WWF-UK response to the International Development Committee inquiry: UK Progress on the SDGs

January 2019

Summary

1. WWF welcomes the opportunity to contribute to this inquiry. WWF is the world’s leading conservation organisation working to address the major drivers of environmental degradation in over 100 countries. WWF has extensive experience in climate change, biodiversity and ecosystems, management of natural resources and making the link between people and nature. We seek to build a future where people and nature thrive. We co-chair both the Bond SDG group and UKSSD so also support and endorse their submissions to this inquiry. 
2. The SDGs have not been prioritized by the UK Government, there is no action plan in place for delivering the goals and little sign of political commitment to the goals. This is disappointing, especially given the UK’s early leadership role on this agenda.
3. Cabinet Office rather than DFID would be the most appropriate department to lead the delivery of the SDGs across government, and the Cabinet should have oversight.
4. We welcome DFIDs commitment to the goals, however there is more that DFID could do to lead by example on how departments can respond to the SDGs, for example a more proactive approach to the SDGs in its Annual Operating Plan, Single Departmental Plan and external communications.
5. The UK Government has been very slow to develop a process and timeline for its Voluntary National Review (VNR) and the process for engaging stakeholders has been too slow. And the scope and breadth of what stakeholders are being asked to engage on is limited.
6. The UK Government should be using the opportunity of the VNR to have a broader public discussion about the SDGs and publicly champion the goals. However, we have not seen any evidence that they will use this opportunity.
7. We recommend that the UK Government develops a comprehensive action plan for delivering the goals and this should be developed at the same time as the VNR.
8. Policy coherence for sustainable development is vital if the goals are to be delivered effectively in the UK and abroad, however the UK Government is not applying a policy coherence lens to decision making and we give the example of fossil fuel subsidies and investments in mitigating climate change as an example.

DFID’s role in leading UK implementation of the SDGs

9. The SDGs are universal goals that apply to all countries, including the UK. The goals recognise the increasing interdependency of development around the world. In the UK there are three opportunities:
1. delivering the SDGs domestically for all citizens;
2. ensuring that ODA and international financial institutions support the delivery of the SDGs overseas through their programming and policies;
3. ensuring policy coherence for sustainable development so that UK domestic and international policies have a positive, not negative, impact on achieving the SDGs around the world.
10. Cross-Whitehall approach to SDG delivery: Given that the goals have a strong domestic as well as international focus there needs to be a cross-Whitehall approach to SDG delivery. 
11. Cabinet Office best placed to lead HMG: The Cabinet Office has the experience in coordinating complex policy agendas across Government and is well placed to lead this work. DFID has a key role in terms of delivering the international dimensions of the goals through the ODA budget, and has an important role in supporting delivery given its engagement with this agenda to date, however the cross-government lead sits best with the Cabinet Office.
12. Little attention on the SDGs across government: Despite their universal reach, there has been little attention on UK delivery of the goals. Where the UK Government does refer to the SDGs it is largely in an international development context. DFID being the lead department reinforces the perception that the SDGs are primarily as an international development rather than domestic agenda. Shifting the lead to Cabinet Office would give a strong signal that the SDGs are relevant for all departments and all areas of government.
13. DFID do not have a domestic mandate and are not equipped to work cross-government in the same way as the CO. However, DFID can add significant value by leading more strategic cross-government action on both positive and negative impacts of UK consumption, trade, investment etc in those countries where DFID are mandated to reduce poverty and support sustainable development. For example, through promoting the Modern Slavery and Anti-Bribery Acts, through supporting social and environmental standards in British company supply chains as well as high standards of British investment in other countries and the closing of tax havens that undermine national finances of other countries.
14. Leave No One Behind leadership: The UK Government championed the Leave No One Behind principle when the goals were negotiated, however they have not subsequently applied this principle to government policy. It is critical that the UK government recognises the universality of the SDGs and the applicability of Leave No One Behind in the UK context, as well as within international development policy. This was exemplified when applied in UKSSD’s report Measuring Up.[1] Given their mandate on international poverty and sustainable development, DFID have a lot they could share with other departments on this important aspect of the goals but it is yet to be embedded across government.

Has DFID leadership been effective to date? What challenges does the Department face?

