11 July, New York, USA - UNITAR and UNDESA held a joint session on learning and data for the SDGs on 11 July on the sidelines of the HLPF, a dedicated annual mechanism for reviewing progress on the SDGs. The session composed of a panel of experts and a showcasing segment provided space for addressing challenges and opportunities related to the use of data for policy-making purposes beyond regular national and global reporting. As a result of the session, a number of capacity gaps had been identified and a series of new tools presented. Feedback received from a group of more than 30 participants will help inform the country-level and regional work of UNITAR and UNDESA in this area.

14 of July 2017 New York, USA - The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) co-organized an event alongside the United Nations Department of Economics and Social Affairs (UN DESA) titled "Strengthening Stakeholder Engagement For Eradicating Poverty And Achieving the SDGs”. The event took place during the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on sustainable development, a week that focuses on a review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals.

22 March - 12 May 2017, Geneva, Switzerland – Following the successful launch last December, the joint UNITAR-UNDESA e-learning course on “Strengthening Stakeholder Engagement for the Implementation and Review of the 2030 Agenda” was rolled out for the second time in spring 2017. This new edition has helped to strengthen the capacities of 57 government officials to apply inclusive approaches, map key stakeholders and design national stakeholder engagement strategies as they « localize » the 2030 Agenda and prepare voluntary national reviews (VNRs). Since December 2016, a total of 22 countries presenting their VNRs in 2017 and 2018 have benefitted from the course.

UNITAR is organising a learning conferences on “holistic approaches for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda” for African Least Development Countries (LDCs). This conference will specifically target government officials from the 17 English-speaking African LDCs and will take place in Abuja, Nigeria on 1-2 March 2017.

22 December 2016, Geneva, Switzerland – Engaging stakeholders is a tremendously important step to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. If we are to succeed in implementing them, everyone must be on board. UNITAR and United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) partnered to develop a facilitated online course for government officials in charge of the mainstreaming and review of the SDGs. The first session of this course took place from 5 to 21 December 2016 and received enthusiastic feedback from participants throughout the world.

26 – 27 October 2016, Bangkok, Thailand – A first Regional Training Workshop on “Developing National Evaluation Capacities to Support the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda” was jointly held by UNITAR and UNDP Bangkok Regional Hub on 26-27 October 2016 in Bangkok, back-to-back with the major Regional SDG Knowledge Exchange Forum. The workshop was organized in collaboration with other UN agencies and partners, including professional evaluation networks, and was attended by 30 participants, mainly government officials, UN staff and representatives of CSOs and VOPEs, primarily from six countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan and Philippines.

15 July 2016, New York. – As the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development (HLPF) prepares for its first round of 22 national voluntary presentations (NVPs) on 19-20 July, UNITAR brought together a panel of eminent experts to discuss the ways in which these discrete, global-level Government-led presentations could be better linked to strong, regular and inclusive national and subnational review processes. The learning session entitled “National reviews and M&E systems for the SDGs” was the second event organized by UNITAR as part of the UNDESA-UNITAR SDGs Learning, Training and Practice Center providing for a valuable, well-attended knowledge-sharing space on the sidelines of the Forum. More than 100 participants benefitted from the opportunities provided by the two UNITAR’s learning sessions.

14 July 2016, New York – The SDGs and the Paris Agreement hold a great promise, but how do we turn these aspirational visions into reality? UNITAR’s learning session held on the occasion of the HLPF on Thursday sought to address this issue by focusing on the new types of planning tools and nationally-grown actionable strategies to turn the SDGs, climate and regional commitments into reality. Facilitated by UNITAR’s Executive Director Nikhil Seth, the session featured Jeffrey Sachs, H.E. Amb. Kamau of Kenya, Halldór Thorgeirsson from UNFCCC, and experts from the World Resources Institute.

1 July 2016, Geneva, Switzerland. UNITAR will deliver 2 learning sessions at this year’s High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF2016), in New York, on 14 July from 10:00 to 12:00 and on 15 July from 15:00 to 17:00. The sessions will aim to promote an improved understanding of requirements related to harmonized policies and inclusive national review and M&E systems for the SDGs. They will feature renowned international and national experts and will be organized as part of the HLPF SDGs Learning, Training and Practice Center.

April 2016, Geneva, Switzerland - The year 2015 was marked by the adoption of four landmark United Nations agreements: Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, Addis Ababa Action Agenda, 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the Paris Agreement. The 2030 Agenda provides an overarching vision for all of them as well as a global framework for national strategies and policies to put the world on a path to sustainability. UNITAR has developed a new Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) to help interested persons improve their knowledge about the new Agenda and related Global Goals.