The Planning and Statistics Authority (PSA), in collaboration with all ministries and government agencies, the private sector, NGOs, civil society, universities, and research centres in Qatar, is preparing the ‘2021 Voluntary National Review of the State of Qatar’.
The Voluntary National Review (VNR) will be submitted to the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) to be held from July 13 to 16, 2021 at the UN Headquarters in New York.
The UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) has defined the forum’s theme as ‘Sustainable and resilient recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic that promotes the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development: Building an inclusive and effective path for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda in the context of the Decade of Action and Achievement for sustainable development’.
The agenda has been aligned with Qatar National Development Strategy 2018-2022, and the 2021 Voluntary National Review will address a number of aspects of 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which were agreed upon within the framework of the United Nations with the countries that will present their reviews this year.
The VNR document will discuss the Sustainable Development Goals related to ending poverty in all its forms, ending hunger and achieving food security, ensuring healthy lives and well-being for all, promoting economic growth and providing decent work for all, reducing inequalities, ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns, combating climate change and its impacts, promoting peaceful and inclusive societies, and revitalising national and global partnership for sustainable development.
Moreover, the VNR document is a national work prepared as the fruit of co-operation among many partners. Its topics revolve around tracking and recording the progress achieved by Qatar in the goals and objectives of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, using measurement indicators adopted by countries in 2015.
The purpose is to measure progress and prepare national and international reports on the achievement of goals and objectives in the three sectors of development namely, the economic, social and environmental development, taking into account the national, regional, and international intermingling dimensions of these sectors.
This national work will emphasise on the role of several partners in achieving SDGs and preparing VNR, especially the inclusion of the relevant authorities in the process of tracking and analysis, identifying the successes and challenges facing the development process, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic and how to overcome them, and the recovery policies adopted by the state as a matter of utmost importance.
The tracking process is based on the principle of “no one will be left behind.” The document will elucidate the extent to which all sects of Qatari society benefit from the development process, especially women, children, youth, the elderly, people with disabilities and other groups that are included in the national development process.
It will also highlight how such groups can have access to justice without discrimination. This work will also address the impacts of Covid-19 pandemic on the Qatari economy, environment, and social activities in general, and the recovery strategies and policies adopted by Qatar in order to overcome this pandemic, which the world is still suffering from.
Besides, VNR will also clearly and transparently explain how Qatar has responded to the impacts of the pandemic and how it provided treatments, vaccines, and social and psychological care for the entire population without discrimination, in accordance with WHO- approved protocols, especially the daily and transparent dissemination of data and information.
For this purpose, the PSA prepared the organisational structure, consisting of the steering committee, a technical team and thematic working groups. PSA also prepared a road map and a timetable for the implementation of the activities that were agreed upon in the road map.
On this occasion, PSA President HE Dr Saleh bin Mohamed al-Nabit called on all ministries and government agencies, civil society organisations, and all authorities concerned to complete the forms that were sent to them by providing PSA with quantitative and qualitative indicators related to the progress made in achieving goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
