Overview

The Voluntary National Review (VNR) has been undertaken as a process for building awareness and understanding of Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).It aims to own and domesticateAgenda 2030 and the SDGs;use of the SDGsas a tool for identifying national development priorities and for accelerating change and transformation towards peace and development in the country; engage all stakeholders in the implementation process; developa national framework for integration of the SDGs dimensions and pillars; prepare matrices to facilitate stakeholder’s engagement in the SDGs implementation process; and prepare a national framework for the SDGs indicators. and a national platform for data and information management sharing.

All activities have been undertaken by the Government of the Sudan (GoS) under the auspices ofthe High-Level National Mechanism (HLNM). They have been coordinated by the National Population Council as HLNM secretariat, and have covered important meetings with high level key officials, national consultation workshops, expert’s meetings, minitrial forum, discussions with representatives of parliament and with population groups especially women and youth groups, engagement of professionals and researchers as consultants to prepare policy and technical reports on specific topics and relevant themes, and media briefings and materials for publicity and awareness.

Key messages

The VNR has been prepared for theGovernment of National Reconciliation. It is supported by the recommendations of the National Dialogue Conference (October 2015 to October 2016), which provide a national framework for transformation and policy reform. The VNR key messages are:

1. commitments to take actions
   1. The GoS is committed to implement Agenda 2030 and the SDGs, and to engage all people in the betterment of their lives and development of their country
   2. An institutional structure has been established at high level to oversee the implementation of Agenda 2030 and the SDGs in the country.
   3. Harmonization of the national development plans and strategies with Agenda 2030 and the SDGs is a continuous process that needs to be implemented in all sectors.
   4. The levels of knowledge and technical capacity on Agenda 2030 and the SDGs needs to be developed among all stakeholders: government, private sector, NGOs and CBOs
2. Peace and stability dividend
   1. Peace and stability are prevailing through justice and the rule of law. This will support implementation of Agenda 2030 and the SDGs, and to harness the potentials of leaving no one behind in peace and leaving no one behind in development.
   2. Peace and stability will create opportunities for communities affected by the war to recover and develop, and to transform from relief and humanitarian assistance to rehabilitation and development.
3. Agriculture transformation
   1. The Sudan’s comparative advantage is in Agriculture. Transformation of the agriculture sector, through increasing productivity, adding value to agriculture production and targeting investment in agriculture industries and exportable agriculture goods, will accelerate the implementation of the SDGs.
   2. The national strategy for transforming the agriculture sector is through allocating a minimum of 10% of the Government budget to agriculture and achieving a 6% annual growth in Agriculture GDP.
4. Social transformation
   1. The social systems are changing from social affairs to social development, and the people and communities are changing from recipients of charities and humanitarian assistance to participants in development and producers of goods and services in their local communities
   2. The Multidimensional Poverty Index for 2014 is 28.7%. There are variations by state, education level of head of household, quality of household, sources of drinking water, and type of sanitation services.
   3. The Sudan is experiencing a demographic dividend that must be harnessed through investment in education, especially girl’s education, in health and in the creation of jobs and employment opportunities
5. Means of implementation
   1. The debt burden is unsustainable, and the continuing reluctance to admit the Sudan to the group of Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) is unjustifiable
   2. In spite of the sanctions the Sudan continued to revitalize this sector through investment in increasing the population register and its coverage and increasing registration of vital events
   3. invest in the use of information and data to generate new knowledge for the SDGs, especially through engaging researchers in universities and the centers of excellence in the country.