Foreign Minister Heraldo Muñoz took part this morning in the "2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals: challenges for Chile" Seminar, organized by the Ministries of Foreign Affairs; Economy, Development and Tourism; Social Development; and Environment, alongside the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).
At the inauguration, which took place at ECLAC headquarters, Minister Muñoz acknowledged the opportunity to reflect on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and presented on the Opportunities the 2030 Agenda represented for the United Nations.
"The Approval of this Agenda reflects an unequivocal political commitment to move towards change. And I would like to recall the words of President Bachelet, who during her approval pointed out that 'what we do or fail to do today, will determine our future in the coming decades'; and it is effectively so, therefore the time has come to start working towards the goals we have to fulfil by 2030" he noted.
Regarding the challenge that the SDG stand for the United Nations system, the Secretary of State pointed out that "to achieve the way to sustainability we need a revitalized global alliance, that grants us the means and the human resources, technical and financial that are needed. These SDG have an integrated character and this requires a strategic planning of the entire United Nations system. Is it a challenge for the system like it's never seen before".
"Our challenge at a national level, added the Minister, is to establish inclusion mechanisms, with an effective entitlement of rights, which contribute to the promotion of jobs, social care and economic empowerment, particularly of both youths and women," said the Minister, who explained that Chile has set in motion an advisory and coordination mechanism: the "National Council for the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development".
2030 Agenda Implementation
Minister Muñoz informed that this cross-sectorial council is composed by the Ministries that are directly involved with the implementation of the SDG's and has the guidance of the National Statistics Institutes to define and adapt the indicators of the monitoring of the Objectives.
The function of this Council will be to advise the President of the Republic in the implementation and monitoring of the 2030 Agenda and will serve, at a national level, as a coordination space with the corresponding entities, whether they are governmental, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, private sector and/or civil society.
The council will invite representatives of international organizations, non-governmental organizations, private sector, civil society and/or relevant experts who will contribute and will partake with the right to speak. Also, it will watch over the proper representation of the civil society through different commission and working groups that will be created by the council.
"The fulfilment of the SDG represents a challenges that engages us as a country, for we have a duty that relies on the collective and coordinated labour that is conducted by the different actors that are involved and who have to are necessary to comply with the objectives in the transversal manner they entail", added Minister Muñoz.
In the opening of the Seminar, along with the speech given by ECLAC's Executive Secretariat, Alicia Bárcena, the Ministers of Economy, Development and Tourism, Luis Felipe Céspedes; of Social Development, Marcos Barraza; and of the Environment, Pablo Badenier, intervened.