The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic will delay Nigeria for 6 years in achieving its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs.), Njenje Media News reports.
IMF managing director, Kristalina Georgieva noted that delay in Rwanda would be five years at a United Nations high level political forum on sustainable-development.
According to LEADERSHIP, the SDGs, also known as the global goals, were adopted by all UN member States in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030.
Georgieva said IMF assessment of the process has indicated that the financing needs of the SDGs will increase by an average annual 2½ percentage points of GDP, or almost $60 billion per year for all low-income countries.
“In other words, the road to travel has become tougher,” she said, “Enormous challenges are faced by all countries with high vulnerabilities. In Nigeria, for instance, because of the pandemic, the country faces a six-year delay in achieving its SDGs. In Rwanda, it is five years.”
Achieving the SDGs requires the partnership of governments, private sector, civil society and citizens alike to make sure we leave a better planet for future generations
“For the first time in 20 years, the unthinkable is happening. We are losing the fight against poverty. Global poverty is significantly increasing. It is an economic calamity—and a human tragedy,” Georgieva stated.
The IMF MD said policymakers must take the necessary actions now to vaccinate at least 60 per cent in all countries by mid-2022.
Georgieva said IMF analyzed the financing gaps to achieve the SDGs in five key sectors: education, health, roads, electricity, and water & sanitation.
The fund says it wants to see countries focusing on pro-growth structural reforms, supported by more fiscal capacity through domestic resource mobilization. It also said reforms that support a favorable business climate can help spur private sector investment in development.
Georgieva however said transformative reforms require the world to stand by countries that are facing this risk of falling behind. “And this is where the international community has a tremendous responsibility to step up.”
