Eminent speaker series – breakfast with Odo Tedi
Vanuatu’s newly appointed ambassador to the UN, H.E. Odo Tevi, talks on transitioning from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to a new set of Sustainable Development Goals, which are to be agreed at a global summit of world leaders in September 2015.
Ambassador Tevi highlights the need for a stronger Pacific voice at the UN in helping to formulate the key elements of the new global agenda.
‘We now have the opportunity to shape our collective future, and in doing so we must take ownership of our development challenges and opportunities and where there are factors impeding our development that are beyond our control we must articulate our expectations of the global community.’
He noted the post-2015 development agenda will not be business as usual and the biggest challenge is for nations like Vanuatu to “take ownership” of the new goals.
‘There is a clear call for a transformative development agenda. One that puts the primary focus back on national ownership. Our national development frameworks must reflect our national priorities and circumstances. They should be aligned with, but not be subordinate to, global goals’, Ambassador Tevi said.
As usual there were some lively questions from the audience that included the need to address gender balance, support the ’80 per cent of people who live in the rural areas’ and factor in the emerging understanding of alternative indicators of poverty and affluence.
PiPP’s Eminent Speakers Series showcases some of the key thinkers in our region and these breakfast talks help policy makers and influencers at the national and regional level.
