ASEAN launches Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Indicators
HA NOI, 23 October 2020 – The General Statistics Office (GSO) Viet Nam, in collaboration with ASEANstats and supported by the ARISE Plus Project, convened in a virtual conference to launch the ASEAN SDG Indicators Baseline Report 2020 and the ASEAN Online Database for SDG Indicators.
As the role of ASEAN Statistical Chairman in 2020, Vietnam has proposed the initiative “Establishing the statistical information system on sustainable development of ASEAN”. This initiative has received the consensus and actively participated in the implementation of all ASEAN member countries.
The inaugural ASEAN report on SDG indicators aims to establish the baseline information of the SDGs being tracked and measured in the region to aid the monitoring of progress in achieving the global agenda as well as supporting relevant policy making at the national and regional levels. This report presents the data for ASEAN and the AMS as gathered and compiled by the NSSs and the NSOs in the region from 2016 – 2018.
Director General of GSO Vietnam Dr. Nguyen Thi Huong opened the event, along with Ambassador of the European Union to ASEAN Igor Driesmans and Director of the ASEAN Integration Monitoring Directorate of the ASEAN Secretariat Julia Tijaja who all gave their opening remarks.
Dr. Julia Tijaja speaking out of the ASEAN Community’s vision to 2025 has complemented the UN Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development with efforts to improve the living standards of people in the ASEAN community. This is reflected in the Blueprint 2025 of the ASEAN Economic Community and Socio-Cultural Community, which is committed to achieving sustainable socio-economic development of ASEAN. Mr. Igor Driesmans has shown a great appreciation for the Early Report, emphasizing that the SDG indicators play an important role in making policies for sustainable development of member countries. This is also an important tool to ensure the transparency of statistical indicators.
The SDGs are based on 6 themes including: dignity, people, planet, partnership, justice and prosperity. The SDGs are more comprehensive than the MDGs and include 17 goals, defined by 169 specific goals and 232 indicators. These goals go beyond social development, including the goals for climate change, economic inequality, innovation, sustainable consumption, peace, equity… These goals are reciprocally connecting and being successful in one goal will often solve problems in another area.
ACSS conveyed its appreciation to the ASEAN Regional Integration Support by the European Union (ARISE) Plus Project for their support in improving statistical capacity in AMS and the ASEAN Secretariat.
The ASEAN SDG Indicators Baseline Report 2020 is available at https://www.aseanstats.org/publication/asean-sdg-report-2020/
The Online Database for ASEAN SDG Indicators is accessible at https://data.aseanstats.org/sdg