Kathmandu, March 31
The country needs to spend Rs 1,770 billion on an average every year to achieve the goals and targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
The white paper issued by the Ministry of Finance has estimated the aforementioned cost to achieve the goals. The amount required to achieve the SDGs includes total investment from the government, private sector and cooperatives, among others.
The country has formulated its plans and policies based on the targets set under the SDGs, and the National Planning Commission has already prepared the baseline report of the SDGs to take the development drive forward.
The cost estimated by the government to implement the programmes to achieve the targets set in the SDGs is more than the figure of the national budget.
Out of the 17 goals under SDGs, Nepal is concerned with 16 goals except goal number 14, which is related to conservation and sustainable use of the oceans, seas and marine resources. The baseline report on SDGs has set 428 indicators under 16 various goals that are relevant to Nepal. However, the apex planning body has said that it will be tough to monitor and keep proper database of each indicator.
The government has sought contribution from the private sector, civil society and I/NGOs to achieve the sustainable development goals. The baseline report has streamlined the activities of various stakeholders that are working on the small components to achieve the SDGs to bring down the number of indicators.
The provincial and local governments are also framing their plans, policies and programmes based on the base line report of the apex planning body.
Based on the indicators set under the various goals, basically, the government and non-governmental organisations develop their programmes to achieve the given targets.
The government will seek the resources to meet the resources gap after analysing the potential investment from the government, private sector and I/NGOs in each sector, according to NPC.
The National Planning Commission has also aligned the periodic plan and fiscal budget with the SDGs. The NPC has set the strategies and priorities to achieve the SDGs aligning with the long-term plan of the various ministries, like Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agricultural Development and Ministry of Environment, among others.
The government has said that the private sector has to contribute significantly to achieve the targets of SDGs. As per the Ministry of Finance, the private sector has to contribute 60 per cent of the required investment in the particular sectors, like industry, energy, transport, for livelihood enhancement, job creation and alleviation of poverty, among others.
A version of this article appears in print on April 01, 2018 of The Himalayan Times.