Hanoi (VNA) – The ninth Global Conference ofYoung Parliamentarians wrapped up in Hanoi on September 16 under the chairof  Dyah Roro Esti, member of Parliament at the House of Representativesof Indonesia and member of the Board of the Inter-parliamentary Union (IPU)'sForum of Young Parliamentarians.

National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue, IPU PresidentDuarte Pacheco, IPU Secretary-General Martin Chungong, over 500 youngparliamentarians and delegates from IPU member parliaments attended the event.

Speaking at the event, Esti said recently, there have beenmany disasters worldwide, such as earthquakes, natural disasters, wildfires,causing significant losses in terms of both human lives and property,especially in Morocco, Libya, and Vietnam.

Delegates later observed a minute of silence in memory of the victims.

In her closing remarks, Esti said delegates haddiscussed various issues over the past few days such as the progress of sustainable development goals and the role of digitaltransformation, innovation and entrepreneurship in accelerating progress; and explored how cultural diversity could also be adriving force in achieving sustainable development goals, as well as how toresponsibly harness technology to leverage its positive aspects whileminimising risks.

 
The conference adopted a statement on the role of the youthin promoting the implementation of sustainable development goals throughdigital transformation and innovation. It is the first statement so far, featuring the young people's commitment to implementing themillennium development goals set by the United Nations.

In the statement, young parliamentarians expressed theirconcern as with less than seven years remaining to achieve the SustainableDevelopment Goals (SDGs), only 12% of the SDGs are meeting the targets andover 50% of them still lagging behind.

It also emphasised that the world is witnessing a rapiddevelopment of technology, digital transformation and innovation, so it isnecessary to harness these potentials to accelerate progress towards SDGs,especially for issues that important to youth.

The statement said important gender gaps persist as womenare 26% less likely to own a mobile phone than men is unreasonable, therefore digital transformation and innovation must be opportunities that bolster genderequality by facilitating new avenues for empowerment.

“As key innovators, users and promoters of technologicalevolution, young people are uniquely positioned to lead in the positioning ofdigital transformation and innovation at the centre of action to accelerateprogress in making development sustainable for the planet and accessible forthe people, leaving no one behind,” it  said.

In the statement, the young MPs proposed a series of actionsto help accelerate the achievement of the SDGs through digital transformationand innovation. 

These include updating parliamentary rules and workingmethods to enable greater virtual participation of MPs.

Recommendations also include ensuring all parliamentariansare equipped with necessary knowledge and technical support, and enhance the useof virtual assistance and the development of a digital library of legaldocuments.

The statement also advocates adoption of laws andpolicies that help narrow the digital gap and ensure accessibility to all,including through low-cost access, building of digital infrastructure andskills-building as well as development of suitable legal frameworks andstrengthen international cooperation to protect their respective digitalsovereignty to bring about a safe, healthy network environment and sustainabledevelopment.

Regarding innovation and start-ups, the MPs suggest memberparliaments to strengthen the innovation and start-up eco-system, including bydeveloping legal frameworks for innovation and start-ups, and scaling up budgets tosupport to youth-led and youth-inclusive enterprises, start-ups and innovationinitiatives of the youth.

They call for promoting education curricula that providenecessary skills to prepare the next generation of innovators andentrepreneurs, with an emphasis on digital skillsets. Special focus should alsobe given to young women, including by incentivising more to study in thescience, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields.

Relating to promoting respect for cultural diversity forsustainable development, the statement calls for promoting inclusivity,intercultural dialogue, and respect for cultural diversity and local knowledgeas drivers of sustainable development, prosperity and peaceful coexistence.

In his closing remarks, Chairman of the Vietnamese NationalAssembly Vuong Dinh Hue affirmed that the success of the ninth GlobalConference of Young Parliamentarians shows that the IPU Forum of YoungParliamentarians is a very necessary and useful one for youngparliamentarians. He emphasised the importance of young parliamentarians inparticular and young people in general as the future owners of each country,nation and the whole world in participating in the realisation of the goals andtasks of the IPU and the United Nations.

