UNDP expresses concern over attainment of Sustainable

Development Goals in Nigeria
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has expressed concern over the possibility of Nigeria achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the face of dwindling budgetary resources. Dr Robert Asogwa, Team Leader Inclusive Growth Unit of the UNDP said in Enugu on Tuesday that Nigeria needed alternative innovative financing modules for its development programmes.
Asogwa, who was in Enugu to attend a donor conference, wondered how African countries could achieve the goals with the economic downturn in the continent.
“Many governments cannot attain the SDGs except they think of alternative option and innovative modules of financing them. The donor conference in Enugu is necessary but may not be sufficient for the state to achieve its four-point agenda and the global Agenda 2030 as well as the African Agenda 2063,” he said.
Asogwa said that it had become imperative for Nigeria to explore all available development options and should not limit itself in the context of North-South partnerships.
“We also need to think about meeting with China and other Asian countries for assistance.” Asogwa said that UNDP was committed to assisting the country in achieving its development agenda and recently evolved another framework to that effect.
“For us in UNDP, we are responding to these needs of government to finance the Nigerian agenda and African agenda by developing what we call United Nations Development Assistance Framework.
“This is a medium-term support strategy for 2018 to 2020 where 28 UN technical support organisations will assist federal and state governments to be able to address their challenges.” He said that it was sad that most governments did not show the required commitment critical to the partnership.
“It is important that the state started calling donors together to seek to achieve the Enugu Agenda 2020 which is linked to the global agenda. We need partnership because the key challenge is financing. This conference is good but not sufficient,” Asogwa said.
(NAN)