At the Asia-Pacific GSDR Workshop in New Delhi, SDC’s Director General Chamindry Saparamadu emphasized the importance of the GSDR Framework in strengthening Sri Lanka’s path to the SDGs.

The 2023 Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR) was prepared by 15 leading scientists from the natural and social sciences appointed by the United Nations Secretary General. This Independent Group of Scientists (IGS) represented both developed and developing countries.

The 2023 GSDR arrived at the halfway point of the 2030 Agenda; it discusses essential transformations under six entry points to accelerate the progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): 1) human well-being and capabilities, 2) sustainable and just economies, 3) food systems and healthy nutrition, 4) energy decarbonization with universal access 5) urban and peri-urban development, and 6) the global environmental commons. The Report highlights that multiple transformations are needed in each of the entry points which will have different contours depending on the country and region. The GSDR 2023 also identifies five levers, that will drive transformation. These are 1) governance, 2) economy and finance, 3) science and technology, 4) individual and collective action, and 5) capacity building.

The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA)- Division for Sustainable Development Goals, New York, in partnership with the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH convened the GSDR Regional Operationalization Workshop for Asia and the Pacific in New Delhi from 22nd to 24th October. The aim of the workshop was to deepen knowledge of the GSDR Framework and to discuss its applicability to diverse contexts. The workshop also provided an opportunity to inform national, local and regional sustainable development strategies among key stakeholders.

On invitation to speak at the High Level Closing, the Director General of Sustainable Development Council (SDC), Chamindry Saparamadu shared her perspectives on the importance of GSDR Framework to build on and further strengthen Sri Lanka’s capacities for transformative actions to achieve the SDGs through increased national capacities for system thinking, strategic planning and targeted capacity building of key stakeholders during the different phases of the transformation. Hon. Sashi Kiran, Assistant Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection of the Parliament of Fiji and Dr. Eva Kracht, Director General, BMUV, Germany also spoke during the Closing Session while a video message of Ms. Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Executive Secretary of UNESCAP, was delivered on the importance of integrated solutions for SDG acceleration.

The workshop was attended by senior government officials and representatives of think tanks, academia and civil movements in the Asia Pacific Region.