President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has urged world leaders to focus more on turning the crisis created by COVID-19 into opportunities to advance the attainment of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
President Akufo-Addo, Co-Chair of the Group of Eminent Advocates of the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, said countries should hasten to implement the SDGs to build a fairer, healthier, safer and more prosperous world for all peoples.
Speaking at the 2021 SDGs Moment on the “Decade of Action” on Monday at the UN Headquarters, the President recounted the declaration made by world leaders in 2019 that 2020 – 2030 would be the “Decade of Action” and called on all Member States to step up and scale up significantly actions to give the world a fighting chance of achieving the SDGs by 2030.
President Akufo-Addo said a few months after the declaration, the world was hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has had a devastating effect on lives and livelihoods and significantly undermined prospects of achieving the SDGs.
Available statistics indicate that, in 2020 alone, some 124 million people in the world were pushed back into extreme poverty, while some 132 million people experienced hunger due to the pandemic.
The President indicated that the net effect of those adverse developments was that “our world is unlikely to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger by 2030.”
He said to achieve the SDGs in this COVID-19 era has become more daunting and urged world leaders “to think big, act big and act smartly.”
President Akufo-Addo said countries could not afford to perpetuate unsustainable development by disturbing the critical balance between economic, social and environmental imperatives.
“Our recovery measures and interventions cannot, and should not be de-linked from actions to ensure prosperity, promote peace, protect people, and safeguard the planet.”
President Akufo-Addo said the SDGs provide a sound framework for responding to the pandemic and putting communities, businesses, and ecosystems on a sustainable pathway.
President Akufo-Addo proposed essential ingredients for the task of building better and scale-up actions to hasten progress towards the realisation of the SDGs — as the need to bridge the US$ 2.5 trillion SDGs financing gap, especially for developing countries, where human development deficit is greatest.
He said resources are available to finance the estimated US$360 trillion’s, but the question is whether the rich countries are prepared to accept the new paradigm and play their part or not.
President Akufo-Addo underscored the world’s ability to access and deploy innovative solutions and new technologies to speed up progress towards the goals.
New forms of social practice and organisation and new and improved technological products and processes are key enablers for achieving the SDGs.
But the President said that while the world embraces innovation, deliberate steps should be taken to discourage innovations that contribute to environmental degradation, which disrupts livelihoods and exacerbates inequalities.
Rex Mainoo Yeboah, ISD
