The Exact Version of the new Kigali Declaration on the Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals for Africa

African nations reiterate commitment to accelerate the achievement of SDGs

A week late, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa released a report today on the conclusion of the Kigali Declaration. The Kigali Declaration was adopted by all 54 member countries. They all attended the Eight Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD 2022) that ended on 05 March 2022.

The Kigali Declaration urges African countries to link mutually reinforcing policies for sustainable development and COVID-19 recovery to ensure inclusive emergence from the pandemic.

The document calls on African countries to leverage new tools, innovative solutions, and technology, including through enhanced partnerships with the private sector, academia, non-governmental, civil society, and other stakeholders to build strong, agile, sustainable, and resilient national statistical systems. 

Exact Wording of the Kigali Declaratin

Kigali Declaration

We, African ministers, and senior officials responsible for the environment
and sustainable development, finance, economic and social development,
agriculture, education, justice, statistics, the digital economy, science and
technology, heads, and members of delegations of the parliaments of African
Union member States and experts representing Governments and
intergovernmental organizations, the private sector and civil society,
Gathered online and in-person in Kigali from 3 to 5 March 2022 at the
the eighth session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development held
under the theme of “Building forward better: a green, inclusive and resilient
Africa poised to achieve the 2030 Agenda and the Agenda 2063” and placed
under the high patronage of the President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame,
Expressing our gratitude to the President and Government of Rwanda for
having hosted the Forum and having ensured that all the necessary conditions
were in place for the successful completion of its work, which was marked by
fruitful and high-quality discussions on the monitoring and evaluation of the
progress achieved, the exchange of experiences in the area of sustainable
development in Africa, and the formulation of key messages aimed at
accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development and Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, of the African Union,
Considering that the health and socioeconomic impact of the coronavirus
disease (COVID-19) pandemic rolled back efforts to achieve the Sustainable
Development Goals, especially in developing countries, and that the diverging
paths to recovery from the pandemic between developed and developing
countries could mean longer periods of recovery for developing countries,
Considering also the disproportionate impact of climate change on the
African continent gave its low-carbon-footprint, the role of the continent in
capturing greenhouse gases, and its needs to mitigate and adapt to the adverse
effects of climate change,
Recalling and reaffirming the Brazzaville Declaration, adopted at the
the seventh session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development,
Noting the need for scaled-up and sustainable finance for an inclusive
recovery from the COVID-19 crisis and accelerated delivery of sustainable
development in Africa,
Welcoming the establishment of the Liquidity and Sustainability Facility
as a mechanism for improving market access for African countries and, in
particular, for crowding in private-sector investment in the green recovery of
the continent,
Welcoming the launch of the Alliance of Entrepreneurial Universities in
Africa and the African Technology Development and Transfer Network, which
have been established to facilitate the sharing of experiences and best practices
among academic and research institutions across the continent,
Expressing support for the ongoing process, under the Convention on
Biological Diversity, of developing a post-2020 global biodiversity framework
as a global policy framework for achieving accelerated action and
transformative pathways for biodiversity and sustainable development,

