137^th IPU Assembly

St. Petersburg, 14-18 October 2017

Standing Committee on Sustainable Development, Finance and Trade

Bureau Meeting

Item 3                   Sustainable Development Goals

Madam Chair,

Dear colleagues,

This is my first participation in the Bureau meeting.

Therefore, allow me to start my review from an earlier point in time, more precisely, from June 2015, when the Parliament of Romania hosted a first IPU seminar for Central and Eastern Europe, dedicated to sustainable development.

Then, in the autumn of 2015, following the adoption of the UN Agenda 2030, our parliament successfully dealt with the key issue of establishing its own permanent structures for the SGDs, namely: the Standing Committee on Development and Economic Strategy, in the Senate (and this committee is currently chaired by a former President of Romania), and the Sub-Committee on Sustainable Development, in the Chamber of Deputies.

In April 2016, we organised a second IPU regional seminar on the SDGs and the parliament unanimously adopted the Declaration on Sustainable Development Goals, at the proposal of the Romanian IPU Group.

This political document expresses our commitment to take a leading role in sustainable development processes, including - and I cite - “to adapt our structures and working procedures so as to ensure a coherent and unitary approach of the SDGs throughout the entire parliamentary activity, while facilitating the continuity of parliamentary action from one legislative term to another”.

A first feedback came from the Romanian Academy which organised a series of debates aimed at connecting the current National Sustainable Strategy - Horizons 2013-2020-2030, to both the EU Sustainable Development Strategy and the UN Agenda 2030.

This was followed by the establishment, in January 2017, of the Department for Sustainable Development, subordinated directly to the Prime Minister and headed by a former parliamentarian and Vice-Chairman of the Romanian IPU Group.

Together with the existing Inter-Ministerial Committee on Sustainable Development, the department ensures an integrated approach of the UN Agenda and a coherent dialogue with parliament, at various levels. These entities have to submit regular activity reports to the parliament.

At present, we are reflecting on the best modalities to start an internal evaluation of our parliament’s preparedness to engage with the SDGs, using the IPU’s self-assessment tool-kit.

Dear colleagues,

Before concluding, I want to inform you that our parliament hosted recently the launching conference of Romania’s candidacy for a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council for the term 2020-2021, a candidacy whose official motto is A long-term commitment to Peace, Justice and Development.

This is and will be, for sure, a great opportunity for all Romanian policy-makers and stakeholders to renew their support for the leave no on behind desideratum of the 2030 Agenda.

Thank you very much.