By Sami Zaptia.
London, 14 March 2021:
The First International Maghreb Conference on Sustainable Development opened in Tunis on Friday and will continue until Tuesday 16 March.
Organized by Libya’s National Planning Council and Zawia University, the event was supposed to take place in Tripoli but the country’s instability and the Coronavirus pandemic forced organizers to transfer to the Libyan-owned LAICO hotel, Tunis.
Libya’s National Oil Corporation, the Ministries of Planning and Labour, the Audit Bureau and UNDP Libya were all participating in the event.
The conference was split between participating speakers physically present at the conference hall in Tunis and those participating virtually. The event investigated development within the UN 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development Goals. Over 300 papers were accepted for the 5-day event.
The event noted that the concept of sustainable development must be taken into account, and this needs to be inclusive and integrated in economic, social, cultural, environmental and operational dimensions, with the aim of achieving sustainable development for the well-being of society.
The conference noted that sustainable development should not be limited to one sector while trying to shed light on the most important developments in sustainable development and differentiating between reality and aspiration.
It was noted that given the changes that the Arab region in general and the Maghreb countries in particular are experiencing, it was time to consider sustainable development at a strategic level to create and fulfil the Maghreb’s visions.
The strategic visions must come up with a set of central issues at the political, economic and social levels. These will include the role of the public sector, the private sector and both local and international organisations in implementing sustainable development goals, and their implications for the United Nations 2030 Vision.