  1. Reiterate our commitment to accelerating the achievement of
    Sustainable Development Goals, including through ensuring a green and
    inclusive recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic on the continent, aligned with
    the objectives of the decade of action to deliver the Sustainable Development
    Goals;
  2. Demand that developed countries facilitate equitable access to
    COVID-19 vaccines to enable African countries to recover faster from the
    COVID-19 pandemic, through inter alia: a moratorium on the application to
    developing countries of Articles 65 and 66, on transitional arrangements and
    least-developed country members, respectively, of the Agreement on TradeRelated Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights; and technical assistance to
    improve supply chains efficiency, technology transfer and manufacturing
    capacity;
  3. Urge African countries to link mutually-reinforcing policies for
    sustainable development and COVID-19 recovery to ensure an inclusive
    emergence from the pandemic, in line with the tenets of the 2030 Agenda and
    Agenda 2063;
  4. Call upon African countries, pan-African institutions, the United
    Nations and development partners to invest more in the generation of statistics
    that are relevant and timely, to inform national, regional and global
    development agendas, leveraging opportunities provided by new data sources,
    geospatial technologies, the United Nations global platform on big data for
    official statistics and regional data hubs in Africa, to facilitate capacitydevelopment and the modernization of the national statistical systems of
    countries in Africa, involving young people in the decision-making processes
    relating to the sustainable development agenda;
  5. Call upon African countries to leverage new tools, innovative
    solutions and technology, including through enhanced partnerships with the
    private sector, academia, non-governmental and civil-society organizations and
    others, to build strong, agile, sustainable and resilient national statistical
    systems;
  6. Invite African countries to invest in developing more resilient
    education systems and to adopt resilient and risk-informed approaches to
    planning in the education sector, and to prioritize digital connectivity and
    capacities to achieve learning for all and skills development;
  7. Call upon African countries to strengthen institutional
    arrangements, including gender-inclusive national strategies, to enhance
    national ownership and responsibility for the effective implementation,
    monitoring and accountability of the gender-related goals and targets of the
    2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063 in all sectors and at all levels of government;
  8. Also call upon African countries to strengthen their institutional
    capacities to enforce laws and regulations on the sustainable use of marine
    resources, to open up new opportunities for gender-sensitive and inclusive blue
    entrepreneurship, innovation, finance, value-chains and trade, and to support
    the “Great Blue Wall” initiative to build climate-resilient societies and
    economies;
  9. Call upon the entities of the United Nations system, the African
    Union Commission, the African Development Bank and other partners to
    strengthen the capacity of African countries to leverage the Liquidity and
    Sustainability Facility and other innovative financing mechanisms, including
    green and blue bonds and debt swaps for biodiversity and sustainable
    development; 10. Call upon African countries and their development partners to
    strengthen the capacity of the region to incorporate and increase investment in
    sustainable biodiversity and land management within national, subregional and
    regional development frameworks;
  10. Call upon all parties to the Glasgow Climate Pact to establish an
    ambitious and reasonable price for carbon, aligned with the objectives of the
    Paris Agreement, to allow developing countries in Africa and elsewhere to
    ECA/RFSD/2022/L.122-00239 19/20
    mobilize adequate financial resources to meet their climate commitments,
    including those made through the nationally determined contributions and Paris
    Agreement, while accelerating progress on towards the Sustainable
    Development Goals and allowing African countries to fully benefit from their
    natural heritage;
  11. Call upon the entities of the United Nations system to build the
    capacity of the countries of the Congo Basin to deliver funding for sustainable
    development through the Blue Fund for the Congo Basin to support the
    implementation by these countries of their nationally determined contributions,
    to estimate their capacity for carbon sequestration , and develop livelihoods that
    are linked to the subregion’s unique natural capital; 13. Call for the adoption of reforms to the international financial
    architecture that integrate innovative financing mechanisms that are initiated
    and led by African countries to ensure African debt sustainability and to support
    the development of nature-based solutions and a green and sustainable recovery
    from the COVID-19 pandemic; 14. Call for renewed vigour on the part of African Governments, the
    entities of the United Nations system and development partners in the
    implementation of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International
    Conference on Financing for Development, including with regard to
    strengthening opportunities to improve domestic resource mobilization through
    sustainable budgeting principles that are aligned with the 2030 Agenda, Agenda
    2063 and the Paris Agreement, and for renewed global solidarity in respect of
    public investment in the implementation of these agendas, on the basis of the
    principle of leaving no one behind;
  12. Reaffirm that developed countries must honour their commitment
    to pay $100 billion annually to help developing countries respond to the
    cascading threats of climate change to the land, water and oceanic resources of
    Africa and to mitigate the impact on African economic growth and on
    livelihoods of its people;
  13. Urge African countries to leverage the potential of the African
    Continental Free Trade Area Agreement to support the development of regional
    value chains, especially those for minerals used in the production of batteries
    and electric vehicles, to enable African countries to capture more value along
    global value chains;
  14. Also urge African countries to increase their investments in
    research and development to at least the 1 per cent of gross domestic product,
    as recommended by the African Union, to boost their capacity to generate
    technologies and innovations in the marine and digital domains, to support
    sustainable the use of land and water ecosystems, and to build climate- and
    disasters-resilient economies and societies, including through research and
    development in the medical and health sectors, to reduce their vulnerability and
    foster the economic transformation of their economies and improve the lives
    and livelihoods of their peoples;
  15. Further urge African countries to increase investment in the
    building of foundational skills for education in the fields of science,
    technology, engineering and mathematics, and to establish centres of
    excellence to facilitate the sharing of experiences and best practices;
  16. Call upon all countries to implement the key messages adopted at
    the eighth session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development;
  17. Request the Government of Rwanda to present the key messages
    on behalf of Africa: at the meeting of the high-level political forum on
    sustainable development, to be held under the auspices of the Economic and
    Social Council in New York from 5 to 15 July 2022; at the twenty-seventh
    session of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework
    Convention on Climate Change; and at other subregional, regional and global
    forums convened to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and
    Agenda 2063.

In her closing remarks at the event, which took place from 3 to 5 March, Hanan Morsy, Deputy Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), explained that the main purpose of the meeting was to review Africa’s progress and catalyze actions to achieve the 2030 sustainable development goals. The meeting was also meant to achieve consensus on urgent priorities for action, which are captured in the Kigali Declaration to be presented at the high-level political forum in New York. 

Ms. Morsy noted that through rich interactive debates and experience-sharing, delegates “collectively met the objectives” of the gathering in Kigali. On way forward, she said Africa needs to urgently deliver progress on the five SDGs on which the forum was focused, notably Goal 4 (quality education), Goal 5 (gender equality), Goal 14 (Life Below Water), Goal 15 (Life on Land), Goal 17 (partnerships). 

For his part, Rwanda’s Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, and ARFSD 2022 Bureau Chair, Uzziel Ndagijimana, called on member states to intensify efforts towards the achievement of the 2030 Agenda and Africa’sAgenda 2063 “for the benefit of our people or countries.” 

He cited the diversity of participation at the forum, the enthusiastic commitment, and the momentum observed during the deliberations, as an assurance that “Africa can achieve its development goals.” 

The forum also witnessed the launch of the Alliance of Entrepreneurial Universities in Africa and the African Technology Development and Transfer Network. 

Niger and Cote d’Ivoire expressed interest in hosting the next forum, which will take place in West Africa in March 2023. The ARFSD bureau will undertake consultations to decide which of the countries will host the event. 

ARFSD 2022 was organized by the ECA together with the government of Rwanda in collaboration with the African Union Commission, the African Development Bank, and other United Nations agencies. The forum took place under the theme “Building forward better: A green, inclusive and resilient Africa poised to achieve the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063” 

About the author

Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen Thomas Steinmetz has continuously worked in the travel and tourism industry since he was a teenager in Germany (1977).
He founded eTurboNews in 1999 as the first online newsletter for the global travel tourism industry.

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