SEforALL at the 2026 UN High-Level Political Forum

Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) will play a central role at the 2026 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), the United Nations' primary platform for reviewing progress on the 2030 Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals. This year's HLPF takes place from 7th to 15th July at UN Headquarters in New York.

Energy is front and centre at HLPF 2026. The Forum will host the third review of SDG7 on affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all, which may be the final formal opportunity under the HLPF process to take stock of progress before 2030. With over 655 million people still lacking electricity and approximately 2 billion still relying on polluting cooking fuels, the urgency could not be greater.

At HLPF 2026, SEforALL will advocate for the accelerated action and investment needed to close energy access gaps and deliver on SDG7 before 2030. Across the week, our team will co-convene high-level events, contribute to the official SDG7 review, and drive the agenda on climate finance for the world's most vulnerable nations, building momentum through to pre-COP and COP31.

SEforALL Events at HLPF 2026

From Call to Count: Gender-Responsive Energy Actions for the Final Mile

July 6, 2026, 11:30 AM to 12:45 PM EDT | Conference Room 9, 
UNHQ, New York | Watch online

This event will bring together Member States, international organizations, and key stakeholders to explore how gender-responsive data, policies, and commitments can accelerate progress toward universal energy access and a more equitable energy transition. Organized by: Iceland, Kenya, ESMAP, The World Bank Group and ENERGIA, in collaboration with the Working Group on Gender Indicators in Sustainable Energy and Co-conveners of the Gender and Energy Compact. 

SDG7 Review

July 7, 2026, 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM EDT | Conference Room 4, 
UNHQ, New York | Watch online

The HLPF's third and potentially final review of SDG7 will bring together governments, UN agencies and energy stakeholders to assess global progress on energy access and the clean energy transition. This session will identify key challenges and opportunities to accelerate implementation. It will also explore emerging opportunities, promising partnerships and case studies, highlighting SDG7’s interlinkages across the 2030 Agenda and practical policies that leverage synergies.

Special Event: Implementing the Global Plan of Action for the Decade of Sustainable Energy for All to 2030

July 8, 2026, 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM EDT | Conference Room 11, 
UNHQ, New York | Watch online

Convened by UN DESA in collaboration with UN-Energy and the Group of Friends of Sustainable Energy, this high-level special event will bring together world leaders to exchange experiences, build political momentum and accelerate implementation of SDG7 towards 2030 and beyond.

The event will open with remarks from UN Secretary-General António Guterres, followed by a keynote from H.E. Ms Annalena Baerbock, President of the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly. Closing remarks will be delivered by UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed.

Ms Damilola Ogunbiyi will deliver special remarks at the launch of the UN-Energy Work Programme for 2026–2030, setting out six priority areas for collective action on SDG7. The event will also mark the official joint launch of Tracking SDG7: The Energy Progress Report 2026 and the SDG7 Policy Briefs 2026.

Building Investment Plans to Unlock Climate Finance for Vulnerable Nations

July 9, 2026, 1:15 PM to 2:30 PM EDT | Conference Room C, 
UNHQ, New York | By invitation only

Co-convened by SEforALL, the Australian Mission to the UN, Barbados and Tuvalu, this focused side event will bring together senior representatives from Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), alongside key partners and donors, for a conversation about what it takes to move from climate commitment to energy transition in practice.

Barbados will showcase its Energy Transition and Investment Plan (ETIP) developed in partnership with SEforALL, as a concrete model of what is possible, charting a path to net zero by 2035. SEforALL will draw on its broader experience working with governments across Africa, the Caribbean and Southeast Asia to ground the discussion in real-world practice.

The conversation will address the gap between available climate finance and genuinely accessible finance, and how outcomes can strengthen the collective voice of vulnerable nations pre-COP and COP31.

This event builds directly on the SIDS Call to Action and the financing priorities identified by the world's most climate-vulnerable nations.