Mr. Mohammad Shams Formuly, Kardan University’s Sustainability Engagement Coordinator, attended the Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD-2021) from March 14-16, 2021, to discuss the diverse sustainable development issues, and deliberate on the Impact of COVID-19 at local, national, and regional levels. In this Forum, young people from across the Asia-Pacific region gathered virtually and had a fruitful discussion regarding various sustainable development issues.

In the Forum, thematic SDGs clusters of youth from the Asia-Pacific discussed SDG 1: No Poverty, SDG 2: Zero Hunger, SDG 3: Health and Well-being, SDG 8: Full and Productive Employment and Decent Work for All, SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities, SDG 12: Sustainable Consumption, SDG 13: Climate Action, SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, and SDG 17: Partnerships for the SDGs (SDG 17) in the region. The youth participants also recommended youth inclusive recovery solutions to accelerate transformation for implementing the 2030 Agenda in the Asia-Pacific region.

The APFSD Youth Forum was then followed by APFSD Intergovernmental Forum 2021 on March 23-26, 2021. APFSD Intergovernmental Forum is a regional platform for supporting countries, particularly those with special needs, in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development while serving as a regional preparatory meeting to the high-level political Forum.

The Forum provided a regional perspective on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda by identifying regional trends and consolidating and sharing best practices and lessons learned. The Forum considered the contributions of United Nations system bodies (at the regional level), other regional and sub-regional organizations, and relevant stakeholders. The APFSD also supported follow-up and review of progress on the 2030 Agenda at the regional level.

Kardan University’s Sustainability Office is the first of its kind in Afghanistan, responsible for advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at Kardan University. Realizing that the global sustainability challenges require collective actions and collaborations, the Office engages and partners with national, regional, and international organizations to promote and share best practices to achieve the SDGs in Afghanistan.

To know more about our sustainability activities, please visit https://kardan.edu.af/sustainability/.