By Chuks Oyema-Aziken
The role of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in economic recovery and development has been emphasized.
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo stated this in Abuja at the opening of a capacity workshop on Africa’s Voluntary National Reviews for the 2022 High Level Political Forum (HLPF) and Domestication of the Agenda 2063 on Monday.
Osinbajo represented by Mrs Zainab Ahmed, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning said SDGs remained cardinal in the attainment of robust economic cooperation among governments across the globe.
He said the strategic partnership embedded in the SDGs had availed Nigeria a huge implementation context.
For effective implementation, he said Nigeria had established six SDGs innovation hubs, one in each geo-political zone to achieve the goals.
This would provide an opportunity for states to leverage and dialogue with all relevant stakeholders to accelerate innovative solutions, he noted.
He said was also aimed at prioritising social protection as a tool to overcome the bottlenecks and expanding financing options to accelerate the achievement of SDGs in Nigeria.
According to him, since the adoption of the AU Agenda 2063 and the UN Agenda 2030, the Nigerian Government has embarked upon a process of domesticating these agendas at the national and sub-national levels.
Osinbajo said the new National Development Plan (NDP) 2021-2025 had strategies, aimed at achieving the targets set under each of the goals in both agendas.
He said the capacities of policymakers were being strengthened to ensure their implementation in an integrated and coherent manner to facilitate an inclusive implementation processes across all relevant sectors.
The vice president said the Federal Government had been proactive in addressing the effects of COVID-19 Pandemic and had attained a landmark, even in the midst of the slowdown of economic activities arising from the pandemic.
“In addressing the gaps created by the Pandemic, The National Economic Recovery and Sustainability Plan of Government was introduced to cushion some of the hard effects of the global meltdown.
“Other strides achieved in the country included the efforts at improving food security and nutrition through a Multi Sectoral Plan for food and nutrition.
“The Medium Term National Development Plan 2021-2025 has been launched and is in the Public Domain while the Long Term National Development Plan tagged Nigeria Agenda 2050 is in the process of completion,” he said.
He said the Federal Government had also developed National Pathways for Food System transformation, an outcome of an exploratory dialogue conducted in Nigeria.
Osinbajo said the dialogue was as recommended by the Secretary General of the UN that countries should dialogue to identify the challenges facing food from the farm to the dining table,
He said the objective was to accelerate the achievements of the SDGs, since 2021-2030 was recognised as decade of action for accelerating the achievement of SDGs.E
In her remark, Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on SDGs said the HLPF was part of follow-up and review mechanisms for the 2030 agenda for sustainable development.
She said the HLPF was to encourage member states to conduct regular and inclusive reviews of progress at the national and sub-national levels.
“It is gladdening to state that Nigeria presented its First Voluntary National Review to the HLPF in July, 2017.
“Nigeria’s first VNR outlined the institutional dimensions for creating an enabling policy environment for the implementation of the SDGs through the Economic and Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP) (2017-2020).
“Similarly, in July, 2020, Nigeria presented its Second VNR with specific focus on critical issues of poverty and inclusive economy, health and well-being, education, gender equality, an enabling environment of peace and security as well as partnership and means of implementation.
“This focus was based on Nigeria’s current development priorities as well as the cardinal objectives of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration,” she said.
Princess Gloria Akobundu, the National Coordinator, African Union Development Agency-New Partnership for Africa’s Development (AUDA-NEPAD), Nigeria said the workshop was to support national capacities of African Union Member States.
She said the area of support was toto generate outcomes on the implementation of SDGs and Agenda 2063 to be presented at the upcoming High-Level Political Forum.
Akobundu said the forum was scheduled to hold in July under the auspices of the United Nations Economic and Social Council
