Sustainable Development

In September 2015, the UN Member States adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (Agenda 2030). 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 relevant targets constitute an integral part of the Agenda that must be achieved by 2030.

The Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 181 dated May 25, 2017 was instrumental in setting in motion national work for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in Belarus.

In accordance with the Decree, the National Coordinator for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals has been put in charge of the overall coordination of activities involving national line ministries and agencies as well as other organizations for the implementation of the SDGs in Belarus.

The first National Coordinator in Belarus was Marianna Shchetkina, Vice-Chair of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, who held this post from 2017 to 2020. On March 9, 2023, Valery Belsky, the Deputy Chair of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, has assumed the post of the National Coordinator for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

The National Coordinator is steering the work of the Council for Sustainable Development, which includes in its ranks the representatives of national line ministries and agencies as well as other organizations, members of parliament, public and international organizations, SDG Youth Ambassadors (graduate students of Belarus’ universities).

The Council holds its meetings at least twice a year. In 2023, under the leadership and at the initiative of the National Coordinator, six meetings of the Council were held, including three thematic events: on “Chernobyl” issues; education; protection of the rights of people with disabilities. One meeting was devoted to reviewing the results of the UN country team’s work in the Republic of Belarus.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs supports the National Coordinator and the Council for Sustainable Development activities on SDGs implementation at all levels: national, regional and global.

The key event in 2023 on the topic of sustainable development featured the participation of the Belarusian delegation led by the National Coordinator V.Belsky in the high-level political forum on sustainable development under the auspices of the UN General Assembly (Summit on Sustainable Development Goals), which took place on September 18-19, 2023, New York, at UN headquarters. At the Summit, the Belarusian side distributed information leaflets that highlighted Belarus’ progress in achieving the SDGs, as well as its commitments to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The document was published in the six official languages of the UN as an official document of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly A/78/372.

The information on the SDGs implementation by Belarus was presented at the following meetings with some senior leaders of international organizations in 2023:

• UNECE Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (March 2023, Geneva);

• High-level political forum on Sustainable Development under the auspices of ECOSOC (July 2023, New York);

• the Second Forum on Sustainable Development (November 2023, Baku);

• the Second Global Forum of Interparliamentary Cooperation in Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (November 2023, Tashkent).

Belarus’ participation in various international events showed that its experience in advancing the SDGs has been much appreciated by other countries.

The Republic of Belarus is demonstrating positive dynamics and progress in implementing the 2030 Agenda.

According to international experts, the level of progress of Belarus in achieving the SDGs is at a fairly high level and is close to 80 percent (against the targets set for 2030).

The greatest progress in Belarus has been recorded in achieving SDG №1 “Eradication of poverty”, SDG №5 “Gender Equality”, SDG №6 “Clean Water and Sanitation”, SDG №7 “Affordable and Clean Energy”, SDG №10 “Reduced Inequality”, SDG №4 “Quality education”, SDG №15 “Conserve terrestrial ecosystems”, and SDG №17 “Partnerships for sustainable development”.

Positive dynamics continue to be registered in achieving SDGs 3 (health), 5 (gender), 6 (clean water sanitation), 8 (economic growth), 9 (industrialization, innovation, infrastructure), 10 (reduced inequality), 15 ( conservation of terrestrial ecosystems), 17 (partnership).

Belarus ranked 60th in the Human Development Index (2022) and is listed in the category of countries with a very high level of human development. In the SDG ranking (2022), Belarus held a 34th place (out of 163).

SDGs-related activities in Belarus’ regions mainly addressed challenges in the fields of healthcare, education, and social support for vulnerable groups (promoting the achievement of Goals 3, 4, 10). Special attention was paid to such issues as the elimination of all forms of discrimination, in particular against women (Goals 5 and 10), providing access to education for children with special needs, protecting the environment and creating favorable living conditions for citizens (Goals 13, 15).

Regions are working to formulate local development documents taking into account the SDGs. Regional groups for sustainable development tailor these activities to the relevant programs of social-economic development of regions, cities and districts for 2021 - 2025, as well as to the National Strategy for Sustainable Development.

In 2023, under the leadership of Belstat, two information systems were developed. These are “Module for monitoring and disseminating information on the progress of regions of the Republic of Belarus in achieving the SDGs” and “Geostatistics”, providing access to SDG indicators with regional breakdowns.

The year 2023 saw the intensification of efforts to implement technical assistance project “Supporting the efforts of the Republic of Belarus in the nationalization and localization of the Sustainable Development Goals”, which is funded by the government of the Russian Federation. The project is being implemented in collaboration with the UN country team (UNDP/UNICEF/UNFPA/WHO). Moreover, it provides a platform for engaging with national governmental bodies and regional executive committees.

Detailed and updated information about Belarus’ efforts to implement the UN Sustainable Development Agenda for the period up to 2030, as well as on the activities of the National Coordinator for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and the Council for Sustainable Development is available at the official website and social networks (X, Facebook, Instagram).