There is high praise for the country from the head of the UN System here in Barbados for its success in reaching the halfway mark in attaining the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
These goals are considered a call to action to end poverty and inequality, protect the planet, and ensure that all people enjoy health, justice, and prosperity.
Resident Representative Didier Trebucq told the media during UN in the City, a public education event at Golden Square Freedom Park on Saturday, that achieving the SDGs over 15 years is a journey in which Barbados has made several strides.
“In areas like education, transition to renewable energy, [and] the reduction of poverty as a whole … and this is happening despite the COVID-19 pandemic, in spite of the crisis that has hit the world in terms of conflicts, and the cost of living, for example. In spite of that, Barbados keeps making progress.
“We [saw] this when Barbados presented its voluntary national review at the UN High-Level Political Forum in New York earlier this year. Barbados had the opportunity to show that not only were the SDGs perfectly mainstreamed into the policies and goals that the country had set for itself, but also that it was well on track with at least half of the goals and making progress toward the remaining half,” he said.
Trebucq revealed that Barbados was ahead of the curve, and the UN was “very happy with the leadership provided to put the Sustainable Development Goals at the centre of policy making and decisions in Barbados, [and it] is progressing well”.
Regarding a roadmap forward, the UN resident representative noted that with roughly seven years to go before the ambitious 2030 deadline for SDG implementation, acceleration of effort would be critical.
“Of course, as like in every country, there are a few goals that are lagging behind, and this is where the emphasis has to be put to ensure that no one is left behind. We don’t want, in a situation of uncertainty and volatility that the world is [currently] experiencing, the most vulnerable to suffer.
“I think that with the policies and decisions being made in Barbados, the risk of leaving anyone behind is being covered.”
(RG)
