Focus
For two days, scholars and policymakers across the world assembled at the Lagos State University (LASU), Ojo main campus, where they compared notes and shared thoughts on the challenges of the 21st Century and how to actualise the 2023 Agenda of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The 2-Day National Conference on Agenda 2030 and SDGs, facilitated by the Lagos State University Centre for the Actualisation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (LASU-SDGs) in collaboration with the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC), Abuja, paraded renowned scholars, university researchers from Africa and Europe, representatives of the United Nations and the International Labour Organisation (ILO), policymakers and government functionaries. The conference also offered a platform for participants to chart a new direction towards raising the awareness for achieving the 2030 Agenda of the SDGs in Nigeria, and Africa by extension.
The central theme of the conference was ‘’At the Midpoint of Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals: Which Way Nigeria and Africa?’’ The sub-themes, which are divided into four sessions, with Focus One on “Focus on people (SDG 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6),” where papers are presented on the challenge of poverty, hunger and malnutrition in Nigeria; access to social services including education, health and water; and human capital development. Session Two was on “Focus on prosperity (SDG 7,8,9,10,11,12), with the papers on the Nigerian economy in a changing world; generating decent employment; waste management systems; managing urbanisation and the growth of sustainable cities; access to sustainable energy; industrialisation and innovation; and dealing with inequalities in the country; while Session Three dwelt on “Focus on the planet (SDG 13,14,15),” with papers on climate change mitigation and adaptation in Nigeria; towards climate resilient development; preservation of the marine environment; dealing with desertification and other challenges; and Session Four: “Focus on Peace (SDG 16),” specifically looked at promoting peace and reducing violent conflict; promotion of rule of law; dealing with corruption; accountability of public institutions; dealing with hate speech and promoting information integrity; and enhancing Nigeria’s democracy.
Setting the tone of the conference, the Director, LASU-SDG, Prof Tayo Ajayi, stated that over 115 abstracts from various researchers from Africa and Europe were received, and with the contributions by the array of participants, the outcome of the conference would bring Nigeria and Africa closer to achieving the 2030 SDGs Agenda. According to him, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development envisions a present and a future that is economically sustainable, socially inclusive, and environmentally resilient, as expressed in the framing of the 17 SDGs, 169 targets and 230 key performance indicators.
Tasks for universities
In achieving the SDG goals, universities are said to occupy a unique position within the society, with a broad remit around the creation and dissemination of knowledge, and for long as powerful drivers of global, national and local innovation, economic development, and societal well-being. Based on the foregoing, Ajayi, who acknowledged this important position, noted that universities have a critical role in the achievement of the SDGs.
Thus, he pointed out that Lagos State University has keyed into this vision as a teaching and research centre with responsibilities of contributing to the growth and development of individual students, workers, stakeholders, governments and making global impacts. According to him, the SDGs are a universal call to action to end poverty, safeguard the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by the year 2030. “The SDGs agenda covers a wide range of interconnected social, economic, and environmental challenges, and the unique functions and expertise of universities are critical for overcoming all of these. And, arguably, none of the SDGs can be achieved without the universities,” he said. Therefore, the Director explained that the conference papers would be published as a journal for wider sharing with stakeholders, a summary paper would also be produced to focus on key areas and presented at the UN Leaders’ Summit on SDGs in New York, USA, at the third week of September, 2023.
On the rationale of the conference, Ajayi said the world today holds lasting potential for a better future for all, while the SDGs 2030 Agenda made a global promise to make the world even faster, further-reaching strides, and secure the rights and well-being of everyone on a healthy, thriving planet. Lamenting that the promise is in peril halfway to the 2030 deadline/ target, he noted that the defining principle of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is to leave no one behind. Thus, academia, he insisted, has a crucial role to play through research efforts that influence policy and actions at this point that the world is looking for ways to bring the Agenda 2030 and the SDGs back on track. “Our vision is to promote the Lagos State University as a Global Centre for scholarly training and research in diverse disciplines, which will be achieved through the provision of infrastructure, leadership, training and resources necessary to promote integrated scholarly activities and establishment of strategic partnerships with world-class institutions across the diverse sectors of society,” he stated. Meanwhile, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mr. Matthias Schmale, has recommended three important ways in which universities could help in getting the 2030 Agenda back on track. Schmale, who was represented by a representative from the United Nations Abuja office, however, suggested that this could be done by ingraining sustainable development in their education and equip students with relevant expertise and skills; engaging in university-based research that could create pathways to achieving the SDGs and new interdisciplinary approaches to old problems; guiding public policy unto a new sustainable path whereby the government would approach universities for specialised talents and tools of analysis.
