Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in Ghana, Christine Evans-Klock says Ghana is well within reach to achieve all the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the 2030 deadline.

Speaking at the media launch of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Partnership (UNSDP) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, in Accra, Evans-Klock said the number of people living in extreme poverty fell from 1.9 billion in 1990 to 836 million in 2015, and that Ghana was the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to meet that goal.

“This is what gives us confidence that the SDGs, even though they are more ambitious, are also within our grasp, they can be achieved in the world and they can be achieved in Ghana,” Evans-Klock said in her address at the launch themed; ‘Making the UN Relevant to All People: Global Leadership and Shared Responsibility for Peaceful, Equitable and Sustainable Societies’.

Chief Director at MFARI

On his part, the Chief Director at the Ministry Ambassador Albert Yankey, who stood in for the Minister for Foreign Affairs, said the media launch of UNSDP demonstrates the continuation of the long tradition of highly productive relations between Ghana and the UN.

“The UNSDP reflects Ghana’s national goals and its commitments to global development initiatives as well as the UN system’s collective contribution to help government and other stakeholders achieve these goals,” Ambassador Yankey said.

“The government of President Akufo-Addo,” he added, “remains committed to the ideals of the United Nations and will ensure that the benefits of the SDGs, which includes the elimination of poverty at all levels without leaving anyone behind, manifest in the lives of Ghanaians.”

Minister for Planning

The Minister for Planning, Professor Gyan Baffour, in his remarks as the representative of government at the launch, stated that the SDGs Indicator Baseline Report released by the National Development Planning Commission and the Ghana Statistical Service indicated that Ghana is on track to achieve the SDGs and the need to accelerate its efforts.

The UNSDP programme, he said, has taken on board many more of the same indicators prioritized by Ghana to track the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Partnership.

“This is welcome confirmation that we are not working at cross purposes but have the same criteria for success,” Professor Baffour said.

Signing of UNSDP

On 13th June 2018, the Government of Ghana and the United Nations in Ghana jointly signed the UN Sustainable Development Partnership 2018-2022 (UNSDP), a five-year strategic framework that sets out the collective vision and response of the UN system to national development priorities. The UNSDP was signed by the Minister of Finance, Kenneth Ofori-Atta, and the Minister of Planning, George Yaw Gyan-Baffour, on behalf of the Government, and by Ms Christine Evans-Klock, UN Resident Coordinator for Ghana, and the heads of 24 UN Agencies working in Ghana.

Informed by findings of the UN’s Common Country Analysis and Human Rights Assessment, the UNSDP was developed to align with the Coordinated Programme of Economic and Social Development Policies, 2017-2024 (CPESDP), which was submitted to Parliament by President Nana Akufo-Addo on 20th October 2017.

The CPESDP sets out a vision for agricultural modernisation, industrial diversification, and youth employment and articulates a self-reliant pathway to economic transformation and inclusive growth. This vision for national development incorporates Ghana’s global development commitments, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.