Voluntary National Research Articles

Integrated policymaking: Institutional designs for implementing the sustainable development goals (SDGs)

Increased policy coherence and integrated implementation are necessary to address pressing development problems that cut across different sectors. Meeting these demands, as called for by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, requires institutional innovation. Based on the comparative analysis of 137 countries, this paper investigates how governments have responded to this call and which contextual factors shape their institutional responses. We propose a four-dimensional typology to analyse the institutional set-ups for implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), focusing on political leadership, horizontal integration across policy sectors, vertical integration across levels of government, and integration of societal stakeholders. We apply this framework to the descriptions of national SDG-implementation bodies provided by governments in their Voluntary National Review (VNRs) and use qualitative directed content analysis and regression modelling to investigate different driving factors of institutional design choices, including socio-economic development and political regime. Besides a strong commitment from the Centre of Government in most cases, our results show that ministries of the exterior and the environment have a dominant role, indicating that sustainability is not yet perceived holistically. Further, we find that the integration of subnational governments and societal actors is often under-institutionalised: while countries with higher levels of socio-economic development appear more likely to set up mechanisms suited to achieving cross-sectoral integration, political regime type seems to have little impact on institutional design choices for SDG implementation. Conceptually, this study offers a theory-led investigation of the institutional mechanisms for integrated SDG-implementation and the factors that drive institutional innovation or inertia. Empirically, by compiling the information in an original dataset, our study paves the way for future cross-national analysis on effective integrated SDG implementation and identifies entry points for inter- and transnational support of integrated SDG implementation in the context of development cooperation.

ACCOUNTING AND ANALYTICAL SUPPORT OF THE WAR’S IMPACT ON THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS ACHIEVEMENT EVALUATION

Introducing of organizational and methodological tools of accounting and analytical support developing for assessing the impact of war on achieving of the Sustainable Development Goals and working-out of practical recommendations on its use both at the national level and at the level of economic entities is the purpose of the article. The influence of Russian aggression on achieving of the Sustainable Development Goals both by Ukraine and the whole world is analyzed. The main challenges that Ukraine will face in the preparation of a Voluntary National Review during and after the war are identified, namely: the complexity of information collection, including monitoring, evaluation of Russian invasion negative economic effects on the world; the general availability of data, and specific difficulties of disaggregated and alternative data collection on evaluation the impact of Russo-Ukrainian war on Ukrainian and world’s economy; coordination of national strategies of resource mobilization for economic damage overcoming; challenges related to aligning institutions, institutional capacity formation, effective governance, decentralization, ensuring policy coherence etс. It is proven that accounting system produces a significant volume of information flows circulating in the globe. It was determined that a significant place in the process of accounting and analytical support formation at the corporate level is occupied by the development of metric systems and methods of evaluating financial and non-financial indicators, which allow evaluation of a company’s activities results as accurately and reliably as possible from point of view of various aspects. Accounting and analytical systems provide basis for Sustainable Development Goals indicators determining at national level. In order to form reliable accounting and analytical support for determining the impact of war on identified by UN 183 indicators of sustainable development it is proposed to adapt the methodology, which is based on the war economic destruction level simulator methodology, which is based on natural disasters vulnerability evaluation model and involves determination of a number of key indicators, such as: the war damage level rate; the armed attacks intensity rate, the war destruction magnitude rate, the inflation and unemployment levels in war ratio. In order to adapt the proposed methodology, it is recommended to calculate the rate of the war impact on the Sustainable Development Goals achievement over the past ten years, which corresponds to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the period during which Ukraine suffers from the Russian aggression. Implementing the proposed methodology of the war negative economic, social and ecological effects measuring could be used to create an informational basis for the most effective recovery of our country and will be of service for formation of an effective system of evaluation the impact of the war on the SDGs achievement at both national and global levels.

The SDGs and fossil fuel subsidy reform

This short perspective asks what is the role—and added value—of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their associated institutional structures in the international governance of fossil fuel subsidies and their reform? It argues that whilst some progress has been made, notably through developing a methodology to define and measure fossil fuel subsidies, countries have only to a very limited extent followed up through indicator reporting and through their Voluntary National Reviews. Nevertheless, the SDGs can help highlight the various sustainable development dimensions of fossil fuel subsidies and support ongoing efforts to strengthen transparency, thereby indirectly helping to drive reform at the national level.

