What
The Arab Forum for Sustainable Development 2021 (AFSD-2021) is organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) in partnership with UN entities working in the Arab region and the League of Arab States (LAS). It will focus on the theme of “Accelerating Progress on the 2030 Agenda post-COVID”.
When: From Monday 29 to Wednesday 31 March 2021 at 10:00hrs.
Where: Virtually via Zoom.
Who:
- Ahmad Abu al-Ghayt, Secretary General of the League of Arab States;
- Faisal F. Al-Ibrahim, General Supervisor of the Secretariat of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs (CEDA), Vice-Minister of Economy and Planning, and Secretary of the Board of Directors of the National Development Fund, Saudi Arabia;
- Amina Mohamad, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations;
- Rola Dashti, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ESCWA.
To follow AFSD-2021 sessions, you can register by clicking here.
Participants include ministers, high-level State representatives, delegates from ministries and entities concerned with planning and following up on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; parliamentarians; regional and international institutions; civil society organizations; the private sector; academic and research centres, and the media.
Why: The AFSD is the primary regional mechanism for the follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Arab region. Its findings and recommendations, conveying key messages from the Arab region and its countries, are submitted to the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF), scheduled to be held in July.
AFSD-2021 features a variety of plenaries, special sessions and workshop-style special events revolving around three subthemes:
- Accelerating action on the SDGs in the context of the COVID-19 recovery;
- Response to the COVID-19 pandemic through specialized and priority areas;
- National, regional and global processes including voluntary national reviews (VNRs) and messages to the global summit.
AFSD-2021 is the first Arab Forum to be held in the Decade of Action to deliver on the SDGs, during a period where Governments and communities worldwide are trying to contain and recover from the COVID-19 crisis.
About ESCWA
One of five United Nations regional commissions, ESCWA supports inclusive and sustainable economic and social development in Arab States, and works on enhancing regional integration.
For more information
Ms. Maryam Sleiman, Public Information Assistant, +961-81-769-888; sleiman2@un.org
Ms. Rania Harb, Public Information Assistant, +961-70-008-879; harb1@un.org
