Africa Urged to Take “Bold Leadership” to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals
Kampala: The Executive Secretary of ECA, Claver Gatete, has urged African leaders to demonstrate “bold leadership, decisive policies and strengthened partnerships” to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063. Speaking at the Eleventh Session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD-11) in Kampala, Gatete emphasized the critical need for immediate and transformative action.
According to Ethiopian News Agency, Gatete stressed the urgency with only five years remaining until the 2030 deadline. “The clock is ticking,” Gatete stated, underscoring the necessity for bold leadership, decisive policies, and strengthened partnerships to place Africa on a trajectory of sustainable prosperity. He highlighted the importance of African nations taking ownership of their development with strong domestic policies.
Gatete emphasized the role of African Heads of State in driving policy reforms, creating an enabling business environment, and mobilizing domestic resources for sustainable development. He assured that “the ECA and UN system remain committed to join hands with you, businesses, civil society, regional institutions and development partners to work and achieve the promise of the SDGs and AU Agenda 2063.”
Turning to the state of SDG implementation, Gatete presented a stark assessment. With just five years to 2030, only 10 out of 144 measurable SDG targets are on track, while 106 are progressing too slowly, with 28 regressing. He expressed particular concern for gender equality, noting the risk of SDG 5 on gender equality taking decades to achieve, which could undermine women’s contributions to social and economic progress.
Despite these challenges, Gatete highlighted the opportunity presented by focusing on five critical SDGs: Good Health and Well-being (SDG 3), Gender Equality (SDG 5), Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8), Life Below Water (SDG 14), and Partnerships for the Goals (SDG 17). He outlined specific challenges and opportunities within these areas, from the lack of access to quality healthcare and economic marginalization of women to the vast untapped potential of Africa’s blue economy.
Gatete affirmed the potential for African nations to succeed with committed leadership and policy reforms. Under the theme ‘Driving job creation and economic growth through sustainable, inclusive, science-and evidence-based solutions for the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063,’ ARFSD-11 aims to address the pressing need for concerted action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063. The Forum is being held at a critical time when commitments to enhance the pace of implementation across the continent need to be revitalized, calling for bold, ambitious, and accelerated transformative measures to improve development outcomes.