ADOPTING PROJECT MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES TO SUCCEED WITH THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDG) (CASE STUDY OF THE SDG 17; THE PARTNERSHIP FOR THE GOALS)

The incorporation of the social, environmental, and economic dimensions of sustainability in different aspects of human life and business provides a guarantee for our future. Organizations have shown a great interest in incorporating sustainability into managerial concepts, both at the strategic and operational levels. Sustainable business strategies are being implemented in many projects, which has led to a recent expansion of interest in exploring the potential of integrating sustainability dimensions in project management. With the intention of contributing to a better understanding of sustainable project management, the ultimate aim of this study is to explore the practice of project management principles in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 17 partnership and it is supported by certain outlined objectives. It also surveys the level of integration of sustainability dimensions in groups of project management processes. Considering that the incorporation of sustainability in project management poses numerous challenges for project managers, this paper examines the necessary knowledge and skills required for sustainable project management in different sectors of the SDGs. As part of this research, an empirical survey was conducted in project-oriented organizations from both the public and private sectors. The findings reveal that the application of project management methodologies promotes the introduction of sustainability dimensions and enhances partnership, particularly the social aspect, irrespective of the sector, since the processes in projects managed by a specific methodology are consistent with the social elements of sustainability. In the public sector, there is a noticeable lack of knowledge of the meaning and dimensions of sustainability and, accordingly, an urgent need for project managers to gain knowledge and skills pertaining to sustainable project management. Hence sustainability combined with Project Management among the SDGs can be beneficial in many ways. The study proved that the practice of sustainable project management among the SDGs in different organisations have positive impacts and hence must be propagated in other to meet with the global partnership for goals and the 17 SDGs by 2030.