Minister wants UN technical help for developing countries

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KINGSTON – Foreign Affairs Minister Kamina Johnson Smith has called on the United Nations (UN) to consider offering technical support to developing countries, such as Jamaica, that need additional support to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) faster.

The SDGs, also known as the Global Goals, are a collection of 17 goals set by the UN General Assembly in 2015 that are to be attained by 2030.
They cover social and economic development issues, including poverty, hunger, health, education, global warming, gender equality, water, sanitation, energy, urbanisation, environment, and social justice.

“I want to encourage the UN to think about the type of technical advice that may be needed at a higher level or in a greater volume for countries like Jamaica, across the region, which are dealing with complex issues, to support or add to the extremely competent national expertise which we have on the ground.”

Johnson Smith was speaking at a recent UN Day 2019 ceremony here.
“We’re looking to supplement domestic capacity in order to move us more quickly to where we need to be,” the Minister said while pointing out that Jamaica has lost a lot of time in its effort to actualise the different goals, although it has made some strides.

She emphasised that the SDGs underpinning the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development are the key to efforts by developing countries to deliver a better quality of life to their citizens.
(CMC)