The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development called for
transformative change aimed at sustainable development.
This transformative change is a multi-dimensional process,
of which economic transformation is an important component. However,
economic transformation required to achieve the 2030
Agenda is not a stand-alone process; instead it should be in a synergistic combination with
other dimensions of sustainable development, namely the social and environmental,
and uphold the commitment to Leave No One Behind of the 2030 Agenda and full respect for human rights.
Achieving the SDGs requires a new type of economic transformation.
Countries are working on reframing the economic policies and practices for inclusive, diversified and job-intensive economic transformation that leaves no one behind, protects the planet and strengthens the ecological foundations of economies. The challenges in sustaining economic performance should be understood and addressed in specific country contexts against a fast-changing and uncertain backdrop of shocks and fluctuations, crime, conflict, and climate related risks that threaten hard-won development gains.
The UN work with countries to help strengthen economic resilience through appropriate macroeconomic and structural policies, and individual resilience through social protection and redistributive policies that reduce vulnerability and preserve gains against poverty and inequality.
There is a need to focus on enabling investments that foster patterns of economic growth to improve the distribution of incomes, increase economic diversification, and take full advantage of appropriate technologies and innovations. This includes bringing the informal economy into the formal economy as well as valuing properly and fully the many non-monetized economic activities, such as unpaid care work, informal labour and the externalities in the provision of essential services. In effect, it requires a departure from past practices in production and consumption, the embrace of new technologies and patterns of behavior that sustain low carbon and resource- and energy-efficient growth, as well as valuing the ecosystem services.
Social Transformations.
The world is undergoing important social transformations driven by the impact of globalization, global environmental change and economic and financial crises, resulting in growing inequalities, extreme poverty, exclusion and the denial of basic human rights. These transformations demonstrate the urge for innovative solutions conducive to universal values of peace, human dignity, gender equality and non-violence and non-discrimination. Young women and men, who are the most affected by these changes, are hence the principal key-actors of social transformations.
Social transformations through social inclusion and social innovation should be at the crossroad of all of our activities, with a particular focus on those who are vulnerable and disadvantaged and excluded.
- Social Inclusion as an essential feature of fighting poverty, narrowing inequalities, and advancing towards inclusive societies, as one of the key goals of sustainable development;
- Social Transformations arising from Environmental Change in recognition of the necessity to address crises ranging from the reduction of natural resources, food, water and energy shortages, loss of biodiversity the pressure of accelerating urbanization and population growth, to climate change and natural disasters. Considering that sustainable development has inseparable social and environmental pillars, social and environmental challenges are closely interrelated.
The UN Sustainable Development Goals report 2021 shows that the COVID-19 crisis demonstrates the interdependency and interlinkages among the various dimensions of sustainability – from health, well-being, and social and economic prosperity to climate and ecosystems. To address the vulnerabilities exposed by the pandemic, Governments and the international community should make structural transformations and develop common solutions guided by the SDGs. These include significantly strengthening social protection systems and public services (including health systems, education, water, sanitation and other basic services); increasing investments in science, technology and innovation; creating fiscal space in developing countries; taking a green-economy approach and investing in clean energy and industry; and transitioning to sustainable food systems.
Taking a look at some of the economic and social indicators mentioned in the UN Sustainable Development Goals report 2021, which addressed the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals during the pandemic, we find some indicators that require to intensify cooperation and coordination efforts so that we can make the desired progress by 2030.
COVID-19 has led to the first rise in extreme poverty in a generation; an additional 119-124 million people were pushed back into extreme poverty in 2020. As of April 2021, 118 countries reported national disaster risk reduction strategies, up from 45 in 2015. An additional 70-161 million people are likely to have experienced hunger as a result of the pandemic in 2020. Pandemic will worsen child malnutrition: 22% (149.2 million) of children under 5 are stunted, 6.7% (45.4 million) of children under 5 suffer from wasting. Number of undernourished people in the world has increased from 607 million in 2014 to 720-811 million in 2020. 2.37 billion people are without food or unable to eat a healthy balanced diet on a regular basis in 2020. COVID-19 has wiped out 20 years of education gains: an additional 101 million or 9% of children in grades 1 through 8 fell below minimum reading proficiency levels in 2020.
129 countries are not on track to have sustainably managed water resources by 2030, between 1970 and 2015, natural wetlands shrank by 35%. Two billion people (26%) lack safely managed drinking water. 759 million people lack access of electricity. The pandemic has led to the loss of the equivalent of 255 million full time jobs.
