Accelerating Progress towards Reaching Sustainable Development Goals

Abstract

There is time bond succession from Millennium Development Goals to Sustainable Development Goals from 2015 as a defined point of demarcation. This is an ultra short sociopolitical intervention in order to transform society into a healthier state. This is an unnatural process that depends on will and resources. As the country is in political transition it would be an opportunity to assure to implement programs and plans early ahead.

Full text

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NJOG / VOL 12 / NO. 1 / ISSUE 23/ Jan-Jun, 2017
CORRESPONDENCE
Dr Kedar Prasad Baral
Professor, Department of Community Health Sciences, Patan
Academy of Health Sciences
Lagankhel-5, Lalitpur, Nepal
Cell#: +977-9851145081, Email: kedarbaral@pahs.edu.np
Accelerating Progress Towards Reaching Sustainable
Development Goals
Baral KP1, Yadav UN1, Baral G2
1Patan Academy of Health Sciences, Lalitpur, 2Paropakar Maternity and Women’s Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Received: 23-Jan-2017; Accepted: 30-Mar-2017
INTRODUCTION
In September 2000, leaders of 189 countries
endorsed the Millennium Declaration, with a set
of eight measurable goals ranging from halving
extreme poverty and hunger to promoting gender
equality and reducing child mortality, by year 2015.
The Millennium Development Goals (MDG) was
revolutionary and realistic with a clear monitoring
framework. Sustainable progress have been made and
the world have realized that post-2015 agenda must
be put into discussions on building sustainable world
where environmental sustainability, social inclusion
and economic development will be valued equally.1
The Rio+20 conference, galvanized a process to
develop a sustainable goals with besieged attention
directed towards traditionally marginalized groups
such as ethnic minorities, indigenous groups,
and women.2 Building upon experience and
lessons learned from MDGs, the new Sustainable
Development Goals (SDG) were put forwarded for
bridging the gaps spanning from 2015-2030.
METHODS
National and global literatures on policy, planning,
reports, guidelines and recommendations have been
reviewed. Critical appraisal has been made based on
past MDG status and future SDGs in terms of federal
restructuring of the country.
Table-1. Key MDG indicators achieved during MDG
era for Nepal
Indicator 2000 2005 2010 2015 Source
Population
growth
2.2 1.5 1.1 1.2 WB cited CBS
projection
5
Life
expectancy at
birth (in years)
62.1 64.8 67.10 71 UNDP (2014),
NPC (2016)
6,7
GDP
growth rate
(percentage)
5.8 2.9 3.5 5.5 MoF,
UNDESA
(2015)
8,9
Population
below
poverty line
(percentage)
38 31 25.4 21.6 NPC and
UNCT (2014),
NPC (2016)
10-
12
Underweight
children aged
under 5 years
(percent)
53 43 38.6 30.1 MoHP et al.
(2012b), CBS
(2015b), NPC
and UNCT
(2013)
13-16
Under five
mortality rate
(per 1,000 live
births)
91 61 54 38 MoHP et al.
(2007,
2012)
17,18
Maternal
mortality ratio
(per 100,000
live births)
415 281 281 258 NPC (2002),
MoHP (2009),
WHO et
al.(2015)
19-21
Population
with
sustainable
access to
improved
water
source
(percent)
73 81 80.4 83.6 NPC (2005),
CBS (2004),
MoWSS
(2016)
22-24
Population
with
sustainable
access to
sanitation
(percent)
30 39 43 81 NPC (2005),
CBS (2004),
MoWSS
(2016)
22-24
NJOG 2017 Jan-Jun; 23 (1):5-7 Review Article
There is time bond succession from Millennium Development Goals to Sustainable Development Goals from 2015 as a
dened point of demarcation. This is an ultra short sociopolitical intervention in order to transform society into a healthier
state. This is an unnatural process that depends on will and resources. As the country is in political transition, it would be an
opportunity to assure to implement programs and plans early ahead.
Keywords: millennium development goal, Nepal, sustainable development goal
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/njog.v12i1.18973

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DISCUSSION
Nepal's progress in MDGs
Nepal occupies the space in the list of least developed
country (LDC) in South Asia, is characterized by
sluggish economic growth, a low level of human
development and by slow socio-economic under
development.3 On the top of this, underdevelopment
spans from weak governance structures to politically
and socially fragile condition.
Despite the long political instability and absence of
elected representative at regional and local level, Nepal
have made exemplary achievement in eradicating
poverty level, decreasing proportion of underweight
children, increasing literacy rate, decreasing under
ve children mortality rate, decreasing maternal
mortality ratio and improving access to sanitation
and clean drinking water [Table.1]. The MDGs status
report of Nepal shows that, while most of targets
achieved, some were partially achieved and there
are some unnished agenda as well.4 The report
have also highlighted that factors like increased rate
of urbanization, accelerated labor migration, the
remittance cultured economy, the proliferation of
information and communication technology and high
proportion of young people in the population might
affect the country's future developmental agenda.
SDGs and Window of Opportunity ahead for Nepal
being signatory of SDGs, committed to achieve
it by framing and aligning national policies,
implementation framework and allocation of
human and nancial resources. National Planning
Commission (NPC) is undertaking pivotal role in
implementing the programs in light of SDGs. The
policies developed under umbrella of government
of Nepal seek to achieve sustainable development
goals by bridging the gaps between the services
delivered and the expectations of the services users.
Accordingly, government is in process of updating
various policies tting to country new federal structure
like new National Health Policy is been drafted in
2017 and is in process of endorsement. Further based
on lessons learned from MDGs, Nepal is one of the
rst countries to have produced a "National Report on
SDGs" that charts a pathway for implementation of 17
SDGs with 169 targets till 2030. At the global level,
SDGs is aspirational and universal, and focusing on a
participatory approach that will help Nepal to dene
national targets to meet the stated goals.
The SDGs are very ambitious and will need huge
resources to meet the targets by 2030. Moreover, in
achieving SDGs, we have to think big on designing
implementation framework at the province and
local level focusing hard-to-reach population,
marginalized and ethnic communities; annual plans
and budgets, mid-term expenditure framework for
budget absorption, and result based development
management; developing innovative cost-effective
approach tting the federal structure and further, on
scaling up to the unreached populations.25 In addition,
monitoring framework and disaggregated database
should be developed in order to track progress on 17
goals and targeted interventions.
Nepal has adopted a federal system, which indicates
that overall development of the country will be more
balanced, inclusive and rapid; but this might pose a
new challenges. However, challenges can be broken
down by visioning comprehensive and common
vision for sharing the resources, strategy to combat
deep rooted corruption and implementation of gender
equity and social inclusion policy at every provincial
and local level planning, which in turn helps the
country to achieve national targets set in line with
SDGs.
CONCLUSIONS
At the outset of federal structure of governance in
the country it is the high time to collaborate with
external development partners in line with social
and economic reforms in priority. To make Nepal’s
system more equitable, fair and effective, there is an
urgent need for more critical thinking, and healthy
and inclusive discourse for improving the goals stated
in SDGs as a whole.
Progress towards Sustainable Development Goals
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