Remarks at Second Annual Uganda National SDGs Conference 2023

Acknowledgements:

• Your Excellency, the Vice President of the Republic of Uganda
• The Rt. Hon. Prime Minister
• The Rt. Hon. Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda
• Honourable Ministers, with a special mention of the Rt. Honorable Minister in charge of General Duties and the SDGs,
• The Hon. Chief Justice of Uganda,
• Your Excellencies, Ambassadors and heads of diplomatic missions,
• Development Partners present,
• The Keynote Speaker, Prof. Jeffrey Sachs, Director for Sustainable Development at Columbia University,
• Heads of all Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies,
• Members of the Civil Society,
• Private Sector representatives,
• Academia,
• The Media Fraternity,
• Colleagues from the UN system
• All participants,
• Protocols observed

On behalf of my colleagues in the United Nations system, we are delighted to partner and welcome you all to this second Uganda Annual Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Conference.

In a special way, I wish to recognize and extend my appreciation to the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister and the Minister for General Duties, for their continued commitment to coordinating Government and its partners in the domestication and implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, at the core of which are the seventeen (17) SDGs.

Your Excellency,

Since the adoption of the SDGs in 2015, we have witnessed Government’s leadership in strengthening the policy and institutional coordination architecture for this Agenda.  Non-state actors are also working increasingly more closely with the Government to support the implementation of SDGs in Uganda. The UN system is delighted to be associated with these efforts and the strong partnership that we have established with Government over the years. Our approach is premised on the strong belief that UN Member States and their people should be at the center of determining their development paths while we continue to play a facilitation, knowledge generation and capacity building role for alignment with the Global Goals.

This year’s SDGs Conference has come at a time when there are more positive prospects for Uganda’s growth and development trajectory, with the economic growth rate steadily returning to the pre-COVID-19 projections of 6-7% per year. Just last week, the Hon. Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development informed us that the economy is estimated to have expanded by 5.5% in 2022/23 and projected to grow by 6.0% in 2023/24. We are also seeing a strong recovery in the service sector as well as foreign direct investment.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Despite Government’s commitment to implementing the 2030 Agenda and the positive outlook, there remain challenges and risks to Uganda’s journey to sustainable development. We cannot confidently state that the country is fully cushioned from the impacts of global and regional political conflicts, violent extremism, disease outbreaks, climate change and environmental disasters. The unfortunate incident in Kasese where innocent school children lost their lives and others abducted at the hands of a suspected extremist group is a reminder that the risk of insecurity and violence is real and has far-reaching consequences on our progress. The positive economic growth rate also remains somewhat elusive to the ordinary Ugandan as this is not being felt but in everyone’s pockets, partly due to gaps in strategies for shared progress. Certain groups such as People with Disabilities (PwDs), women and girls, orphans and vulnerable children, indigenous peoples, refugees and others continue to face varing social and economic exclusion.  In the mid-term review of the third National Development Plan (NDP-III), the National Planning Authority (NPA)  revealed that only 17% of the targeted results have been achieved so far, signaling limited commitment to implementation of the Plan. The rate of economic growth has also not kept pace with the demands of a fast-paced population growth rate.

This Conference presents a great opportunity to reflect on our journey and renew Uganda’s efforts to accelerate the achievement of the SDGs. Fortunately, we have the Vision 2040, the National Development Plans and other national policy and legal frameworks through which SDGs are implemented. There is no separate implementation architecture for the SDGs besides the national policy and institutional provisions.  

It has also come at the opportune moment, when the global community is preparing for the SDGs Summit that will be convened on 18-19 September 2023, as part of the United Nations General Assembly. During the Summit, Heads of State and Government will carry out a comprehensive review of the state of the SDGs at mid-way their implementation and provide high-level political guidance on transformative and accelerated actions to realize the 2030 targets. These deliberations will also engage the thought leaders from governments, international organizations, the private sector, civil society, and other stakeholders through a series of high-level meetings with the decision makers.

The outcomes of the SDGs Conference and the associated engagements that the Office of the Prime Minister has led at the sub-national level will, therefore, inform Uganda’s contribution to the discussions at the SDGs Summit.  

