Ireland and the SDGs: Coalition 2030: Working together to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals
Coalition 2030 is an alliance of civil society organisations committed to and working towards upholding Ireland’s commitment to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at home in Ireland and in over 50 countries by 2030. Coalition 2030 comprises over 100 organisations – international and domestic NGOs as well as youth organisations, environmental groups, academics, and Trade Unions whose expertise ranges from children and youth rights to environmental sustainability and from humanitarian relief to long term development.
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The Coalition has a shared vision “to transform our world through collaborative partnerships that will free the human race from the tyranny of poverty and want, and to heal and secure our planet”. And in embarking on this collective journey to implement Agenda 2030 – the plan of action for people, planet and prosperity – Coalition 2030 pledges that no one will be left behind.
The strength of Coalition 2030 rests in this shared vision, as well as a commitment to the values and principles enshrined in Agenda 2030 including:
- SOLIDARITY with and for the most vulnerable, both in Ireland and throughout the world;
- INCLUSIVENESS to enable all civil society actors to work together on this transformative agenda;
- DIVERSITY respecting the range of views, skills, and capacity of all members.
In the years up to and including 2030, along with leaders of every country in the world, Ireland will report to the United Nations on whether we have kept our promise. Did we do what we said we would to eliminate hunger, to stall climate change, to reduce global inequality? The challenges Ireland faces – homelessness, conflict, forced displacement, climate change, loss of biodiversity, and income inequality – are not confined to our country. They are challenges we can only tackle at a global level, together.
The Irish Government must deliver the following:
1) A National Action Plan led by the Department of An Taoiseach
- That the Government develops an ambitious National Action Plan, based within the Department of An Taoiseach and involving all government departments, to steer, implement, monitor, and report on the Goals. This action plan needs to emphasise the interlinked nature of the Goals ‐ linking agriculture and climate change, trade policy and global poverty.
- That the Government commits to a National Action Plan which works for the most marginalised and vulnerable. This means committing resources to those who need it most.
- That young people must be included and empowered to participate throughout this process from 2015 – 2030 – through development education/global citizenship education.
2) A strong and inclusive SDG Monitoring Forum
- That the Government commits to establishing a monitoring forum in which those vulnerable groups – both Irish and internationally – who stand to gain or lose most from Ireland’s work on the Goals are fully represented.
- That young people be supported to have a role in monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the Goals in an inclusive, participatory and meaningful way.
3) The role for the youth sector, development education and global citizenship education to be recognised and financed to support the delivery of the SDGs
- The youth sector should be able to undertake their own youth-led campaigns and to collaborate with others.
- That young people are supported to make the links between their lives at local, national, European, and Global levels, supporting greater knowledge, skills, and action on key SDG issues so young people are empowered to take action and become global citizens as recognised by Goal 4, Target 4.7.
- That Ireland commits fully to increasing the resources committed to achieving the SDGs by supporting Financing for Development that will include greater support for development education and also reach the UN target of spending 0.7% of our Gross National Income (GNI) on Overseas Development Assistance so our aid programme remains focused on the most marginalised and vulnerable communities.
