The SDGs Action Summit 2024, a crucial event aimed at accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), has been launched by the SDGs advisory unit at the Office of the President.
Presidential Advisor on the SDGs, Dr. Eugene Owusu who was speaking at the media launch, underscored the critical importance of the summit in addressing the numerous challenges hindering Africa’s development.
Scheduled for July 2-3, 2024, at the Kempinski Hotel, the summit is organized under the auspices of the President of the Republic, Nana Akufo-Addo in his capacity as the co-chair of the Emeritus Group of the UN Secretary-General’s SDG Advocates.
Themed “From Mid-Point to Success: Recommitting, Scaling Up, and Accelerating Action on the SDGs,” the event aims to reignite commitment to the SDGs and catalyze innovative actions necessary for their achievement.
Dr. Owusu highlighted the urgency of the summit, citing alarming statistics from Pan-African institutions, the UNDP, UNCA, the Africa Union Commission, and the African Development Bank.
“Without quicker progress towards the SDGs, close to 500 million people in Africa will remain in extreme poverty by 2030,” he warned.
He identified a range of challenges impeding Africa’s progress, including climate change, conflicts, the residual effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, policy failures, and a flawed global governance architecture.
These issues, he noted, are exacerbating poverty, fueling instability, widening inequality, and deteriorating the health of the planet.
“These challenges are acutely undermining prospects for achieving the goals,” Dr. Owusu stated.
However, he also conveyed a message of resilience and opportunity. “We cannot despair and throw the baby out with the bathwater. We continue to have abundant opportunities within the SDGs to address these challenges and foster inclusive and sustainable development across our continent.”
The SDGs Action Summit 2024 is envisioned as a preparatory meeting for the UN Summit of the Future, which aims to turbocharge actions on the SDGs and build consensus on delivering a better today while safeguarding the future.
“The objective of the summit is to reignite a renewed commitment to the implementation of the SDGs and to catalyze bold and innovative actions necessary to put the SDGs on track,” Dr Owusu stated.
As the world prepares for the UN Summit of the Future, the SDGs Action Summit 2024 is poised to play a crucial role in building consensus and turbocharging actions necessary for sustainable development.
Dr. Owusu’s speech served as a rallying call for stakeholders to leverage the opportunities within the SDGs to achieve global peace, stability, prosperity, and environmental sustainability.