Opening remarks by Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in Belarus Joanna Kazana-Wisniowiecki at the meeting of the National Council for Sustainable Development

I would also like to thank the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for their support in holding this meeting on climate change.

Climate change is one of the top priorities on the UN’s agenda and this challenge has become even more acute in the period of COVID-19 pandemic.

I am grateful to everyone in the audience for their efforts to expand the circle of people engaged in climate action.This is the problem that concerns us all, no matter what we do in our professional life.

The National Council for Sustainable Development plays an important role in coordinating the cross-sectoral aspects of greening transition in Belarus.   Green economic growth is reflected in the National Development Strategy and multiple sectoral five-year national plans and programmes.Green transition for inclusive and sustainable growth is the first accelerator and one of four pillars of the UN’s Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework. 

The UN Country Team is ready to complement these efforts not only through the activities of seven agencies present in the country, of which UNDP has been  the entry point on climate issues, but also through the 12  non-resident agencies, most of which have a proven record on climate change agendas, such as UNECE, UNCTAD, FAO, UNIDO, and ITU.  

We all remained active during the pandemic and have rolled out impactful initiatives in Belarus. Work has been ongoing and/or is planned on key areas, including on green urban development plans at the district level (e.g. plans for Polotsk, Novopolotsk and Novogrudok), smart sustainable city profiles (i.e. Grodno), technical cooperation and trainings to improve energy efficiency standards for buildings, and the piloting of “People First” Public Private Partnerships, amongst many other initiatives.

Green transitions require financing.  In Belarus, the main source of climate investments is the national budget.The external resources are very important and we are going to leverage such resources.

As relevant as ever is the results-based budgeting, which will help make public finance more aligned with the SDGs. 

Last year UN agencies started a new joint UN SDG Fund project in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance. As part of this initiative, a development finance assessment of environmental expenditures will be undertaken by UNDP.  

Let me also use this forum to share that after two years of consultations, the UN will soon be launching the big new SDG project funded by the Russian Federation, which, I hope, will open new opportunities to further engage experts amongst all relevant stakeholders, including civil society, academia and the private sector.

I thank you for your cooperation and look forward to further engagement and constructive dialogue as we step-up to the climate challenge and other problems that we are all facing together today.