December 3, 2020
Biruni Institute attended the Fourth South Asia Forum on Sustainable Development Goals (“Fostering Sustainable and Resilient Recovery from Covid-19 in South Asia”) hosted by UN-ESCAP on Dec 2-3, 2020.
The South Asia Forum on the SDGs (SASF) is organized every year by the UN-ESCAP in collaboration with South Asian member States, stakeholders and partners since 2017. The “Fourth South Asia Forum on the Sustainable Development Goals” took place virtually on Dec 2-3, 2020, as part of the preparatory process for the 8th Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) to be held in March 2021, which in turn contributes towards the 2021 High-Level Policy Forum (HLPF).
The “Fourth South Asia SDG Forum” focused on strategies and responses to build back better after the COVID-19 pandemic, in line with the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development and identify priorities to accelerate movement towards sustainable and inclusive development pathways.
Speaking at the event, Dr. Omar Joya, Head of Research at the Biruni Institute, said that domestic and external financing for SDGs already fell short of expectations even prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. He said that “given the current prospects, no single source of financing could close the financing gap for SDGs in post-Covid era.” He suggested that easing the restrictions on private capital inflows, enhancing regional trade & cooperation, providing better incentives to attract FDI, and tapping on the potential of public-private partnership arrangements could be some of the options that may offer South Asian countries with financing opportunities for SDGs.
