Looking Back: Ascribing Malaysia's Progress towards Achieving Agenda 2030

Abstract

This is a policy context paper designed to ascribe Malaysia’s progress in embracing Sustainable Development Goals for the past 8 years, since Agenda 2030 was proclaimed in 2015. This paper focusses on SDG#16, which is to promote just, peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development. This implies the provision of accessibility to justice for all, and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all level. This paper is framed, methodologically, on reflective analysis. This paper is based on the authors’ collective thought on the implementation of the SDGs in Malaysia, whereby secondary data, including documents pertaining to Voluntary National Review Reports 2017 and 2021, localisation of SDGs at parliamentary constituencies, and other significant and relevant literature formed the basis of findings. The researchers’ intuition too helps to mount the paper’s findings. The researchers have an aggregated 55 years of academic work at higher institutions of learnings, whereby teaching, research and consultancy work and publishing research findings dominate the agenda. The paper’s findings will be shared with readers in the tune of Malaysia’s achievement and challenges, the gaps that need to be filled, and the way forward for the critical remaining 8 years until 2030.