The ASEAN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Indicators Baseline Report and an online database portal for ASEAN SDG indicators were released at an online event on October 23.

General Director of Vietnam's General Statistics Office Nguyen Thi Huong
speaks at the launch on October 23 (Photo: VNA)

They are part of an initiative to set up an ASEAN statistical information system on sustainable development, proposed by Vietnam as the ASEAN Chair in 2020.

General Director of the General Statistics Office Nguyen Thi Huong said the initiative aims to form a synchronous statistical information system on sustainable development, ensuring sufficient information supply for the monitoring and assessment of sustainable development in the ASEAN Community.

It also looks to enhance partnerships in the implementation of SDG indicators, improve member countries’ capacity for collecting and processing data, and promote the ASEAN Statistics Division (ASEANstats)’s coordinating role.

Thanks to member countries’ efforts, ASEANstats’ proactiveness, and assistance from the ASEAN Working Group on SDG Indicators and the ASEAN Regional Integration Support from the European Union (ARISE) Plus project, the baseline report has been completed and the online database portal established, Huong noted.

Julia Tijaja, Director of the ASEAN Integration Monitoring Directorate at the ASEAN Secretariat, said the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed many countries around the world to numerous difficulties this year. Facing that fact, they have set targets to recover and attain the SDGs.

Via the baseline report and database portal, regional countries can swiftly recover and work towards a future of sustainable development, she said.

To ensure the monitoring and assessment of SDG realisation in the region, the GSO suggested member countries uphold the proactiveness of the ASEAN Working Group on SDG Indicators; frequently update data on SDG indicators; and mobilise support from international organisations, development partners, non-governmental organisations, businesses, and society as a whole in monitoring and assessment.