Uganda’s Vice President, Her Excellency Jessica Alupo, on Saturday addressed the United Nations conference on the least developed countries, where she decried the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and climate change on efforts to achieve the 2030 UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Alupo said that on Uganda’s part, Government was employing a multi-dimensional approach to ensure that the country remained on track to achieve the SDG targets.
“We are mainstreaming SDGs in our national plans, policies and strategies. We are strengthening the SDG secretariat in order to meet the targets,” H.E. Alupo said adding, “We undertake annual reviews at National and local levels to ensure that we remain on track and institute correctional action at all times.”
The 5-day 5th conference on the least developed countries that is convened every ten years, aims at generating international attention and action in addressing challenges of poverty and hunger in the world.
She called for synergies among global players to achieve the SDGs in the Least Developed Countries that require targeted support for the achievement of the SDGs.
“This must be tackled jointly by all stakeholders,” she said pledging Uganda’s readiness to fully implement the Doha Declaration which will commit states to the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action which aims at addressing special challenges of the LDCs in achieving the 2030 goals.
In his address, the United Nations Secretary General Mr. Antonio Guterres addressed the conference noting the disparity in financial resources and technological advancement between the LDCs and the developed world which he said has negatively impacted the social, economic development efforts in the least developed countries.
“The Injustice of the International Financial Institutions (is) designed to favour the Global North (and therefore) have not helped LDCs to achieve the much-desired SDGs,” Guterres said while calling for reforms.
He further emphasized the need to create a mechanism for food security, disaster handling and early warning systems by 2027 including climate change adaptation and capacity building for the developing countries such as tax enhancement and management.
“Let us make the LDC category, a history,” he concluded.