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THE 2030 AGENDA

AGENDA FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

In 2015, the world community reaffirmed its commitment to Sustainable Development by endorsing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 193 countries pledged to work towards sustained and inclusive economic growth, social inclusion and environmental protection, fostering peaceful, just and inclusive societies through a new global partnership. The 2030 Agenda is universal, transformative and rights-based. It encourages us to take bold and transformative steps to shift the world onto a sustainable and resilient path.

THE 2030 AGENDA

DIMENSIONS OF THE NEW AGENDA

At the heart of the 2030 Agenda are five critical dimensions: people, prosperity, planet, partnership and peace, also known as the 5Ps. Traditionally viewed through the lens of three core elements – social inclusion, economic growth, and environmental protection – the concept of sustainable development has taken on a richer meaning with the adoption of the 2030 Agenda, which builds upon this traditional approach by adding two critical components: partnership and peace. Genuine sustainability sits at the core of these five dimensions.

The five dimensions inform development policy decisions. This means that for a development intervention to be sustainable, it must take into account the social, economic and environmental consequences it generates, and lead to conscious choices in terms of the trade-offs, synergies and spin offs it creates. Additionally, policy makers need to ensure that any intervention is developed, owned and carried forward with the relevant partnerships and leverages the appropriate means of implementation. In this way, the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs together represent a holistic approach to understanding and tackling problems, by guiding us to ask the right questions at the right time.