“As a trusted advisor, academia will have the opportunity to shape the designs of solutions and policies that can have genuine social impact in Nigeria,” he said. While declaring open the conference, LASU Vice-Chancellor, Prof Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello, said as an institution, the university is committed to creating solutions through research and innovation for a better world, and raising all-rounded graduates who would add value to their world. According to her, hosting this National Conference Agenda 2030 and the SDGs by the Centre for the Actualisation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, demonstrates LASU’s commitment to achieving these goals. The national conference, she noted, was to discuss aspects of Agenda 2030 and its implementation in Nigeria and Africa with a view to proffering solutions to various challenges of the country in the next seven years.
“The conversations at conference would address many of the challenges that is desperately threatening our very existence as a people,” the Vice Chancellor added, saying for the first time in decades, development progress is reversing under the combined impacts of climate disasters, conflict, economic downturn and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. “Inequalities have worsened, strikingly so for women and girls. Tens of millions have fallen into poverty. Hunger and malnutrition are on the rise. Humanitarian needs and displacement are at record levels. Digital divides are crippling global potential. And, we are hurtling towards evergreater climate and environmental catastrophe,” she stated. Saying that the conference was coming at the right time and at the right place, Olatunji-Bello noted that together as a community, state, nation and a people, we must fight for the attainment of the SDGs. Still on role of higher education institutions as catalysts for achieving the SDGs, he said by design they are meant to be solutions providers, and hence this has become even more compelling with the increasing diffusion of global growth with economic power pinpointing the concept of collective management as the most viable mechanism for addressing the challenges of a multi-polar world economy and processes. For the university system to perform these huge tasks, the need for intensive research and development; training of skilled manpower to make use of adapted technologies from abroad; training of teachers and identification and provision of solutions to local problems of sustainable development, he stated, must come in handy here. On the urgent actions for institutional level, he noted that the concerns should be on the urgent need to revolutionise our teaching and learning, while as stakeholders regardless of whatever resistance, they would have to adopt a blended approach to course delivery, paying more attention to the virtual mode.
He said: “We have to enhance our role in understanding and helping to disseminate best practices to our students and the diverse public. Being a body of intellectuals and community of practice, how do we perceive and reason out geopolitical ramifications of possible emergencies and shocks, as well as the associated issues without primordial sentiments? “Again, how do we use the SDGs as the most effective roadmap for getting out of externalities associated with current developments, and even beyond?” To achieve Sustainable Development Goals in Africa, Prof. Labode Popoola, a Professor of Forest Economics and Sustainable Development at the University of Ibadan (UI) and in his keynote address, said to attain SDGs Agenda the focus should be on the five levers, which are governance, economy and finance, individual and collective action, science and technology, and capacity building to be deployed to bring about the necessary transformations as contained in the Sustainable Development Report 2023.
As nations prepare to meet in September to review the progress the world has made so far towards achieving the SDGs at the midpoint of the 2030 Agenda, he pointed out that the immediate areas of action should include UN member states should urgently adopt an SDG Stimulus, close the massive financing gap faced by many developing economies, as well as endorse a deep and overdue reform of the global financial architecture. Towards achieving the SDGs by 2030, such aspiration mandates the mobilisation of additional governments, civil society factions, businesses, researchers, and ordinary individuals to fully embrace the global objectives. Therefore, on the crucial role higher educational institutions have to play in this direction, Popoola said what is the trajectory of Nigerian universities in this context, and whether they are prepared to effectively assume the designated responsibilities as pioneers of research and knowledge generation. He explained: “With the universities’ primary duty is to demonstrate the tangible impact of impactful research on development, it necessitates adherence to international best practices, where research integrity is paramount. “While financial constraints are frequently lamented, it is plausible that commendable research can indeed generate the requisite funds for research and development.” Poopola, who also alluded to a report of the 2023 Paris Summit for a New Global Financial Pact, said it focuses specifically on the need to scale up development finance and to reform the global financial architecture to support the SDGs.
