The Ministry for Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue of the Republic of Serbia invited a wide range of state and non-state stakeholders to participate in the first thematic dialogue on the 2030 Agenda entitled „Sustainable Development Goals – Serbia 2030“. The hybrid event, which combined online and in-person attendance, was held on 10^th May 2021 with support of the German and Swiss Development Cooperation implemented by GIZ within the “Public Finance Reform – 2030 Agenda” project. Around 100 people participated in the dialogue, including the Minister Gordana Čomić, Minister of European Integration Jadranka Joksimović, Special Advisor to the Prime Minister on the 2030 Agenda, Prof. Dr. Slavica Djukić Dejanović, as well as the representatives of the UN Country Team, the German and the Swiss embassies, academia, civil society and the business community.

The keynote speakers’ addresses, followed by the presentations of the Public Policy Secretariat, the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia and the representatives of the “SDGs for All” Platform, set the ground for the stakeholders from both the state and the non-state sector to discuss the 2030 Agenda and its priorities for Serbia. During a lively exchange of views the participants explored future steps towards achieving a greater policy coherence and optimal mechanisms to more effectively facilitate and steer implementation and monitoring of the SDGs. The process of elaborating an overarching sustainable development strategy for Serbia was seen as an opportunity to align different reform agendas including the EU accession process, the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans and the 2030 Agenda with local needs and priorities. The importance of following an evidence-based, inclusive and participatory approach was highlighted by all attendants throughout the conference.

The way of proceeding that has been formulated as a result of the dialogue, is to establish the Inter-ministerial Working Group for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda with respective thematic  sub-groups: economic, social and environmental, develop the new edition of the Voluntary National Report for Serbia to be presented to the UN in 2022, and widen the dialogue in order to hear all the different voices and agree upon a common vision for the Serbian path towards sustainable development. The event was the first of its kind in a series of dialogue meetings planned to further discuss development priorities and share lessons learned on how Serbia can address its development challenges most effectively, amongst other as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, and achieve the objectives stemming from various regional and international obligations by leaving no one behind.

The video recording of the event is available on the YouTube Channel of the Ministry for Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue of the Republic of Serbia under the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx6f-KmhGgU.