Page 86 - Special Topic Session (STS) - Volume 2

STS461 Jukka H.
The 2030 Agenda foresees establishing a set of global indicators to follow
up and review the goals and targets. The Inter-Agency and Expert Group on
SDG indicators (IAEG-SDG) was created to carry out this task, under
supervision of the United Nations Statistical Commission (UNSC). UNGA
adopted global indicator list of 232 different indicators in July 2017. These
indicators cover all 169 targets of Agenda 2030. As some indicators are used
to monitor more than one target, the list overall includes 244 indicators. Only
40 per cent of indicators are ready to use and classified as tier 1 by the UNSC.
For further 31 per cent data are available for only limited number of countries
worldwide and they are classified as tier 2. For the remaining part of the
methodology still has to be agreed and they are classified as tier 3. Tier
classifications are under constant reclassifications as the global statistical
system evolves. The UNSC anticipates the possibility of yearly refinements to
global indicator list, with two comprehensive reviews in 2020 and 2025. The
IAEG-SDG is working to fully implement the global indicator list and to
improve it further. This includes supervising the methodological work to
develop tier 3 indicators and the extension of data coverage as well as
identifying possible additional indicators to include in a comprehensive review
of the indicator set in 2020. At national level each country is committed to
producing their national data on these global UN indicators (Eurostat 2018)
Guidelines of Conference of European Statisticians (CES) to monitor
progress towards SDGs and targets should be the result of close collaboration
between statisticians and policy-makers. Statisticians should ensure that the
monitoring of SDGs is consistent with relevant existing conceptual
frameworks. NSOs play key role in measuring the achievement of SDGs and
NSOs also serve as national focal points for statistics for SDGs as well as the
national coordinating bodies on SDGs. NSOs also play a key role in providing
data for global SDG indicators. (UNECE 2017)
According to CES recommendations national reporting platforms (NPR) for
SDG indicators can have three components (i) a data collection or submission
portal to different data providers, (ii) a production database and (iii) a
dissemination portal for users containing tables, texts and publications.
Countries should aim to present all SDG indicators available at the national
level in their NPRs regardless of their data sources (official statistics as well as
data from other data providers). Metadata on data sources should be
presented together with data. Ensuring data validation and quality control are
essential. In case of data from other sources NSOs do not have direct authority
to apply quality assurance mechanisms, but NSOs should ask data providers
to document data quality and the methods used to produce the data. (UNECE
2017)

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