Bovine paratuberculosis: results of a control plan in 64 dairy farms in a 4-year period

Paratuberculosis is considered one of the most economically devastating infectious diseases of domestic livestock, and the most effective control strategy is a combination of ‘test-and-cull’ and on-farm biosecurity measures. In Italy, a Voluntary National Control Plan (VNCP) and guidelines have been introduced to reduce the impact of the disease, and farmers can voluntarily enroll in the control plan. The main aims of this study were: i) the description of the trend over a 4-year period on total, within-herd (WH) and between herd (BH) apparent seroprevalences observed in 64 dairy herds members of a mutual company located in Italy after the introduction of a proposed “Customized Control Plan” (CCP); ii) the evaluation of its effectiveness in terms of percentage of participating farms that decided to join the VNCP. Analyses on serum samples were performed with Enzyme-Linked Immuno Sorbent Assay (ELISA) method and revealed a general decrease in both total, WH and BH apparent seroprevalence. Total average apparent seroprevalence decreased from 2.39% in 2017 to 1% in 2020. Negative herds raised from 51.9% in 2017 to 71.1% in 2020, while farms with WH apparent seroprevalence > 5% decreased from 17.3% in 2017 to 4.4% in 2020. BH apparent seroprevalence decreased from 51.2% in 2017 to 29.2% in 2020. Among the 52 out of 64 herds that accepted to continue the proposed CCP after the first year, 41 (78.8%) joined in 2020 the VNCP, that assessed the health ranking of the herds. The results provide evidence that a control plan based on a farm-specific strategy and a subsidized testing process can effectively reduce the impact of paratuberculosis in dairy herds, especially in convincing farmers to continue in paratuberculosis control by joining the VNCP, including them in a National context and increasing their awareness of the disease.

북한의 지속가능발전목표 이행에 관한 연구

Purpose: Based on the compliance theory and the institutionalist approach, this article is intended to assess North Korea’s compliance levels of No Poverty goal under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
 Originality: Although SDGs stands for advanced global norms, its application constitutes significant challenges for the developing world. For the better achievement of SDG within the global community, this paper highlights country-specific limitations and opportunities for SDG compliance and implementation through the case of North Korea.
 Methodology: For the analysis, this study conducts content analysis on a range of documents and information released by the North Korean government, including the Voluntary National Review (2021) and the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (2018). In order to evaluate the direct and indirect availability of poverty data (including estimates), relevant academic works and reports are also reviewed.
 Result: To assess and explain North Korea’s weak compliance, this study does not stick to the issue of statistical capacity only. For incorporating the wider institutional contexts, the localization of the global discourse on poverty and the internal structure for SDG implementation are also highlighted. Despite the country’s willingness, due to the communist tradition as well as regime justification, we interpret that the country still shows strategic but roundabout behavior in adopting the global concept of poverty.
 Conclusion and Implication: This study concludes with recommendations that can help North Korea improve its compliance with the SDG.

Analysis of Agricultural Cooperation Strategy in Central Asian ODA Priority Partner Countries: Based on Voluntary National Review (VNR)

Analysis of Agricultural Cooperation Strategy in Central Asian ODA Priority Partner Countries: Based on Voluntary National Review (VNR)

