The Director-General of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Dr. Kodjo Esseim Mensah-Abrampa, has said Ghana is making much better progress in attaining the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.
According to him, the country can boast of making strides in areas including health, access to water, technology penetration, education, and access to electricity which falls under SGDs 3, 4,7, and 9.
He made this known at the ‘Ghana’s 2022 Voluntary National Review (VNR) consultation with development partners in Accra, to make possible the sharing of experiences, including successes, challenges and lessons learned, with the view to accelerating the implementation of the SDGs by 2030.
The review process, which has gone through a series of consultations and meetings with various stakeholders, saw the drafting of a VNR report which, when finalised, will fully indicate the progress the country is making.
“We have seen very good progress in the area of education, in areas such as water, and in the area of health, the National Health Insurance Scheme has done a huge difference compared to many countries globally because the basic service is ensured. Even when it comes to specific and complex issues, we now have very high-level health facilities which are providing some of these services.
“In terms of the strides, Ghana is doing very well; and even without congratulating ourselves, other countries are patting us on the back in many areas.
“Not only in Africa but globally, we are doing very well in areas of water, access to technology and communication. We are doing well in access to electricity – about 87 percent of Ghanaians today have access to electricity, and this is huge attainment. We are doing so well even with afforestation; we used to be in the negatives, but we have made progress. But we need to do more,” he said.
Speaking on the VNR report, he said it will help the country prioritise and identity gaps in order to improve on SDGs which need more inputs.
Partnership
The Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Dr. Angela Lusigi, noted that SDG 17, which is on partnerships, is a key enabler for all the other goals, and as such, there is need for all stakeholders to collaborate to strengthen the means of implementation.
“This goal of partnership goes beyond resource mobilisation to include collaboration on data, technology and innovation. It calls us to mobilise stronger partnerships between diverse public, private and non-state actors at all levels for impact. As development partners, we are called to collaborate more effectively to support Ghana’s transformation agenda.
“As the SDGs cannot be championed by one institution alone, it would be useful to reflect on the extent of inclusion of community, local, regional and national actors in the public and private spheres,” she said.
She also said UNDP will through its Finance Sector Hub, support systemic changes in the public and private sector toward achieving the SDGs.
Ghana is among 45 countries which will present their Voluntary National Review (VNR) at the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) on the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development, under the auspices of the United Nations Economic and Social Council in July 2022.
