Resident Coordinator's remarks at the UNSDCF Civil Society consultation

Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen, 

Dear friends,

Good morning. I am pleased to welcome you today at this Civil society consultation workshop, which is being held as part of the process for developing the UN Strategic and Sutainable Development Cooperation Framework between the United Nations and the Government of Bahrain for 2025-2029.

I would like to start by thanking Derasat for bringing us together, and for being the longstanding partner of the United Nations in Bahrain. 

Also thank you all for your presence and your engagement. 

The development of the new Cooperation Framework for Bahrain is taking place at a critical time for Agenda 2030 for sustainable development, which is in peril globally.

More than halfway to the deadline, the Sustainable Development Goals -the SDGs- are severely off-track worldwide.

But against this backdrop, there are signs of hope. 

World leaders gathered at the SDG Summit at the UN Headquarters in NY in September last year. 

They adopted a political declaration that provides a road map for resetting the world's trajectory toward achieving the SDGs by 2030. 

In September this year, the Summit of the Future in New York will unite world leaders to forge a new international consensus on delivering a better present and safeguarding the future. 

The Summit will be pivotal to turbocharge the SDGs and reinvigorate multilateralism.

It is within this context that the United Nations Country Team in Bahrain is gearing up as part of its longstanding partnership with the Government of Bahrain to continue supporting the Kingdom in achieving the SDGs by the 2030 deadline. 

During this consultative process, we have been building on the important results achieved during the the current cooperation framework, as well as the strong coopeation mechanisms developed during the past years with the Governenent of Bahrain, Private sector, and Civil society.

Dear participants, 

Civil society organizations were present in San Francisco at the founding of the United Nations and have been an integral part of the United Nations ecosystem from the outset. 

And today more than ever, civil society has a fundamental role to play in shaping a future that needs multilateral approaches to ensure an inclusive, sustainable, and safe society for all. 

Worldwide and in Bahrain, the Civil society is always looking for better engagement with the United Nations system, and it is essential for the United Nations to listen to, coordinate with, and engage with civil society.  

On 9-10 May 2024 in Nairobi, the United Nations Civil Society Conference will provide a unique venue for civil society to participate in the preparations process for the Summit of the Future, including the Pact for the Future negotiations.

In the same spirit, today’s workshop is  a golden opportunity for you to share your feedback and suggestions for the priorities and planned activities of the UN Country Team under the new UNSDCF. We will make sure your vision is captured and acted upon in the coming future. Your input will help us determine how we can best help Bahrain achieve the SDGs by the 2030 deadline.

Thank you again for your presence and your engagement!

We look forward to learning from you.