Your Excellency, Ambassador Sandoval, Vice President of ECOSOC,Excellencies,Distinguished Colleagues,
Allow me first to commend all of you for your country’s determined efforts to prepare your voluntary national reviews, at the time when the world is facing an unprecedented human crisis.
Altogether, 47 VNRs will be presented to the forthcoming HLPF on sustainable development, which is scheduled to take place from 7 to 17 July. All UN Member States and other Stakeholders are looking forward to seeing your VNRs be presented and reviewed.
Excellencies and colleagues,
The key messages emanating from the VNRs show that many of you are concerned that the COVID-19 pandemic will:
• adversely impact progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals and disrupt the advances made, and• exacerbate existing structural issues that hinder the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
Many of you have also described the negative impact of the pandemic on the VNR preparation process, with the cancellation of meetings and the need to use online tools.
So, it is even more commendable that you will be joining the 142 VNRs that have already been presented at the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) since 2016. It is a great accomplishment.
Such rapid uptake of the VNRs across all regions is a testament to countries' commitment to the 2030 Agenda. The large number of returning presenters also shows the strong desire of countries to present their national implementation efforts at the HLPF. The VNRs have become not only about showcasing what countries have achieved nationally – but also about sharing lessons learned, along with the challenges countries face.
I hope that the VNRs will give an impetus to all of your countries to continue on this path and build back better following the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to have a sustainable recovery from the pandemic, we must build more sustainable economies, and more equal and resilient societies that better preserve our environment and address climate change.
We hope that this workshop organized by my department, UNDESA – and the last one before your presentation at the HLPF – will be useful. My colleagues across DESA are serving as focal points for your countries and they are here for you. We all want to make your presentation a success. We want to ensure that you and all other countries can learn from your experience and lessons in implementing the 2030 Agenda and share advice and support. You also have a great support in the Group of Friends of VNRs, as we have heard from Ambassador Sandoval.
We know that this year is special and having a fully virtual HLPF will be a challenge. But we also have a dedicated team of people in the Secretariat who will support you and answer any questions you have in this last mile before your presentation. I wish you a successful workshop.
Thank you.
Allow me first to commend all of you for your country’s determined efforts to prepare your voluntary national reviews, at the time when the world is facing an unprecedented human crisis.
Altogether, 47 VNRs will be presented to the forthcoming HLPF on sustainable development, which is scheduled to take place from 7 to 17 July. All UN Member States and other Stakeholders are looking forward to seeing your VNRs be presented and reviewed.
Excellencies and colleagues,
The key messages emanating from the VNRs show that many of you are concerned that the COVID-19 pandemic will:
• adversely impact progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals and disrupt the advances made, and• exacerbate existing structural issues that hinder the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
Many of you have also described the negative impact of the pandemic on the VNR preparation process, with the cancellation of meetings and the need to use online tools.
So, it is even more commendable that you will be joining the 142 VNRs that have already been presented at the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) since 2016. It is a great accomplishment.
Such rapid uptake of the VNRs across all regions is a testament to countries' commitment to the 2030 Agenda. The large number of returning presenters also shows the strong desire of countries to present their national implementation efforts at the HLPF. The VNRs have become not only about showcasing what countries have achieved nationally – but also about sharing lessons learned, along with the challenges countries face.
I hope that the VNRs will give an impetus to all of your countries to continue on this path and build back better following the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to have a sustainable recovery from the pandemic, we must build more sustainable economies, and more equal and resilient societies that better preserve our environment and address climate change.
We hope that this workshop organized by my department, UNDESA – and the last one before your presentation at the HLPF – will be useful. My colleagues across DESA are serving as focal points for your countries and they are here for you. We all want to make your presentation a success. We want to ensure that you and all other countries can learn from your experience and lessons in implementing the 2030 Agenda and share advice and support. You also have a great support in the Group of Friends of VNRs, as we have heard from Ambassador Sandoval.
We know that this year is special and having a fully virtual HLPF will be a challenge. But we also have a dedicated team of people in the Secretariat who will support you and answer any questions you have in this last mile before your presentation. I wish you a successful workshop.
Thank you.
File date:
Monday, June 15, 2020