유엔 지속가능발전목표(SDGs)의 관점에서 본 북한개발협력법제

This paper analyzes the legal tasks to facilitate development cooperation in North Korea through UN ‘Sustainable Development Goals’ (SDGs). UN SDGs, established in 2015, is composed of 17 Goals and 169 Targets, and it includes comprehensive agenda such as economy, social, and environment. North Korea government, with the cooperation with UN branch of North Korea, established ‘UN Strategic Plan (2016-2021)’ in 2016, and furthermore published the ‘Voluntary National Review (VNR)’ in 2021. In particular, it is noticeable that ‘UN Strategic Plan (2016-2021)’ adopted the ‘human rights-oriented approach’ to which North Korea was negative in the past. This paper deals with North Korean Law in relation to “health and wellbeing (SDG3)” and “partnership for SDGs (SDG17)”, which is prioritized by North Korea Government in ‘UN Strategic Plan (2016-2021).’ In relation to “health and wellbeing (SDG3)”, ｢Act on People’s Health｣ & ｢Emergency Quarantine Act｣ in North Korea is analyzed. In relation to “partnership for SDGs (SDG17)”, ｢Foreign Investment Act｣ & ｢Statistics Act｣ is dealt with. When we review the above SDGs related Acts in North Korea, we can find lack of legal ground which can facilitate non-economic international development cooperation in North Korea. To address this issue, it is necessary for North Korea to adopt law which covers the international development cooperation comprehensively. North Korean ｢Statistics Act｣ stipulates that confidentiality in statistics is the norm, hence this Act hampers the use of statistics which is indispensable in monitoring SDGs implementation. To facilitate SDGs, it is necessary to introduce legal ground for opening the SDGs’ related statistics. UN SDGs is a international norm which applies both developing & developed countries. Therefore, UN SDGs implementation is a task not only to North but also to South Korea. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen the relationship between ｢Framework Act on Sustainable Development Act｣ & ｢Framework Act on International Development Cooperation｣, and ｢Framework Act on International Development Cooperation｣ & ｢Inter-Korean Exchange & Cooperation Act｣. In SDGs’ implementation, South & North Korea should make effort to improve each law and strengthen the cooperation in relation to this law. It will be meaningful to lay the foundation for peaceful unification of South & North Korea. In this process, we should see 1) South-North Korea cooperation law and 2) international development cooperation law comprehensively.

Тернистый путь к светлым целям: подход КНДР к реализации Повестки 2030 и перспективы международного сотрудничества

One of the issues on the national agenda of low-income developing countries is the formulation of their own sustainable development strategies. The United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is an important benchmark and road map for achieving this goal. At the same time, local specifics have an impact on the approaches, methods and possibilities for achieving the declared goals in each particular state. This study analyzes the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) Voluntary National Review on the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda, official North Korean statements, and Russian and foreign academic and analytical publications in order to outline North Korea's approach to localizing the sustainable development goals (SDGs), identify problems arising in this process, and highlight prospects for international cooperation. Methods of comparative and content analysis were used in the research. It is maintained that, in search of its own strategy, the DPRK’s leadership is trying to use international experience by integrating the SDGs into national development plans. North Korean specifics lie in reformulating global SDGs according to the national narrative of local-style socialism construction, the decisive role of the state in the development and implementation of actual plans, a formal approach to the implementation of some SDGs, and a focus on economic self-sufficiency as a guarantee of sustainable development. Despite the need for external assistance to achieve the main national SDGs, at present, the possibilities for international cooperation with the DPRK are significantly limited. The implementation of joint initiatives or assistance projects requires both obtaining permission from the UN Security Council 1718 Sanctions Committee and opening the borders of North Korea, which have been closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, given the global scope of the tasks set out in the 2030 Agenda, it is highly likely that in the medium and long term the DPRK will resume international cooperation in key areas of sustainable development—agriculture, health care, access to clean drinking water and sanitation, and climate change, as well as energy and transport infrastructure modernization. The main partners in this cooperation can be international organizations and neighbouring Russia and China.

2021 Assessment of New Zealand district health boards' institutional healthy food and drink policies: the HealthY Policy Evaluation (HYPE) study.

To assess adoption of the voluntary National Healthy Food and Drink Policy (NHFDP) and the alignment of individual institutional healthy food and drink policies with the NHFDP. All 20 district health boards (DHBs) and two national government agencies participated. Policies of those organisations that had not fully adopted the NHFDP were assessed across three domains: nutrition standards; promotion of a healthy food and beverages environment; and policy communication, implementation and evaluation. Three weighted domain scores out of 10, and a total score out of 30 were calculated. Nine of the 22 organisations reported adopting the NHFDP in full. Of the remaining 13, six referred to the NHFDP when developing their institutional policy and three were working toward full adoption of the NHFDP. Mean scores (SD) were 8.7 (1.0), 6.1 (2.6) and 3.8 (2.2) for the three domains, and 18.6 (4.8) in total. Most individual institutional policies were not as comprehensive as the NHFDP. However, some contained stricter/additional clauses that would be useful to incorporate into the NHFDP. Since a similar policy analysis in 2018, most DHBs have adopted the NHFDP and/or strengthened their own nutrition policies. Regional inconsistency remains and a uniform mandatory NHFDP should be implemented that incorporates improvements identified in individual institutional policies.