15. Lack of leadership: We are disappointed with the lack of leadership on the SDGs across the government. We are pleased that the current DFID SoS has referenced the SDGs in speeches but it still does not feel from the ‘outside’ that the SDGs are a priority at a ministerial level or across the department. For example, the SDGs do not feature strongly in DFID in public communications or policy statements, and are not a major theme of DFID positions, policies and reports.
16. Lack of learning:  DFID were a world leader on supporting delivery of the MDGs.  They walked the talk, they mainstreamed MDGs through policy and programmes and accountability mechanisms.  Learning from what worked with internalising this in DFID would help them respond more comprehensively to SDGs.
17. DFID are not well placed to lead cross government: The SDGs are a universal agenda and DFID are not well placed to lead on the domestic and UK dimensions of the SDGs, and given the departments international focus it is difficult for DFID to be effective leaders on domestic aspects of this agenda.
18. Leave No One Behind is a key aspect of the SDGs, and one which the UK were instrumental in developing when the SDGs were negotiated. DFID have been leaders in this area internationally but this principle of the goals has not been shared by DFID nor applied domestically and taken up by departments. Even within DFID their LNOB strategy is unclear.
19. Single Departmental Plans: When the Single Departmental Plans were first published in December 2017 only two departments referred to the SDGs – DFID and HMRC, this was extremely disappointing and demonstrates that DFID’s leadership on the SDGs had not been effective in mainstreaming the goals across governments. After pressure from the Environmental Audit Select Committee and civil society the SDPs were improved in May 2018, with all departments at least mentioning them in their plans, but the SDPs still fall far short of being a meaningful tool for SDG delivery.
20. DFID demonstrating best practice: Given that DFID are currently the lead department we would like to see them demonstrating best practice regarding the goals, for example:
1. Facilitating the HMG plan for delivering the Sustainable Development Goals.
2. Showing how each of the areas in their SDP aligns to SDG goals and linking across to the relevant SDG targets.
3. Having a departmental plan for delivering the SDGs showing how DFID is delivering on the goals and targets across its portfolio.
4. Greater visibility for the goals in public communications e.g. the DFID website, social media feeds, speeches etc. We recognise that there have been some attempts at this for example the social media campaign on SDG-related New Year’s resolutions in support of #MyGlobalGoals.
5. Ensure the SDGs are front and centre in departmental reporting.
6. Including the SDGs in DFID’s Smart Rules – the Smart Rules are DFIDs system for ensuring consideration of the environmental and climate impacts of its own programmes and projects. At the planning stage of projects and programmes DFID should consider:

   Which SDG targets will the intervention will deliver against

   Is this intervention consistent with the Paris Agreement and a 1.5 degrees warming Scenario?

   Does this intervention have potential impacts on the delivery of other SDG goals and targets either at home or abroad. 

21. Accountability for the goals: the oral evidence session from Ministers to the EAC inquiry on SDG delivery on the 23rd October 2018[2] highlighted that accountability for delivery of the SDGs by the UK Government remains an issue. While the overall responsibility currently and inappropriately sits with DFID, and all departments have some elements of the goals in their SDPs, it is unclear where the accountability sits for delivery the goals. We recommend that the accountability ultimately should sit with the Cabinet.

The UK’s Voluntary National Review (VNR) 

22. The VNR should review a plan and progress against the SDGs.  The government does not have a plan and so what they are reviewing is also unclear. The UKSSD Measuring Up report is the best assessment of sustainable development in the UK, based on the latest ONS data at the time.  The least the government could do is review progress against this report and build on gaps and shortcomings and undertake full evaluation of those policies that are working well and those that are not.
23. The VNR process has been too slow and too unclear: The UK Government has been very slow to develop a process and timeline for its Voluntary National Review (VNR) and to set out its approach for incorporating the contributions of stakeholders. For example, the list of which departments were leading on what goals was only shared in Mid-December, and only one stakeholder engagement session on a goal area took place in 2018 – this was on Goal 16. At the time of writing the timeline and dates for other stakeholder engagement opportunities was still being mapped out.
24. VNR process not being led by departments: The team in DFID is committed and has been communicating well with Bond and UKSSD although the process for rolling out roundtables to discuss the draft VNR was delayed and still not scheduled at the time of writing. However most of the other departments have not reached out to stakeholders in a comprehensive way at the time of writing. Exceptions are the Home Office who ran an event on Goal 16 and HMT who have an event scheduled on Goal 8. GEO added a discussion on Goal 5 to an existing event but the timeline was very short for stakeholders to engage. Given that DFID is leading on Goal 17 we had hoped that it would lead the way with early and comprehensive stakeholder engagement, and while there are plans underway at the time of writing there still wasn’t a clear timeline.
25. Co-operation across government appears to have been poor, departments have failed to develop clear and transparent plans for reviewing the goals they are responsible for and have (with the exception of DFID and the Home Office, HMT and GEO) failed to reach out to stakeholders.
26. The VNR is an excellent opportunity to have a broader public discussion about the SDGs, for example in schools, with communities, and increase public awareness of the goals. However, we have not seen any indication that the UK Government will use the VNR to increase visibility of the goals beyond a social media campaign launched 2nd Jan based around new year’s resolutions for the goals.
27. The VNR should drive better implementation: The UN Guidelines for the VNRs set out that “The process of carrying out the voluntary national review should not be seen as separate from implementation of the SDGs. Rather than an end in itself, the VNR is a process by which countries take stock of and assess progress – and shortcomings - in implementation of the goals and targets.”[3] The VNR process is the ideal time for the UK government to also be developing its implementation plan for the goals – which is currently lacking – but we have not seen any indication that this is being done.

