Parliament's Role in Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals

Parliament's Role in Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals

May 3, 2017

Parliamentarians have an opportunity, and a constitutional responsibility, to play a significant role in supporting and monitoring implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Agenda 2030 Declaration acknowledges the “essential role of national parliaments through their enactment of legislation and adoption of budgets, and their role in ensuring accountability for the effective implementation of our commitments.” Members of parliament are uniquely positioned to act as an interface between the people and state institutions, and to promote and adopt people-centered policies and legislation to ensure that no one is left behind.

Parliament’s Role in Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals: A Parliamentary Handbook has been produced jointly by the United Nations Development Programme, the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption and the Islamic Development Bank, and it is designed to be an easy-to-use resource that can help parliamentarians and parliamentary staff members play an effective role in implementing the SDGs. It introduces Agenda 2030 and lists good practices and tools from around the world that can be adapted, as needed, depending on the national context. Parliamentarians around the globe is invited to use this handbook as a practical tool to promote engagement on the Sustainable Development Goals.