On 7 May 2018, Mrs. Kanchana Patarachoke, Director-General of the Department of International Organizations, who also serves as the SDGs Coordinator for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, chaired the 3rd meeting of the Open-ended Working Group for Sustainable Development Goals (OEWG for SDGs). The meeting was held at the Sanya Dharmasakti Conference Room, Thammasat University, Tha Phrachan Campus, and attended by 55 representatives from both the public sector and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs).

 

The participants were briefed about the results of the 2018 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) as well as the side events Thailand organized and co-organized during the Forum, one of which was ‘CSOs in Voluntary National Reviews (VNR) Process’ sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand and the East West Management Institute to share experiences on cooperation between the government and CSOs in the implementation of the SDGs and VNR process. The meeting noted the importance of 2019 as the year in which which HLPF will be convened twice under the auspices of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in May and UNGA in September. Hence, the concrete cooperation between the government and CSOs will be reflected and showcased in Thailand’s VNR in 2019. 

 

The meeting was also briefed about the outcome of the Sub-Committee on the Implementation of the SDGs under the National Committee on Sustainable Development on 22 August 2018, which touched upon many interesting issues such as Thailand’s ranking in the 2018 SDG Index and the classification of the provinces in Thailand by their readiness to implement SDGs. The meeting agreed that CSOs and academia can play an active role in assisting provincial administration to achieve the SDGs. 

 

Representatives from the public sector and CSOs also exchanged views on ongoing works related to sustainable development in various areas such as cities and public space, the role of volunteers in the localization of the SDGs, sustainable development, large-scale investment and industrialization, gender inequality, and freedom of expression. 

 

The meeting concluded that open platforms such as this meeting are essential to the attainment of the SDGs. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as the leading agency responsible for the SDG 17 ‘Partnership for the Goal’ and the chair of VNR Task Force, is continuously promoting multi-stakeholder engagement in the process of SDG implementation toward the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.