Efforts of the federal government to effectively domesticate and implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) got a big boost in Abuja with the United Nations pledging its partnership and support to Nigeria to deliver on the implementation of the SDGs.
The pledge was made when the global director of the United Nations SDG action campaign, Mr. Mitchell Toomey paid a courtesy visit to the senior special assistant to the president on the SDGs, Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire. Mr. Toomey commended the federal government of Nigeria for taking policy, institutional, and financial steps towards providing the needed environment for the implementation of the SDGs in Nigeria.
Specifically, he noted that Nigeria was amongst the first countries to establish a special high-level office in the presidency to coordinate the implementation of the SDGs.
He also commended Nigeria for its multi-stakeholder approach in implementing the SDGs. Through this approach, Nigeria has been able to set up structures which will support the engagement of the private sector, civil society and other non-state actors. According to Mr. Toomey, “the SDGs are about the people. The formulation of the SDGs saw one of the most inclusive and consultative processes in the history of the United Nations, involving the member states, civil society, the private sector, parliamentarians, local authorities, faith leaders amongst others. The implementation should, therefore, be founded upon broad-based partnerships and contributions from every segment of the society”.
The UN chief congratulated Nigeria for being a candidate country in the 2017 Voluntary National Reviews of the SDGs, a global process through which national implementation of the SDGs is reviewed.
Source: Leadership