1. International discussions on the sustainable development goals (SDGs), led by the UN and participated by a number of UN member states, international organizations, enterprises and civic groups, were completed on July 19, with an SDGs proposal submitted to the UN General Assembly.

2. The work to draw up the proposal document was led by the UN Open Working Group (OWG) as agreed upon at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development held in June 2012. The OWG, based on the outcome of the comprehensive discussions from February 2013 to July 2014, adopted 17 SDGs and 169 targets.

3. The government of the Republic of Korea, after interagency coordination on relevant matters, participated actively in the UN discussions from their initial stages. It also shared with civic groups and various other stakeholders at home relevant details and worked to have their positions reflected in the discussions.

4. As a result of such efforts by the ROK, the outcome document contains tasks on poverty eradication, education and public healthcare -- the key fields the ROK has sought to share its development experiences in with the international community. The document also calls for efforts in other main fields, such as the Green Climate Fund (GCF), global partnership and global civic education, where the ROK has lately been working to expand its role as a trusted middle power country.

5. The SDGs proposal contains key tasks to be undertaken until 2030 for sustainable development of the entire humanity and world and warrants to the extent possible the participation of various stakeholders. As such, the proposed SDGs are true tasks for global development. In particular, the targets in the proposal are expected to set a clear direction for international efforts toward sustainable development.

6. Discussions on the new, post-2015 development agenda will start late this year for them to be adopted at the UN Conference in September 2015. The ROK government, together with civil society at home, will make active efforts to have all the key tasks for sustainable development included as well as the ROK’s main interests reflected in the new agenda. 


                 Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations of MOFA

* unofficial translation