Change is possible! The problem is political will!
The High Level Political Forum will take place July 10 – 19 at the UN Headquarters in New York. Part of the session will be given over to an in-depth review of Goals 6 on clean water and sanitation, 7 on affordable and clean energy, 9 on industry, innovation and infrastructure, 11 on sustainable cities and communities, and 17 on partnerships for the Goals.
Forty countries will carry out Voluntary National Reviews – Good Shepherd are present in the following: Belgium, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Ireland, Portugal, Singapore, Syrian Arab Republic, and Vietnam. The EU is also presenting a report. All reports can be viewed at this link. Click on your country and you can see the report that your country has presented. It surely is admirable that member states comply with reporting procedures – 2 presenters will present for the first time, 37 for the second time, and 1 for the third time and this within 7 years. It is mid-way on the journey to 2030. The picture painted of implementation to date is discouraging. Quoting from the Secretary-Generals Report paragraph 4 ‘at the mid-way point on our way to 2030, the SDGs are in deep trouble. A preliminary assessment of the roughly 140 targets with data show only about 12% are on track; close to half, though showing progress, are moderately or severely off track, and some 30% have either seen no movement or regressed below the 2015 baseline.’ A second report entitled the Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR) 2023 is more interesting with its color codes of progress and lack of progress. It is still in draft form and will be published just before the SDG Summit on 18 and 19 September 2023. This summit is held every 4th year under the auspices of the General Assembly.
JCOR (Justice Coalition of Religious) has prepared a PowerPoint Presentation to facilitate navigation around the two weeks program of HLPF (High-Level Political Forum. It is available in four Languages English; French; Spanish; and Portuguese.
It is a rich resource compiled in 20 slides containing links to access events taking place and towards the end, there is social media information – including handles, #hashtags, and samples of social media messaging in relation to SDG 6, 7, 9, 11, and 17. This page is a handy page for reference with regard to side events and special events. This graphic from Side 10 shows the date when each of the 40 countries is presenting – if you go to the slide, the links are live, bringing you directly to the report of the country.
Ernestine Lalao from Madagascar is at the GSIJP Office and will attend the two-week HLPF program with a special focus on Africa. Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of Congo are the two countries from Africa presenting Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs). Ernestine is following in particular with the sisters in Burkina Faso and I will focus on the elimination of child labor with reference to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
JCOR is presenting SDG LABS beginning on July 10 and focusing each day on a different SDG that is under review. These sessions are open to anyone and are largely perspectives and experiences from the ministries. They start at 8.00 am EST Monday to Thursday and again on Monday, July 17th. Register: https://bit.ly/3CNY8Do
Details: https://bit.ly/3PnzzEM
Interpretation will be available in English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish
Above your team at the HLPF! Left Ernestine from Madagascar; Top – Ernestine on a tour of the United Nations in the General Assembly Hall where the opening of the HLPF will take place; Middle with Sude, an intern in the office, with Nelson Mandella in the backgorund and bottom Winifred, Sude, and Kimberly Moloche. This is what our compiled schedule looks like over the two weeks.