Nigeria
NIGERIA’S STATEMENT DELIVERED BY
MR. EMMANUEL OGUNTUYI, SENIOR COUNSELLOR,
AT THE FOURTH SESSION OF THE OPEN-WORKING
GROUP ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
(SDGS), 17-19 JUNE, 2013
Co- Chair
On behalf of my delegation I would like to express sincere
appreciation to Your Excellency for convening the Fourth Session
of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs). We also thank the Technical Support Team for providing
us with the issues briefs on these thematic areas. Nigeria aligns
itself with the statements delivered by the distinguished
representatives of FIJI and on behalf of the G77, DJIBOUTI on
behalf of Africa and Ghana on behalf of ECOWAS.
Co- Chair
Nigeria recalls that achieving full and productive
employment and decent work for all was one of the targets to
eradicate extreme hunger and poverty under the Millennium
Development Goals. Regrettably, due to the confluence of crises of
the past years – financial, food, fuel and environmental – most
countries have moved further away from full employment and
progress in eradicating poverty is uncertain and uneven.
Furthermore, research has indicated that about 45–50
million new jobs are needed each year over the next ten years to
keep up with the growth of the world’s working-age population
and reduce the unemployment caused by the crisis. We also note
with concern that widening inequalities in income and
opportunity within and across countries are not only weakening
the social and political fabric of societies but are also fuelling
downward cycle of economic, political and social uncertainty. We
believe that employment opportunities including decent work for
all are fundamental pillars of sustained and growing prosperity,
inclusion and social cohesion. Global conception of work should
therefore transcend the economic dimension and encompass also
the human and social purpose that employment fulfills. In this
regard, Nigeria is of the view that the masses of unemployed
should not be seen as a ‘problem’ but as a ‘resource’ to be tapped
into in order to achieve global development agenda. Thus, Nigeria
therefore believes that in order to address the current weak and
turbulent international economic environment, employment and
decent work for all should be included in the MDGs successor.
Mr. Chair
On the means of implementation, we stress that an increased
engagement of the private sector and international financial
institutions in the development of Agriculture sector as well as
small and medium-sized enterprises will boost employment and
decent work for all. Also, parameters should be formulated to help
national stakeholders define targets adaptable to circumstances
and needs of countries, within the overall framework of equality,
sustainability and human rights.
Furthermore, national targets should provide indicators to
address key components relevant to different national contexts
such as the special needs of women, youth and vulnerable groups,
the weight of agriculture and informality. For many developing
countries particularly in Africa, there is a need for global support
of the investments in infrastructure that create jobs in the shortrun
and in skills and innovation that would raise workers’
productivity and income over the medium term.
Regarding social protection floors, it is our view that national
floors should be measured concretely to encompass access to
health care and pensions, protection against the risks of
unemployment and disability and protection against the special
livelihood vulnerabilities of women and the elderly.
Mr. Chair
We believe that social protection floors play a leading role in
enhancing resilience, stabilizing aggregate demand and protecting
the most vulnerable groups. In addition, we believe that stable
and sound government institutions committed to the rule of law,
human rights, property rights and a benign environment for
starting and growing businesses are fundamental elements for
social protection. We reaffirm that development assistance are
needed to kick-start nascent efforts to establish nationally defined
social protection floors and launch labour market programmes to
address the special needs of women, youth and vulnerable people.
On Education,
Nigeria believes that education plays a fundamental role in the
realization of sustained development and as such it must be
prioritized in the post-2015 development agenda. Despite the
progress made in the MDGs, millions of school-age children are
currently out of school particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. As we
attempt to address the gaps in the MDGs, we propose an inclusive
and free high-quality education at all levels should be a standalone
goal in the post-2015 agenda. In this context, we believe
that due cognizance should be taken of vulnerable groups in order
to address inequalities and discrimination, and disaggregation by
gender, wealth, ethnicity and location.
Mr. Chair
On the means of implementation, the engagement of domestic
resources and key actors such as the private sector, private
corporations, donors, civil society and parents would be
necessary. In addition, regular training for teachers cannot be
over-emphasized.
Concerning culture, traditional knowledge and traditional
cultural expressions, we wish to emphasize that the continued
preservation of these heritages of mankind should be the primary
objective of their inclusion in the post-2015 framework. Peoples'
traditions and cultural heritages should not be exposed to the
vagaries of the market, or the profit motive, but should primarily
be viewed as the collective reservoir of their world view and basis
of dynamic relationships with their environment and nature. In
this regard, traditional knowledge and beneficial cultural practices
backed by modern scientific knowledge and technologies, should
be deployed toward seeking solutions to acute problems such as
environmental land degradation, food security, the education of
children and the young, health care delivery, etc. We therefore call
for the facilitation of the discussions on these important topics at
the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Genetic Resources,
Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC), UNESCO, and other
fora in order to achieve global consensus on the protection of
traditional cultural expressions and traditional knowledge.