28. WWF recommendations on a good VNR:

Product:

1. Review progress against targets: We expect the UK Government to cover all of the goals for the full report, and, critically, to look at progress against all of the targets.
2. The UKSSD report “Measuring up”[4] as a starting point: this detailed report provides an excellent and comprehensive overview of progress on the SDG targets.  It is based on the latest ONS data and this report should be the starting point for the UK Government process and approach.
3. Links between goals: The VNR should look at interlinkages and synergies between the goals, identify accelerators and develop plans to take them forward
4. Review progress to date: The VNR needs to review progress against the SDGs i.e. what has changed since the adoption of the SDGs. This should be informed by UK wide stakeholders.
5. Leave No One Behind (LNOB) as a key focus: The 2018 High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) saw better quality reporting on LNOB compared to previous years, the UK shaped and developed this concept with the SDGs were agreed, if the UK want to stay leaders in this area they need to up their game and have this as a priority area in the UKs VNR.
6. The UK’s global impact: The focus is on domestic delivery but the VNR also needs to consider the UK’s global impact on SDGs through ODA but also through its footprint e.g. trade, consumption, environmental footprint.

Process:

1. Look at lessons from other countries: There are lessons that the UK could draw on from other VNRs - see for example the civil society report, “Progressing National SDG Implementation”, a civil society assessment of 2017 VNR[5].  And the 2018 version of this report has just been launched.
2. Stakeholder engagement: engaging stakeholders is critical. The VNR is government led but should engage civil society, private sector and other stakeholders in a meaningful way. Properly stakeholder engagement requires a clear methodology, budget and time. We remain concerned about the lack of a clear timeline or engagement plan. Existing plans to include case-studies from stakeholders could be a helpful part of the VNR, but is not sufficient for capturing stakeholders’ analysis on how well the UK is delivering on the SDGs. 
3. Devolved and regional representation: the VNR process and report needs to engage and reflect progress at the regional and devolved level. Scotland and Wales both have different but progressive approaches to delivering and tracking the SDGs and their experiences should be incorporated throughout the report.
4. Follow up beyond the VNR: We recommend that the lead department establishes a regular multi-stakeholder group as part of the follow up from the VNR to take the SDGs forward in the future.

29. Developing an action plan for the SDGs: The VNR is the ideal time for the Government to develop its plan for delivering the SDGs. The Single Departmental Plans show where some of the government’s policies map across to some of the goals but they do not constitute an action plan. We recommend that an action plan for implementing the goals be developed in parallel to the VNR. An “action plan” should have the following components:
1. Domestic, global and policy coherence: There are three strands to SDG implementation by the UK that need to be included in the plan: a) Delivering the SDGs domestically for all people in the UK; b) Ensuring that domestic action has a positive impact globally, c) Ensuring DFID, FCO and other government departments support the delivery of the SDGs globally through the ODA budget.
2. A plan for each of the targets: Address each of the 169 targets and the connections between the targets and, highlighting linkages between social, environmental, economic and governance aspects of the SDGs.
3. Analysis of Gaps in delivery: show which targets have policies in place and which don’t, highlighting the gaps in delivery and what the plan is to address them.
4. How the goals are being delivered by departments: The action plan should show how the SDG targets will be embedded in all Single Departmental Plans and delivered on by departments, and how departments will report annually on SDG progress. SDG champions within departments could also help to embed the SDGs.
5. Stakeholder roles and resources: Identify roles and resources for how citizens, civil society organisations, businesses and parliament can contribute to delivery of SDGs.
6. Monitoring, review and evaluation: The action plan should outline clear and transparent mechanisms for monitoring and reviewing progress on the goals. There should also be evaluation points built in to the timeframe to check if the UK is on track.
7. Communications: The plan should include a strategy for public communications and outreach on the SDGs.
8. Show how the SDGs link to other global policy frameworks: The action plan should demonstrate how the UK Government’s approach to the goals optimises the links between the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the SDGs. The two processes are intrinsically linked, without delivery of the Paris Agreement the SDGs will not be achieved and vice versa. Similarly, there are clear links to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) for delivering goals 14 and 15 and the action plan should highlight these linkages.
9. Resourcing Plan: To implement the goals at home and abroad requires resources. The action plan should include a chapter on domestic and international resource mobilisation to achieve the goals at home and overseas.
10. Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development (PCSD): has largely been missing from the UK Government's approach to SDGs. The action plan should consider PCSD in detail, without it policy interventions to deliver on one set of targets could undermine delivery of other targets at home or abroad.

