Follow-Up and Review for the 2030 Agenda: Bringing coherence to the work of the HLPF

This policy brief by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines the follow-up and review mechanisms for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It focuses on the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) as the central coordinating body, proposing a 'bottom-up' approach to accountability where information and peer learning drive policy change. The authors suggest improving the HLPF's effectiveness through better synthesis of vast reporting streams, the use of strategic annual themes to ensure holistic review, and the strengthening of national and regional review processes.

• The 21st-century approach to accountability for the 2030 Agenda is based on a 'bottom-up' paradigm where states change policy because they learn about successful actions and perceive the social acceptability of norms, rather than through fear of non-compliance.
• The High-level Political Forum (HLPF) serves as the apex of a global network of follow-up and review processes, with the primary task of identifying and addressing obstacles to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
• There is a significant risk that the HLPF will be overwhelmed by a 'mighty river of undigested information' from numerous UN bodies, treaty monitoring mechanisms, and non-UN organizations, which could limit debates to generalities.
• To manage the complexity of the 17 SDGs and 169 targets, the HLPF should use annual themes to create cross-cutting connections and provide a focus for ministerial discussions, ensuring the entire Agenda is reviewed over a four-year cycle.
• National review is the foundation of the 2030 Agenda's success, consisting of three dimensions: Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) at the HLPF, internal national reviews (suggested every four years), and peer learning at the regional level.
• The authors recommend that all inputs to the HLPF be stored in a searchable online database and that the Secretariat provide an annual synthesis paper to help ministers derive political guidance from the data.

APA

Halle, M., & Wolfe, R. (2016). Follow-Up and Review for the 2030 Agenda: Bringing coherence to the work of the HLPF. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/hlpf-follow-up-review-2030-agenda.pdf

Chicago

Halle, Mark, and Robert Wolfe. Follow-Up and Review for the 2030 Agenda: Bringing coherence to the work of the HLPF. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2016. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/hlpf-follow-up-review-2030-agenda.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Halle |first1=Mark |last2=Wolfe |first2=Robert |title=Follow-Up and Review for the 2030 Agenda: Bringing coherence to the work of the HLPF |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=March 2016 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/hlpf-follow-up-review-2030-agenda.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{halle2016followup, author = {Halle, Mark and Wolfe, Robert}, title = {{Follow-Up and Review for the 2030 Agenda: Bringing coherence to the work of the HLPF}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2016}, month = mar, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/hlpf-follow-up-review-2030-agenda.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }