The contribution of the Eurasian regional integration associations to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) was discussed during the round table "Regional Potential for Implementing the SDGs: Partnership to Achieve the Goals." The event was organized by the Eurasian Economic Commission on July 17 at the UN Headquarters in New York as part of the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development under the auspices of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
Sergei Glazyev, EEC Minister in charge of Integration and Macroeconomics, was the key speaker of the event, while the discussion was moderated by Goar Barseghyan, Director of the EEC Integration Development Department.
The EEC Minister noted the progress on a number of SDG indicators in the Eurasian region due to the strong institutional system and legal framework of the Eurasian Economic Union. 149 of the 514 SDG goals and objectives are covered by the EAEU integration agenda.
Sergei Glazyev informed on the progress in achieving such SDGs in the EAEU as ending hunger, combating unemployment, ensuring healthy lifestyle and quality education for the citizens of the Union countries. For example, in all the Member States the share of the population living below the international poverty line was 0% in 2021. Real incomes of people have increased in all the EAEU countries. Actual wages have increased in most States. State budget expenditure on health and education as a percentage of GDP increased in most countries as well.
Sergei Glazyev paid special attention to implementing SDG 2 “Zero Hunger”: “The world food market depends heavily on the EAEU. The Union is able to provide food for more than 600-700 mln people. Food production can be increased by 5-7 times with modernized production and intensive technologies. This is our potential contribution to achieving SDG 2 on a global scale”.
In the context of implementing SDG 7 "Affordable and Clean Energy", Sergei Glazyev noted the efforts of the EEC and Member States in establishing a common market for energy, gas, oil and petroleum products.
The EEC representative drew attention to the weaknesses in achieving the SDGs at the global level, noting that there was a clear regression in a number of indicators, which had a greater impact on the least developed countries. He noted the crisis in the global financial system as one of the factors reducing the efficiency of work on achieving the SDGs. According to Sergei Glazyev, it is important to ensure the functioning of the global financial system on the principles of fairness, transparency and legality.
“There are difficulties with representative data on the dynamics of implementing some SDGs. There is still a systemic problem here: there is no well-functioning and centralized monitoring mechanism, which makes it impossible to objectively assess the results achieved. For example, only every fifth UN Member has provided data in the field of combating climate change (SDG 13),” Sergei Glazyev emphasized.
Many discussion attendees spoke about the relationship between integration efforts at the regional level and the efficiency of achieving the SDGs.
“Each EAEU State takes specific measures to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in accordance with its national policy and development strategy. In turn, economic integration within the Union is an additional factor contributing to the SDGs achievement," stated Goar Barseghyan, Director of the EEC Integration Development Department. Using the EAEU as an example, she emphasized the importance of strengthening ties between the Member States to improve the competitiveness of national economies, as well as to implement major integration initiatives.
Yuri Ambrazevich, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus, paid special attention to the importance of interaction between macroregions. He reminded the discussion attendees that efforts made by the EAEU Member States had offered the possibility to promote dialogue between integration associations and international organizations on the platform of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development as integration issues had been added to the mandate of the organization as a result of the Ministerial Conference in October 2021.
“I wish that the EAEU continues to be a leader in the future in promoting the theme of “integration of integrations” on global platforms,” he added.
According to Dmitry Chumakov, Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia to the United Nations, the use of own market and resource advantages with actively developing settlements in national currencies and building new logistics and transport rules plays a major role within the EAEU-SCO-BRICS regional cooperation.
Representatives of such international structures as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), and the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) shared their experience.
Ekkaphab Phanthavong, ASEAN Deputy Secretary General for Social and Cultural Community, stressed the importance of sustainable management of natural resources and building the export potential of the Asian countries to achieve the SDGs by strengthening international partnerships.
Olga Algayerova, UNECE Executive Secretary, stated the need for coordination at different levels - global, regional, and local - with the active involvement of both the private and public sectors to accelerate the SDGs achievement in the near future.
“In turn, regional cooperation opens up the possibility of attracting local resources, thereby opening up access to investment for many capital-intensive areas," she added.
Anel Bakytbekkyzy, Deputy Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan to the United Nations, gave her view on the UN Agenda 2030 on the part of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia.
“As part of Kazakhstan's chairmanship in the CICA, the establishment of a special Council on Sustainable Connectivity was initiated. The key objectives of this structure include the development and strengthening of transit and throughput capacities, as well as transport corridors of the Member States of the Conference," she stressed.
Vladimir Pereboev, Project Manager of the Center for Integration Studies of the Eurasian Development Bank, drew attention to the fact that Central Asia was vulnerable to climate change, and this required a coordinated and systematic approach by all countries of the region.
“The Eurasian Green Agenda could become a key platform for representing the common climate interests of the Central Asian and Eurasian region in the public space,” the EDB representative said.
Tigran Galstyan, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Republic of Armenia to the United Nations, emphasized that the regional dimension of sustainable development played a key role in achieving the UN Agenda 2030. Supporting this thesis, Liu Liqun, Adviser to the Permanent Mission of the PRC to the United Nations, noted the active efforts of China and the EAEU countries to improve sustainable economic interconnectivity with their partners, and stated that implementing the Chinese Belt and Road initiative fully contributed to achieving the goals and objectives of the UN Agenda 2030.
For reference
The High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development under the auspices of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) started on July 10, 2023 and is dedicated to drawing up recommendations to accelerate the implementation of the UN Agenda 2030 at the global, regional and national levels. The Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus acted as co-organizers of the EEC round table “Regional Potential for Implementing the SDGs: Partnership to Achieve the Goals”.
In 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Resolution “Transforming Our World. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development". The Sustainable Development Agenda includes 17 goals and 169 objectives that are integrated to balance the three pillars of sustainable development: economic growth, social inclusion and environmental sustainability.
At the end of 2022, the Eurasian Economic Commission published the compendium “Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in the Eurasian Economic Union Region". For the first time ever the compendium presents statistical data on the regional list of indicators for achieving SDGs in the Eurasian Economic Union for 2017-2021. The regional list comprises 130 indicators, including 63 indicators proposed for monitoring at the global level, as well as 67 indicators reflecting development priorities in the EAEU.
In 2017, the EEC presented the report “Achieving the UN SDGs in the EAEU Region” at the ECOSOC Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
