OPEC Fund Development Forum 2023
SUSTAINABLE GOALS: HOW ARE WE DOING? Proportion of countries a ff ected by moderately to abnormally high food prices, 2015-2019 (average percentage), 2020 and 2021 (annual percentage)
Abnormally high Moderately high
Nawal Al-Hosany Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
“We are NOT on track” OFQ : Looking ahead to COP28, what can we expect from the Global Stocktake? Nawal Al-Hosany: I think it’s clear that we are NOT on track. Nevertheless, we are looking forward to all nations coming together at COP28 — and coming with the political will to change course, find solutions and mobilize funds for climate action. COP28 will definitely provide the right platform for this collaboration. Beyond that, let me share a few specific details about the composition of the COP28 presidency team. Women make up more than half our team, which has an average age in the 30s. We also have a youth champion for the first time, ensuring that young people are not only observers but an integral part of the whole process.
Sub- Saharan Africa
Central & Southern Asia
Oceana
Northern Africa & Western Asia
Latin America & the Caribbean
Eastern & South- Eastern Asia
Europe & North America
World
Source: The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2023 : Special Edition, United Nations
ODA providers are encouraged to set a target of at least 0.2 percent of gross national income to LDCs. For comparison, Sweden’s 0.3 percent surpassed the recommended rate, while other EU and North American countries like France, Germany and the USA, the world’s largest economy, earmarked only 0.1 percent of their gross national incomes to LDCs in 2021. In addition to that progress, data and monitoring became more robust, with more than 2.7 million data records in the SDG global database in 2023, compared with only 330,000 in 2016. Data capacity developments are key and closing data finding gaps are necessary in order for LDCs, in particular, to have an accurate way to measure and manage data to support e ff ective policy-making. A significant second half With the stakes and progress (such as it is) spelled out, where to begin to make the necessary changes as the 2030 deadline approaches? The report calls on governments to redouble their e ff orts and their investment in sustainable
development (both at home and abroad). These are all easier said than done. As with many things, money makes the Goals go round. An SDG stimulus plan, detailed in the UN’s report, calls for an additional US$500 billion per year in financing for three main areas of action. First, tackle the high cost of debt. Second, scale-up a ff ordable long- term development financing, especially through multilateral development banks. Third, expand contingency funding to all countries in need. By reforming the international financial architecture and securing a financing surge, the report reasons, the results will be mutually reinforcing. Other proposed solutions prioritize sub-components of the SDGs themselves: close divides to leave no one behind, secure food, water and renewable energy systems, and prevent new and existing disaster risks. As the report makes clear, we know the outcome of business as usual. By not making the next seven years to 2030 count, we will never know the “world that might have been.”
Spending on refugees in donor countries and aid to Ukraine has helped push net O ffi cial Development Assistance (ODA) up to US$206 billion last year, an increase of 15.3 percent from 2021. This helped explain why roughly a quarter of 2022’s ODA was for humanitarian aid and refugee spending (see chart on page 45). Foreign aid plays a critical role in developed countries assisting more vulnerable developing countries. In line with the relevant SDG indicator,
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