Pingfan Hong, Director of the Development Policy and Analysis Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs delivered a keynote speech at the 2^nd Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Event held in Vienna, Austria from 26 to 28 September 2017. During the first session of the High-level Policy Dialogue, entitled “Global Goals for Local Impact: Strengthening Policy Coordination for the Successful Implementation of Development Goals”, Dr. Hong presented the cross-cutting nature of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which require integrated policy approaches. He sketched a theoretical framework for integrated policy approaches, stating that “what makes the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development different from other UN development agendas in the past is its emphasis on the totality of all the SDGs, namely a balanced achievement of all the goals, rather than individual goals.”

Dr. Hong zeroed in on integrated policy approaches in practice, showing how the Belt and Road Initiative may be integrated with the 2030 Agenda. “The 2030 Agenda is guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, and so is the Belt and Road.” Hong demonstrated how the Belt and Road’s five priority areas for international development cooperation, namely, policy coordination, facilities connectivity, trade and investment, financial integration and people-to-people bond, are the same areas that can advance progress in the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development.

The event was organized by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the Finance Center for South-South Cooperation (FCSSC).

Presentation: Integrated policy approaches to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda