The United Nations and district administration on Wednesday organized the ninth of a series of 12 dialogues on sustainable development which was held in Sialkot, Punjab.
\nIn total, more than 1,000 local leaders living in 12 major cities across six provinces and territories are discussing the development challenges which they face, and how they impede economic and social progress in their districts.<\/p>\n
The dialogues are being held in the different languages spoken across Pakistan, said a UN press release issued here.
\n\u201cThese dialogues bring the United Nations closer to the people and the local governments that we serve,\u201d said Julien Harneis, UN Resident Coordinator in Pakistan.
\n\u201cWe are actively listening to the people\u2019s concerns and their ideas. They will work together, and with us, on accelerating progress to bridge inequalities and reduce poverty. We will share their suggestions with the Federal Government as we focus on returning to sustainable development,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
In Sialkot, the discussions focused on four topics chosen by the participants ahead of the event including water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), women\u2019s voices, governance, and Climate Change.
\nNearly 100 local leaders \u2014 women and men, including youth \u2014 participated together with senior officials from Sialkot, the United Nations Resident Coordinator, and other UN staff.
\nThe 12 dialogues engage local leaders around development issues such as access to basic social services; gender equality and women\u2019s empowerment; climate change; sustainable, inclusive economic growth and decent work; and basic social services. All are key to Pakistan\u2019s progress towards the achievement of the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
\nEight SDG dialogues have already taken place in Bahawalpur, Multan and Rawalpindi, Punjab; Hyderabad and Sukkur, Sindh; Mardan and Mansehra, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and in Quetta, Balochistan.
\nThe dialogues will help inform discussions in alignment with the global SDG Summit which the UN has organized to accelerate progress towards the SDGs, halfway of the 2030 deadline. The Government of Pakistan is participating in the event in New York on 18 and 19 September 2023.
\nThe SDGs, also known as Global Goals, are 17 objectives designed to help bring about peace and prosperity for people all over the world. They are an urgent call for action by all countries to work together towards ending poverty while improving health and education, reducing inequality, spurring economic growth and tackling climate change.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The United Nations and district administration on Wednesday organized the ninth of a series of 12 dialogues on sustainable development which was held in Sialkot, Punjab. In total, more than 1,000 local leaders living in 12 major cities across six provinces and territories are discussing the development challenges which they face, and how they impede […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":356299,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-357174","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n