Goal Green: Sudan Makes Headway toward Greener, Friendlier Economy

For the first time in Sudan a high-level roundtable meeting on Potentials for Green Investment was held yesterday to discuss the prospects for a green economy in Sudan. Organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and National Forestry,  the roundtable brought together over one hundred participants including economic experts, civil society members, policy makers, donors and media representatives to discuss approaches for promoting sustainable development and growth while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities in the country.
Addressing the opening session, UNDP Country Director Sayed Aqa reaffirmed UNDP’s   commitment in assisting the provision of technical assistance for the smooth transition of Sudan into a ‘green economy’. According to Mr. Aqa “Existing studies concurrently indicate that the MDGs, sustainable development goals and national objectives could not be achieved with the business-as-usual, “brown economy” model. According to the recent Rio+20 Conference, by 2030, it is estimated that the world will need at least fifty percent more food, forty-five percent more energy, and thirty percent more freshwater. The message is that this approach cannot be sustained for long without making a paradigm shift. Thus, greening the economy is a stepping stone towards achieving the long-term goal of sustainable development.”
For his part, the Undersecretary of Ministry of Environment, Forestry & Physical Development, Dr. Babiker Ibrahim welcomed this new initiative and expressed hope that this roundtable will support the transition to a greener economy approach in Sudan. Dr. Ibrahim noted that “Sudan has enormous alternative sources of energy. In a country where daylight exceeds 9 hours daily, it rather shameful that solar energy is not used. Wind energy is another source of energy that is not being utilized effectively. We are trying our best to change policies that govern industries work in Sudan and this roundtable is a good starting point.” 
The findings of the roundtable discussion will provide an important input to inform Sudan’s follow-up actions to the Rio+20 conference including the establishment of Sustainable Development Goals in Sudan as part of the Post-2015 Development Agenda.