The global material footprint increased by 70% between 2000 and 2017, I million plastic drinking bottles are purchased every minute, 5 trillion single use plastic bags are thrown away each year. Electronic waste continues to proliferate and is not disposed of responsibly: each person generated about 7.3 kilograms of E-waste but only 1.7 Kg was recycled (2019). Global average temperature in 2020 is 1.2 C above pre-industrial baseline. Climate finance increased by 10% from 2015-2016 to 2017-2018, reaching an annual average of 48.7 billion USD. 125 of 154 developing countries are formulating and implementing national climate adaptation plans.
Roles of development partners
NGOs and Companies together can play a significant role in supporting the economies and societies of countries. Enterprises can bring substantial benefits to their countries by contributing to the more efficient utilization of capital, technology and labour.
Within the framework of development policies established by governments and international organizations, NGOs can make an important contribution to the promotion of economic and social welfare; to the improvement of living standards and the satisfaction of basic needs.
Efforts of NGOs and companies should have a lasting impact on eradicating poverty and reducing inequality, on sustainable development aligned with the priorities and policies as set out in Egypt’s vision 2030.
Believing in the role of civil society organizations in the process of sustainable development and in supporting the government in meeting the needs of citizens and in the desire to show the importance of partnerships in advancing development and the need to make development projects more sustainable in order to maximize impact and ensure its continuity, AL ORMAN NGO has decided to organize
The Annual Sustainability Conference 2nd Edition "Sustainability and Economic and Social Transformations"
in cooperation with the Federation of Egyptian Industries to discuss every year a different topic relate to achieving Sustainable Development Goals.
Mitigation – reducing climate change – involves reducing the flow of heat-trapping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, either by reducing sources of these gases (for example, the burning of fossil fuels for electricity, heat or transport) or enhancing the “sinks” that accumulate and store these gases (such as the oceans, forests and soil). The goal of mitigation is to avoid significant human interference with the climate system, and “stabilize greenhouse gas levels in a timeframe sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner” (from the 2014 report on Mitigation of Climate Change from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, page 4).
Adaptation – adapting to life in a changing climate – involves adjusting to actual or expected future climate. The goal is to reduce our vulnerability to the harmful effects of climate change (like sea-level encroachment, more intense extreme weather events or food insecurity). It also encompasses making the most of any potential beneficial opportunities associated with climate change (for example, longer growing seasons or increased yields in some regions).
Conference main themes:
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Social inclusion and social innovation can be at the crossroad of all of our activities to face social transformations
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The important economic and social transformations driven by the impact of globalization, global environmental change and economic and financial crises.
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How to find innovative solutions conducive to universal values of peace, human dignity, gender equality and non-violence and non-discrimination.
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The role of NGOs and the private sector in implementing the SDGs and their impact on Egypt's Vision 2030.
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Clarify the challenges facing the implementation of the SDGs in Egypt.
Main partners
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Ministries and government agencies, specifically the ministries of planning, solidarity, investment, industry and environement.
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Multinational companies, local companies and banks.
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Associations and unions of businessmen, investors, chambers of commerce and industry, as well as a number of embassies and international organizations
Conference Objectives
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Highlighting the role of sustainability in enhancing the competitiveness of economic institutions, raising the productivity, promoting economic and development indicators, and demonstrating the positive repercussions of the application of CSR initiatives to achieve social welfare, human resources development.
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Cooperating with regional and international organizations to create positive partnerships between civil society organizations and the private sector in coordination with government institutions aimed at implementing CSR projects that respond to the actual needs of the society taking into consideration Egypt Vision 2030.
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Encouraging the private sector to take into account the economic, social and environmental impacts of its business decisions, to abide by the rules of integrity and transparency, to fight corruption, to preserve the environment, to improve the level of its employees and to create an appropriate and healthy working environment.
The First Annual Sustainability Conference
was organized in Jan. 2020 in Luxor under the auspices of Ministries: of Migration, of Planning & Economic Development, of Environment, of Social Solidarity and of Trade & Industry, on: Partnerships between Civil Society Organizations and Private sector for better SDGs’ achievement. The speakers were:
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Dr. Djordjija Petkoski, Lecturer and Senior Fellow at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and co-chair of the Ideas4Action
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Dr. Akhtar Badshah, Professor at University of Washington the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance and at the Business School
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Ms. Μaria Alexiou, Titan Cement Company - Group Corporate Social Responsibility Director, Board Member CSR Europe
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Ms. Celia Moore,
Former Director of Corporate Citizenship, IBM EMEA. Honorary Member and former Chair of the Board, CSR Europe
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Michael Cooke,
Senior Vice President, Global Head of HSE and Sustainability, ABB
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