Challenges to Meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals in Sri Lanka

In 2015, the UNproposed the Sustainable Development Goals; they were accepted by 193 countries. Sri Lanka faces many challenges in implementing the SDGs. The lack of reliable and recent data is a serious issue. Another issue is the weak institutional capacity of Sri Lanka, which has led to poor governance and policy incoherence. There is no strong political will, and interministerial conflicts are rampant. Unless these issues are properly addressed, the yahapalanaya (good governance) government of President Sirisena may not contribute well to achieve the SDGs by 2030.