Evidence in Asia shows that many countries are taking actions towards SCP. However, many of those achievements are not being reported, and this could be giving a wrong image of the region’s merits and efforts towards SCP. On the 21st November 2019, the SWITCH-Asia Regional Policy Advocacy Component (RPAC) organised in Hanoi a policy dialogue on SDG 12 reporting with the main objective of advocating for improving the SDG 12 reporting process in the countries of the Asian region and exchanging discussions on how to support countries in reporting.
As stated by Ms. Isabelle Louis, Deputy Regional Director and Regional Deputy Representative for Asia and the Pacific, @UN Environment, “Effective monitoring and reporting on the 2030 Agenda can spur investment and inspire political commitment and advocacy.”
The event, which took place back to back the 2nd SWITCH-Asia Programme Steering Committee, brought together almost 100 participants including representatives from the governments of the countries covered by the Programme, EU delegations, SWTICH-Asia grants beneficiaries and Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) experts from Asian and European countries. During the dialogue, reporting on the SDG target 12.1 was identified as a key action to encourage strong cooperation on SCP across the governments and policy coherence. On the other hand, the relevant role of the private sector and business associations in SDG 12 reporting was also remarked, taking into consideration that the SDG target 12.6 counts on the number of companies publishing corporate sustainability reports. Successful in raising awareness and facilitating the understanding of the challenges faced by countries in reporting on SDG 12, the policy dialogue showcased how Asian countries are currently reporting on this SDG and created a space for discussions to identify the best ways to support SDG 12 reporting from the SWITCH-Asia RPAC. In order to continue supporting the countries, the SWITCH-Asia RPAC will ask participants to complete a follow-up survey in order to have a better picture of who has the responsibility of reporting in each country and how the reporting process could be improved in each of the cases.
For further information about the Policy Dialogue on SDG 12 Reporting please visit here.
Contact details:
Mr. Mushtaq Ahmed Memon
Regional Coordinator for Resource Efficiency
United Nations Environment Programme, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
Project Manager
Regional Policy Advocacy Component
(SWITCH-Asia – the European Union funded programme)
Email: [email protected]