Hue urged the IPU Secretariat and memberparliaments to spread the results of the conference to the UN’s 2023 SDGSummit, scheduled for September 18-19 in New York, thereby honoring therole and affirming the commitment and actions of the IPU and youngparliamentarians in particular to the global joint effort to accelerate theimplementation of SDGs.

He also called on the IPU and its member parliaments toactively implement the conference statement and establishappropriate mechanisms to cooperate with and support each other, especiallybetween developed and developing countries in digital transformation andinnovation.

"In the era of digital transformation, in the currentboom of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), no country, no matter how big,can solve problems of global scale on its own, and vice versa, smaller andpoorer countries still have opportunities and can find opportunities todevelop. I think that in the time of 4IR, the future is not simply an extensionof the past. Developed countries can also return to their starting point. Thatis an opportunity and also a premise for us to cooperate," he emphasised.

On behalf of the host country of the conference, Hue thanked and appreciated the effective support and collaboration ofexperts and staff of the IPU and its Secretariat, member parliaments, NationalAssembly bodies and relevant sectors of Vietnam.

He affirmed that in every stage of development of countries,the parliaments and parliamentarians, with their noble legislation, supervisorand enforcement roles, are always the vanguards in efforts for legal andinstitutional reforms and international integration. They serve as a bridgebetween the political will and the aspirations of the people, between domesticlaw and international law, between people of different countries, contributingto peace, friendship, cooperation and sustainable development, both regionallyand globally.

Vietnam's consistent policy is to promote a foreign policyof independence, self-reliance, diversification and multilateralisation, peace,friendship, cooperation and development, based on the basic principles of theUN Charter and international law. Vietnam attaches great importance to andactively and responsibly participates in multilateral institutions of whichVietnam is a member, Hue said.

"In that spirit, the National Assembly of Vietnam willcontinue to actively cooperate with the IPU and join hands with memberparliaments to realize the goals and resolutions of the IPU in general and theStatement of this Global Conference of Young Parliamentarians, continuouslypromotes noble missions, and elevates parliamentary diplomacy. It affirms thatit will continue to actively contribute to the general activities of the IPUand is ready to host other conferences within the framework of the IPU’s activities," the leader affirmed.

IPU President Duarte Pacheco thanked the National Assemblyof Vietnam for hosting this conference, and expressed his gratitude to all the guests,panelists, and speakers who contributed to this conference.

Emphasising that after the conference, there is more work tobe done, the IPU President said he believes in the even more active engagement of youngparliamentarians in the IPU and its agenda, as young people have muchpotential, knowledge and strong commitment to promoting sustainable developmentfor all. The participation of young parliamentarians will increase in thefuture.

He shared his concern about the limited results of the SDGsrealisation, with only 12% of the targets met, while 15 experiencing heavydelays. In the next seven years, there are a lot to do to ensure sustainabledevelopment for humanity.

Accordingly, the IPU President suggested engaging youth in in politics and digital technologies to accelerate progress, adapt budgets to scale up support for youth led startups and enterprises, and promote science and innovation for sustainable development and enhancedigital literacy for young people.

“The conference statement presented earlier provides moreconcrete actions that you can take home with you. It is an important guide onhow to act for the SDGs. The continuation of this journey now rests in ourcapable hands,” he stressed.

He also pledged that the IPU is ready to support youngparliamentarians in implementing their commitments at this Conference. "Wecannot delay any longer. Let's try to work hard together to implement what wehave committed and what we must do. We have the right to be proud of our work,”he said.

Meanwhile, Martin Chungong, SecretaryGeneral of Inter-Parliamentary Union stressed that the outcomes of the conference have surpassed expectations and it’s a continuation of success ofthe IPU- 132 in Hanoi in 2015./.