ASEAN countries’ environmental policies for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This study’s objective is to examine how ASEAN countries reported their environment-related policies for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in their Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs), and a dataset of their environmental policies was developed. This is a necessary first step in analyzing the reasons for insufficient progress on the environmental dimension of the SDGs, since policies are key means of implementation. Previous studies of SDG progress and VNRs examined many aspects such as achievement levels, indicators, data, governance, and VNR preparation procedures, but surprisingly, there has been little discussion of countries’ actual policy efforts. Progress on the SDGs’ environmental dimensions is widely considered insufficient, including in Asia. This study showed that insufficient progress on the environmental dimension of the SDGs is not due to a lack of environmental policies or a lower prioritization of policies for environmental SDG targets. ASEAN countries included almost 600 concrete environment-related policies in their VNRs, widely distributed among most SDGs, accounting for about 40 percent of their total reported SDG-related policies. The number of environmental policies was not closely related to GDP, GDP per capita, or VNR date. Many policies appeared substantial, including national action plans, strategies, laws, and regulations, not just small projects or programs. However, some major existing environmental policies, for example on air pollution, were usually not included in the VNRs. Further research is needed to explore other possible factors such as insufficient policy implementation or effectiveness, which this study could not examine. This study’s environmental policy dataset provides the necessary baseline for future research on policy implementation and effectiveness, especially to help future studies identify ASEAN countries’ environmental policies in specific areas such as climate, energy, or water. This will also facilitate comparative analysis.

Women’s Empowerment Without Power: Strategic v. Practical Interests in SDGs and the Voluntary National Reviews

AbstractThis study examines country's voluntary national reviews (VNRs) to assess global commitment to gender equality in the era of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While the SDGs promise realisation of gender equality, progress data indicate that gender equality will not be achieved in the next century, let alone by the SDGs target date of 2030. This study posits two explanations for slow progress on gender equality: (i) countries selectively pursue gender equality, as evidenced by our finding that country VNRs demonstrated commitment to achieving only 31% of extant gender equality gaps;and (ii) countries are more committed to achieving gender equality on ‘practical’ dimensions (i.e., relating to basic needs, such as maternal health and education) than ‘strategic’ dimensions which seek to challenge unequal power relations and women's subordinate position within society (e.g., income, land, political power). Whether via refinements to the SDG/VNR process, or through well‐established gender platforms such as the World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap Index and Equal Measures 2030 SDG Gender Index, gender equality advocates must push for pursuit of the entirety of the holistic gender equality agenda as hard‐fought for and agreed by the seminal Beijing Platform for Action. Without greater attention to strategic dimensions, women will be stuck in a vicious cycle of ‘empowerment without power’ and gender equality will elude women for yet another century.

The role of context in identifying linkages between SDG 2 (food) and SDG 6 (water)

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nation’s Agenda 2030 are formulated to promote the development of integrated, multisectoral policies that explicitly consider linkages across SDGs. Although multiple recent studies have tried to identify linkages across SDGs, the role of contextual factors in identifying SDG linkages is neither well described nor understood. For the case of SDG 2 and SDG 6, this study aims to (i) identify linkages—at country and SDG target level—through the application of various quantitative and qualitative identification methods, and (ii) explore contextual factors to explain the differences across identified linkages. Hereto, we first conducted a text analysis of 195 Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) reported by 159 countries from 2016 to 2020. Next, we synthesized linkages reported by previous qualitative studies and conducted a quantitative (correlation) analysis on the UN’s SDG database. Last, we compared identified linkages across methods, paying special attention to the role of context. From the text analysis, we identified 221 country-specific linkages between 25 SDG target pairs and observed that countries increasingly report SDG linkages in their VNRs over time. Comparing text analysis, existing qualitative studies, and our quantitative correlation analysis, we found substantial differences between the number and nature of linkages identified. These differences can be explained in part by methodological considerations, but to a significant extent also by contextual factors, such as project design, technology application, phase of interventions, and project scale. We conclude by discussing the strengths and limitations of the methods involved, and suggestions for future studies.

