National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan (R) receives Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Martin Chungong (Photo VNA)Da Nang (VNA) – National AssemblyChairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan hosted a reception for Secretary General of theInter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Martin Chungong on the sidelines of a conferencethemed “The National Assembly and the sustainable development goals” held inthe central coastal city of Da Nang on December 17.
The NA leader praised Martin Chungong for hisattention to promoting the role of the parliament in monitoring theimplementation of sustainable development goals (SDGs). She noted that the IPU SecretaryGeneral had proposed and supported Vietnam’s organisation of the IPUAsia-Pacific conference on response to climate change – action of legislators torealise SDGs in Ho Chi Minh City in May 2017.
[Vietnamese NA working for sustainable development: Chairwoman]
According to Ngan, the NA Committee for ExternalRelations held the conference on “The National Assembly and the sustainabledevelopment goals” in coordination with the United Nations (UN) and IPUagencies with the aim of enhancing the role of the parliament in implementingSDGs in each country and disseminating a toolkit for self assessment in thisfield. The toolkit was jointly developed by the IPU and the UN DevelopmentProgramme, and was announced last year.
Besides studying the toolkit, the Vietnamese NA haslearned experience from some countries, the NA Chairwoman said, adding that theconference is the first step for deputies of the NA and local People’s Councilsto start building action plans to promote the implementation of SDGs that suit thepriorities, requirements and development context of each locality.
The top legislator took this occasion to thankMartin Chungong for his active contributions to the relations between the VietnameseNA and the IPU, especially enhancing the participation of the NA in thisimportant forum.
She thanked the IPU Secretary General and theIPU Executive Committee for their approval of the Asia-Pacific group’s nominationof Nguyen Van Giau – Chairman of the NA Committee for External Relations, asVice President of the committee for the 2018-2019 tenure.
Chungong said Vietnam is a model in the implementation of SDGs programmes andprojects.
He noted that Vietnam, as an active member ofthe IPU, has been selected as one of the Asian-Pacific countries to popularisethe SDGs self-assessment toolkit among deputies of the NA and all-levelPeople’s Councils.
The IPU is willing to support Vietnam in usingthe toolkit to supervise the implementation of SDGs, he affirmed.
The IPU Secretary General mentioned thenutrition matter as part of the SDGs, noting that the IPU is ready to partnerwith Vietnam in this area.
Chairwoman Ngan informed her guest that at thisconference, Vietnamese ministries will affirm their commitments to implementingthe SDGs, including that on nutrition.
During the process of striving for fulfillingthe SDGs, each ministry, agency and locality will use the toolkit to assesstheir progress, which she said will help the NA in deciding priorities towardsachieving the SDGs.-VNA
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