#UNGA: Shaping Global Goals for Humanity’s Future

Ahead of the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit and to mark the 70th anniversary of the United Nations, a 10-minute film introducing the Sustainable Development Goals is projected onto the UN Headquarters, in New York – See more at: http://blogs.state.gov/stories/2015/09/24/unga-shaping-global-goals-humanitys-future#sthash.22YTBDvA.dpuf

In the coming days, in what is anticipated to be the largest gathering of heads of state ever assembled, President Obama and his counterparts will adopt a new set of global goals focused on ridding the world of poverty and its related indignities while protecting and sustaining the earth’s ecosystems and resources.

That global commitment — the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development — will succeed the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has heralded as the most successful anti-poverty movement in history.

Indeed, the world has quietly experienced remarkable progress during the past 15 years: more than 700 million people lifted out of extreme poverty, the rate of child mortality more than halved, and the number of girls attending grade school boosted to equal boys, among other things. No one presumes the MDGs are the sole cause, but it’s clear they have helped governments, NGOs and funders rally around a common set of objectives, establish standard metrics and methodologies for assessing progress, and develop innovative partnerships that have achieved significant results.

Yet today, many challenges persist and have even increased in their complexity, as we have seen with the effects of climate change and in the role conflict and instability played in the current migration crisis. And yet, economists agree that the world is within reach of ending extreme poverty within a generation, a breathtaking prospect to which President Obama has committed U.S. leadership in three successive State of the Union addresses.

The new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) — increasingly known as the global goals — build on this momentum and break new ground, not least in the way they were developed: three years of consultations, deliberations, and negotiations among 193 UN member states, with the active involvement of civil society organizations, academia, businesses, philanthropy, and citizens themselves. An online survey asking people to rank their priorities for global progress received more than eight million responses. This inclusivity promises significant political momentum toward finishing the job on poverty, hunger, and disease, as well as expanding economic opportunity for all and bolstering international peace and stability — all core American values.

The new agenda is also significantly more ambitious than the MDGs. The number of goals has grown from eight to 17, with 169 associated targets, and the interrelated nature of the agenda encourages countries to avoid making trade-offs that prioritize progress on one goal at the expense of poor performance on another. Economic growth and poverty reduction should not be pursued at the expense of environmental degradation. A commitment to “leave no one behind” encourages countries to focus on the poorest and most vulnerable first.

In line with U.S. priorities, this vision for development recognizes that progress is only sustainable when supported by peaceful societies and capable governments and institutions that can ensure the health, safety, and wellbeing of their people. Of the seven countries unlikely to meet a single MDG by the end of 2015, all have been affected by recent high levels of violence. We know that over time, extreme poverty will increasingly be concentrated in fragile and conflict-affected states, and that they also contribute to the instability that causes people to search elsewhere for security, prosperity, and dignity. Success in leaving no one behind will depend upon sustained attention and innovative approaches to reducing violence and facilitating stronger governance in these areas.

We also know that no country has rapidly and sustainably reduced extreme poverty without substantial, inclusive economic growth. This includes a commitment to achieving gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, since evidence shows that investments in women and girls result in better outcomes for everyone. For example, removing barriers to women’s ability to participate fully in the economy, and closing the global gender gap in workforce participation, can boost GDP worldwide by up to 12 percent by 2030. So it’s no surprise that the U.S. strongly believes that in order to achieve any of our goals, we must fully involve women and girls.

The goals also push us to use and maximize a full range of financing options to accelerate progress. This includes using our foreign assistance to help countries mobilize and effectively use their own domestic resources, as well as attract and leverage private investments. It will be critical to drive innovation through science and technology and maximize the use of data, both to let us know how we’re doing and to deliver development results themselves.

Indeed, these goals are not just for governments — they are for everyone. Their ambitions go beyond the resources of governments alone, and progress will depend upon authentic participation and investment by all stakeholders, including businesses, faith-based organizations, civil society, and citizens themselves. And in order for this agenda to succeed, all countries — rich and poor alike — have work to do to make progress against the goals, and we are committed to doing that at home as well as in our foreign assistance.

The political consensus supporting these goals is a powerful symbol of the world’s priorities and expectations, a global commitment to a different kind of future: one without extreme poverty, with less inequality, with no barriers based on gender — one where we live together sustainably, and in peace. It is a testament to the purpose and promise of multilateralism, to what is possible when countries come together and push each other to go further. The U.S. looks forward to turning this consensus into concrete action and providing continued global leadership to building a more prosperous and safer world.

– See more at: http://blogs.state.gov/stories/2015/09/24/unga-shaping-global-goals-humanitys-future#sthash.22YTBDvA.dpuf

Source; U.S Department of State

By

Robert Williams

Editor in Chief

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