HARARE, April 6 (Xinhua) — The United Nations spent 544 million U.S. dollars last year supporting Zimbabwe to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Zimbabwe Edward Kallon said on Thursday.
The financial support was extended under the Zimbabwe United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (ZUNSDCF) running from 2022-2026.
Financial support was extended toward social protection, climate action and resilience building, economic transformation, and democratic governance, Kallon said.
He was speaking at a meeting to review progress in 2022 as well as set 2023 priorities that will contribute toward the realization of the SDGs on ending poverty, transforming the lives of all citizens, and protecting the environment.
He said the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and the Russia-Ukraine conflict had dented and decelerated progress on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 goals, but commended the Zimbabwean government for implementing measures to cushion the vulnerable from global spin-off impacts.
“In 2022, the UN focused on recovery from the pandemic, including rescuing the SDGs and full-scale transformation of the international financial and debt architecture. On this, allow me to congratulate the government of Zimbabwe for establishing a structured dialogue to address debt management and arrears clearance,” Kallon said.
He said the UN remains engaged in Zimbabwe’s structured dialogue forum on debt management and arrears clearance with a view to ensuring that Zimbabwe unlocks grant funding from international financial institutions and development agencies for poverty alleviation.
Misheck Sibanda, chief secretary to the Zimbabwean President and Cabinet, commended the UN team and Zimbabwean government departments for ensuring the successful first-year implantation of the ZUNSDCF.
He said the ZUNSDCF is consistent with the collective aspirations of the people of Zimbabwe to achieve the SDGs and an empowered and prosperous upper-middle-income society by 2030.
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