Achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs) in Tanzania requires serious commitment from every individual, representatives from civil society organisations (CSOs), local government leaders and private sector operators have said.

They made this known at a meeting organised by the Association of Non-Governmental Organisations of Zanzibar (ANGOZA) to raise SDGs awareness.

The SDGs, adopted by the United Nations in 2015, contain 17 goals covering a broad range of issues such as ending poverty, hunger, improving health and education, and combating climate change.

In Tanzania, SDGs are understood to be implemented through national medium-term plans, namely, the National Five-Year Development Plan and the Zanzibar Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty.

At the meeting, the Executive Director for ANGOZA, Hassan Juma, noted that there was a link between SDGs and the ‘Zanzibar Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty III (MKUZA III)’, which was designed to improve the quality of life and well-being of the people of Zanzibar.

According to him, the SDGs and MKUZA III strategic plan aims to improve access to health care, educate populations, address poverty, nutrition, clean energy, inequality, sustainability, innovation, justice, and every other goal in the SDGs.

A Facilitator from the Youth of United Nations Association of Zanzibar (YUNA Zanzibar), Ame Haji Ali, said if people show commitment in working with the government and other decision makers, the SDGs will be achieved.

‘What is required is your full participation, because the planned goal is for our benefits’, Ali said.

‘The government and development partners have been working hard to implement the plans for our benefit, but our support remains important’.

Source: Daily News

Photo source: Andrew Fackler