Finance Minister stresses trade for financing SDGs

Putting high emphasis on trade for expediting economic activities of countries around the world, Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith said this would eventually be the effective and long-term source of financing to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

 

The finance minister told a discussion on "Financing the SDGs" at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA, on Wednesday that the countries would require more money than the estimated cost of $3.5 trillion for implementing the SDGs, according to a official release received here Thursday, reports BSS.

 

Ministers for finance, planning and development across the world participated in the programme, which was a part of the 50 years celebration of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Muhith left Dhaka on Monday to attend the event.

 

Referring to the experience from implementing Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), he said more resources than the estimate were needed for funding MDGs.

 

The finance minister, however, noted that Bangladesh 'tremendously expedited the domestic resource mobilisation' to implement giant infrastructure projects, which would contribute to implementing SDGs and would reduce dependency on overseas development assistance (ODA).

 

On the sidelines of the UNDP's anniversary, Muhith also had bilateral meetings with UNDP Administrator Helen Clark, Parliamentary Under Secretary of the United Kingdom Baroness Verma and Executive Secretary of UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) Judith Karl.

 

At the meeting, UNDP Administrator congratulated Bangladesh for the graduation to the lower middle income country and hoped that the country would also be able to implement its target to be a middle income state by 2021.

 

She also expressed her high hope that one day Bangladesh would also be the funding country for the UNDP.

 

About the challenges to implement the SDGs, the finance minister sought UNDP's increased support to Bangladesh's initiatives. In particular, Muhith requested the UNDP administrator to support the initiatives of Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL) to set up solar grids to ensure solar irrigation.