Uganda Launches National SDG Roadmap
In 2016, the Government of Uganda established a National Coordination Framework for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As part of efforts to operationalize this framework, the Government of Uganda, through the Office of the Prime Minister, in partnership with the United Nations System, on October 23 launched the national roadmap for creating an enabling environment for the implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The roadmap identifies strategic priority actions for implementation within the period of the second National development Plan. While launching the roadmap, Rt. Hon. Prime Minister, Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda stated: “This roadmap is a testament that the Government of Uganda is committed to ensuring that the development aspirations of the citizens of Uganda are met, by all means possible.”
Hon. Rugunda said that roadmap creates an enabling environment for all government entities to implement the SDGs in a coordinated manner. They will therefore be required to use the roadmap to plan, cost and advocate for the SDGs as well as report on the progress, to enable tracking of Uganda’s efforts to attain sustainable development. Ms. Rosa Malango, the UN Resident Coordinator noted that although Uganda had shown significant progress through aligning its national development plans and budgets to the SDGs, there was need to accelerate progress towards sustainable development.
“I am glad the Government of Uganda took several bold steps before other countries could on Agenda 2030, starting with mainstreaming of the SDGs into the Second National Development Plan (NDPII), before the Agenda 2030 was officially launched,” she said.
Due to these efforts, a recently published report by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network on SDG Index and Dashboards provides country performance on the historic Agenda 2030 and the SDGs. The report ranked Uganda 125th out 156 countries with SDG index score of 54.9, higher than the Sub Saharan Africa regional average of 52.8.
“This is a good base line for us to accelerate progress,” Ms. Malango added adding that she hoped that the roadmap would re-energize on efforts to deliver the 2030 agenda for the benefit of all Ugandans.
Speaking on behalf of the Local Development Partners’ Group, Mr. Joakim Parker, USAID Mission Director, called for prioritizing investments in social sectors to reverse the stagnating or even declining performance on key human capital indicators and to achieve key SDGs.
“We all agree that Uganda’s future depends on a healthy and educated population, and Uganda simply cannot afford not to invest more in its young population”, Mr. Parker said.
Representatives from the Civil Societies and Private Sector also attended the launch event and called on government to use all available resources efficiently, ensure justice and address the high population growth in order to attain the 2030 agenda. With this Roadmap, Uganda continues its commitment to leading the way in implementing the SDGs which began in 2015 when it led the UN General Assembly to adopt the goals.
Please find the roadmap here: Uganda SDGs Roadmap.
The remarks by the LDPG can be found here.