Summary
The third session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD 3) convened for its second day in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 18 May 2017, and for the first day of ARFSD 3’s plenary meetings. Delegates heard opening statements and took part in a high-level panel on the challenges and opportunities in achieving inclusive growth and prosperity. Messages emerging from this session included: the need for increased gender sensitivity; the importance of education for sustainable development; that data is essential to monitor progress in implementation; and, the role regional economic communities play in implementation of the SDGs. They also elected the Bureau for the 2017 session and adopted the agenda.
In the afternoon, delegates heard updates on progress in implementation of the SDGs and the goals of African Union Commission (AUC) Agenda 2063. They also heard a presentation on the framework for monitoring and reporting on the implementation of the two Agendas prepared by the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the AUC. Delegates then took part in a round table on peer learning and the exchange of experience and lessons learned in the implementation of the two Agendas. They also heard a presentation from Parfait Eloundou-Enyegue, Cornell University, US, on how a demographic perspective can inform poverty reduction strategies. Issues raised during this session included: the important role national plans and programmes play for the implementation of the SDGs and the AUC Agenda 2063; harmonized monitoring frameworks; and, government-civil society partnerships for implementation of the two Agendas.
Delegates attended a reception hosted by UNECA in the evening.
IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage and a summary report from this meeting. The summary is now available in HTML and PDF.
Photos by IISD/ENB | Francis Dejon
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A bird's eye view of the opening plenary of the third Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development
Nehal Magdy Ahmed El Megharbel, Deputy Minister for Planning, Monitoring, and Administrative Reform, Egypt
Fatima Denton, Director, Special Initiatives Division, UNECA
Anthony Mothae Maruping, Commissioner for Economic Affairs, AUC
Seleshi Bekele, Minister of Water, Irrigation and Electricity, Ethiopia
Abdalla Hamdok, Acting Executive Secretary, UNECA
L-R: Ben Paul Mungyereza, Executive Director, Uganda Bureau of Statistics; Mutuuzo Peace Regis, Minister of State for Gender, Labour and Social Development, Uganda; Amedi Camara, Minister for Environment and Sustainable Development, Mauritania; Anthony Mothae Maruping, Commissioner for Economic Affairs, AUC; Rosalie Matondo, Minister of Forest Economy, Sustainable Development and Environment, Republic of Congo; Nehal Magdy Ahmed El Megharbel, Deputy Minister for Planning, Monitoring, and Administrative Reform, Egypt; Seleshi Bekele, Minister of Water, Irrigation and Electricity, Ethiopia; Nyasha Chikwinya, Minister of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development, Zimbabwe; and María Jesús Ncara Owono Mze, Vice Minister for Education and Science, Equatorial Guinea
Amedi Camara, Minister for Environment and Sustainable Development, Mauritania
Nyasha Chikwinya, Minister of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development, Zimbabwe
Rosalie Matondo, Minister of Forest Economy, Sustainable Development and Environment, Republic of Congo
Christo Janse van Noordwyk, South Africa
Margaret Oduk, UN Environment
L-R: Fatima Denton, UNECA; Nassim
Oulmane, Chief of Green Economy and Natural Resources Section, UNECA; and Nehal Magdy Ahmed El Megharbel, Deputy Minister for Planning, Monitoring, and Administrative Reform, Egypt
Participants from the Southern Africa sub-region in a huddle to consult on their nomination to the Bureau
L-R: Boutobba Afef, Algeria; Rosalie Matondo, Minister of Forest Economy, Sustainable Development and Environment, Republic of Congo; Marie-Josée Bonne, Seychelles; Nassim
Oulmane, UNECA; Meatchi Tchaou Gervais, Togo; and Nyasha Chikwinya, Minister of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development, Zimbabwe
Negussie Gorfe, UNECA
Bartholomew Armah, UNECA
Hussein Abaza, Egypt
Moubarack Lo, Senegal
Parfait Eloundou-Enyegue, Cornell University, US
Kayode Obasa, Nigeria
Belay Begashaw, Director-General, Sustainable Development Goals Center for Africa
Isaac Yamaude, Kenya
Alex Richard Nkosi, African Regional Organization of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-Africa), Togo, speaking on behalf of the Major Groups and other Stakeholders
2017 Bureau Chair Meatchi Tchaou Gervais, Togo
Photos from the reception hosted by UNECA
