MAINSTREAMING OF THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN: INTEGRATION INTO POLICIES AND STRATEGIES

Abstract

In the context of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which encompasses the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), mainstreaming means the landing of the Agenda at the national and local levels and its integration into development plans and budgets. This review paper casts light on approaches adopted in the Mediterranean countries to incorporate the SDGs into their national development policies, plans and strategies. It draws upon a comprehensive analysis of the Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) on the implementation of the SDGs submitted by Mediterranean countries from 2016 to 2019. Mediterranean countries have taken concrete measures to map existing policies against each of the SDG-targets in order to identify policy gaps and to mainstream the 2030 Agenda into their legal and policy frameworks. They used different policy instruments and planning frameworks to take up the 2030 Agenda such as national development plans and strategies (e.g. Albania, Algeria, Croatia, Montenegro, Italy, Slovenia, Turkey), vision documents (e.g. Egypt, Malta, Slovenia, Tunisia) and action plans (e.g. Algeria, France, Spain). A few Mediterranean countries (e.g. Cyprus, Greece, Israel, Lebanon and Morocco) did not adopt any integrated policy instrument and opted for the implementation of the SDGs through existing national policies and strategies. The harmonization of national development plans and strategies with the SDGs is a continuous process and needs to be implemented across sectors. The analysis of the VNRs shows that little attention was dedicated to address trade-offs through policy integration. The achievement of the SDGs implies new modes of policy making as well as a better cross-sectoral coordination and harmonisation of policies in Mediterranean countries. Sharing lessons learned and mutual policy learning among Mediterranean countries could help ensuring a step forward from the formal description of legislation in the VNRs.