This is an independent progress report that is produced and owned by the Somaliland SDG16+ Coalition – a group of civil society organizations working to implement SDG16+ in all regions of Somaliland.
Somaliland – Para 89
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Despite the government of Somaliland not taking part in the negotiation process that led to the adoption of the 2030 Agenda, it has proactively engaged in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Authorities have endorsed the SDGs and included them in the national development framework, the Somaliland National Development Plan II (NDPII). Nonetheless, the government of Somaliland remains unable to share this progress with official UN mechanisms because of its political status. To ensure that Somaliland’s efforts to implement the SDGs are shared with the rest of the world, civil society has decided to fill the gap – and report on the process and progress on SDG16+ implementation in Somaliland.
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This is an independent progress report that is produced and owned by the Somaliland SDG16+ Coalition – a group of civil society organizations working to implement SDG16+ in all regions of Somaliland. The report itself is a result of an inclusive and comprehensive consultation process involving civil society and relevant government organs and departments. The purpose is to outline the progress that has been made, existing gaps and to provide recommendations to sustain progress and fill gaps.
The report is split into three main sections. The first analyses the process to integrate SDG16+ into national development activities. The second reviews progress on four chosen SDG16+ targets and the third and final section offers conclusions and recommendations for the involved actors in Somaliland.
In Somaliland, we have seen encouraging signs that authorities are beginning to take the SDGs and SDG16+ seriously. A national development plan (NDPII) has been developed using “the SDGs as the ‘technical foundation.’ The NDPII includes many targets relevant to SDG16+, but unfortunately, this has not filtered down to other government strategies. The NDPII is commendable in its ambition, but it is too far-reaching – with huge budget gaps and indicators that current capacity cannot measure.
This report reviews progress in Somaliland towards delivering on SDG 16.3: Promote the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensure equal access to justice for all; SDG 5.5: Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision making in political, economic and public life; SDG 5.3: Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation, and; SDG 16.10: Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements. In each case, available data has been reviewed using the UN-IAEG indicators, complementary global indicators, and nationally specific indicators that have been developed in collaboration with civil society partners in Somaliland. At times data was difficult to source due to a lack of willingness from some partners to share this with coalition members.
In each of the four SDG16+ targets reviewed, there are examples of positive action with substantial scope to make further progress in the coming years. The realization of this progress will require consistent and more strategic funding from the government and other sources including donors and the private sector. Existing limited funding sources are not well coordinated and are rarely allocated on the basis of SDGs targets. There is a need to support the capacity of government agencies and civil society organizations to cope with the demands of implementing and monitoring an ambitious agenda like SDG16+.
Ultimately, despite the positive work of some government agencies and civil society organizations in Somaliland, technical and financial challenges pose a big barrier to effective implementation of SDG16+. This is compounded by the inability to collect reliable, up-to-date disaggregated data on the impact of many implementation efforts, which is hindering overall efforts.
