United Nations (UN) resident coordinator in Malawi in Malawi Mia Seppo has asked Malawi government to translate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into local languages.
Seppo who is also UNDP resident representative in Malawi made the remarks during the launch of a workshop on strengthening the role of local government in promoting sustainable development in Malawi’s capital, Lilongwe.
Speaking to the press after the launch, Seppo stressed that the SDGs must be translated into vernacular languages to be understood by many Malawians.
“The programs that are really influencing the lives of Malawians are happening at local level, so think through the plans, the priorities and the budget allocation and you have to ensure that we are on track in the monitoring and evaluation system collection at district level, that’s what is measured and what is monitored at central level.
“And you know the third thing is to really make sure that SDGs are actually translated into local languages articulated in a way that can make sense for Malawi,” Seppo said.
The diplomat further hailed government for taking the SDGs to the local level because that’s where some tremendous developments take place.
“It is very important to make sure that the SDGs are making a difference in the lives of people in Malawi and that is not going to happen from Lilongwe but it happens at local level. Therefore this workshop is very important in getting representations from the districts and from the various ministries together to think through this point in time when Malawi is about to finalize the National Development Strategies (NDGs),” she said.
The workshop which will end today is under the theme “Getting started with Localization of Sustainable Development Goals”.
