lead on SDG implementation, and sit on the Interdepartmental SDG Working Group chaired by DECC.
