Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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137. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the progress made by his Department in respect of targets and goals set out in sustainable development goals of the 2030 United Nations Agenda for Sustainable Development under the policy remit of his Department; and if these targets and goals will be met by their respective deadlines. [12900/23]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a significant and ambitious framework. A whole-of-Government approach to its implementation has been taken in Ireland.

Ireland’s Second National Implementation Plan for the Sustainable Development Goals, 2022 – 2024 was published in October 2022. The Plan was developed by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications in collaboration with all Government Departments, key stakeholders, and based on input from two public consultation processes. A key objective of the Plan is to achieve greater policy coherence for Sustainable Development (PCSD) with the aim of accelerating achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at all levels of Government.

The Plan is supplemented by two supporting documents: an SDG policy map which identifies the lead Departments and relevant national policies for each of the 169 SDG targets; and a Policy Update document which provides policy updates for each of the SDG targets. These documents are available at www.gov.ie/sdgs

The Central Statistics Office, in collaboration with all Government Departments, has prepared a series of statistical publications which monitor and report on how Ireland is progressing towards meeting its targets under the 17 SDGs. Reports are available for SDGs 1 – 16 and can be found on the central statistics website.

Ireland will present its second Voluntary National Review (VNR) to the United Nations High-Level Political Forum in July 2023. The VNR report will comprise a high-level data section and a more detailed appendix reporting on progress in respect of achieving the SDGs and related targets.

DETE holds a lead role for a couple of SDG targets under Goal 8 (Inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent work); Goal 9 (Resilient infrastructure and inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and innovation); Goal 10 (Reducing inequality within and among countries); Goal 12 (Sustainable consumption and production); and Goal 17 (Global partnership for sustainable development).

The Department has begun mainstreaming these targets into its work. The DETE’s Statement of Strategy 2021-2023 was developed in the context of its role in contributing to the SDGs. In particular, Goal 4 of the DETE’S Statement of Strategy (i.e., Deepen and extend Ireland’s Global business and trade in a fair and sustainable manner) commits to deepening and extending Ireland’s global business and trade in a fair and sustainable manner supportive of high labour standards in growing further the all-island economy.

Ireland’s White Paper on Enterprise 2022-2030, published in December of 2022, sets out Ireland’s industrial policy for the medium- to long-term, to realise the vision of a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable enterprise growth model for Ireland in the future.The White Paper notes the importance of embedding SDGs into enterprise policy, supporting firms to apply their creativity and innovation to solving sustainable development challenges. This includes highlighting the importance of resource circularity, responsible business and corporate sustainability best-practices, to enable enterprises based in Ireland to compete on quality, reliability, value-added and customer service in a more sustainable manner

The White Paper highlights the importance of skills and workforce development policies which aim to activate groups currently underrepresented or underemployed in the labour market, including on pay, flexible working and reducing barriers to workforce participation.

The White Paper on Enterprise embeds sustainable business models and policies to boost productivity through investment in innovation, digitalisation, and management capacity, leading to increased exports from Irish-owned companies and a more diversified and resilient trade portfolio.

To progress the implementation of SGD targets, DETE has prioritised engagement with business, employer and employee representative groups and stakeholders, through various initiatives such as the Enterprise Forum, the Retail Forum, the Company Law Review Group, the Enterprise Digital Advisory Forum and the Labour Employer Economic Forum and other groups set up for specific purposes. These groups, working with DETE’s Offices and Agencies, and other government departments, provided platforms for direct engagement with the enterprise sectors as they prepared for Brexit and dealt with the impacts of COVID-19 and the Ukraine crisis.

Ireland continues to be a firm supporter of global partnership for sustainable development. Ireland is providing increased support for Less Developed Countries in their efforts to increase their global exports through multilateral aid for trade programmes at the UN and World Trade Organisation and bilaterally. Ireland is committed to cooperate with trade partners to implement Trade and Sustainable Development special provisions relevant to developing and Least Developed Countries.

Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (2022), White Paper on Enterprise 2022-2030. Available at White Paper on Enterprise 2022-2030 - DETE