On 10 July, 2020 Armenia presented the second Voluntary National Review Report on the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (the first report was presented in July 2018) during the High-Level Political Forum implemented under the auspices of the UN Economic and Social Council.
Mher Margaryan, Permanent Representative of Armenia to the United Nations, chaired the High-Level Political Forum as a Vice President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
The RA evaluation report was presented via a video- message. It reflected the measures taken towards the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Armenia since 2018, the achievements of the Republic of Armenia, as well as the current challenges and innovative solutions to overcome them. Reference was also made to the situation in the country following the spread of the coronavirus and the efforts made by the Government to neutralize the consequences.
The chairman of the RA Council for Sustainable Development Goals, RA Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan delivered a message in the video, in which he particularly noted.
“Armenia is honored to present the second Voluntary National Assessment Report, which is the result of the collective efforts of the Government, the UN Office in Armenia and the civil society. The Republic of Armenia has been fully committed to implementing the UN Sustainable Development Agenda 2030. The SDGs and their targets are universal values and their implementation benefits all countries, peoples, and the entire planet. On behalf of the Government of Armenia, I would like to underline our efforts for national development planning. In the past two years, a new package of sectoral and cross-sectoral strategies has been developed, which includes more than two dozen areas. At the same time, the government is developing the “Transformation Strategy of Armenia 2050″, which consists of 16 mega-goals with their targets, indicators, tasks and solutions, which cover almost all the SDGs”.
The report was followed by a Q&A session. RA Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Artak Apitonyan answered the questions.
Touching upon the issue of increasing energy efficiency raised by the Egyptian representative, Artak Apitonyan singled out the 13th goal of “Transformation Strategy of Armenia 2050”, which is aimed at providing access to renewable energy sources in Armenia for the general public, which in turn will promote the implementation of the 7th, 13th and 15th SDGs.
Answering the question asked by the Mexican representative on the measures taken to increase the role of women in the social and political life of Armenia, the RA Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs noted that after the early parliamentary elections in December 2018, women participation in the RA National Assembly increased to 24%. Apitonyan also referred to the strategies and laws adopted in the field of women’s rights protection in Armenia as well as the steps taken by the Republic of Armenia in the fight against domestic violence.
The representative of Kyrgyzstan asked a question about anti-corruption measures in Armenia, to which the RA Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs noted that primary goals of the RA Government after the velvet and non-violent revolution in 2018 is to fight corruption, strengthen the rule of law and improve the judicial system. The Deputy Minister presented the steps taken by the RA Government in the mentioned directions.
During the Q&A session, the Russian representative asked about Armenia’s practice of using high technologies in the traditional areas of the Armenian economy. Apitonyan singled out the programs for the use of high technologies in the field of agriculture and the launch of digital agriculture, both are reflected in the RA Agricultural Development Strategy 2020-2030.
