April 2021 Newsletter
Find out about our recent activity in parliament as well as a useful briefing on the G7 and an overview of upcoming events.
Local action to achieve the Global Goals
As we head into the last weeks of campaigning for the local elections, it is important to reflect on the role of local government, local partnerships, and local action in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
At a time when the country is looking to build back from the Covid-19 pandemic, local leadership will be critical to shaping the future of this country and ensuring that we can restore the economy, tackle climate change, level up and address the extreme inequalities that this crisis has revealed. The SDGs provide us with a ready-made framework to advance local sustainability.
We will be holding an event with the UN Global Compact UK before the summer where speakers will share case studies of the ways towns, cities, and broader regions in the UK and globally have used the SDGs as a framework in policy and decision-making processes.
Championing the Goals in parliament and beyond
In addition to hosting our own APPG events, APPG Co-Chairs, Theo Clarke MP and Lord Jack McConnell, also raise the importance of the Global Goals and their commitment to them on other occasions.
As Chair of the International Development Sub-Committee on the work of the Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI), Theo held a session to examine the former DFID’s results in nutrition. Malnutrition is a critical contributor to ill health, vulnerability, poverty, and mortality. The Sub-Committee explored how stakeholders have reacted to the ICAI’s review and DFID’s performance in nutrition and probed the Minister, Wendy Morton MP, and officials on their response to the ICAI review and future policy in relation to nutrition. The Sub-Committee also heard from Dr. Agnes Kalibata, the UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy to the 2021 Food Systems Summit.
On 2 March, Theo also raised with the Foreign Secretary whether the UK will look to allow countries to access the UK’s surplus capacity via COVAX and also donate vaccines to the poorest countries in the world.
In line with the importance of financing for the Global Goals, Jack has secured an Oral Question in the House of Lords on Thursday 22 April to ask Her Majesty’s Government when they will publish a list of the reductions in Overseas Development Assistance budgets and awards for (1) 2019/20, and (2) 2020/21. In recent weeks, he has also been in active discussions with the Parliamentarians for the Global Goals to work together on a future initiative. We encourage you to have a look at their objectives and register as a member.
A transformative agenda for the G7
In the run up to the G7 Summit in June, the Civil Society 7 has produced a briefing that may be of interest. It is based on the new report A transformative agenda for the G7: Recommendations from UK civil society which you can read here.
The Civil Society 7 is the official G7 engagement group working to inform and influence the outcomes of the 2021 G7 on behalf of UK civil society. The report highlights that the commitments made at the G7 Summit in June should focus on setting a good example through achieving the SDGs, as well as fulfilling the Paris Agreement, and delivering human rights, racial justice, gender equality and labour standards.
Upcoming events
Parliamentary briefing event with United Nations Development Programme Administrator Achim Steiner
Wednesday 21st April 4-5pm
This private event will provide the opportunity to hear from the Administrator on the UNDP’s Covid-19 response in the organisation’s technical leadership of for the UN’s socio-economic response. The briefing will also discuss how we can path the way for an equitable recovery, work together to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and progress the UK’s strategic development objectives.
If you are a parliamentarian and wish to attend, please email Alice Whitehead on appg-globalgoals@bond.org.uk
Event with Make My Money Matter
Wednesday 28th April, 1-2pm
We will be joined by Richard Curtis CBE, Co-Founder of Make My Money Matter, a movement calling for money invested in UK pensions to go towards building a better world. We will also be joined by speakers from the pension industry to discuss the need to ensure that the trillions of pounds invested by our financial institutions helps us deliver the Paris Climate Agreement, achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and build a healthy, sustainable future for generations to come. Sign up here
We have a range of other very exciting events planned between now and the summer, including an event with Lord Ahmad, Minister of State at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to discuss the government’s response to the APPG’s report Build Back Better: The SDGs as a roadmap for recovery, as well as a look ahead at the government’s priorities in 2021 and beyond. This will be held in Mid-May