Egypt will participate in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Summit next September
Egypt participates in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Summit next September
To discuss Egypt’s participation in the “Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Summit,” which will be held between the 18th and 19th of next September in New York – Dr. Hala Al-Saeed “Minister of Planning and Economic Development” met with Ms. “Elena Panova,” the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Egypt, in the presence of Dr. Mona Essam, “Assistant The Minister for Sustainable Development Affairs, Dr. Ahmed Kamali, Deputy Minister of Planning, Ambassador Hazem Khairat, Supervisor of the International Cooperation Office, in addition to the presence of Scott Standley, the economic expert in the Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Egypt.
During this high-level meeting, Dr. Hala Al-Saeed stressed the importance of the recent Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Summit, which was held in 2019; Because it was instrumental in determining the necessary measures to implement the 2030 Sustainable Development Plan. Al-Saeed also hinted that this past summit had resulted in the political declaration “Preparing for a decade of work and implementation for sustainable development,” expressing her deep regret at what the whole world witnessed of the Corona pandemic and the Russian-Ukrainian war. Which caused a delay in economic and development developments, in addition to the repercussions of climate change, which had a severe impact in the presence of the energy and food crises, increased inflation, and weak monetary policy. Pointing out that these are challenges that have hindered development gains, especially among developing countries.
Hence, the Minister saw these challenges as a major reason for the slowdown in global development, as she indicated that growth rates have become slow – based on United Nations reports – from 3% in 2022 to 1.9% in 2023, which are low rates in recent years. Therefore, the steps to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be delayed in the coming years.
In the same context, Dr. Hala Al-Saeed indicated – based on reports from the Economic Cooperation Organization – that the gap between countries and achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has increased by 56%, especially after the spread of the Corona virus, stressing that bridging this gap will require less than 1% of global financing; Therefore, it saw the importance of adequately mobilizing and mobilizing financial resources. In order to enhance the transformations related to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) before the summit of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and to rapidly increase international cooperation in an urgent manner, as there is an urgent need to enter into a new era and approach to international partnerships; In order to achieve these development goals.
Al-Saeed said: “Egyptians continue to address a variety of development challenges.” She added: “The Egyptian government is committed to implementing the 2030 plan, as one of the highest priority agenda items. Egypt is also committed to continuing relevant global discussions and seeking to improve the proposed methodologies. To achieve the common goals expressed in the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.”
For her part, Elena Panova spoke in her meeting with the Minister of Planning and Local Development about the goals of this upcoming summit, which will bring together heads of state and government at the United Nations headquarters. To discuss the implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, and to consider the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Egypt explained that it is a summit that seeks a political declaration that commits countries to the main principles presented in the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2023 agenda,, the Paris Agreement, and the Addis Ababa Action Plan.
Regarding financing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Panova praised the joint cooperation between the United Nations and the Egyptian government in formulating a strategy for financing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Egypt, with the participation of the Joint Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Fund.
On the other hand, the two sides touched on Egypt’s participation in the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, which will be held in New York from July 10 to 19 of this year, as Egypt is preparing to organize an important event on the sidelines of this forum, in which it will showcase its experience in preparing national voluntary reports.
It is worth noting that the 2023 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Summit wants to alert countries to fulfill their previous pledges in many areas, and to direct investments towards achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The summit also aims to implement initiatives with a high impact at the global level, and it is expected that these initiatives will be announced by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, including: the Social Protection Initiative, the Investment in Digital Transformation Initiative, as well as the Women’s Empowerment Initiative, and other development initiatives.