Keynote address
In his keynote address, Prof. Labode Popoola, a former Vice-Chancellor of Osun State University (UNIOSUN), whose paper focused on the role of universities in attaining the SDGs 2023 Agenda, stated that higher education institutions by design were meant to be solution providers and in this age of sustainable development, and that such tasks are better approached through multi-dimensional collaborative efforts. Popoolawho was represented by Prof. S.O. Jimoh, however, noted that there was an urgent need to revolutionise teaching and learning, even as he stated that stakeholders would have to adopt a blended approach to course delivery and pay more attention to the virtual mode. “Sustainable development cuts across natural sciences, health sciences, social sciences, humanities and management sciences which are aspects that are already being taught at the higher institutions. What is required is integration and mainstreaming of higher education, which also proves further that in this age of sustainable development, quality higher education is required,” he said.
But, he lamented that going by the 2023 edition of the Sustainable Development Report, a key annual publication of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (UNSDSN) that tracks the index of UN member states on the SDGs, there is a grim reality that at the midpoint of the 2030 Agenda, the SDGs are far off track. At the global level, Popoola pointed out that averaging across countries, not a single SDG is currently projected to be met by 2030, with the poorest countries struggling the most, stating that the COVID-19 pandemic that surfaced towards the end of 2019 signaled the first hitch towards the attainment of the global agenda. Against this backdrop, the keynote speaker cited Tunisia (North Africa) as the best performing African country in SDG attainment with an overall ranking of 58 out of 166 countries globally, and also Cape Verde (West African sub-region) that is ranked the highest as number 89th country.
“The country appears to be doing quite well as the government spending on health and education, as a proportion of the GDP, was 11.3 per cent in 2020, while the next country is Mauritius with a rank of 93 out of 166 countries globally and classified as lying within East Africa. Still on the attainment of the SDG, Popoola listed Namibia in the Southern Africa sub-region that had the highest rank as 109 country, but said that permanent deforestation appears to be rising for the country, and on a positive note, the rural population that has access to all-season roads is on the rise. Worried by Nigeria’s ranking on SDGs attainment table, the keynote speaker regretted that Nigeria is ranked 146 with a Total Policy Score of 65 per cent of moderate level of commitment. “The Transformation, Coordination and Multilateralism Scores respectively are 40 per cent, 83 per cent and 69 per cent. Encouragingly, out of 74 countries, whose governments efforts to engender the SDGs are ranked, Nigeria is listed as number 31,” he added.
On the progress made from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that was also adopted by all United Nations member states in 2000, Popoola explained that despite the challenges there were reasons to be optimistic about the future. While underscoring the fact that the SDGs have much broader scope and more ambitious than the MDGs, he said this suggests that the SDGs would therefore require a greater level of commitment from all countries and all sectors of society for it to be achieved. But, however, he stressed that there was still a long way to go in achieving the SDGs target in 2030, saying that countries of the world need to invest heavily in sustainable development and work together to address the challenges that we face, as people. Speaking on the Decade of Action towards achieving the SDGs, Popoola recalled how in September 2019, the UN SecretaryGeneral first launched a worldwide effort to secure enhanced leadership, increased resources, and more intelligent solutions for the SDGs. In the Action, he hinted that a focus on local engagement was emphasised, which entails the integration of necessary transitions within the policies, budgets, institutions, and regulatory frameworks of governments, municipalities, and local governing bodies. Besides, he added that peoplepowered initiatives, involving youth, civil society, media, private enterprises, labour unions, academia, and other stakeholders, were also championed to forge an unstoppable movement driving the essential reforms.
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