I thank you, Mr. Chair
MR. EMMANUEL OGUNTUYI, SENIOR COUNSELLOR,
AT THE FOURTH SESSION OF THE OPEN-WORKING
GROUP ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
(SDGS), 17-19 JUNE, 2013
Co- Chair
On behalf of my delegation I would like to express sincere
appreciation to Your Excellency for convening the Fourth Session
of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs). We also thank the Technical Support Team for providing
us with the issues briefs on these thematic areas. Nigeria aligns
itself with the statements delivered by the distinguished
representatives of FIJI and on behalf of the G77, DJIBOUTI on
behalf of Africa and Ghana on behalf of ECOWAS.
Co- Chair
Nigeria recalls that achieving full and productive
employment and decent work for all was one of the targets to
eradicate extreme hunger and poverty under the Millennium
Development Goals. Regrettably, due to the confluence of crises of
the past years – financial, food, fuel and environmental – most
countries have moved further away from full employment and
progress in eradicating poverty is uncertain and uneven.
Furthermore, research has indicated that about 45–50
million new jobs are needed each year over the next ten years to
keep up with the growth of the world’s working-age population
and reduce the unemployment caused by the crisis. We also note
with concern that widening inequalities in income and
opportunity within and across countries are not only weakening
the social and political fabric of societies but are also fuelling
downward cycle of economic, political and social uncertainty. We
believe that employment opportunities including decent work for
all are fundamental pillars of sustained and growing prosperity,
inclusion and social cohesion. Global conception of work should
therefore transcend the economic dimension and encompass also
the human and social purpose that employment fulfills. In this
regard, Nigeria is of the view that the masses of unemployed
should not be seen as a ‘problem’ but as a ‘resource’ to be tapped
into in order to achieve global development agenda. Thus, Nigeria
therefore believes that in order to address the current weak and
turbulent international economic environment, employment and
decent work for all should be included in the MDGs successor.
Mr. Chair
On the means of implementation, we stress that an increased
engagement of the private sector and international financial
institutions in the development of Agriculture sector as well as
small and medium-sized enterprises will boost employment and
decent work for all. Also, parameters should be formulated to help
national stakeholders define targets adaptable to circumstances
and needs of countries, within the overall framework of equality,
sustainability and human rights.
Furthermore, national targets should provide indicators to
address key components relevant to different national contexts
such as the special needs of women, youth and vulnerable groups,
the weight of agriculture and informality. For many developing
countries particularly in Africa, there is a need for global support
of the investments in infrastructure that create jobs in the shortrun
and in skills and innovation that would raise workers’
productivity and income over the medium term.
Regarding social protection floors, it is our view that national
floors should be measured concretely to encompass access to
health care and pensions, protection against the risks of
unemployment and disability and protection against the special
livelihood vulnerabilities of women and the elderly.
Mr. Chair
We believe that social protection floors play a leading role in
enhancing resilience, stabilizing aggregate demand and protecting
the most vulnerable groups. In addition, we believe that stable
and sound government institutions committed to the rule of law,
human rights, property rights and a benign environment for
starting and growing businesses are fundamental elements for
social protection. We reaffirm that development assistance are
needed to kick-start nascent efforts to establish nationally defined
social protection floors and launch labour market programmes to
address the special needs of women, youth and vulnerable people.
On Education,
Nigeria believes that education plays a fundamental role in the
realization of sustained development and as such it must be
prioritized in the post-2015 development agenda. Despite the
progress made in the MDGs, millions of school-age children are
currently out of school particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. As we
attempt to address the gaps in the MDGs, we propose an inclusive
and free high-quality education at all levels should be a standalone
goal in the post-2015 agenda. In this context, we believe
that due cognizance should be taken of vulnerable groups in order
to address inequalities and discrimination, and disaggregation by
gender, wealth, ethnicity and location.
Mr. Chair
On the means of implementation, the engagement of domestic
resources and key actors such as the private sector, private
corporations, donors, civil society and parents would be
necessary. In addition, regular training for teachers cannot be
over-emphasized.
Concerning culture, traditional knowledge and traditional
cultural expressions, we wish to emphasize that the continued
preservation of these heritages of mankind should be the primary
objective of their inclusion in the post-2015 framework. Peoples'
traditions and cultural heritages should not be exposed to the
vagaries of the market, or the profit motive, but should primarily
be viewed as the collective reservoir of their world view and basis
of dynamic relationships with their environment and nature. In
this regard, traditional knowledge and beneficial cultural practices
backed by modern scientific knowledge and technologies, should
be deployed toward seeking solutions to acute problems such as
environmental land degradation, food security, the education of
children and the young, health care delivery, etc. We therefore call
for the facilitation of the discussions on these important topics at
the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Genetic Resources,
Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC), UNESCO, and other
fora in order to achieve global consensus on the protection of
traditional cultural expressions and traditional knowledge.
I thank you, Mr. Chair
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