SEIMAS OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA
RESOLUTION
ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF
THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS OF
THE UNITED NATIONS IN LITHUANIA
28 September 2018 No XIII-1514
Vilnius
On 25 September 2015, the General Assembly adopted the resolution of the United Nations summit “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”. The changes are defined by 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 targets to be taken into account when making decisions at international, national and sectoral levels.
The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania,
paying attention to:
– Lithuania’s Progress Strategy “Lithuania 2030” approved by Resolution No XI-2015 of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania of 15 May 2012 on the Approval of the National Progress Strategy “Lithuania 2030” and envisaging developments which will consolidate progress values and build on the principles of sustainable development;
– the National Development Programme 2014-2020 approved by Resolution No 1482 of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania of 28 November 2012 on the Approval of the National Development Programme 2014-2020, which provides for three horizontal principles (one of them being the principle of sustainable development) for the purpose of coordinating various initiatives to address comprehensive issues;
– the Programme of the Seventeenth Government of the Republic of Lithuania approved by Resolution No XIII-82 of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania of 13 December 2016 on the Programme of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania which identifies the development of sustainability as a fundamental goal implemented on five levels: sustainable human being, sustainable society, sustainable education and culture, sustainable economy and sustainable state governance;
having regard to:
– the Communication from the European Commission of 22 November 2016 “Next steps for a sustainable European future. European action for sustainability” (COM(2016) 739 final), which emphasises that the European Union is fully committed to be a frontrunner in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals and to engage in the following two work streams:
1) to fully integrate the Sustainable Development Goals in the European policy framework and current Commission priorities, assessing the current state of play and identifying the most relevant sustainability concerns;
2) to further develop the EU longer term vision and the focus of sectoral policies after 2020, preparing for the long term implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals;
the first comprehensive national review on the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Lithuania, as prepared by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania and successfully presented at the High-Level Political Forum of the United Nations held on 16-18 July 2018 in New York (United States of America),
notes that the review lacks an integral approach to the development of the State, with prevailing descriptions of the measures implemented in different sectors and without a detailed explanation of their impact on specific Sustainable Development Goals;
urges:
1) to integrate the Sustainable Development Goals and corresponding tasks into the long-term and medium-term (up to 2030) strategic documents of the public sector and ensure their synergy;
2) to consolidate the development and implementation of innovations as a horizontal priority in implementing national strategic goals and to ensure decision making based on research and evidence in accordance with the Lithuanian Science and Innovation Policy Reform Guidelines approved by Resolution No XII-2654 of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania of 27 September 2016 on Approval of the Lithuanian Science and Innovation Policy Reform Guidelines;
3) to ensure the necessary involvement of the public in decision making as a horizontal priority in implementing national strategic goals, to strengthen the role of non-formal adult education in all strategies and programmes and in development of activities aimed at sustainable development;
4) to emphasise the importance of the regional dimension in the development of all national public policies and the establishment of an operational platform for cooperation between local, regional and central authorities as foreseen in the Lithuanian Regional Policy White Paper for Harmonious and Sustainable Development, endorsed by the National Regional Development Council of at a meeting of 15 December 2017;
5) to validate the primary orientation of budget appropriations and financial instruments towards the implementation of the long-term Sustainable Development Goals, and to adjust the strategic planning methodology accordingly;
6) to increase the financing of Lithuanian social policy systematically, to ensure that the share of gross domestic product allocated for its implementation reaches the EU average within the next three years;
7) to increase Lithuania’s support for development cooperation;
8) to include indicators for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and their analysis into the Annual Performance Report of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania, with a special focus on monitoring the indicators related to the reduction of income inequality.
Speaker of the Seimas Viktoras Pranckietis