The Foreign Affairs Ministry will this year spend €251,862.16 on development projects to impoverished countries. The money will be distributed across 12 different projects from local non-governmental development organisations (NGDOs) across Asia, Africa and South America as part of the government’s Official Development Assistance policy.

The other key sphere of concern in Ethiopia's HDR is sustainable development which contains a selection of 15 key indicators that cover environmental, economic and social aspects. Environmental sustainability indicators are basically related to renewable energy consumption, carbon-dioxide emissions, change in forest area and fresh water withdrawals by which Ethiopia has shown a remarkable leap.

Underlining the importance of sustainable finance for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, senior United Nations officials today called for stronger partnerships with a diverse range of stakeholders to ensure that resource requirements are met. In her opening remarks at the high-level event, SDG Financing Lab – How to finance the SDGs, Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed recalled the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, which was adopted in 2015 at the UN Third International Conference on Financing for Development.

With global leaders heading to the United Nations for a major conference in June on the protection and sustainable use of the planet's oceans, the UN today announced that the inaugural World Ocean Festival will kick off the week-long event, with activists and enthusiasts taking to the streets - and waterways - of New York City to raise their voices to reverse the declining health of our oceans.

Despite public diplomacy efforts by Pacific Alliance and ASEAN members alike emphasizing the desirability of upscaling their relations, actual progress will face challenges on several fronts. [...] Nonetheless, the current context offers the Pacific Alliance and ASEAN an outstanding opportunity to build up their partnership.

I have previously made the case that the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have the potential to provide, for the first time, a framework for mobilizing companies to invest in sustainable development in an ongoing and scalable way, while also pursuing their own business interests. And some companies have taken the lead. 

Singapore’s lifelong ambition to become the smartest city in the world has been supported by its government’s proactive efforts to transform a country with limited resources into one of the most innovative, sustainable and tech-savvy cities in the world. Internet of Things (IoT)-related applications to improve the quality of life, such as behavioural monitoring for smoking, smart parking, CCTV and transport systems are already at mature stages.

Japan already has the tools in place and the commitment – through its broader strategic approach to Africa evidenced by TICAD – to leverage its provision of aid in Africa. The challenge in the coming years will be to shape the narrative about its aid for the local population. Japan needs to look at ways to better connect its programs to its national brand and needs to utilize its diplomatic tools to engage more deeply with people in recipient countries.