Dubai: One of the United Nation’s most senior officials praised the UAE on Tuesday for embracing change now to build a more sustainable tomorrow.
Jan Eliasson, deputy secretary-general of the UN, told delegates at the World Government Summit (WGS) that as one of 193 signatories to the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted unanimously by countries in September 2015, the UAE is already working on its pledges to the agreement for reform.
The three-day World Government Summit being hosted in Dubai, said Eliasson, is a prime example of how change is put in place to help shape the future.
“This summit in Dubai on shaping future governments can serve as a catalyst and a driver for a life of dignity for all,” Eliasson said in an afternoon address to delegates in the plenary hall at Madinat Jumeirah.
Each country member of the 2030 Agenda has agreed to implement 17 so-called Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) across a wide spectrum of issues.
“The goals are to give a horizon of hope to people everywhere, especially for people on the margins of states ravaged by conflict and warfare,” Eliasson told delegates.
15-year goal
Each country is expected to accomplish the SDGs over the next 15 years.
The SDGs range in scope from eliminating poverty and providing clean water and sanitation to delivering clean energy and creating sustainable cities.
Eliasson said the SDGs “are a quest to move to a fair and equitable world”.
The UN said in an earlier statement on the historic SDG summit that it is aiming to “address the needs of people in both developed and developing countries, emphasising that no one should be left behind. Broad and ambitious in scope, the Agenda addresses the three dimensions of sustainable development: social, economic and environmental, as well as important aspects related to peace, justice and effective institutions”.
The 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 targets of the new agenda will be monitored and reviewed using a set of global indicators, Eliasson said.
These will be compiled into an Annual SDG Progress Report.
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