Dr. Pariyar says resources essential to achieving SDG goals

New York: Dalit woman activist Dr. Bishnu Maya Pariyar has highlighted the need to allocate resources and prioritize empowerment programs to achieve SDG goals.  

“The SDGs offer a global framework to tackle these obstacles and promote inclusive development,” Pariyar said while addressing the High-Level Political Forum 2024 held on Wednesday on the topic “Transformation from the ground up: Acting at the Local Level”.

“However, from my experiences working to uplift so-called untouchable Dalit and marginalized people in Nepal, we won’t be able to achieve the SDGs unless local governments and international stakeholders provide resources and prioritize empowerment programs proactively to benefit these communities.” 

Founding president of the Association for Dalit Women’s Advancement of Nepal (ADWAN), Pariyar addressed the UN forum at the UN headquarters on behalf of the Global Forum of Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (CDWD).

She also said it is essential to prioritize the communities furthest behind to address and achieve the targets of SDGs effectively. 

“We must ensure that CDWDs are involved in the design and decision-making of budgeting and finance schemes so that the allocation of local resources is targeted, accessible, and designed to address unique forms of discrimination,” she added.

It was an honor for me to speak at United Nations Headquarters during the High-Level Political Forum 2024 held today on the topic “Transformation from the ground up: Acting at the Local Level”

Dr. Pariyar represents the Dalit community of Nepal, which is a part of 270 million people experiencing similar forms of discrimination as the Quiilambola and Palenque in Brazil and Colombia, the Roma in Europe, Dalits in South Asia, Burakumin in Japan, Osu and Haratins in West Africa.