UN official says GDI 'promising' method to achieve SDGs

The Global Development Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping is a promising response to help accelerate the achievement of the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, a UN official said.

Siddharth Chatterjee, UN resident coordinator in China, made the remarks at a forum on Tuesday titled "Global Development Initiative: Maximizing Synergies for the Implementation of 2030 Agenda" in Beijing.

Hosted by the Development Research Center of the State Council and its affiliate the Center for International Knowledge on Development, the forum was held on the sidelines of the "Global Development: Common Mission and Contributions" Think Tank and Media Forum, which was sponsored by the State Council Information Office.

Expressing his appreciation to the affiliate's efforts to advance sustainable development and support the work of its mother institution, Chatterjee said, "When research contributes to good policies, backed by robust political will, then progress happens."

"China is a good example of how far it has progressed in the last 40 years. I'm pleased the United Nations system has been partners with China in this remarkable social economic progress since 1979," he added.

Highlighting a series of challenges the world faces, Chatterjee said he expects China, through the GDI, to play a role in addressing difficulties that have been hindering the realization of the SDGs.

"The world today is facing unprecedented challenges," he noted. "Over two years into the global pandemic, we have seen millions of lives lost and an unprecedented social economic impact. Recovery efforts today have been uneven, unfair and insufficient for sustainable development."

The current crisis is threatening decades of development gains, further delaying the urgent transition to greener and more inclusive economies, he emphasized. In addition, climate change, conflicts, growing inflation, digital divides, rising poverty and hunger and structural inequalities between and within countries further exacerbate this dire situation.

"The world has moved off track in meeting the globally agreed upon deadline set by the 2030 Agenda to achieve the sustainable development goals," he said, adding that addressing the challenges that threaten global progress on the SDGs requires the entire community of nations to double its efforts to achieve a more just and sustainable work.

"The Global Development Initiative, announced by President Xi last September, is a promising response to help the world recover from the recent setbacks and accelerate achievement of the SDGs worldwide," Chatterjee said.

"We welcome such an effort, especially the proposed alignment of many of the GDI priorities with the SDGs, including the areas of poverty eradication, food security, health, financing for development, climate action, industrialization, digital economy and connectivity."

China, as the second-largest economy, has a significant role to play in sharing its lessons and experiences and resources with other developing countries. "Having served many years in Africa, I have seen firsthand the difference China has brought there," he said.

He said UN China is keen to support the early development of the GDI to have a greater impact on the SDGs globally. In addition, it is also committed to leveraging the GDI as an opportunity to advance a series of cross-cutting areas in the 2030 agenda, which includes gender equality and women's empowerment, youth employment, vulnerable populations and digital education, in order to leave no one behind.

Chatterjee said UN China stands ready and will continue to provide the best possible technical assistance and support to promote GDI's alignment with the SDGs.