World Council for Curriculum and Instruction (WCCI)

September 26, 2019

UNGA Special Edition 2019

UNGA Special Edition, September 2019

It’s time to ignite more global action to achieve the SDGs

The evidence is clear. The world must step up efforts to conquer the dire and unprecedented challenges humanity is currently facing. There is no doubt, we must act now and set course towards a sustainable future that involves everyone. The good news is, we have the tools to make this happen. They consist of 17 transformative Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), adopted by all 193 UN Member States in 2015. Four years on, time has come to evaluate where we stand, and what is needed to make progress on this promise to present and future generations.

The SDG Summit on 24-25 September, is the first of its kind since the adoption of the landmark 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Featuring six Leaders Dialogues, the event is expected to result in a Political Declaration, along with a series of SDG acceleration actions, to be announced by various international actors. For world leaders coming to New York, they will be able to get a first-hand look at what the UN is doing on the ground to help realize the global goals through the video exhibit “SDG Good Practices and Actions for a Decade of Delivery”.

The voices for global action are many ahead of the SDG Summit and other high-level events taking place during the UN high-level week.

“The people of the world do not want half measures or empty promises,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres said. “They are demanding transformative change that is fair and sustainable. Let us use the world gathering in September to ratchet up the ambition and highlight the imperative of inclusion. And, together, let us kickstart a decade of delivery and action for people and planet.”

Follow the event via UN Web TV and via social media using #SDGs, #GlobalGoals and #UNGA.

Highlights

Making the case to invest in the global goals

Financing is available for sustainable development, with global financial assets estimated at over $200 trillion. But overwhelmingly, these resources are not being channeled at the scale and speed necessary to achieve the SDGs and objectives of the Paris Agreement.

Although significant progress has been made since the adoption of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda in 2015, recent data confirm that the world is not on track to achieve the SDGs. Current investment levels are far from the scale needed. To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, annual investment requirements across all sectors have been estimated at around $5-7 trillion.

The High-Level Dialogue on Financing for Development on 26 September, will bring together leaders from government, business and the financial sector, among others, to help unlock the resources and partnerships needed. If leaders act now and together, we can address growing risks effectively, and mobilize the financing needed to make the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development a reality.

Shining a spotlight on small islands’ priorities

Small island developing states are among the most vulnerable countries in the world. They are on the front lines of climate change, pursuing sustainable development. They share unique issues relating to their small size, remoteness, narrow resource and export base, and exposure to external economic shocks and global environmental challenges, including the impacts of climate change, which threatens not only health systems and infrastructure, but a country’s very survival.

The Small Island Developing States Accelerated Modalities of Action – or the SAMOA Pathway, was adopted in 2014 to support these countries’ sustainable development efforts. Five years on, the international community will gather in New York on 27 September to review and speed up progress on the SAMOA Pathway.

The SAMOA Pathway High-Level Midterm Review, will offer a pivotal moment to address the climate crisis, protect the ocean, strengthen public health systems, scale up new opportunities for economic growth, and forge genuine and durable partnerships.

The Future is Now: we must change the relationship between people and nature

The SDG Summit, starting next week, will try to answer fundamental questions about the future of our planet and its people. Informing these discussions will be the Global Sustainable Development Report, compiled by a team of 15 independent scientists supported by UN DESA. Issued on 11 September 2019, the report found that the current worldwide development model is threatening to reverse years of progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. Worsening inequalities and potentially irreversible damage to the natural environment, on which we all depend, demands concerted action, the report says.

“Achieving human well-being and eradicating poverty for all of the Earth’s people—expected to number 8.5 billion by 2030—is still possible,” the scientists stressed, “but only if there is a fundamental—and urgent—change in the relationship between people and nature.”

The report, entitled “The Future is Now: Science for Achieving Sustainable Development,” argues that understanding the interconnections between the individual SDGs and the concrete systems that define society today will be essential to devise policies that manage difficult trade-offs.

Step by step – towards sustainable development for all

As the world gears up for a week of action for people and planet, UN DESA staff are working round the clock to bring the global community together for three important high-level events – the SDG Summit (24-25 September), the High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development (26 September) and the SAMOA Pathway High-level Mid-term Review (27 September). Our world is facing mounting challenges that no one country can face alone. By connecting global policies and national action in the economic, social and environmental areas, UN DESA works with nations across the globe to find solutions to many of the world’s most pressing problems. Guided by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Department helps countries in their efforts to achieve sustainable development for all. Read more.