African nations reiterate commitment to accelerate the achievement of SDGs

The Eight Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD 2022) ended on 05 March 2022, with the adoption of the Kigali Declaration on good practices and solutions to enhance implementation of the sustainable development goals in Africa.
Adopted by all 54 member states in attendance, the Kigali Declaration urges African countries to link mutually reinforcing policies for sustainable development and COVID-19 recovery to ensure inclusive emergence from the pandemic.
The document calls on African countries to leverage new tools, innovative solutions, and technology, including through enhanced partnerships with the private sector, academia, non-governmental, civil-society, and other stakeholders to build strong, agile, sustainable, and resilient national statistical systems.
It also highlighted the need for countries to leverage the potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) to support the development of regional value chains, citing the case of minerals used in the production of batteries and electric vehicles as an example.