How Does DFID Support the achievement of the SDGs overseas

30. In terms of the specific question on how effective have DFID and HMG been in supporting the achievement of the SDGs we would refer the committee to the forthcoming Bond report that considers this in detail.
31. Here we have provided some specific views with regard to Goal 8 (decent work and economic growth); and goal SDG 13 (climate action).
32. Overview of Goal 8: SDG 8 focuses on the economy, making this goal critical to the whole framework. Target 8.1 references increased growth in GDP. However, the quality of economic growth, the environmental and climate change costs, and inequality are all too often ignored.
7. DFID needs to build sustainability considerations more systematically into its Economic Development Strategy (EDS), recognising the overarching importance of ensuring that partner countries’ development trajectories are environmentally sustainable.  Failure to do so will have negative impacts on recipient countries, locking them into outdated technologies, growth models and stranded assets.[6]
8. A ‘business as usual’ approach to economic growth undermines any change of keeping climate change to 1.5 degrees, with devastating consequences for our economies and societies. Efforts to deliver on goal 8 should have climate change front and centre in their design and implementation. We were disappointed that DFID’s EDS does not prioritise a climate compatible model of economic development.
9. WWF’s recent Living Planet Report[7] shows population sizes of wildlife decreased by 60% globally between 1970 and 2014. This has major implications – not just for goals 14 and 15 but for all the goals. Functioning ecosystems are the basis of our food systems, our water, our air, and they supply the resources that drive our economies. The ultimate underlying driver of environmental degradation is our current economic model. It is unsustainable, inequitable and if left unchecked will drive humanitarian crises. There is no recognition in government generally or DFID specifically that we need to challenge our current economic model and build a One Planet Economy for the future – that will deliver prosperity now and into the future, and will do so without undermining the natural resources we rely on and without destabilising our climate.
33. Overview of Goal 13: As the IDC heard during their recent inquiry into climate change and Aid, climate change and the SDGs are closely connected.[8] SDG 13 is on Climate Action but there are links to each of the 17 goals.
10. If action on climate change is not swift and far reaching then it will be impossible to achieve the SDGs. Failing to take action on climate change puts any prospect of ending poverty far out of reach. According to the World Bank climate change could drag more than 100 million people back into extreme poverty by 2030.[9] Climate change is already impacting people around the world, exacerbating poverty and undermining development efforts.
11. The extent to which climate change undermines the SDGs depends on the level of warming. The Recent IPCC 1.5 report details climate change impacts at 1.5 and 2 degree scenarios of warming.[10] The IPCC report says in the starkest possible terms that humans have at most 12 years to drastically reduce total carbon emissions if we are to have any chance of keeping to 1.5 degrees and avoid catastrophic environmental breakdown with huge consequences for our species.
12. In many ways the UK have been leaders on climate change, both in terms of the UK’s progressive Climate Change Act, powering past coal initiative and in DFID’s work on climate change. However, this leadership position will be compromised if the UK fails to reduce its carbon emission in line with pledges made in the Paris Climate Agreement.
13. The UK Government needs to ensure that all of its investments through ODA and other source are targeted at a 1.5 degree warming scenario, and this means ending all investments into fossil fuels at home and abroad. Unless it does this, the UK will be directly undermining the efforts of other countries (and indeed its own efforts) to achieve the SDGs. There are further points below about policy coherence and fossil fuel funding.  
34. Is DFID actively supporting the Sustainable Development in its policies and programmes? It is difficult to conclude that DFID are actively supporting the sustainable development goals across their portfolio. Much of their work can be fitted in under the SDGs but they are not using the SDGs as a guiding framework for the department. Rather they are retrofitting their work against the SDGs, rather than having a proactive strategy for targeting the goals. There are also areas of policy and investment that are at odds with some of the goals and targets. A question the IDC could ask is whether DFID have explicitly targeted particular SDG goals and targets in their programming and how they have ensured policy coherence.

