ISLAMABAD: A meeting was held under the chairmanship of Minister for Planning Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar to review progress on implementation and institutional arrangements for achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. The meeting was attended by senior officials of the Planning Ministry.

The minister was briefed about the milestones achieved on the SDGs. It was informed that Pakistan had integrated the SDGs into its national development agenda. Task forces have been established in the national and provincial parliaments to review progress, and facilitate legislative support for implementation.

Seven SDGs support units have been instituted at the federal and provincial levels to facilitate vertical and horizontal coordination among stakeholders. Pakistan has determined baselines and targets for all SDG indicators, and data collection tools have been modified to improve data availability.

The chief SDGs briefed the Planning Minister on implementation of the SDGs in Pakistan, and progress on SDGs Index. He said that Pakistan had translated the World Health Organisation's guidelines on the Covid-19 in Braille and sign language to facilitate all segments of the society.

The SDGs goals and targets have also been translated in Braille and sign language. It was also noted that efforts were being made to bridge the data gaps for which surveys were being conducted by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. The planning minister instructed to operationalise the NEC sub-committee on SDGs, and directed to convene a meeting to set the priorities.-PR

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020