The establishment of the United Nations High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) was mandated in 2012 by the outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), "The Future We Want". The format and organizational aspects of the Forum are outlined in General Assembly resolution 67/290.
The Forum meets annually under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council for eight days, including a three-day ministerial segment and every four years at the level of Heads of State and Government under the auspices of the General Assembly for two days.
For the positioning of the HLPF in the UN system, please click here.
The Forum’s first meeting was held on 24 September 2013. It replaced the Commission on Sustainable Development, which had met annually since 1993.
The HLPF is the main United Nations platform on sustainable development and it has a central role in the follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the global level. General Assembly resolution 70/299 provides further guidance on the follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs.
The Forum adopts intergovernmentally negotiated political declarations.
Please click here to visit the web page of HLPF 2019 under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council.
Click here for information of HLPF 2019 under the auspices of the General Assembly – the SDG Summit, including the Political Declaration and its call on “gearing up for a decade of action and delivery for sustainable development”.
Click here for information of HLPF 2020 under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council.
As part of its follow-up and review mechanisms, the 2030 Agenda encourages member states to “conduct regular and inclusive reviews of progress at the national and sub-national levels, which are country-led and country-driven” (paragraph 79). These national reviews are expected to serve as a basis for the regular reviews by the HLPF. As stipulated in paragraph 84 of the 2030 Agenda, regular reviews by the HLPF are to be voluntary, state-led, undertaken by both developed and developing countries, and shall provide a platform for partnerships, including through the participation of major groups and other relevant stakeholders.
For more information on the Voluntary National Reviews, click here.
General Assembly resolution A/RES/70/299 decided to review the format and organizational aspects of the HLPF at its seventy-fourth session. For more information, click here
In accordance with General Assembly resolutions 66/288 and 67/290, the Forum, consistent with its universal intergovernmental character, shall:
As stipulated in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the HLPF has a central role in the follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda and its 17 SDGs at the global level, working coherently with the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council and other relevant organs and forums.
The Forum facilitates the sharing of experiences, including successes, challenges and lessons learned and provides political leadership, guidance and recommendations for follow-up. It promotes system-wide coherence and coordination of sustainable development policies. It ensures that the 2030 Agenda remains relevant and ambitious and focuses on the assessment of progress, achievements and challenges faced by developed and developing countries as well as new and emerging issues. Effective linkages are made with the follow-up and review arrangements of all relevant United Nations conferences and processes, including on least developed countries, small island developing States and landlocked developing countries.
A central feature of the HLPF are the voluntary national reviews (VNRs) that it receives from Member States on their implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. Regularly undertaken by both developed and developing countries, the VNRs provide a platform for partnerships, including through the participation of major groups and other relevant stakeholders.
The HLPF also undertakes annual thematic reviews of the SDGs including cross-cutting issues. As decided in General Assembly resolution 70/299, the themes of and the sets of SDGs to be reviewed by the HLPF under the auspices of ECOSOC from 2017 to 2019 are:
Follow up and review at the HLPF is informed by an annual progress report on the SDGs prepared by the Secretary-General of the United Nations. The most recent report is available here.. The HLPF is also informed by the Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR), which strengthens the science-policy interface and is issued every four years (E/HLS/2016/1). Details of the 2019 GSDR, including bios of the independent group of scientists tasked with drafting it, are available here. The follow up and review at the HLPF are also informed by other relevant inputs.
The General Assembly in resolution 67/290 decides that all meetings of the Forum shall provide for the full and effective participation of all States Members of the United Nations and States members of specialized agencies.
The High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development meets:
For further information please see General Assembly resolution 67/290 on the format and organizational aspects of the Forum and resolution 70/299 on the follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at the global level.
For the positioning of the HLPF in the UN system, please click here.
The organizations of the United Nations system, including the Bretton Woods institutions and other relevant intergovernmental organizations, including the World Trade Organization, are invited to contribute within their respective mandates to the discussions of the Forum.
Member States have stressed the need for the HLPF to promote transparency and implementation by further enhancing the consultative role and participation of the major groups and other relevant stakeholders at the international level in order to make better use of their expertise, while retaining the intergovernmental nature of discussions. The major groups and other stakeholders include non-governmental and non-profit organisations, business and industry, and local authorities, among others. In accordance with General Assembly resolution 67/290, the Forum is open to the major groups, other relevant stakeholders and entities having received a standing invitation to participate as observers in the General Assembly, building on arrangements and practices observed by the Commission on Sustainable Development.
While retaining the intergovernmental character of the forum, the representatives of the major groups and other relevant stakeholders shall be allowed:
Note: Major Groups and other Stakeholders allow for a structured engagement and contribution of civil society to the intergovernmental processes on sustainable development. They are self coordinated and independent from the UN Secretariat. Representatives of the Major Groups are therefore NOT representatives or staff of the United Nations, nor are they authorized to enter into business arrangements on behalf of the United Nations, or use the United Nations’ name or logo for endorsement of an activity. |
The Office for Intergovernmental Support and Coordination for Sustainable Development of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs serves as the Secretariat of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
