SL well ahead of MDG goals: UN

Tuesday, 24 March 2015 00:43 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Sri Lanka has performed well on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) overall, having already achieved or being on track to achieve the majority of the goals and indicators, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative SubinayNandy said. He made these remarks at the launch of MDG Country Report 2014 for Sri Lanka yesterday held under the patronage of Policy Planning and Economic Affairs Deputy Minister Dr.Harsha de Silva. The MGD Country Report was the third MDG review report produced by Sri Lanka and the first report that covers the entire country, allowing comparison across all districts. Highlighting the country’s MDG performance,Nandysaid it was now being released at a time when the Government was debating and defining a

significant reform agenda towards an inclusive and prosperous Sri Lanka that is at peace with its past and confident in its future. “The findings of the MDG country report make a strong case for Sri Lanka to be leading in a credible manner in the global deliberations around the development agenda for post 2015. Sri Lanka’s long history of investment in health, education and poverty alleviation programs has translated into robust performance against the MDGs and Sri Lanka has many lessons to share,” he noted. The report is a result of joint collaboration between the Government of Sri Lanka and the United Nations in Sri Lanka, which was prepared by the Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (IPS). The eight MDGs range from halving extreme poverty rates to promoting gender equality and providing universal primary education. “Our mission is to achieve sustainable development for all. We must achieve it with this transitionwhile protecting the planet and leaving no one behind. We have shared responsibility to embark on inclusive prosperity in a peaceful environment. The success will only come through strong commitment from member states at all levels globally, regionally and locally,” he added. The report provides policymakers with information to identify and support regions lagging behind while it also analyses achievements and thematic areas requiring further attention. He said that globallythe year 2015 is significant with international community coming together in several forums. To be on the future global agenda in September, world leaders will meet at the UN Summit to endorse the new development agenda for the post-2015 eraSustainable Development Goals (SDG) – a set of 17 goals which will replace the MDGs that complete their journey in 2015. “Additionally, Sri Lanka’s recent renewed emphasis on upholding human rights and the rule of law, while addressing lingering inequality and promoting peace, means that the newly-proposed 17 SDGs, which explicitly address these issues, fit well with local priorities and Sri Lanka’s aspirations and unfolding peace development,” he asserted. Looking to the future, the report also highlights certain areas that require additional focus such as women empowerment, nutrition, climate change and regional disparities and these were discussed during a panel discussion on ‘Priorities Moving Forward’. The panel discussion took place with the participation of UNFPA Representative AlainSibenaler, Power and Energy Ministry Secretary Dr. SurenBatagoda, UNICEF Representative Una McCauley, Ministry of Health Nutrition Coordination Division Director Dr. ShanthiGoonewardena and Viluthu CEO ShanthiSachithanandam.

He said this year marks the 70th year since UN was founded in 1945 and the 60th year since Sri Lanka became a member state of the UN in 1995. To mark this significant milestone, a campaign called ‘Our UN. Apey UN. Engal UN’ was also launched during the event by Foreign Affairs SecretaryChitranganeeWagiswara and UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident RepresentativeSubinayNandy.