Blog Post

SDSN Nigeria holds Private Sector Engagement Forum in Abuja

  • By Dorothea Strueber
  • •
  • 07 Dec, 2016
  • •
On November 29, SDSN Nigeria, in partnership with a number of private sector representatives led by First Planet Consultant Ltd, hosted its first workshop on deepening cooperation with the private sector towards SDG implementation in Nigeria.
The first high-level strategic forum with main stakeholders themed “Making the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) the Business of the Private Sector in Nigeria” and had the objective of seeking buy-in, inclusive participation and strategic engagement of the private sector concerning the SDG implementation process in Nigeria.

Over 80 members of the private sector attended the event, including the media, distinguished scholars and notable philanthropists. The keynote addresses were delivered by Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the SDSN, Dr. Tony Marinho, Director of the EDUCARE TRUST, Mr. Hilary Ogbonna, Regional Coordinator of the UN SDG Action Campaign. Patrons of the network, among who are His Eminence, Professor Anele U. Nwokoma, Her Excellency Dame Pauline K. Tallen, Hajiya Maryam S. Ibrahim, as well as Zonal Coordinators, the Chair of Committees and some participants engaged in discussions on the presented topics.

The following roundtable welcomed critical thoughts on the over 25 concept notes and ideas received and mapped out a mid to long-term strategic action plan on the sustainable development programs for the country. The specific outcomes are as follows:
  1. Major ideas identified include educational development, infrastructural development, waste recycling, renewable energy, sustainable cities, water for consumption and irrigation, improved farming and post-harvest value addition, inclusive participation with social responsibilities, conflict prevention, and peace.
  2. Major action points for urgent attention include working and transforming these priority ideas into feasible and achievable pilot projects in various suitable localities, communities, and sectors.
    Discussed projects include:
    a) the development of an SDG curriculum and instructional materials for students and teachers, overhauling educational infrastructure focusing on ICT, laboratories, water and sanitation, communication and knowledge delivery, security of lives and properties, structural management and administration;b) embarking on massive awareness creation through product branding, communication media, and awards for business performance, social and moral impacts;c) water harvesting for consumption and irrigation through rainwater harvesting and abstraction from streams, rivers or underground aquifers, transmission and distribution management;d) a comprehensive survey of crop-specific production and post-harvest handling problems, collecting information on available local and foreign technology for scaling up productivity, shelf-life, value addition and dissemination of adequate and effective information to the farmers and relevant stakeholders, creating incentives for collating new innovations and solutions, teaching values of right consumption and conservation;

    e) waste management for employment generation, renewable energy, siting of wastes recycle plants at strategic locations, designing aids and self-teaching slogans on commercial products, construction of green areas, building pro-green infrastructure, housing, parks and city models;

    f) strategic engagement and reorientation of businesses and entrepreneurs on Corporate Social Responsibility actions that promote human well-being and sustainability in production, consumption, and profitability;

    g) promoting people, technology-driven and research-based innovation development policies, strategies and partnership among stakeholders on the core values of trust, competence, capability, mutual respect, and benefits.

  3. From the above ideas and action points, some clearly stated projects from the schemes include
    a) water harvesting for consumption and irrigation for different communities and regions of the country;b) SDG curriculum for easy dissemination of SDG-related content for all institutions and SDGs self-teaching guide for all categories of people in diverse languages and via media (television and radio programs, social media, music concerts, film series etc.);c) creation, modeling and branding awards for corporate entities and scholarships for active volunteers;d) continued capacity building for stakeholders in form of seminars, workshops, training of trainers, advocates, and volunteers across schools, regions, communities, professions and government sections;

    e) creation of “SDG Innovation Challenges” driving concrete solutions;

    f) open access and technology-driven database for development planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation;

    g) equipping institutions with ICT facilities for knowledge creation, information sharing, communication, administration, and security;

    h) construction of waste recycle plants and production of biofuel for clean energy;

    i) tree planting and green area initiative;

    j) company advertisement with SDG messages and product branding.

  4. The forum foresees these projects and programs to attract funding from businesses and corporate bodies including donor agencies, philanthropists, government, community members, organized groups, development institutions, alumni associations, local networks, and voluntary donations, under the condition that they are properly transformed into pilot projects in strategic locations and afterwards scaled up to multi-location projects.Participants expressed that they were better informed, equipped, and inspired to participate and contribute to the cause of SDG implementation. They agreed that the challenges of sustainable development have to be met by viable collaborations, adequate information sharing, especially in the data sector, and multi-stakeholder partnerships.

SDSN Newsletter - July 2021

By SDSN Secretariat • 03 Aug, 2021 •
This month, SDSN celebrated its growing network, talked about the incredible amount of media coverage on the 2021 SDR, and reflected on this year's High Level Political Forum

WRI Report Spotlight: “Unlocking a Renewable Energy Future: How Government Action Can Drive Private Investment”

By Fiona Laird • 02 Aug, 2021 •
World Resources Institute recently released Unlocking a Renewable Energy Future: How Government Action Can Drive Private Investment, a report outlining key challenges to increasing clean energy investment and deployment. This report digs into the financial and regulatory mechanisms available to support policy frameworks like that outlined in SDSN USA’s Zero Carbon Action Plan (ZCAP), released in October 2020.

European Commission launches proposals to reach 55% emissions reduction by 2030

By Sam Van Hoof • 30 Jul, 2021 •
The ‘Fit for 55' package includes a ban on combustion engines from 2035, a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, and a Social Climate Fund among other provisions.

SDSN Canada 2021 Members Meeting Recap

By Giovanni Bruna • 29 Jul, 2021 •

SDSN Canada reconvened the network membership on June 16th, 2021 for the annual Members Meeting.

This year's meeting featured conversations on the current state of the SDGs in Canada, emerging opportunities for post-secondary institutions, networking breakout sessions, and a featured joint presentation by the Brookings Institution and Rockefeller Foundation on mobilizing campuses and communities for the SDGs using the 17 Rooms initiative. A lightning round of member initiatives was also included to highlight a portion of the SDG work happening across the network.

Recap the discussion by reading the meeting notes   or listening to the audio recordings for each session.

Meeting Highlights:

  • The SDSN Global annual Sustainable Development Report 2021  was released June 2021, tracking progress on the SDGs by country (Canada ranked 21st in the world). The report outlines the short-term impacts of COVID-19 on the SDGs and describes how the SDGs can frame the recovery.
  • The Government of Canada has released Canada’s National Strategy for the SDGs, Moving Forward Together. The strategy outlines a set of 30 actions towards the SDGs, including localizing the SDGs, supporting partnerships with Indigenous initiatives, and advancing research into the gaps in Canada's efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda.
  • The 17 Rooms initiative  is a tool for advancing SDG collaboration, community-centric conversations, and bottom-up action. There are three key principles of consideration:
    • Every SDG gets a seat at the table (a dedicated room).
    • Identify what the next step is, and not the perfect step. What are things you can do together over the next 12 to 18 months that you can implement action on the SDGs?
    • It is about conversations, not presentations. The goal is to learn from each other and create a community of practice.
    • Join the 17 Rooms-X Community of Practice to access the beta toolkit.
  • A ‘lightning round’ of presentations by members spotlighting SDG work from Colleges and Institutes Canada, the Interdisciplinary Research Center in the Operationalization of Sustainable Development (CIRODD), Vancouver Island University, the University of Saskatchewan, and the University of Waterloo.

The meeting was also a chance to invite the membership into initiatives designed to be more intentional about the network’s collective presence and impact. In this vein, the network thinks that the 17 Rooms process can be a critical resource for campus conversations on the SDGs. It also relaunched the Member Challenge , is starting the ‘SDG Teaching Community’ for faculty across the network, and is convening a small working group of interested members to talk about an enhanced governance structure for the network.

Public Consultation on SPA Report

By Lauren Barredo • 29 Jul, 2021 •
We encourage stakeholders to provide meaningful input to aid the development of a better and more complete report. We invite feedback from individuals and organizations, from all sectors.

Environmental and Agricultural Impacts of Dietary Shifts at Global and National Scales

By FABLE • 28 Jul, 2021 •
The FABLE Consortium is releasing two policy briefs over the coming months intended to advise national governments on sustainable land-use and diets. The first brief, entitled “Environmental and agricultural impacts of dietary shifts at global and national scales'' is now available.

Media Coverage of the Sustainable Development Report 2021

By SDG Index • 23 Jul, 2021 •
The Sustainable Development Report 2021 has been covered by the BBC, the Guardian, Washington Post, and more than 100 other media outlets.

The Multidimensional Vulnerability Index and Small Island Developing States (SIDS)

By Isabella Massa • 21 Jul, 2021 •
SDSN together with the United Nations Resident Coordinators in SIDS and the Permanent Mission of Antigua and Barbuda hosted on 12 July 2021 a High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) side event to discuss the issue of measuring multidimensional vulnerability, and its relevance for international financing mechanisms.

SDGs Today Launches My School Today!

By SDGs Today • 20 Jul, 2021 •
SDGs Today recently launched their My School Today! call to action, meant to support students and local communities to geo-reference their schools and education facilities as part of an effort to promote timely information on school locations in Africa

SDSN at the 2021 High-Level Political Forum (HLPF)

By SDSN Secretariat • 20 Jul, 2021 •
SDSN and our networks are hosting a number of events alongside the UN's High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF). We are thrilled to invite you to join us at the following events, which SDSN is hosting or are organized by our partners.
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