By Maxwell Awumah
Ho, May 2 (GNA) — African stakeholders, including ministers, officials, experts, and civil society, adopted the Addis Ababa Declaration, calling for urgent, coordinated, transformative action to accelerate implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and Africa’s Agenda 2063.
The Declaration was adopted at the close of the 12th session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development, held in Addis Ababa, which ended on April 30. The forum was held under the theme: “Turning the tide: transformative and coordinated actions for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, of the African Union.”
The forum, monitored by the Ghana News Agency, brought together ministers, parliamentarians, United Nations entities, the African Union Commission, the African Development Bank, regional organizations, civil society, academia, the private sector, youth groups, cultural institutions, and faith-based organizations.
Participants expressed deep concern that Africa remains significantly off track in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Progress is slow on 12 goals and regressing on five. Major gaps highlighted include limited access to safe drinking water and sanitation, energy poverty affecting about 600 million Africans, weak industrialization, rapid urbanization, rising debt burdens, and an annual SDG financing gap estimated between $670 billion and $848 billion.
The Declaration urges African countries to scale up action in five priority SDG areas under review in 2026:
Clean water and sanitation, Affordable and clean energy, Industry, innovation, and infrastructure, Sustainable cities and communities and Partnerships for the Goals
On water and sanitation, ministers called for stronger political leadership, sustainable financing, improved governance, ecosystem protection, reduced pollution, expanded wastewater treatment, and recognition of water as a driver of jobs, growth, resilience, and peacebuilding.
In the energy sector, the Declaration emphasizes accelerated investment in decentralized renewable energy, clean cooking solutions, regional power pools, energy efficiency, digitalization, and innovative financing models to expand access to reliable and affordable power.
On industry, innovation, and infrastructure, countries were urged to adopt forward-looking strategies aligned with megatrends such as artificial intelligence, the green transition, digital connectivity, evolving supply chains, and demographic shifts. Increased investment in climate-resilient infrastructure, digital skills, science and technology, and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area was also emphasized.
The Declaration further calls for cities to be treated as engines of inclusive growth and structural transformation. It advocates increased investment in affordable housing, slum upgrading, resilient infrastructure, land-use planning, domestic revenue generation, digital public infrastructure, and safer urban environments, particularly for vulnerable populations including children.
On financing and partnerships, ministers urged reforms to the international financial architecture, stronger domestic resource mobilization, development of local currency capital markets, expanded use of blended finance, sustainable debt solutions, and the operationalization of an Africa credit rating agency to reduce borrowing costs and boost investor confidence.
The Addis Ababa Declaration will serve as Africa’s regional input to major global processes, including the 2026 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, the 2026 United Nations Water Conference, and the World Water Forum. It also outlines Africa’s priorities for follow-up to key global events such as the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development and the 30th session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties.
The Declaration welcomes Ethiopia’s upcoming hosting of COP32, describing it as an opportunity for Africa to shift from commitments to implementation, advance adaptation and resilience solutions, and secure climate outcomes aligned with the continent’s development priorities.
Looking beyond 2030, ministers called for active and unified African engagement in shaping the next global sustainable development framework. They stressed the need for alignment with Agenda 2063, stronger accountability mechanisms, broader measures of progress beyond GDP, and prioritization of financing, technology transfer, trade, capacity-building, and inclusion.
The Declaration places particular emphasis on young people, women, and vulnerable communities, recognizing them as co-creators and drivers of sustainable development. It calls for enhanced participation, targeted investments, improved access to finance and technology, and future-ready skills development.
The forum was organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa in collaboration with the African Union Commission, the African Development Bank, and other United Nations system entities.
GNA
Edited by: Audrey Dekalu