KATHMANDU, July 17: Nepal has emphasized the need for renewed commitment to global partnership and coordinated aid to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The emphasis comes ahead of the Senior Level Meeting (SLM) of Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation that began on July 16 in New York.
Nepal made the call for concerted efforts to realize the SDGs at a side event organized under its leadership in New York on July 12. Bangladesh was a co-host of the event which provided a forum for consultations with countries in the Asia Pacific region to capture country-level perspectives on ensuring that the priorities of the countries in the region are reflected in the deliberations of the SLM.
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In Nepal, there is a significant financing gap to achieve the SDGs. The National Planning Commission has estimated that the average investment requirement to achieve the SDGs is approximately Rs 2,025 billion per year, or about 48 per cent of the GDP on average, with Official Development Assistance (ODA) expected to shoulder about 18 per cent of this financing requirement.
Addressing the event, Finance Secretary Rajan Khanal said that the core commitments of aid effectiveness and quality of aid matter to partner countries like Nepal. “The commitments and exchange of experiences on development effectiveness at the global level underpins our efforts at the national level to improve the effectiveness of development cooperation,” he said.
Also, speaking on the occasion, Claire Van der Vaeren of UNDP's Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, said achieving the SDGs requires very large-scale financial resources, but financing alone is not enough. “It is critical that resources are used within a framework of accountability; that there is strong ownership by partner countries and a focus on results; and that development is pursued through inclusive partnerships,” a statement availed by the UNDP quoted Vaeren as saying.
The side event, organized with the support of UNDP and DFID, brought together over 40 participants, including government representatives from 10 countries of the Asia-Pacific region, as well as from civil society, private sector, parliaments, multilateral organizations, and cooperation provider countries. A panel of eight distinguished speakers featured government representatives from Nepal, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Japan, and the UNDP.
Nepal will deliver its national statement during the ministerial segment that began on 16 July 2019. The High Level Political Forum (HLPF) this year will conclude on 18 July 2019.The HLPF is the central platform of the United Nations for providing political leadership, guidance and recommendations for the implementation and follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda. The Forum is reviewing progress towards achieving SDGs 4, 8, 10, 13 and 16 in addition to the annual review of SDG 17.
