President Akufo-Addo
President Akufo-Addo Thursday inaugurated a 15-member high-level inter-ministerial committee to help Ghana achieve the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs).
The committee, which is chaired by the Minister of Planning, Prof George Gyan Baffour, has as its members, the Ministers of Trade and Industry, Alan Kyerematen; Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey; Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta; Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto and the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Gloria Akuffo.
The rest are Ministers of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Prof Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng; Monitoring and Evaluation, Dr Akoto Osei; Education, Dr Mathew Opoku-Prempeh; Health, Kwaku Agyemang Manu; Sanitation and Water Resources, Kofi Adda; Local Government and Rural Development, Hajia Alima Mahama; Gender, Children and Social Protection, Otiko Afisa Djaba; Employment and Labour Relations, Ignatius Baffour Awuah; Fisheries and Aquaculture, Afoley Quaye, with the president’s Special Advisor on the SDGs as Secretary to the committee.
Charge
President Akufo-Addo charged them, “I need not stress that the committee must discharge its duties efficiently and ensure that Ghana becomes a shining example for the implementation of the SDGs.
“The SDGs are intended to be the boldest and loudest articulation of a collective ambition for development the world has ever seen.”
Apart from that, he said, “They have helped focus the world’s attention on a common agenda of development.” He noted that they offer a unique opportunity not only to transform the world, but also to protect this planet and bring prosperity to all by diligently implementing them (SDGs).
For him, “The SDGS are not, and they cannot be! Implementation and success of the SDGs must be everyone’s business. It is the business of government and the public sector; it is the business of the security services; it is the business of religious organisations; it is the business of the private sector; it is the business of labour organisations; it is the business of professional associations; it is the business of special interest groups; it is the business of civil society; it is the business of individual communities and it is the business of every citizen.”
According to the president, “The SDGs are about the future that we all want and, indeed, the future that we should have.”
It is for this reason, he said the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, has assembled a varied and diverse array of persons to constitute the Group of Advocates.
As co-chair of the Eminent Group of Advocates, President Akufo-Addo indicated, “My particular role is to help garner the support of Africa’s political leaders, especially her presidents and heads of state, to rally the masses of the African peoples behind the implementation of the SDGs.”
He said the target date for the completion of ‘Agenda 2030’ SDGs presents the current generation with an opportunity to fight inequality on all fronts, wipe out extreme poverty and tackle the issue of climate change and reverse the degradation and unsustainable use of the world’s environmental resources.
He noted that Ghana has since taken up the challenge of the SDGs and that “we have captured them in our co-ordinated programme for economic and social development policies, which, in accordance with the dictates of Article 36(5) of the Constitution of the Republic, I shall be presenting to parliament in its next session, starting in October.”
Commitment
“Our strategic approach to implementing the SDGs involves all stakeholders. Government is committed to strengthening its partnerships with friends of Ghana – multilateral and bilateral – the private sector and civil society, as we endeavour to achieve and implement the SDGs. We are committed to leaving no one behind. The programmes and policies that have been outlined in our co-ordinated programme are all hinged towards the realisation of the SDGs, both at the national and local levels,” he emphasized.
Apart from that, he underscored, “Our flagship programmes and policies on how to ensure the realisation of the SDGs will only be as good as how well they are financed, and how robustly results are tracked and measured. Achieving the SDGs will require all the resources we can muster.”
The president therefore stressed the need to be efficient and effective not only in mobilising resources, but also in eliminating pervasive revenue leakages, and addressing misallocation and misuse of public funds.
“Crucially, if we are to succeed in increasing domestic financing of the SDGs, we must address the unacceptable leakage of resources in the form of wanton corruption,” he implored.
Aims
Under the 17 SDGs, countries are expected to put measures in place to end poverty in all its forms everywhere, end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture, ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages, ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all, achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
They must also ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all, promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.
The SDGs further entreat member countries to build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation, reduce inequalities within and among countries, make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable, ensure stainable consumption and production patterns.
Member states are expected to take urgent action to combat climate change and its impact, conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development, protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.
By Charles Takyi-Boadu, Presidential Correspondent