The Observatory of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Portuguese companies is a research project from CATÓLICA-LISBON School of Business & Economics that aims to monitor and accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda in Portugal by tracking a group of 61 large companies and more than 100 Portuguese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

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Launched in September 2021, the project is supported and funded by BPI and the “la Caixa” Foundation, and is now entering a second cycle of activity (2026–2029) with the following main objectives:

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• Supporting companies in fulfilling their 2030 Agenda commitments, encouraging the operational integration of the SDGs and the completion of relevant targets over the next four years.

• Promoting strategic reflection on the post-2030 Development Agenda, ensuring active private sector participation and the feasibility and applicability of this new agenda in a business context.

• Driving progress on the SDGs in Portugal through effective public–private partnerships, promoting a collaborative, results-oriented approach and supporting public policy development.

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The study helps to understand, monitor, and enhance the adoption of the SDGs by Portuguese companies, with the aim of strengthening their capacity, efficiency, and overall contribution to the 2030 Agenda.

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The private sector concentrates significant resources and unique power, without which the Sustainable Development Agenda cannot be achieved. Companies account for more than half of global GDP, and 69 of the 100 largest economies are corporations (Oxfam, 2016). Due to their influence and investment capacity, businesses play a privileged role in contributing to the SDGs (Sachs & Sachs, 2021), and are therefore expected to cooperate with the public sector and civil society to advance the 2030 Agenda.

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This is the first study of its kind in Portugal and is based on a process of data collection, analysis, and triangulation from five distinct data sources.