Opportunities for capacity development is one of the building blocks of the #NFUR00 - National follow up and review - #asd79 as described in the UNDG Guidelines to support country reporting.

The guidelines write about it:

  • Despite the commitment of the 2030 Agenda to leave no one behind, many developing countries will be left behind if they cannot reduce capacity constraints, including those related to country-led SDG reviews and reports. Capacity gaps will vary from country to country, requiring tailored strategies, including through UN system support. These may need to cover a range of different actors, from government officials, including planning and M&E officers, analysts and statisticians, to civil society representatives.
  • Some areas where capacity development strategies may be required include:
    • Ensuring relevant government officials have the skills to engage with key stakeholders at the national level, with a special focus on vulnerable population groups, in order to promote inclusive national SDG reviews and reporting;
    • Strengthening the capacities of national statistical offices and other relevant government bodies to compile national SDG indicators; to collect, compile, present and disseminate reliable, timely and quality disaggregated data; and to use new data sources;
    • Strengthening national evaluation capacities to promote equity-based and systems thinking approaches to SDGs evaluation, and to ensure evaluation outcomes inform national policy-making and SDG reporting; and
    • Developing the skills of national actors to effectively apply analytical approaches for the formulation and review of SDG policies.
  • There are risks that providers of technical assistance or capacity strengthening might over encourage institutional capacity strengthening that is more ‘supply-side’ driven and not necessarily responsive to national needs. All UN and international organizations should do more to sensitize their staff on such risks, and adopt appropriate practices accordingly.


Further reading: UNDG Guidelines to Support Country Reporting on the Sustainable Development Goals

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#NFUR07 - Capacity development in the tree of 2030 Agenda Review Framework: