4TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SIDS – SIDS4_27-30 MAY, 2024 - ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA

Cabo Verde will be hosting two side events in partnership with UNESCO and United Nations Country Team in Cabo Verde, respectively, during SIDS4.

Culture in the SIDS Programme of Action 2024-2034 |Youth-Decision makers Panel discussion

The proposed side event aims to advocate for culture as a strategic component of SIDS development prospects, including within the SIDS Programme of Action 2024-2034. The 90-minute panel will bring together high-level policymakers, including the Minister of Culture of Cabo Verde, as well as youth ambassadors. 

The discussion will be structured in three successive segments covering SIDS subregions (AIS, Caribbean, and Pacific) with a view to highlight a diversity of perspectives and priorities.

In order to ensure meaningful participation of the youth in formulating their aspirations, a social media challenge will be launched ahead of the side event in April 2024, inviting youth to express their worldviews and perspectives, and to shape new ideas and innovative approaches to advance sustainable development through culture. The outcomes of a study on Cultural Policies in SIDS developed by UNESCO in 2023-2024, with/including funding from the European Union, will be presented during the side event, informing the discussion while also outlining practical recommendations for follow-up, to be taken forward by Member States and partner organizations.

SDG Localization Tailored for SIDS

The Government of Cabo Verde, in collaboration with the Local2030 Coalition, the United Nations Country Team in Cabo Verde, and other partners, are co-organizing this side event with the purpose to discuss and exchange ideas on how to improve the impact, efficiency and scale of SDG localization in SIDS countries and territories, by adapting the SDG localization approach to capture the specific circumstances of SIDS. SDG localization is a critical means of implementation to achieve at least three of the five thematic areas of the SIDS4 side events dialogues: building effective institutions for a resilience future, investing in human capital, and revitalizing economies. 

This side event aims to foster greater collaboration that can pave the way to accelerate SDG localization in SIDS countries. The event will gather representatives from SIDS countries, partners, local governments, and international entities supporting SDG localization efforts. The event will help to spotlight practices, initiatives, and solutions from efforts on the ground, and to channel greater SDG financing towards SIDS to accelerate localized efforts for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda.

The Cabo Verde Pavilion at Expo 2023 Doha-Qatar has been honored with the Theme Award in the Medium Pavilion Category at Expo 2023 Doha-Qatar. This recognition was presented yesterday, March 27, at the Award Ceremony in Doha.

Expo Qatar 2023, themed "Desert Green, Better Environment," began on October 2, 2023, and concludes today, March 28, 2024.

Cabo Verde's participation is framed within Resolution 64/2023 of the Cape Verdean government, which established the National Commissioner (CN) for Expo Qatar 2023, led by the Commissioner-General and Director-General of Economic Cooperation and Development at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. José Correia, Deputy Commissioner-General, Mrs. Zilca Paiva, Garden Director, Mr. Ângelo Martins, Pavilion Activities Coordinator, Mrs. Mirza Brito, and Consultant Architect, Mr. João Vieira. The National Commission also included the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation, and Regional Integration; the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment; the Office of the Prime Minister; the Ministry of Finance; the Ministry of Tourism and Transport; the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy; the Ministry of Culture and Creative Industries, and Cabo Verde Trade Invest.

The Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Dr. Miryan Vieira, received the Coordinator of the Atlantic Center, Rear Admiral Nuno António Noronha de Bragança, in audience on Wednesday, 27th. He is visiting CaboVerde until the 29th of this month.

The Government of Cabo Verde today, March 26, signed with the United Nations System in Cabo Verde the Joint Work Plan for the year 2024, budgeted at around 15.7 million dollars, involving 18 United Nations agencies, funds, and programs and implementation partners.
 
The Joint Work Plan was signed by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Miryan Vieira, and the Resident Coordinator of the United Nations System in Cabo Verde, Patrícia Portela de Souza, framed within the first Annual Meeting of the Steering Committee of the United Nations and Cabo Verde, this year, within the scope of the Implementation of the United Nations Cooperation Framework for Sustainable Development in Cabo Verde.
 
It should be noted that the 2024 work plan results from a participatory dynamic and the involvement of more than a hundred national partners, who for two months worked on defining and identifying the main lines of action for the year, aligned with the new Strategic Plan for Sustainable Development (PEDS-II), the SDGs, and the 2030 Agenda.
 
The Annual Joint Work Plan is thus a document and instrument for operationalizing the Cooperation Framework between the United Nations in Cabo Verde for a period of 5 years and is already in the second year of its implementation.

It is worth noting that during this Annual Steering Committee meeting, which takes place twice a year, the United Nations System in Cabo Verde presented the main results of the implementation of activities carried out in 2023.

It is worth mentioning that the members of the Steering Committee are: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Regional Integration, the Ministry of Finance, the National Association of Municipalities of Cabo Verde, the NGO Platform, the Chambers of Commerce of Sotavento and Barlavento, Uni-CV and development partners, as well as representatives and managers of programs and projects of the United Nations Agencies in Cabo Verde.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation, and Regional Integration, Dr. Rui Figueiredo Soares, was today, March 25, at the Embassy of Russia to sign the condolence book for the attack that occurred in Moscow, which resulted in more than 130 deaths and hundreds of injuries.

It is noteworthy that the Government "vehemently" condemned the heinous terrorist attack against innocent civilians in Moscow, expressing heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wishing a speedy recovery to the injured.