EGYPT’S MINISTER OF PLANNING ‘S PARTICIPATION AT HLPF 2023: HIGHLIGHTS FROM MEETINGS
The activities of the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) for Sustainable Development in New York, held under the slogan "Accelerating recovery from Covid-19 and fully implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at all levels," witnessed intense activity by Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, and her accompanying delegation from the ministry.
The delegation included Dr. Ahmed Kamali, Deputy Minister, and Dr. Mona Essam, Assistant Minister for Sustainable Development Affairs. They participated in several events and met with many officials to discuss cooperation in a group of files.
At the beginning of her participation, Dr. Hala El-Said delivered Egypt's speech at the opening of the ministerial section of the forum. During this speech, she made it clear that Egypt is committed to sustainable development at all levels in line with Egypt's Vision 2030.
El-Said pointed out that the Egyptian government is taking concrete steps to localize sustainable development goals in all governorates. She affirmed the state's belief that this is an essential tool to enable local authorities to support development goals.
Dr. Hala El-Said also inaugurated the side event organized by the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development entitled "Dissemination of Local Voluntary Reports to Accelerate the 2030 Agenda and Localize SDGs" in cooperation between the Ministry's Sustainable Development Unit and the Permanent Missions of the Federal Republic of Brazil, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to the United Nations in New York, the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat) and the European Committee of Territories (European Union).
During her speech, she reviewed the stages of preparing voluntary local reports that illustrate the progress made in achieving the goals of sustainable development in the governorates, which were carried out in cooperation with the United Nations Development Program with the support of 3 Egyptian governorates - as a first stage - Port Said, Fayoum and Beheira in developing the first voluntary local reviews (VLRs).
She also emphasized that preparing these reports supports policy shifts at different levels. The local priorities identified in the reports can direct the strategic planning process and contribute to the allocation of public investments for sustainable development goals.
Dr. Hala El-Said participated in the side event organized by the Bahraini Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, entitled "Innovative and Sustainable Solutions to Provide Adequate Housing", during which she reviewed Egypt's efforts to overcome housing challenges.
El-Said indicated that the Egyptian government aims to achieve several strategic goals in urban development. These goals include increasing the urban area, improving the city environment, and maximizing Egypt's strategic location.
The activities of the Minister of Planning included: Participation in the side event held by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) under the title "Breaking Borders: Technology and Artificial Intelligence to Accelerate the Sustainable Development Goals in the Arab Region", where it referred to the efforts of the Egyptian government to promote digital transformation.
El-Said explained that Egypt has many implementation priorities for digital transformation that are compatible with sustainable development goals, as the digital transformation agenda in Egypt supports various economic and development sectors.
During her participation in the High-Level Political Forum for Sustainable Development activities, Dr. Hala El-Said met with a group of Egyptian youth, members of the “Major Group for Children and Youth”.
During the meeting, they reviewed the efforts of the Egyptian state to achieve comprehensive and sustainable development, through the launch of “Egypt Vision 2030”, the implementation of the first phase of the national program for economic and social reform, the launch of the national program for structural reforms, and the “State Ownership Policy” document, which explains to investors the role of the state in various sectors as a regulator of economic activity according to market mechanisms.
The role of The Sovereign Fund of Egypt (TSFE) as an investment arm of the state, efforts to support partnerships between the public and private sectors, and the national project for the development of the Egyptian family were also reviewed.
The youth participating in the event expressed their gratitude and the Minister of Planning's keenness to communicate with them. This was to provide them with comprehensive information about development efforts in the Egyptian state.
During the activities of the forum, Dr. Hala El-Said held a set of bilateral meetings to discuss ways of cooperation, as those meetings at the Arab level included a meeting with Ms. Noor Al-Khalif, Minister of Sustainable Development in the Kingdom of Bahrain, and Ms. Amna bint Ahmed Al-Rumaihi, Minister of Housing and Urban Planning in Bahrain, and she met with Mr. Faisal bin Fadel Al-Ibrahim, Minister of Economy and Planning of Saudi Arabia, and she also met with Dr. Khaled Al-Mahdi, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for Planning and Development in Kuwait.
At the international level, Dr. Hala El-Said met with several officials of United Nations organizations, including a meeting with Ms. Amina Mohamed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations.
She reviewed Egypt's efforts to achieve SGDs and discussed financing for development.
El-Said also met with Mr. Selwyn Hart, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General of the United Nations on Climate Action, during which she reviewed the efforts and initiatives to support climate, and Ms. La Chizarra Stoeva, President of the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, and Ms. Maimouna Mohamed Sharif, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Program (Habitat), Mr. Lee Junhua, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations, and Mr. Achim Steiner, Administrator of the United Nations Development Program and Mr. Abdullah Al-Dardari, Regional Director of the United Nations Development Program for the Arab States.