Purpose

Drawing on Adams (2017a) conceptualisation of value creation by organisations published in the Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, the purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptualisation of how national governments can create value for society and the economy through their approach to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Design/methodology/approach

An initial conceptual framework was developed from literature situated at the intersection of accountability, public policy and sustainability/sustainable development. The authors' review of extant research on national policy development on value creation, sustainability and the SDGs identified gaps in (understanding of) approaches to national accountability and national governance (by state and civil society) processes. The subsequent thematic analysis of 164 written submissions made to the Australian Senate inquiry on the SDGs between December 2017 and March 2018, together with transcripts of five public hearings where 49 individuals and organisations appeared as witnesses during the second half of 2018, focussed on addressing these gaps.

Findings

Input to the Australian Senate Inquiry on the SDGs overwhelmingly emphasised the importance of transparency and stakeholder participation in accountability systems, commenting on data gathering, measuring and communicating. There was an emphasis on the need to involve all parts of society, including business, investors and civil society, and for strong central co-ordination by the Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. These data allowed the authors to refine the conceptualisation of how national governments can enhance social and economic value through a focus on the UN SDGs and their approach to accounting, accountability and governance.

Practical implications

The findings have implications: for national governments in developing approaches to achieve sustainable development; and, for supranational bodies such as the UN in developing agreements, frameworks and guidance for national governments.

Originality/value

Building on the extant literature about how global governance should be engaged to improve accountability in achieving the SDGs, the conceptual framework developed through the study shifts focus to national governance and accountability, and provides a blueprint for national governments to create value for the economy and society in the face of global sustainable development issues.

中文翻译：

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追求可持续发展目标的责任制和治理：概念化政府如何创造价值

目的

借鉴Adams（2017a）在《会计，审计与责任杂志》上发表的组织对价值创造的概念化，本文的目的是对各国政府如何通过其对联合国的做法为社会和经济创造价值的概念进行概念化。可持续发展目标（SDG）。

设计/方法/方法

最初的概念框架是根据问责制，公共政策和可持续性/可持续发展交汇处的文献发展而来的。作者对有关价值创造，可持续性和可持续发展目标的国家政策发展的现有研究的评论指出了（了解）国家问责制和国家治理（由国家和公民社会）程序的方法方面的差距。随后对2017年12月至2018年3月期间向澳大利亚参议院关于可持续发展目标的164份书面陈述进行了主题分析，以及在2018年下半年举行的五次公开听证会的笔录中，有49个个人和组织作为证人，重点在于解决这些问题差距。

发现

向澳大利亚参议院关于可持续发展目标的咨询的意见绝大多数都强调了透明度和利益相关方参与问责制的重要性，并就数据收集，衡量和交流进行了评论。强调必须使社会各阶层，包括企业，投资者和民间社会都参与进来，总理和内阁办公室必须进行强有力的中央协调。这些数据使作者能够通过集中关注联合国可持续发展目标及其对会计，问责制和治理的方法，来完善各国政府如何提高社会和经济价值的概念。

实际影响

研究结果具有重要意义：对于各国政府制定实现可持续发展的方法；并为联合国等超国家机构制定国家政府的协议，框架和指南。

创意/价值

在有关如何使用全球治理以改善实现可持续发展目标的问责制的现有文献的基础上，通过研究开发的概念框架将重点转移到了国家治理和问责制上，并为各国政府提供了为经济和社会创造价值的蓝图面对全球可持续发展问题。