Ensuring multi-stakeholder partnership for the SDGs: Institutional arrangements from the perspective of multi-level governance

Eunju Kim (Korea Institute of Public Administration)

The unique characteristics of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are clearly distinguishable from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). First, it emphasizes ‘universality’ through its imperative, ‘No one left behind’. This applies not only to developing countries, but also to developed countries. It also extensively incorporates economic, social and environmental agendas into 17 goals and 169 targets. Moreover, it requires nation states to set-up multi-stakeholder partnerships as one of the most important means of implementation to achieve ambitious goals. However, this intrinsic nature can lead to fundamental difficulties when it comes to implementation at the national level. There exists an international consensus to set ambiguous goals in order to attract participation from various stakeholders. The SDGs are no exception to this tendency. In a nutshell, ambiguous goals and complex stakeholders make it more difficult to enforce implementation.

In this light, this paper discusses the need of horizontal and vertical coordination for implementation of the SDGs based on literatures of multi-level governance. It will then examine how institutional arrangements can be established in order to engage and coordinate various stakeholders. This paper will suggest policy implications to set-up institutional mechanisms in the Korean context, and introduce recent efforts by policy actors in Korea .The main aim of these discussions is to help policy makers in developing countries implement the SDGs and minimize administrative transaction costs; to engage diverse stakeholders; and to enable policy coordination among multiple stakeholders.

Powerpoint Presentation