Sustainable Development Goals acceleration and European Union

Statement at the High Level Political Forum Side Event on “Sustainable Development Goals acceleration and European Union integration in accession countries: the cases of Albania, Montenegro and Serbia”.

July 18, 2018

As prepared for delivery.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

As time ticks onwards towards 2030, we at UNDP are scouring the planet to uncover accelerators for sustainable development. We are helping countries and communities break through problems and challenges on issues ranging from inequalities and climate change to migration and rule of law.

UNDP has a well-established track-record of supporting the Western Balkans region in realizing its development potential and aspirations, including those embodied in Agenda 2030. In these efforts, we have relied on our excellent partnerships with the European Union, non-EU countries like Switzerland, regional organizations, civil society, and other important actors in the region.

The EU accession process has proven to be a major accelerator for governance and economic reforms and transformations that are critical for achieving the SDGs. It also offers countries significant pre- and post-accession resources including financial, technical assistance, policy models, and fosters cultural exchange.
 
Linking the EU integration process with SDGs makes good sense, and the language of SDGs can help illustrate to citizens the benefits of EU membership in terms that are relevant to everyday life – clean water, renewable energy, quality health care, fairness in governance, and leaving no one behind, for example. Employing the framework of the 2030 Agenda also helps Governments to express the aims of its reforms clearly and strongly. Just as importantly, it creates a common language with civil society, which is advocating for reforms.
 
The universality of Agenda 2030 means that Albania can learn from the efforts of the EU’s current 28 Member States.  Albania should accelerate reforms – addressing environmental protection or social inclusion for example – not in order to gain entry to the EU, but as another member of the European family who is doing the same.

As we will hear in this panel today, the SDGs can also stimulate ways for neighboring nations to collaborate to address common challenges. Whether it is by enhancing environmental protection for rivers that flow across borders, stimulating trade, building accountable institutions, or learning from one another about how to bring rural women into formal businesses, the SDGs provide a forward-looking framework for cooperation.
 
The United Nations system and the United Nations Development Programme are well-positioned to boost this acceleration, by working with Governments and civil society, hand in hand with the European Union.
 
For example, in Serbia, UNDP has established a mechanism whereby the Government can request rapid capacity-building and technical assistance to support knowledge building on specific chapters of the EU acquis.  

In Montenegro, UNDP has worked closely with academics and government officials to identify exactly where the SDG framework buttresses the EU acquis chapters, with the aim of ensuring that reforms related to the acquis are maximizing their positive impacts on sustainable development. We are sharing such experiences across all our offices in the sub-region and are working to bridge borders and enhance sub-regional cooperation.

UNDP is leading – on behalf of the UN system – the organization of multi-agency, multi-disciplinary teams that advise Governments, the UN and their partners on ways to accelerate SDG achievement.  These 'MAPS missions' – standing for Mainstreaming, Acceleration and Policy Support –demonstrate how the UN can bring its diverse agencies together to provide coherent advice.  

The first such missions for the Western Balkans took place in Albania and Montenegro in the first half of 2018. In the case of Albania, it involved not only the UN but also the European Union and the World Bank. It suggested a focus on three accelerator clusters: i) rule of law and governance, ii) green jobs and the green economy, and iii) investment in human and social capital.

I congratulate Albania for its delivery of a first Voluntary National Report yesterday - which draws on the findings of the MAPS mission - as well as for the positive recommendation last month by the European Union for the start of accession negotiations.
 
To conclude: today's event demonstrates that the nations of the Western Balkans can come together – using the SDGs as a common framework – to build a peaceful, prosperous and collaborative future inside the European Union.