Beirut, 5 March 2024--With only six years left until 2030, tracking and reviewing progress in adopting the right policies for achieving the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a crucial endeavour. It is more so in the Arab region where the recent developments are undoubtedly posing great challenges and delaying the attainment of these ambitious Goals.
In response to this pressing need, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), the League of Arab States (LAS), and United Nations agencies working in the Arab region today kicked off the 2024 Arab Forum for Sustainable Development (AFSD-2024), at the UN house in Beirut, gathering high-level delegations and representatives of Arab Governments, regional and international organizations, civil society and private sector, as well as parliamentarians, researchers and academics.
The Forum, themed "Delivering for sustainability and peace", was inaugurated by Caretaker Prime Minister of Lebanon Najib Mikati, Minister of Economy of Oman (Chair of this year's Forum) Said bin Mohammed bin Ahmed Al Saqri, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed, ESCWA Executive Secretary of ESCWA Rola Dashti, and LAS Assistant Secretary-General Haifa Abu Ghazeleh, representing Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit.
In his opening remarks, Mikati stressed the need for cooperation and joint efforts to achieve the SDGs. "The decisive changes that our region is going through testify to the close link between social justice and balanced and sustainable development," he said. "We should strive to provide financing for small and medium enterprises and boost the private sector, which in turn would enhance sustainable and inclusive development and contribute to the provision of much-needed job opportunities," he continued.
This year's Forum will review progress made towards five SDGs: ending poverty and hunger; climate action; peace, justice and strong institutions; and partnerships for the Goals. Participants will also discuss digital innovation, governance and cooperation in the Arab region, in preparation for the Summit of the Future to be held next September in New York, which is expected to issue a global digital compact.
In a virtual intervention, the Chair of this year's Forum underlined the dire repercussions of the war on Gaza on development in the whole Arab region. "Our world is likely to lose a decade of progress towards the 2030 Agenda, and the gap between countries is undoubtedly widening. It is high time that we unify our efforts towards improving the quality of people's lives to realize all SDG pillars," he said.
Despite efforts exerted over the past years to reduce poverty in Arab countries, progress remains stalled due to the region's multifaceted challenges. Recurring conflicts have a devastating impact on food availability and access for a significant portion of the population. As a result, food insecurity is exacerbated, especially among displaced persons and refugees.
"Persistent and recurrent conflicts and fragility are directly impacting 182 million people in 9 countries in this region. It's against this backdrop that there are signs of hope," Mohammed underscored. "We need to ramp up action around policies and investments that can drive transformative change. Many Arab countries are already accelerating efforts around key transformations, from clean energy, food systems, and digitalization to social protection reforms and economic diversification," she added.
AFSD-2024 provides a platform for Governments, the private sector, and other development stakeholders to discuss successful solutions at the policy, financing and technology levels to mobilize action on regional SDG priorities, and increase resilience in times of multiple crises
"We stand united today, not only to work on achieving sustainable development and growth, but also to commit to shaping a future in which children's aspirations are not buried under the rubble of conflicts, and in which the 187 million people left behind in the Arab region are not a mere number, but rather an essential pillar of our journey towards prosperity, peace and sustainability," Dashti affirmed. "The SDGs are a promise to the children of Gaza, and to millions like them, that their lives will not be determined by the circumstances in which they were born, and that we will create the opportunities they need to grow," she stressed.
Innovation has seen fluctuating progress in the region: in 2023, only 3 Arab countries were among the top 50 on the Global Innovation Index. Although several Arab States have been striving to provide an enabling environment for innovation, financing and sustainability remain obstacles to overcome.
For her part, Abu Ghazeleh said that Arab countries were committed to proceed with the development process, and that the Forum would shed light on several priority issues for the region at this stage. "Reforming public institutions for peacebuilding, fostering inclusive societies, eliminating poverty in all its forms, strengthening partnerships, addressing climate change and its impact on food security, as well as mitigating the effects of conflicts on these issues, are all crucial matters that impact the lives of Arab citizens, and they all require intensified efforts for improvement," she added.
The AFSD is the primary regional mechanism for the annual follow-up and review of progress towards the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development. Its findings and recommendations, conveying key messages from the Arab region and its countries, will be submitted to the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development to be held in July 2024.
