lachezara stoeva
For the Sustainable Development Goals to be realised come 2030, the president of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Lachezara Stoeva, has advocated that opportunities be created for young people to acquire knowledge and skills relevant for the labour market through education, training and early work experience.
The assertion which was made from a paper she titled ‘Put people first’ in drive to realize Sustainable Development Goals, saw Stoeva disclosing that amid multiple global interconnected crises, that advancing efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, hinged on giving people the tools needed to build resilient societies and economies.
While outlining how best to achieve this agenda, she noted that member states have clear responsibilities as the world pursues a transition to low-carbon and environmentally-friendly economies and societies.
“To ensure a fair and inclusive transition, Governments have the responsibility to put people first. They must support regions, industries, and workers facing the greatest challenges in the transition to a green economy.
“This requires policies that facilitate the reallocation of displaced workers alongside a range of other actions, including tailored job-search assistance, flexible learning courses, employment programmes, and hiring and transition incentives.”
Part of taking a people-centred approach, she explained, meant offering a universal social safety net that gives everyone access to comprehensive, adequate and sustainable protection, she said.
She maintained that investing in human capacities is also essential for emerging and future demands of the job market, already affected by such factors as digital transformation, demographic trends and climate change.
This structural transformation, according to her, requires complementary efforts in education, training and lifelong learning. Such efforts must instill the values of inclusion, sustainability, and partnership enshrined in the 2030 Agenda, she said.
The ECOSOC president advised that they must work together to translate their discussions and conclusions into concrete actions towards achieving the SDGs by 2030.
