ABSTRACT
For a subregion home to 36 per cent of the world’s poor, the 2030 Agenda presents to South Asia a unique opportunity to eradicate poverty and other deprivations and provide a life of dignity to all within a generation. This paper shows that SDGs carry forward the unfinished MDGs agenda and incorporate the key drivers of development such as economic growth and industrialisation, aspects of environmental sustainability, a reinvigorated global partnership and means of implementation. It then outlines a policy agenda covering seven policy priorities, optimising the interrelationships between goals and targets that would help the subregion achieve the SDGs. The discussion also suggests that there is great potential for regional cooperation and coordination in implementation and monitoring of the 2030 Agenda among the South Asian countries. Besides sharing development experiences, it is argued that regional cooperation could fruitfully support their achievement of SDGs by South Asian countries in building up productive capacities through a coordinated industrial development strategy, exploiting the potential of regional value chains through strengthened transport connectivity and facilitation, strengthening their collective energy and food security and enhancing resilience to natural disasters. Given their similar initial conditions, shared history and culture, as well as similar governance systems, regional cooperation could be an important means of implementation complementing the national strategies.
