State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam said Wednesday Bangladesh is preparing itself ahead of the global process for framing the sustainable development goals (SDGs) that would emerge as the Post-2015 development agenda.
He said the country is about 700 days away from the deadline to achieve the millennium development goals (MDGs) despite inadequate resources.
The state minister said these while addressing a seminar - "Contemporary Development Debate: Bangladesh in the Global Context" - as the chief guest.
Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) organised the seminar at BIISS Auditorium in the city.
He said framing of the SDGs should be based on values and principles, like - equity, inclusion, common but differentiated responsibility, and respective capacities etc.
The state minister observed that one of the main outcomes of the Rio+20 Conference was the agreement by member states to launch a process to develop a set of SDGs, which will be based on the MDGs and converge with the Post-2015 development agenda.
Pointing to the global challenges, especially in the wake of 'Triple F' (Food-Fuel-Finance) crisis for an uncertain period, Mr Alam said within the emerging development architecture, the new set of goals and corresponding targets must have clear and robust support mechanism as well as an enabling global environment.
He said before the global process for framing the SDGs began, Bangladesh undertook broader and national consultations, and developed its own perspective on the Post-2015 agenda.
By the middle of last year, it also submitted a set of indicative goals, targets and indicators to the international forums as well to the UN.
Besides, it is deeply engaged within the traditional group formations, like - LDCs and G77, as well as within groups of countries with specific interest.
The areas that are of particular interest to Bangladesh include, for instance, population dynamics and water.
"Our approach is determined taking into account a balanced view of our broader national orientation, interests, long-term growth and development perspectives, and evolving regional dimensions," he added.
BIISS chairman Munshi Faiz Ahmad and director general S M Shafiuddin Ahmed also spoke on the occasion, emphasising continuing efforts and a strong global partnership with a comprehensive policy for formulating the Post-2015 agenda.
The BIISS chairman said issues such as increasing inequality and a changing poverty landscape, human mobility and migration, insecurity and social exclusion, climate change, degradation of environment, and consequent challenges to sustainability of development require a comprehensive approach to the Post-2015 framework.
To make the approach a successful one, it must take into account efficient integration of all aspects of population dynamics into policy, operation and implementation, he added.
The BIISS DG laid importance on continuing efforts and a strong global partnership to accelerate the pace of current development targets and formulate the Post-2015 goals.
Bangladesh needs to ensure that its development aspirations are fulfilled and climate change issues are also addressed properly in the emerging perspectives within the architecture of the Post-2015 development agenda, he opined.
