Development Partner’s Forum enables Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration for SDGs

The United Nations in Botswana hosted its 2nd Annual Development Partners Forum in Gaborone on 25 – 26 October 2023 in Gaborone, Botswana. Through convening varied development partners, the Forum brings a wide range of voices and opinions to the table, and foster partnerships for development.

The Forum provides an important platform for development partners to explore ways to partner with the Government of Botswana on emerging issues, development plans and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This is in recognition that only with multi-partner and multi-lateral cooperation can we find a viable pathway to a more prosperous, equitable, healthy, and secure country and planet.

Held under the theme, "The Upper Middle-Income Country (UMIC) Paradox - Botswana's progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals", participants discussed progress and challenges on the country’s development endeavours, including how partnership could lead to meaningfully addressing the development challenges.

Opening the event, the UN Resident Coordinator, Zia Choudhury acknowledged the diversity of participants and highlighted that it offers collective wisdom to find new solutions. “14.      This Development Partner Forum is designed for diverse people to meet. To discuss. To be Bold in those discussions. To form partnerships. To be stronger together”, he said.

Delivering remarks on behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Director of Multilateral Affairs in the Ministry echoed that the Development partners forum is a great platform which brings together different stakeholders under one roof with the sole aim of seeking pragmatic solutions to our current development challenges. He added that Botswana as a Middle-Income country continues to face long standing development challenges such as, poverty, social and economic inequality, high unemployment, food insecurity, as well as the slow progress on the environment and climate change front. New challenges have also emerged such as high inflation and the socio-economic impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

“Botswana works closely with the United Nations Country Team to support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and Vision 2036 through the Botswana-United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework. This allows for greater engagements and collaboration by key stakeholders on a diverse range of both current and emerging developmental issues thereby promoting coherence in National Development Planning”, Ambassador Zenene Sinombe stated.

The 2nd Annual DPF 2023 included parallel deep dive discussions on; i) How can Botswana’s social protection systems prevent the worse effects of poverty? Are the systems shock responsive enough to mitigate the effects of climate change? ii) How to maximize the diamond value chain for the benefit of Botswana. iii) A Botswana founded on human rights for all: Stocktaking, visioning and a roadmap. iv) Improving migration governance to help Botswana prosper and protect human rights for all.

The Forum came as the world marks the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The UDHR is a foundational blueprint for taking concrete actions to stand up for human rights and tackle pressing global issues today. Human rights are the foundation for human dignity, and the cornerstone of peaceful, inclusive, fair, equal and prosperous societies.

Also in 2023, world leaders have reviewed the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) during the United Nations General Assembly high-level week in September 2023. This marked the midpoint of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and calls for the beginning of a new phase of accelerated progress towards the SDGs.

Achieving the SDG’s and the 2030 Agenda in Botswana will require a significant shift in how development is approached. This is in line with the President’s reset agenda and calls for mindset change.

Development Partners Forum in Pics