Minister Hassan attends meetings on the margins of the 78th UNGA |25 September 2023
Minister Hassan addressing the SDG Summit
The Minister for Finance, National Planning & Trade, Naadir Hassan, represented Seychelles in several high-level meetings at the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly, held between September 18-25, 2023 in New York.
The key messages during his interventions were centred on the urgency of having a revamped and inclusive global financial architecture that suits the needs of all countries no matter the income status, including the adoption of the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) and the new Programme of Action for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) at the Fourth International Conference on SIDS in 2024.
Minister Hassan delivered a statement at the ‘High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development – SDG Summit’ convened by Ambassador Dennis Francis, President of the General Assembly. As the world marked the half-way point to the deadline established for achieving the 2030 Agenda, world leaders responded to the multifaceted impacts and interlocking global crisis.
In his address, Minister Hassan underscored the importance of mobilising sufficient finance and investments to turn the SDGs into concrete realities and the urgent need for the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) to be adopted so that vulnerable small island developing states (Sids) with high-come status are granted access to concessional finance.
“In the absence of the MVI, Seychelles like other Sids will continue to be excluded from much-needed finance,” said the minister.
He further added that financing is not merely an imperative for the implementation of the SDGs but rather a moral obligation to ensure a prosperous and equitable future for all.
Minister Hassan equally highlighted the strategies that the Seychelles government is undertaking especially in the promotion of public-private partnerships and in identifying suitable innovative finance mechanisms that will provide the fiscal space to promote sustainable development. This was during the Interactive Roundtable 1: ‘Fostering debt sustainability and strengthening the global financial safety net’ of the ‘High-Level Dialogue on Financing for Development’ where he mentioned that “with the aim of building economic resilience, the government of Seychelles has committed to a sustainable debt pathway with a target of 50% debt-to-GDP ratio by 2030”.
Additionally, the UN general assembly convened the preparatory ministerial meeting aimed at enhancing global cooperation to tackle critical challenges, addressing gaps in global governance including the United Nations Charter and making a multilateral system that is better positioned to achieve global prosperity.
“We are critically off-track, but we have an opportunity to get back on a path that promises a sustainable world for all. Agenda 2030 provides us with a blueprint to deliver on this promise,” affirmed the minister during his address.
He also expressed the fervent commitment of Seychelles to the SDGs, and called for initiatives in bridging digital divides through capacity building and technology transfer.
Minister Hassan also met with Dr Arjoon Suddhoo, the deputy secretary general (DSG) of the Commonwealth in the margins of the UNGA. The aim of the discussion was for the DSG to brief Minister Hassan on the Commonwealth Artificial Intelligence and the action plan that was adopted during a sideline meeting of the UNGA. The action plan seeks support from Champion Countries on the implementation of AI in four critical areas: Research and Innovation, Policy, Capacity Building and Infrastructure.
Dr Suddhoo explained that the focus would be to identify impactful projects for delivery across Commonwealth member states.
He mentioned that there is a need to digitalise data in Africa and that it is his hope that Seychelles would be one of the hubs of the continent.
In his response, Minister Hassan expressed the desire of the government of Seychelles to join the group of champions and since the country has embarked on a digital transformation agenda.
“This is the time to seize such opportunities and foster economic and development growth through new digital age,” noted Minister Hassan.
Press release from the Ministry of Finance, National Planning & Trade