Distinguished Participants,

Whereas the country faces challenges and risks in its pursuit of sustainable development, as outlined by the earlier speakers, I wish to acknowledge that many of these are not unique to Uganda. Other developing countries and the world’s most vulnerable people are bearing similar consequences of slowed transformation. The UN Secretary General, in his report on the status of progress on the SDGs, has identified several issues and I will pick out a few:-

1. Only about 12% of the SDGs indicators are on track, close to half, are moderately or severely off track and 30%  have either seen no movement or regressed below the 2015 baseline.
2. If the current trends on SDGs are maintained, only about one-third of countries will meet the target to halve national poverty levels. Here in Uganda, the national poverty headcount has remained higher than the 19.7% registered in 2012/13.
3. He also notes that the world is back at hunger levels not seen since 2005 and food prices remain higher in more countries than in the period 2015-2019.
4. We are also far away from winning the battle against inequality, moving at a pace that will take the world two hundred and eighty-six (286) years to close gender gaps in legal protection and removing discriminatory laws.
5. Humans have also become the greatest threat to their own existence through irresponsible activities whose result has been climate change and environmental degradation levels that are detrimental to our lives. Carbon dioxide levels continue to rise, we continue to rely on polluting fuels and dangerous technologies for cooking, and human activities have threatened extinction of enormous numbers of species.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

With the mixed picture on our progress, and the multiple uncertainties that we are faced with, there is need for accelerated effort by all stakeholders. Let me offer a few ideas that could be important for our reflection in this dialogue as well as the upcoming discussions on the Fourth National Development Plan (NDP-IV).

1. Public sector effectiveness: As most will agree, Government is our driver in all that we do, either indirectly or directly- and it is commendable that the most critical policy and planning instruments and institutions have been put in place. However, for several reasons, there have been gaps on the implementation front. Public institutions have not been fully equipped with the necessary human resources and appropriate infrastructure that can meet today’s dynamics. Even with clear evidence of the potential of digital systems to transform the effectiveness of the public sector, uptake has been slow. Institutions need to be equipped to steer and leverage digital technologies, in an inclusive manner to advance development. There is need for Government to lead its partners in putting in place an even more effective development partnership architecture that promotes regular dialogue, accountability and trust between the public sector and other development actors.
2. Decentralisation: In my interactions with grassroot stakeholders, I have learnt that the objectives of the decentralization reforms established in the mid-1990s have been eroded.  Sub-national authorities and the people they serve have become increasingly less empowered to drive their own development since most decisions are made at the center. As part of the NDP-IV development process, I think a review and re-modeling of our approach to decentralization needs to be looked into.
3. Private sector as critical partner in development: We all know that the Private sector is a critical driver of innovation, productivity, employment, and economic growth. We must take advantage of the opportunity that, world over, business leaders are gradually recognizing the significance and urgency of integrating sustainability into their business practices and strategies to achieve long-term success. However, achieving full alignment to sustainability requires that Government policies and regulations must provide a more enabling environment that motivates and facilitates sustainable practices. Private sector engagement also needs to be more structured.
4. Financing: Development financing remains one of the major constraints to how fast we can implement and achieve the SDGs- and I really wish to commend the efforts of the Ministry of Finance and its partners towards improving domestic revenue mobilization. The other source has been concessional and non-concessional borrowing. However, it should also be acknowledged that traditional sources of financing will not be adequate in the short-term to address today’s development needs and challenges. For Uganda, the Public Investment Financing Strategy has already outlined the diverse range of development financing options that could complement these traditional sources to fund development priorities while reducing the risk of debt distress. This strategy could go a long way in transforming Uganda’s development financing architecture, but its implementation has been very slow. In line with the Secretary General’s Rescue Plan globally, the UN remains committed to supporting Government to implement the Strategy.
5. Need to reap the data dividend: Access to timely and high-quality, disaggregated data is essential for monitoring, follow-up and review for more efficient and effective policy and decision-making. As you have heard from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), and from the findings of the joint recent UN-UBOS status review of data and statistics, data availability has improved but we are not there yet. There are significant challenges in the enabling legal and policy environment, inadequate capacity for data production, slow adoption of advanced technology in the data value chain and inadequate use of data for decision-making. To reach the target of securing data for at least 90% of the SDGs targets in each country by 2027, it will require embracing new and innovative data sources and approaches, as well as adopting data governance and protection policies to address the risks. We must also increase domestic financing for data and statistics by 50 percent from current levels by 2030. I am delighted to inform you that UBOS and the UN system in Uganda have already started on this journey through a USD 42 million Joint Programme for Data and Statistics that has been developed to consolidate support for the National Statistical System.
6. Need for renewed efforts to protect the environment: Our quality of life will greatly depend on how best we protect the environment, which is the foundation for our wellbeing.  Therefore, we have no choice but to guard against degradation of ecosystems, pollution, climate change, and biodiversity loss. The potential consequences of environmental destruction such as hunger, poverty, conflict, natural disasters and public health emergencies are unbearable for us not to act.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I look forward to an enriching conversation on Uganda’s progress on sustainable development. It is my hope that this conference will yield outcomes that will inform Government and other development actors to pursue actions for accelerated delivery on the SDGs.

Thank you!