Photo Credit: Sam Balye/Unsplash
In 2015 when the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were launched, Uganda was presiding over the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), chairing most of the global negotiations that midwifed Agenda 2030. The SDGs are a global sustainable development blue-print under the theme Transforming our World by Leaving No One behind. In 2020, just before Covid-19, the Global Community launched the decade of SDGs action 2020-2030.
All these 17 SDGs are interconnected, and are themed into 5Ps-People SDGs, Prosperity SDGs, Planet SDGs, Peace SDGs and Partnerships SDG. SDG-13 (Take urgent action to combat climate change) is central to the entire sustainability agenda. Climate scientists have advised that climate change is now one of the leading global challenges threatening both humanity and the entire biodiversity.
Uganda is vulnerable to climate change effects as evidenced in the extreme weather patterns already being experienced because the forest cover has been declining since 1990. Accelerated implementation of SDGs through agroforestry could therefore be that silver bullet towards combating climate change and its related risks and disasters in the local communities.
In the third National Development Plan (NDP111) whose goal is; “increased household incomes and improved quality of life “, under theme of “sustainable industrialization for inclusive growth, employment, and sustainable wealth creation”, Government mainstreamed SDGs as a blueprint to advance the socio- economic transformation agenda through the five core areas of Agriculture, Infrastructure, Health, Education, and ICT as the back born.
Uganda is largely an agricultural country, therefore by promoting Climate Smart Agricultural (CSA) methods like irrigation and mechanized agriculture among Uganda’s 67 percent subsistence farmers. This will help fight hunger and malnutrition (SDG-2), fight household poverty (SDG-1), improve the children’s education quality (SDG-4), improve the health and wellbeing (SDG-3) which eventually promotes Peace (SDG-16) in the households improving the quality of life and thus increasing life expectancy.
To achieve SDGs, the government under the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) established the SDGs Secretariat purposely to coordinate the implementation of SDGs. The secretariat is also mandated to monitor and periodically report on the progress through the Voluntary National Review (VNR). The 2020 VNR report indicates less progress on SDGs implementation which was even further slowed down by Covid-19.
To accelerate implementation of SDGs, government should strategically form partnerships with all stakeholders to rally all citizens especially leveraging civil society organizations with a membership of hundreds of grassroots human rights defenders in all regions of Uganda who can help to localize SDGs.
The private sector as a strategic partner can also help to accelerate the SDGs awareness to the business community and the informal sector. Local governments can also help by tailoring the SDGs messages and actions around other government programs like the popular Parish Development Model. Religious leaders and Cultural institutions can also promote SDGs actions because they interact directly with the ordinary people.
The incredible army of young people in the youth coalition for SDGs is a strong accelerator and catalyst to leapfrog SDGs actions. Millions of youths in the National Youth Council, The Environment Shield, Uganda National Students Association, Fridays for the Future, Rise Up Movement, and Youth Go Green, should be leveraged in accelerating the implementation of SDGs across the country.
SDGs are a young people’s agenda. The youths therefore, have the power to cause real social transformation in this decade of action especially through green innovations by creating green jobs under the planet SDGs.
Accelerating SDGs actions in 2023 can significantly transform the lives of our people as the only guarantor for the future of Uganda’s sustainable development agenda.
Mr Robert J. Turyakira is an environment & climate activist
