APM returns, promises to quickly localise SDGs
President Peter Mutharika said yesterday that Malawi will condense and contextualise the 17 recently-adopted United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into a second compact national development and growth programme that will ensure fast home-grown achievements.
He was speaking at Kamuzu International Airport in Lilongwe on his return from a two-week trip to the United States of America where he attended the 70th session of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, delivered a speech and met several world leaders and business captains.
Mutharika said just like the nation had condensed and contextualised the first 18 MDGs into eight comprehensive national goals, Malawi will soon integrate the new 17 goals into the domestic system, under the Malawi Development and Growth Strategy 2 (MDGS 2).
He expressed joy that Malawi had performed wonderfully in achieving four of the eight goals it embedded into the MDGS.
During his speech at the UNGA, Mutharika spelt out the four goals achieved by Malawi as reducing child mortality, combating HIV and Aids, malaria and other diseases, ensuring environmental sustainability and developing a global partnership for development.
The President, whose UN speech saluted development partners for helping Malawi to achieve more of the goals than had happened for some developing nations, yesterday said his government will ensure that the new goals are achieved through the provision of enough budgetary support.
Mutharika did not take any questions from journalists, saying that will be reserved for a press briefing at Kamuzu Palace in Lilongwe soon.
One of the questions the Malawi leader is likely to face is how his government will tinker with the budget, now that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has declared Malawi’s economic programme with the fund as off track.
The fund has also advised that the nation’s 2015/16 budget should be adjusted downwards even as stakeholders say the current funding levels are low.
