Monitoring SDG Implementation Needs
More Focus on Policies and Budgets
Mark Elder, IGES
The 15th International Forum for Sustainable Asia and the Pacific (ISAP 2023)
Pacifico Yokohama, 19 December 2023

 SDGs are off track Especially the environmental dimensions
 Why are SDGs off track?
 Studies of Voluntary National Reviews(VNRS) don’t explain why
 Common reasons:Insufficient financing
COVID-19Wars
Geopolitical competition

Country

Total SDG policies

Env. Policies

Percent

Brunei

270

65

24.1

Cambodia

128

51

39.8

Indonesia

225

4821.3

Lao PDR

773545.5Malaysia

13066

50.8

Philippines

9233

35.9

Singapore

235

105

44.7

Thailand

215

89

41.4

Viet Nam

201

101

50.2

Total

1,573

593

37.7

Average1756624.1

39.3

GDP per capita vs. total number of policies mentioned inVNR

GDP vs. total number of policies in VNRs
500
500
UK

450

UK

450
400

Existing Studies of VNRs Focus On:

TurkeyIndonesia

350
Australia
Mexico300

India
RussiaArgentina

250
200

ASEAN

1,573 Policies

Germany

150

R² = 0.0133
Japan

R. Korea

400

TurkeyIndonesia

350
300

India

Australia

MexicoRussia250
Argentina
200

Germany
Italy

S. Africa China

CanadaR² = 0.0283

S. Arabia

150Japan100

FranceR. Korea
50FranceBrazil

Brazil
0000

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,00012,00014,00010,00020,00016,00030,00040,00050,00060,000GDP per capita (USD)

GDP (USD billion)

Very little correlation

Results
 Many SDG implementation policies in G20 VNRs
 Many policies are substantial, including strategies,regulations, financing
 Many policies were adopted after the start of SDGs
 G20 countries’ spending is significant, but didn’t include
budgets systematically in VNRs
 Countries’ GDP and GDP per capita were not major factors
in the number of policies or their distribution

VNRs Actually Include Many Policies

G20ChinaCanada
S. Arabia

50

 Therefore, more studies of policies are needed

4,112 Policies

Italy

S. Africa

100• Document lack of progress• SDG national institutional framework• Discussion of specific topics (leave no one behind,interlinkages, challenges, etc.)• Most Studies of VNRs do not focus on actual policies

Total number of policies in VNR

 Little discussion of role of policies(Average 228/Country)(Average 175/Country)

ConclusionsG20 Policies Seem Mostly Substantial
Policy Types

Percent

1. Major laws, policies, strategies, enforcement

47.4%

2. Money-related (tax, spending, finance)

11.9%

3. Physical infrastructure, land management

6.4%

4. Projects, programs

16.5%

5. Information (education & training, monitoring, data,certification, registration, public awareness)

8.0%

6. Other

9.7%

Budget Results

G20

Environment-related
SDG policies in ASEAN:
593 / 1,573 = 37.7%

Comparison of Developed and Developing G20 Countries

Number of policies in VNR••••

Environment-related SDG Policies in ASEAN

 Lack of policies and budgets is not the main reason for
insufficient progress on SDGs
 Need more research on actual SDG policies & budgets

Implications for Future Research on VNRs
 Policies’ appropriateness Policies’ level of ambition
 Policies’ effectiveness

Datasets Produced By These Studies

 Most reported budget items, but not systematically Cumulative total: $ 2.7 trillion
 Largest: India ($ 689 billion)

ASEAN  Most didn’t report budgets
Budget Implications
 Most policies in any country are related to SDGs.
 Policies are underreported and have associated spending.
Therefore Government SDG spending is significantly underreported.
 Most spending is related to SDGs.

COUNTRIES
1. G202. ASEAN
3. ASEAN

DATA
All SDGs
Environmental policies
All SDGs

YEARS
2016-2021
2016-2021
2016-2020

How to Use The DatasetsTo find policies on specific topics or SDGs
Examples: environment, agriculture, health, etc.
Advantage:
Caution:Can find policies classified under various SDGs
Countries did not list all of their policies in their VNRs

This Poster Is Based On:

Global Government Spending
Global Gov. Spending (2021)

Global GDP (2021)$ 16.5 trillion$ 96.5 trillion

Elder, Mark, and Elli Newman. 2023. ‘Monitoring G20 Countries’ SDG Implementation Policies and Budgets
Reported in Their Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs)’. Sustainability 15 (22): 15733.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su152215733.
Elder, Mark, and Gemma Ellis. 2022. ‘ASEAN Countries’ Environmental Policies for the Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs)’. Environment, Development and Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-022-02514-0.

Probably close to real SDG spending by governments Key issue: need more spending on SDGs
RESEARCH POSTER PRESENTATION TEMPLATE © 2019www.PosterPresentations.com

Elder, Mark. 2020. Assessment of ASEAN Countries’ Concrete SDG Implementation Efforts: Policies and Budgets
Reported in Their 2016-2020 Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs). Hayama, Japan: Institute for Global
Environmental Strategies. https://www.iges.or.jp/en/pub/asean-sdg-vnrs/en.