NEW YORK, United States of America, January 20, 2016/APO (African Press Organization)/ —
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the appointment of a group of eminent persons to assist in the campaign to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that world leaders unanimously adopted last September.
With a mandate to support the Secretary-General in his efforts to generate momentum and commitment to achieve the SDGs by 2030, the newly named SDG Advocates will add powerful voices to spur action on the visionary and transformational sustainable development agenda. The 17 SDGs aim to end poverty, fight inequalities and tackle climate change, while leaving no one behind.
“The 17 Sustainable Development Goals are our shared vision of humanity and a social contract between the world’s leaders and the people,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. “They are a to-do list for people and planet, and a blueprint for success.”
The SDG Advocates will have the task of promoting the universal sustainable development agenda, raising awareness of the integrated nature of the SDGs, and fostering the engagement of new stakeholders in the implementation of the SDGs.
The diverse group of Advocates will engage with partners from civil society, academia, parliaments, and the private sector to develop new and ground-breaking ideas and ways to promote SDG implementation. The group includes Heads of State and Government, business and political leaders and prominent academia, as well as artists who have shown outstanding leadership in their field.
Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama and Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg will co-chair the group of SDG Advocates. The other Advocates include:
Her Majesty Queen Mathilde of Belgium
Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden
Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Co-Founder Qatar Foundation
Mr. Richard Curtis, Screenwriter, Producer and Film Director
Ambassador Dho Young-Shim, Chairperson, United Nations World Tourism Organization’s Sustainable Tourism for Eliminating Poverty Foundation
Ms. Leymah Gbowee, Director, Gbowee Peace Foundation
Mr. Jack Ma, Founder and Executive Chairman, Alibaba Group
Mrs. Graça Machel, President, Foundation for Community Development
Mr. Leo Messi, World Renowned Footballer, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador
Ms. Alaa Murabit, Founder, The Voice of Libyan Women
Mr. Paul Polman, Chief Executive Officer, Unilever
Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Director, Earth Institute at Colombia University
Ms. Shakira Mebarak, Artist, Advocate and Founder, Pies Descalzos Foundation,
UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador
Mr. Forest Whitaker, Founder and CEO, Whitaker Peace Development Initiative, UNESCO Special Envoy for Peace and Reconciliation
Professor Muhammad Yunus, Founder, Grameen Bank
