The United Nations and the Federal Government have renewed calls for stronger collaboration, innovative financing and accelerated implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), warning that only four years remain to meet the 2030 targets.
The call was made on Monday during the United Nations Joint Steering Committee Meeting of the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) in Abuja, where senior government officials and the UN reviewed progress on Nigeria's development priorities.
The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Nigeria, Mohamed Malick Fall, said the pace of progress on the SDGs in Nigeria and globally remained inadequate, urging stakeholders to shift from policy discussions to concrete implementation.
According to him, achieving the SDGs now requires greater speed, scale and efficiency, particularly through innovation, technology, data-driven planning and stronger domestic resource mobilisation.
Fall noted that shrinking global development assistance, climate change, conflicts and economic pressures have made it necessary for governments and development partners to explore alternative financing models and attract greater private sector participation.
Despite the challenges, he maintained that Nigeria possesses enormous economic and human potential capable of transforming the country's development trajectory.
"Only four years remain to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, yet progress on many indicators is too slow. What we need now is speed and scale—we must move from talking about development to delivering measurable results," he said.
He added: "Nigeria has enormous potential. We must shift the narrative from focusing on challenges to unlocking opportunities through innovation, domestic resource mobilisation, private sector investment and technology to transform the lives of millions of Nigerians."
Also speaking, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, called on the UN and development partners to support Nigeria in mobilising innovative financing and private sector investments to bridge the funding gap for sustainable development.
Bagudu said ongoing macroeconomic reforms had created a more stable investment environment and freed resources for national development, but stressed that government funding alone would not be enough to achieve the SDGs.
He said Nigeria's vision of becoming a $1 trillion economy by 2030 aligns with the global development agenda, adding that lifting millions of Nigerians out of poverty would significantly improve global SDG outcomes.
The minister also unveiled plans to transform Nigeria's 8,809 wards into centres of prosperity through targeted investments and development programmes while reaffirming the government's commitment to expanding investments in health, education, human capital and economic opportunities.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr. Bernard M. Doro, also reiterated the Federal Government's commitment to inclusive development under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's Renewed Hope Agenda.
He highlighted the One Humanitarian, One Poverty Response System (OHOPRS) as the government's flagship platform for integrating humanitarian response, social protection and poverty reduction under a coordinated national framework.
Doro said the initiative, supported by the newly established National Poverty Intelligence Lab, would strengthen real-time poverty data collection, improve programme targeting and enhance accountability.
He called for deeper collaboration among governments, the UN, development partners, civil society organisations and the private sector to accelerate poverty reduction and ensure that no Nigerian is left behind.