Speech by Acting President of the Government at Sustainable Development Goals Summit

New York

PEDRO SÁNCHEZ, Acting President of the Government.

Acting President of the Government.- Thank you very much, Mr President,

For my country, for Spain, the 2030 Agenda is a roadmap that allows us to tackle current challenges and contribute to shared and sustainable development at a global level; and this is so for three reasons.

Firstly, because it is an agenda that allows us to tackle the major common challenges with a collective spirit and from a multilateral perspective. Challenges such as climate change, the transition to a carbon-free economy, social inclusion, the digital revolution and the fight against inequality and discrimination.

Secondly, because it is an agenda for peace and solidarity, between people, villages, countries, communities, between the young and the old. It is also an inter-generational agenda. It is an integral agenda that fosters sustainable development for everyone, and that places people and the planet at the heart of political action.

And finally, because it is a mobilising agenda. It mobilises civil society, the private sector, academia and institutions as a whole; stakeholders that are forging alliances and developing strategies in line with the efforts of the Government of Spain.

And we are doing this with a participative, multi-level focus to gain legitimacy, efficiency, coherence and impact.

The 2030 Agenda is also a meeting point in Spain. Political willpower, the consensus forged in our Parliament, the commitment of our citizens, and the involvement of all tiers of government and of the public administration are fundamental levers for placing the SDG at the heart of our vision of the future.

Our action plan for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda identifies a set of actions, that we have called "lever policies" to speed up progress of the SDG as a whole.

These actions seek to create and ensure coherence, synergies, connecting parties, sectors and policies in a common integrating vision.

Among these lever policies, we have adopted the National Strategy to Fight Poverty, the Strategic Energy and Climate Framework, the Strategic Plan for Equal opportunities, for gender equality, the New Spanish Urban Agenda, the Master Plan for Dignified Work and, consequently, the fight against exploitation at work, and the Master Plan for Development Cooperation, incorporating the gender perspective and also the LGBTI perspective.

And among these transforming measures, it is noteworthy to stress the alignment of the National Budget and public procurement with the SDG, the incorporation of education for sustainable development in our education reform and the demand for an evaluation of the impact of any measure with the SDG.

In short, we find ourselves at a critical moment for attaining the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Our time is limited, there is no planet B. The next decade must be one of action, commitment and results. Once again, a global social contract, which is what I call for and what the 2030 Agenda represents.

Your Excellences, you will always be able count on Spain to achieve this over the coming decade.

Thank you for your attention.

(Transcript revised by the State Secretariat for Communication)

Non official translation