“Women’s participation in all sectors will improve Lebanon’s standards [across the board],” said Prime Minister Saad Hariri Monday, during a speech at the “Making Global Goals Local Business” forum held at the Grand Serail.
Hariri stressed that, owing plans such as the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris climate agreement, “the world has a common agenda to work [towards], in which everyone, including citizens, businesses and leaders have a vital role to play.”
Reflecting on Lebanon’s progress towards achieving the SDGs – 17 targets set by the U.N. General Assembly in 2015, which aim to “end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all” – Hariri said that the country is taking a serious approach. He also mentioned governmental efforts and the work of MP Dima Jamali, president of the U.N. Global Compact Network in Lebanon.
“I know us Lebanese, how we get excited about something, and after a few years, months, or days we get bored,” said Hariri, adding that “this time, we have women working on it ... which means [that the SDGs are] going to be achieved in Lebanon.”
The “Making Global Goals Local Business” forum is an annual event in Lebanon, organized by the U.N. Global Compact and Global Compact Network Lebanon, gathering regional and global leaders from business, civil society, government and Global Compact Local Networks in the Middle East, in order to discuss and drive collective action on the SDGs.
