Gov't passes Strategy for Sustainable Development of Romania 2030

The Government approved on Friday the National Strategy for Sustainable Development of Romania 2030, a document prepared under the coordination of the Department for Sustainable Development.

The department's coordinator, Laszlo Borbely, has shown that more than it took more than one year to work out the strategy, behind the final form of which was an extensive public consultation.

"We have tried to get involved as many social categories as possible, to bring together different visions and arguments so that we can achieve this framework for development. The work done with my colleagues at the department was not easy, but I always had the drive and energy because we knew that sustainability is the only solution for future generations," Borbely is quoted as saying in a press statement released by the government.

The National Strategy for Sustainable Development of Romania 2030 provides for the main guidelines for the implementation of Agenda 2030, taken up by 193 states at the UN General Assembly in 2015.

Borbely said that the adoption of the strategy was essential for the Romanian presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2019.

"Sustainable development will be a priority for the Romanian presidency of the Council of the European Union. The strategy adopted today is further helping us coordinate the implementation of the Agenda 2030 at a national as well as European level. The European Union wants to stay the global leader in implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals. In this favourable context, Romania has the unique chance to be a real regional hub of sustainable development," said Borbely.

The 17 objectives of the Strategy for Sustainable Development of Romania 2030 include three essential pillars: economic development; social equity and the environment. Moreover, the document proposes the establishment of an organisational framework: the Interdepartmental Committee on Sustainable Development, headed by the prime minister; nuclei for sustainable development at each relevant organisation; an Advisory Council for Sustainable Development, made up of specialists; supporting the formation of a coalition for sustainable development made up of leaders of the civil society.

"Every day, through our actions, we try to get closer to meeting the 17 goals. Today we have taken a big step, but the path to sustainable development continues. The next stage will be completed when we design an action plan. The challenge is to create a critical mass of the majority of Romanian citizens supporting this project. We will do this by opening up to citizens and shaping the organisational framework that we are proposing in the strategy," said Borbely. AGERPRES (RO - author: Irinela Visan, editor: Mihai Simionescu; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)