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Clark engages MPs on post-2015 agenda

Visiting head of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Helen Clark yesterday took time out to impress on members of Parliament (MPs) and civil society organisations (CSOs) the importance of being engaged fully in the new global development agenda, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Clark, a former MP and prime minister of New Zealand, is on a three-day visit to Malawi to engage government officials, MPs and CSOs on development issues in the country, including the oncoming SDGs set to replace Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) expiring this year.

Clark: You are key players when it comes to institutionalisation of actions
Clark: You are key players when it comes to institutionalisation of actions

She said the role of MPs was important in the 17 proposed SDGs, which countries have to attain by 2030.

Said Clark: “You, as parliamentarians, will play a critical role in the progress of SDGs, be it through legislation, budget scrutiny or overall oversight.

“You are key players when it comes to institutionalisation of actions and creating enabling conditions and prioritisation of critical issues such as gender equality and monitoring and reporting progress.”

Speaker of the National Assembly Richard Msowoya commended the UNDP administrator for engaging MPs through chairpersons of parliamentary committees on what to expect in the SDGs.

Said the Speaker: “It is important to raise awareness, not only among MPs but also civil society organisations, government, the public and academia so that there is better progress on the SDGs than there has been on MDGs.”

Chairperson of the Women’s Caucus in Parliament, Jessie Kabwila, said the agenda was a good tool for development, but the problem would be linking the ideas with policy so that there is efficient mapping and tracking of progress.

Apart from revised goals on ending hunger, poverty, attaining gender equality and providing quality education, which were also targets of the MDGs, the SDGs will urge countries to ensure sustainable energy for all, make cities and human settlements inclusive and safe as well as ensuring sustainable energy for all.

World leaders, including President Peter Mutharika, are expected to adopt the SDGs at the next UN General Assembly in September.

MDGs were a set of eight development goals adopted by world leaders through the UN in 2000 to, among others, halve world poverty by 2015 and improve access to basic needs such as water, health and education.

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