Exploring synergies between the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development and involuntary resettlement guidelines: the case of Mozambique’s natural gas project

This paper explores synergies between the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, comprised of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as its roadmap, and existing involuntary resettlement guidelines. On one hand, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development views displacement as a humanitarian problem but fails to address the potential effects of SDG-induced processes of economic and physical displacement and involuntary resettlement. On the other, involuntary resettlement guidelines pay limited attention to the sustainable development of resettled people as well as to the society in which resettlement becomes embedded. This paper explores possibilities to establish synergies between the SDGs and involuntary resettlement by drawing on the case of Mozambique’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, which was showcased in the Government of Mozambique’s 2020 Voluntary National Review (VNR) of SDG progress. The paper will critically analyse how Mozambique as a ‘donor darling’ remains silent about displacement and resettlement processes induced by an LNG project that is used to show its commitment to multiple SDGs. The paper shows that there is a misalignment between how SDGs are used to evaluate a development project and how involuntary resettlement guidelines are applied to the same project. The paper argues that, to truly ‘leave no one behind’, the SDGs and involuntary resettlement guidelines need to be realigned by integrating SDG-induced displacement and resettlement into SDG10 on migration and inequality, into SDG16 on conflicts, and SDG17 on global partnerships.

Closing the Curriculum Gap by Updating Content Standards and Guidelines for Teaching Monetary Policy

The topic of the Federal Reserve’s (the Fed’s) implementation of monetary policy has a significant presence in economics teaching resources. Over the past decade or so, the Fed has purposefully shifted the way it implements monetary policy, introducing a new methodology with new policy tools. Unfortunately, many teaching materials are out of date with the Fed’s current ample-reserves regime and classroom teachers are often guided to teach old content. This guidance often comes from the Voluntary National Content Standards (VNCS) in Economics and the Advanced Placement (AP) Course and Exam Description that are sadly outdated. The VNCS influences the treatment of economics content in K-12 curriculum and textbooks, and the AP course framework determines the content taught in thousands of high school classrooms every year. As such, revising these influential documents is instrumental for closing the curriculum gap. We provide recommendations for how these materials can be updated.

Sustainable Development Goals and Problems of Measuring Poverty and Extreme Poverty

The article presents the results of the study on improving the methodology for measuring poverty and extreme poverty in accordance with the fundamental UN document – the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The author argues his position that when assessing the achievement of targets for the eradication of extreme poverty within the framework of achieving Goal 1 (SDG 1) at the national level, one should not be guided by the average threshold value of extreme poverty for all countries. It is necessary to focus on the gross national income (GNI) per capita, an indicator developed by the World Bank (according to the Atlas method). For the first time, a comparative analysis of the interpretations of SDG 1 by Russian and European researchers, as well as experts of international organizations is carried out, and threshold values of global poverty for groups of countries with different levels of GNI per capita are analyzed. It allows us to identify the main problem of monitoring the eradication of extreme poverty in Russia: the low information content of data on socio-demographic groups experiencing extreme poverty, which, in turn, hinders the formation of effective public policy measures to reduce poverty and eradicate extreme poverty. The paper shows that ignoring the indicator of extreme poverty, calculated depending on the size of GNI per capita using the Atlas method, can lead to erroneous conclusions in the Voluntary National Review of the Russian Federation on achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The author proposes to select indicators of global extreme poverty in accordance with the level of socio-economic development of Russia and to assess the eradication of extreme poverty, taking them into account on a par with the national poverty line. In this context, the author draws attention to inaccuracies in domestic publications related to the interpretation of the concept of «extreme poverty», which can lead to distortion of estimates.

ГЕНДЕРНОЕ РАВЕНСТВО КАК ЦЕЛЬ УСТОЙЧИВОГО РАЗВИТИЯ И ЕЕ РЕАЛИЗАЦИЯ В РОССИИ

The article considers the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals in particular the goal No.5 – ensuring gender equality. It analyses differences in the implementation of those goals and objectives in different countries. A critical assessment is given of the “Voluntary National Review of the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” and provides data not used in the report related to the situation of women in the Russian Federation. The implementation of the following goals in relation to women is described: the ubiquitous elimination of all forms of discrimination; and violence; elimination of all harmful practices; ensuring the full and real participation and equal opportunities at all levels in political, economic and public life; ensuring universal access to sexual and reproductive health services. Conclusions are drawn about the main issues in ensuring gender equality in Russia, associated with the existence of different gender orders.

