REPUBLIC OF MOZAMBIQUE
STATEMENT
BY
HIS EXCELLENCY MR. ANTONIO GUMENDE,
AMBASSADOR AND PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE
OF THE REPUBLIC OF MOZAMBIQUE TO THE UNITED NATIONS
AT
THE GENERAL DEBATE OF THE
HIGH-LEVEL POLITICAL FORUM ON SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT ON
"ERADICATING POVERTY AND PROMOTING PROSPERITY IN A
CHANGING WORLD"
NEW YORK, 18 JULY 2017
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Mr. President,
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
At the outset, I would like to express the deep appreciation of the
Government of the Republic of Mozambique to the President of ECOSOC,
for convening this important event aimed at mobilizing multiple actors and
efforts to eradicate poverty in all its forms and dimensions all over the world.
I would also like to seize this opportunity to welcome the report of the
Secretary-General on the theme of this HLPF, for its comprehensive
overview of the progress in the implementation of the SDGs, and the call to
redouble national and international efforts to implement these goals ..
Mozambique aligns itself with the statements delivered by the distinguished
representatives of Ecuador, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, and of
Bangladesh, on behalf of the Group of Least Developed Countries.
Excellencies,
Mozambique believes that Sustainable Development Goals can only be
achieved if:
1. They are integrated into national planning and budgeting
instruments;
2. The implementation process allows for the participation of all relevant
stakeholders at national and local levels, including the local
communities and marginalized groups;
3. Accountability mechanisms are put in place to ensure timely
evaluation and monitoring of the progress;
4. Financial resources are available; and
5. Partnerships, at bilateral and multilateral level, including the support
of the United Nations System at country level is strengthened.
All these elements derive from our experience in implementing the
Millennium Development Goals. Our efforts to domesticate the SDGs also
benefited from the national consultations conducted by the United Nations
to build the SDGs. Our early involvement with the process was useful to
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align the Government's Five-Year Plan for the period 2015-2019 with the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, right from its inception in 2015.
Therefore, Mozambique is implementing the 2030 Agenda in the framework
of our national development plan that includes all the 17 SDGs, in the spirit
of the principle of not living anyone behind. In this vein, poverty eradication
efforts were improved by the synergies created by the SDGs, particularly
with regard to the inclusiveness and complementarity approach in
addressing the challenges we face to deliver on the commitments made to:
• develop our human capital;
• build a resilient economic and social infrastructures;
• promote industrialization, and innovation as well as a sustainable
management of natural resources; and
• finally to promote employment, especially for young people.
Excellencies
To accelerate the implementation of our commitments regarding the 2030
Agenda, the Government is working on the definition of an effective
monitoring structure, one that will include all major stakeholders involved
in the implementation process, guided by the need to ensure proper and
balanced integration of the three dimensions of sustainable development.
In addition, the implementation of the SDGs in Mozambique will benefit
from the decentralization process that the Government has been
strengthening over the last decade, which allowed for the improved capacity
of local authorities and communities to better plan, implement and monitor
our national development agenda. The success in the design of the Local
Adaptation Plans in the context of climate change is a good example in this
regard.
In line with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda commitments on financing the
development, in 2016 the Government established the National Fund for
Sustainable Development, an instrument aiming at the promotion and
financing of programs and projects that contribute for achieving sustainable
development.
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In this endeavor, we also strive to mobilize additional domestic resources,
notwithstanding the prevailing challenges that constrain our economic
development.
Excellencies
Allow me to take this opportunity to commend the work that the UN country
team is undertaking in Mozambique towards the implementation of the
SDGs. It is our firm conviction that the QCPR adopted in December 2016 by
the General Assembly will improve their role in this regard.
In conclusion, Mr. President, I would like to reaffirm the full commitment of
Mozambique to work closely with all relevant partners towards the
eradication of poverty in all its dimensions and to ensure that in this journey
we leave no one behind.
I thank you very much for your attention.
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