Kemak Foundation advocates partnerships, good governance as strategies for achieving SDGs

Dr Makuachukwu Ojide, Executive Director of the Kemak Foundation for Enhancing Sustainable Livelihoods, has said that the issues of mutually beneficial partnerships and good governance must be addressed in order to build a better society for all. According to him, none of the stakeholders working to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can function alone and none of the goals can be achieved in isolation.

Dr Ojide said these in his message at an international webinar held on November 18, 2023 to commemorate Kemak Foundation’s eighth anniversary. The webinar, titled “Building a Sustainable Society is a Task for All,” was attended, largely, by young and mid-career professionals from a variety of industries.

He maintained that development partners must be deliberate in order to ensure that partnerships are built on the principles of mutual benefit and respect for cultural and value differences. “Nobody enjoys being in a partnership where he or she is not respected. Same is applicable in bilateral and multilateral collaboration among nations,” he said, noting that any country that discovers an arrangement to shortchange her in any partnership will most likely use the ‘voting by leg syndrome strategy.’

Furthermore, he emphasized the importance of inclusive governance, particularly in development planning. He advocated participatory planning in order to achieve any of the SDGs. He explained that if potential beneficiaries of a development project are not involved in the planning process and reject the intervention, the project’s ultimate goal will be compromised. This, he stressed, explains why some immunization programmes have been completely rejected in some areas.

Mr. Michael Odoh, a lecturer in the department of Agricultural Technology at the Federal Polytechnic Ile-Oluji in Ondo State, who participated in the webinar, highlighted the roles of all stakeholders in achieving the SDGs, particularly ‘No Poverty, Zero Hunger, Good Health and Well-Being, Quality Education, and Gender Equality.’

He stated that poverty and hunger are a threat to society’s peace everywhere, pointing out that achieving these goals of “no poverty,” “zero hunger,” “good health and well-being,” “quality education,” and “gender equality” will require concerted efforts on the part of the lower, middle, and upper classes in society.

Similarly, Miss Joy Agoziem, a postgraduate student of the Faculty of Business and Economics at the Georg-August-Universitata, Gottingen, in Lower Saxony, Germany, expressed her desire to see Clean Water and Sanitation, Affordable and Clean Energy, Decent Work and Economic Growth, Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure, and Reduced Inequalities realized. Bridging the gaps in these goals will remain a mirage unless joint efforts at the local, national, regional, and international levels are mobilized, she insisted.

She noted the interdependence of the objectives of the SDGs, pointing out, for instance, that affordable and clean energy will require innovation and infrastructure development; and that the availability of such affordable and clean energy will promote decent work and economic growth with widespread development.

Mr. ThankGod Idamoko, a political scientist and Research Associate with Kemak Foundation, who joined the webinar from Akwa Ibom State, reminded participants that sustainable development is one that meets the needs of the present without jeopardizing future generations’ ability to meet their own needs. He stated that the SDGs are based on 5Ps: People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace, and Partnership.

These SDGs, he said, are intertwined with three factors: social, economic, and environmental factors, and emphasized that meeting the goals is everyone’s business, and that the negative consequences of failure to meet these goals do not discriminate based on social class (rich or poor), skin colour (dark, white, etc.), high or low income countries, and so on.

He stressed that because the well-being of one part of the world is linked to the well-being of others, achieving the SDGs is a shared responsibility for the global community. The problem of illegal migration, he noted further, is an example of this scenario. “The day the world realizes that humanity is the only religion, culture, ethnicity, and race we have, the world becomes a better place for all,” he said

Another participant, Mr. Daniel Chinazam Ogbu, a postgraduate student of Sociology at Alex Ekwueme Federal University in Ebonyi State, emphasized that these goals are intertwined and thus require the collaboration of all stakeholders to be realized. He pointed out the critical roles of various localized nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), such as the Kemak Foundation for Enhancing Sustainable Livelihood, stressing that the larger players in these global tasks (SDGs) should consciously identify and support such NGOs, given their roles in effectively reaching their corners. He stated that the Kemak Foundation has established itself as a sought-after partner as a result of its recent accomplishments. He urged the Executive Director and the Foundation’s leadership to stay focused on improving sustainable livelihoods.

Miss Chisom Ndukwe, the Foundation’s Human Resource Officer, who anchored the program, thanked all participants for their insight and willingness to collaborate with the Foundation. She stated that the Foundation is open to collaborations in proposal submission, project implementation, as well as monitoring and evaluation and concluded by emphasizing the possibility of achieving the SDGs. “It begins with each of us and necessitates coordinated cooperation,” she stressed.