From environmental concerns like climate change to widespread poverty, much of the world is still plagued with a wide variety of challenges. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are 17 goals adopted by the United Nations in 2015 that seek to solve all of the world's global problems. Under the principle "leaving no one behind," they aim to create a healthy, prosperous, and just world by the year 2030. This applies for every nation on the planet, including ASEAN member countries.
Since 2000, ASEAN has made major advancements in improving economic opportunities and reducing poverty; continued income growth and strong policy efforts will ensure that most ASEAN members will eliminate absolute poverty by the deadline. But there are still many challenges to overcome, and ASEAN must maintain a strong commitment to achieve the SDGs. Several initiatives have been made to meet this goal.
The ASEAN SDGs Frontrunner Cities Programme
The ASEAN SDGs Frontrunner Cities Programme is an initiative under the ASEAN Working Group on Environmentally Sustainable Cities (AWGESC) funded by the Japan-ASEAN Integration Fund (JAIF). It aims to achieve inclusive, sustainable, resilient and dynamic development in ASEAN cities and develop the capacity of "next generation" cities, promoting policies and practices that will shape a clean and green ASEAN. The participating cities of this Programme are nominated to develop innovative and replicable practices of localising the SDGs.
It is difficult for cities to stay motivated to overcome the obstacles on the journey towards implementing these goals, and the motivation to succeed must be instilled not just within government officials but also common citizens. This can be done by implementing projects that will visibly benefit local communites, as SDGs may not be seen as important for daily life. Long-term visions and consensus within different parties is crucial in maintaining motivation and localisation.
The ASEAN MYWorld 2030 Advocacy Programme
The ASEAN MYWorld 2030 Advocacy Programme is a people-driven initiative on sustainable development for the ASEAN community that attempts to empower people to act on issues that affect their lives, ensuring that no one is left behind. It seeks to raise awareness of the SDGs, collect citizen data and inputs on SDG priorities, and advocate for people's involvement in the implementation of SDGs.
The collected data is used for local advocacy efforts, and as of February 2019, over 40,000 votes have been collected from MY World platforms for ASEAN countries. Furthermore, 15 regional advocacy events, which includes UN organizations, representatives from governments, private sector partners, as well as regional civil society organisations and youth networks, were organised since June 2018.
Conclusion
The Sustainable Development Goals are ambitious objectives that require strong, consistent effort and commitment. The member countries of ASEAN and the rest of the world must recoginse the importance of achieving these goals in order to bring about a sustainable and peaceful planet.
Sources
- https://www.undp.org/sustainable-development-goals
- https://sdgs.un.org/partnerships/asean-sdgs-frontrunner-cities-programme
- https://www.iges.or.jp/en/projects/sdgs-fc
- https://sdgs.un.org/partnerships/asean-my-world-2030-advocacy-programme
- https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/Policy-Papers/Issues/2018/11/07/pp101118asean-progress-towards-sdgs
