UAE

The United Arab Emirates Third Voluntary National Review (VNR) 2026 was submitted to the United Nations (UN) High-level Political Forum (HLPF) in July 2026, marking the country's third assessment of progress towards implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) following its previous VNRs in 2018 and 2022. The report demonstrates the UAE's whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach to sustainable development by integrating innovation, digital transformation, climate action, economic diversification and inclusive governance into national development policies. The 2026 VNR also aligns with the HLPF 2026 theme, "Empowering People and Ensuring Inclusiveness and Equality," highlighting national achievements, remaining challenges and priority actions to accelerate progress towards the SDGs by 2030.

Recommendations

1. Continue strengthening integrated SDG data and monitoring systems, particularly through disaggregated and real-time data.
2. Accelerate implementation of the Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative and the 2035 emissions reduction target through sector-wide decarbonisation.
3. Expand renewable energy generation and modernise electricity infrastructure to achieve national clean energy targets.
4. Enhance integrated water resource management, wastewater reuse and climate-resilient infrastructure to improve long-term water security.
5. Increase investment in research, innovation and advanced technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, digital transformation and the circular economy.
6. Strengthen biodiversity conservation, ecosystem restoration and climate adaptation to improve environmental resilience.
7. Expand workforce upskilling and lifelong learning to meet future labour market demands in emerging industries.
8. Continue enhancing international partnerships, sustainable finance and technology transfer to accelerate achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Conclusion

The third UAE VNR (2026) demonstrates significant progress across the SDGs through strong national leadership, evidence-based policymaking and multi-stakeholder partnerships. The report highlights major achievements, including mobilising more than AED 190 billion in clean energy investments, achieving 13.8 GW of installed clean energy capacity, licensing 63,896 educators by the 2025–2026 academic year, and committing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 47% by 2035. At the same time, the VNR acknowledges the need to strengthen SDG data systems, climate resilience, water security, biodiversity conservation, circular economy implementation and inclusive digital transformation. Continued collaboration among government, the private sector, academia, civil society and international partners will be essential to accelerate progress towards the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development while contributing to sustainable development beyond 2030.