"Industrialising" the capacity building of local entrepreneurs. A case study of 1001fontaines' "4G Project" in Cambodia

In Cambodia, only 16% of the population in rural areas has access to safely managed and clean water supply services, putting the health of 10.12 million people at stake. (Cambodia's Voluntary National Review 2019 of the Implementation of the 2030 SDG Agenda). 1001fontaines, a community-based enterprise located mainly in Cambodia, responds to this issue by enabling the production of safe drinking water directly in the targeted communities, through the establishment of small water enterprises. These units, called water kiosks, are entrusted to local entrepreneurs and supported in the long run thanks to a franchise model. In 2014, 1001fontaines su ered from low-performing water kiosks, which impacted the viability of the whole portfolio. As a result, 1001fontaines decided to launch the so-called "4G" capacity building project to upgrade the initial and continuing training of water entrepreneurs, expand distribution channels, and further leverage the local "O-We" brand to reach more bene ciaries. The "4G project" was implemented from 2014 to 2015, and resulted in the identi cation of best practices to be followed by every water entrepreneur. Since 2016, 1001fontaines has generalised the use of these best practices to build the capacities of new entrepreneurs. This case study aims to investigate the impact of the "4G project" and its conclusion on the water kiosks' performance and on 1001fontaines' ability to better and faster scale up its approach in Cambodia.

THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN INDONESIA

Political economy concerns with how actual policies deviate from economic optimality. This study evaluates Indonesia’s progresses toward sustainable development goals (SDGs) from the political economy viewpoint. The authors discuss Indonesia’s Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) and critically analyse its COVID-19 pandemic control policy given the policy’s importance to SDG 3 (good health and well-being) and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth). Indonesia chooses to opt-out strict public health restrictions because of the government’s preoccupation with economic growth, the large number of workers relying on daily income and its state of democratic consolidation. This results in Indonesia’s failure to control the pandemic and to avert economic recession. Indonesia correctly anticipates global vaccine nationalism and secures adequate vaccine supplies primarily from China. Vaccination becomes Indonesia’s key pandemic strategy. This study shows how indispensable partnerships (SDG 17) are for achieving SDGs, presenting the case of the Indonesian Forestry Certification Cooperation’s work in forest certification and sustainable forest management.

THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN INDONESIA

Political economy concerns with how actual policies deviate from economic optimality. This study evaluates Indonesia’s progresses toward sustainable development goals (SDGs) from the political economy viewpoint. The authors discuss Indonesia’s Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) and critically analyse its COVID-19 pandemic control policy given the policy’s importance to SDG 3 (good health and well-being) and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth). Indonesia chooses to opt-out strict public health restrictions because of the government’s preoccupation with economic growth, the large number of workers relying on daily income and its state of democratic consolidation. This results in Indonesia’s failure to control the pandemic and to avert economic recession. Indonesia correctly anticipates global vaccine nationalism and secures adequate vaccine supplies primarily from China. Vaccination becomes Indonesia’s key pandemic strategy. This study shows how indispensable partnerships (SDG 17) are for achieving SDGs, presenting the case of the Indonesian Forestry Certification Cooperation’s work in forest certification and sustainable forest management.

THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN INDONESIA

Political economy concerns with how actual policies deviate from economic optimality. This study evaluates Indonesia’s progresses toward sustainable development goals (SDGs) from the political economy viewpoint. The authors discuss Indonesia’s Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) and critically analyse its COVID-19 pandemic control policy given the policy’s importance to SDG 3 (good health and well-being) and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth). Indonesia chooses to opt-out strict public health restrictions because of the government’s preoccupation with economic growth, the large number of workers relying on daily income and its state of democratic consolidation. This results in Indonesia’s failure to control the pandemic and to avert economic recession. Indonesia correctly anticipates global vaccine nationalism and secures adequate vaccine supplies primarily from China. Vaccination becomes Indonesia’s key pandemic strategy. This study shows how indispensable partnerships (SDG 17) are for achieving SDGs, presenting the case of the Indonesian Forestry Certification Cooperation’s work in forest certification and sustainable forest management.