UNDP calls for combined efforts towards SDGs implementation               

Rikke Sig Hansen and Elizabeth Ampairwe at the SDG partnership meeting at Fairway Hotel. Photo by Jeff Andrew Lule

The UNDP SDGs co-ordination specialist in Office of the Prime Minsiter, Rikke Sig Hansen has called for combined efforts among the various Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to effectively implement the targeted Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Hansen told CSOs that nothing can be achieved in isolation during the implementation process.

She was speaking during a partnership discussion on the progress of SDGs 3 and 5, by CSOs at Fairway Hotel in Kampala.

SGD 3 calls for ensuring healthy lives and promotes well-being for all while SDG 5 emphasises gender equality and empowering all women and girls.

Hansen asked the CSOs to use the existing structures to co-ordinate on various SDG roles to avoid duplication during their activities.

"This helps you to deal with Government closely. It also helps you to know who is doing what and where on SDGs to avoid replication and wasting resources," she added.

She urged CSOs to always engage local leaders in their activities to easily promote SDGs among the communities.

The CSOs blamed the slow progress towards the achievement of the Sustainable SDGs to limited funding from Government.

They argue that since the SDGs came into effect in 2016, Government's commitments remain on paper but without the required funding.

The programme director Women and Leadership Programme at the Forum for Women in Democracy (FOWODE), Elizabeth Ampairwe said service delivery remains a challenge in various sectors, especially in health because of low budgets.

Ampairwe also noted that CSOs' space was shrinking because of the Government crackdown.

"CSOs like ActionAid have been playing a supplementary role to the Government," she noted.