Saudi authorities stressed the importance of international cooperation in overcoming global challenges, as they highlighted the country's progress in working towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals, in line with the Kingdom's own 2030 Development Vision and Diversity Agenda. It was released during the 2022 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, a UN platform to follow up and review progress on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

During the forum, the Saudi delegation held a virtual meeting on the Kingdom's efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It is led by representatives of the Ministry of Economy and Planning and also includes participants from the Ministry of Education, Human Resources and Social Development, the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Water and Agriculture, and the General Directorate of Statistics. Delegates emphasized the Kingdom's commitment to accelerating its sustainable development efforts in cooperation and coordination with the international community, discussed progress made to date, and highlighted the Kingdom's current contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals and future plans. Set in 2015 to achieve these goals by 2030, the SDGs are 17 interconnected global goals covering a wide range of issues, including education, gender equality, marine life, life on land and partnerships, designed to help achieve A better, more sustainable future for all.

Regarding the Kingdom's efforts to improve the quality of education, delegates highlighted the strengthening of investments in the capabilities of Saudi youth, who play an important role in the country's future plans and ambitious development vision. About 40% of Saudi Arabia's population is under the age of 25, and authorities are looking to open up new avenues of education, including e-learning and digital skills. On gender equality, delegates spoke about what the Kingdom had already achieved through recent initiatives and its goals to further increase women's participation in the labour market. They highlighted findings from the World Bank's 2020 Women, Business and Law report, which highlighted the Kingdom's tremendous progress on the issue, with its rating improving from 70.6 percent in 2020 to 80 percent in 2021.

Another topic discussed during the meeting was the Kingdom's ongoing pioneering scientific and technological projects to protect marine life, including a six-week joint project with OceanX on its OceanXplorer vessel, which will conduct scientific research to improve understanding of marine life. awareness. the kingdom's marine ecosystems and help improve the protection of coral reefs and the wider marine environment. In addition, delegates discussed Saudi plans to combat desertification, as well as the Saudi Green Initiative, which aims to reduce carbon emissions by 278 million tons a year and plant 10 billion trees locally.

They also highlighted a number of other initiatives, including the National Environmental Awareness and Sustainability Plan, plans to increase the use of locally and regionally grown native plants in parks and public spaces, and the launch of the Youth Green Summit, aimed at providing future youth in the Kingdom and abroad Leaders provide the necessary knowledge and skills to ensure a more sustainable future. Talking about the importance of partnerships and international cooperation, the Saudi representative stressed the need for enhanced sharing of data and statistics to help alleviate the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic that has hindered effective data collection.Editor/XingWentao