Are DFID’s accountability mechanisms sufficient to track its contribution to the SDGs?

35. DFID’s Annual Report: is a key accountability mechanism for the department. The 2018 Annual report[11] states that the UK Government remains committed to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs and each Strategic Objective includes a section outlining which Goals it contributes to. This is a good start. However, we have the following observations:
1. Whilst the report aligns achievements and priorities with specific SDGs, this is only at a general level.
2. Rather than outlining how DFID work is driven by achievement of the SDGs, it instead appears that existing DFID priorities have been broadly mapped to Goals.
3. Analysis of DFIDs work does not address specific SDG targets, and there is not enough evidence to assess the outcomes of DFID’s SDG implementation work.
4. There is very little on increasing governments accountability to civil society and citizens, beyond commitment to promoting ‘British values’; and nothing on the role of civil society in holding governments to account (on delivering the SDGs for example)
5. The Annual Report notes the important role of multilateral organisations in the implementation of the SDGs, but does not go further and say that DFID will be encouraging multilaterals to ensure all their investments are targeted at delivering the goals. It is unclear how DFID’s work holds Multilaterals to account with regard to the SDGs.
36. Reactive or Proactive on the SDGs: Overall it feels that DFID is not responding proactively to the SDGs as framework for guiding policy, planning and accountability, but instead it operates as a check list that DFID demonstrate their alignment to – more of a reactive retrofitting than responding proactively.

How coherent is the UK Government’s approach to achieving the SDGs overseas? And are there areas where the UK Government is hampering the efforts of other countries to achieve the SDGs?

37. Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development (PCSD): is a target under goal 17 of the SDGs and it is a critical element of SDG delivery for all the goals, but it is an area that has not had much attention from the UK Government to date. Policy coherence ensures that interventions to deliver on one set of targets doesn’t undermine delivery of other targets at home or abroad.
38. Without a coherent approach, interventions designed to deliver on one specific SDG goal or target could undermine progress in other targets. For example, some SDG 8 targets emphasise economic growth and GDP – if you take these targets in isolation you could develop interventions that deliver high carbon economic development with negative climate impacts - undermining other goals and targets.
39. ODA Funding for fossil fuels: An example of policy “incoherence” is using ODA funding for fossil fuel investments in developing countries, whilst this might help deliver some of the economic targets in the short term it undermines delivery of the climate change SDG targets and is not in line with the Paris Agreement and the commitment to keeping us to 1.5 degrees of warming. Climate change is already undermining progress across all the SDGs, so ensuring that all investments and interventions are coherent from a climate perspective is a priority.
40. Fossil fuel funding from UK Export Finance (UKEF): ODI has shown that in 2016, UKEF supported fossil fuel energy exports and projects with a total value of £1.2 billion, compared with £ 25.8 million for renewable energy exports and projects.[12] this is a prime example of why policy coherence is needed if we are to deliver on the SDGs.[13]
41. Trade policy: Policy coherence is a key consideration as the UK negotiates trade deals post Brexit. When developing trade agreements the UK needs to consider how trade agreements will positively and negatively impact on delivery of the different SDGs at home and abroad. For example, assessing the impact on poverty, carbon emissions and the environment at home and abroad. In the case of the environment the UK shouldn’t develop trade policies that export’s our environmental footprint to other countries, instead we want to support supply chains that are sustainable.
42. The SDGs as a package of goals and targets: Thinking about policy coherence highlights the need to think about the goals as a package rather than picking and choosing goals or targets that fit with the model of development that you are looking for.
43. Tax havens: If corporations paid their fair share of tax, many developing countries would have larger budgets to deploy for sustainable development. The UK government could do more to ensure that UK companies pay the appropriate tax in the countries they operate in.
44. Global footprint: International supply chains provide jobs and contribute to the global economy. However, if international supply chains damage the natural environment in source countries for example through deforestation or pollution they will have negative social, economic and environmental impacts. Responsible sourcing of products is therefore critical to supporting the SDGs. Reducing the UK’s global footprint is something that DFID could pay more attention to. DFID have historically been strong on forests, and could be leading the way globally in calling for countries and businesses to commit to deforestation free supply chains and sustainable sourcing of commodities. This would enable the delivery of the SDGs.

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