APRM-UNDESA VNR Lab: Strategic Planning and Foresight for Fulfilling Financial Gaps of Agenda 2063 and SDGs
18 July 2025
UNHQ – Room S1522/23
13:00-14:00 PM (ETS/ NY time)
Introduction
Strategic planning and governance foresight are critical components for accelerating Agenda 2063 implementation, particularly during the second decade of acceleration (STYIP), as well as the SDGs, which have less than five years to be achieved. Strategic foresight is a disciplined and methodical technique to dealing with uncertainty and complexity that exceeds conventional expectations. It is vital for effective emergent strategic planning in volatile and fast-changing situations, as well as for going beyond linear problem-solving methodologies (UNDP, 2015; UN DESA, 2021).
The Assessment of the First Ten-Year Implementation Plan of Agenda 2063 (FTYIP) identified a lack of integration of SDGs and Agenda 2063 goals and targets into national development plans (NDPs). Furthermore, the African Peer Review Mechanism identified a lack of African countries' capacity to mitigate disasters and shocks at the national planning level, owing to the absence of a futuristic approach in most African decision-making processes. Several African governments and cities, like South Africa's City of Cape Town, have taken a futuristic foresight approach to national and subnational development planning.
Despite different geopolitical concerns, Africa continues to show remarkable economic resilience. According to the 2025 AfDB economic projection, 21 African nations will see growth rates above 5% in 2025, with four countries—Ethiopia, Niger, Rwanda, and Senegal—possibly surpassing the important 7% level required for poverty reduction and inclusive growth. However, growth performance throughout Africa's regions is highly varied and varies greatly. East Africa is expected to experience 5.9% growth in 2025-2026, with Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Tanzania leading the way. West Africa's 4.3 percent increase is fuelled by increasing oil and gas production in Senegal and Niger. Despite ongoing challenges, North Africa is projected to experience 3.6% growth in 2025. Central Africa's growth is forecast to decrease to 3.2%, while Southern Africa's growth will be 2.2%. South Africa, the largest economy, is expected to grow at only 0.8% (AfDB, 2025).
There has been an urgent push to address resource leakages in order to accomplish the SDGs and Agenda 2063 while also promoting economic growth through the management of illegal financial flows. The later report underlined that large capital outflows are stifling the continent's growth. Compared to $190.7 billion in financial inflows in 2022, Africa lost nearly $587 billion due to financial leakages. Of this, around $90 billion was lost to illicit financial flows, another $275 billion was syphoned away by multinational firms moving profits, and $148 billion was lost through corruption.
Voluntary national and local reviews (VNRs/VLRs) give African countries with a systematic opportunity to address economic growth performance while also providing optimal tools for strategic foresight and the best use of national human, natural, financial, and corporate capital. While most African governments receive assistance from various financial institutions to sustain growth, no one-size-fits-all solution can address Africa's strategic planning shortcomings.
Objectives of the APRM- UNDESA Lab
Acknowledging the above, this VNR Lab aims to :
- Examine current policies and affirmative actions to succinctly enhance strategic planning and foresight for fulfilling financial gaps of national development plans.
- Take stock of the current reforms implemented by some African countries, including Nigeria, Chad, Ethiopia, South Africa and others, to promote domestic resources mobilisation (DRM), including mitigation of illicit financial flows (IFF).
- Unfold the findings of the APRM's newly adopted toolkit, which aims to assess the level of understanding and implementation of the strategic planning and foresight approach in Africa. The toolkit was adopted and validated guided by the APRM-UNDESA collaboration to foster the implementation of principles for effective governance of SDGs.
Expected audience:
- African Ministers, Senior Experts of national Development Planning
- Representatives of VNR Countries at the HLPF 2025
- UN Agencies, African Union
- APRM Strategic partners
- African youth, women, civil society and major groups.
Provisional Agenda (speakers tbc)
Welcoming remarks: UN DESA/APRM, Mr. Juwang Zhu, Director, Public Institutions & Digital Government at United Nations (or a representative)
- E Dr. Fitsum Assefa Adela, Minister of Planning and Development, Ethiopia (Keynote)
- E Fatima Haram Acyl, Minister of Economy and Planning, Republic of Chad
- Amos Lugoloobi. Minister of State Planning, Republic of Uganda
- Cristina Duarte, Special Advisor for Africa, UNOSAA
- Bala Yunusa, Advisor to the Special Assistant to the President on SDGs, Republic of Nigeria
- APRM Continental Secretariat, findings of the APRM Toolkit on Strategic Planning and Foresight in Africa
Closing Remarks: Dr. Amson Sibanda, Chief, National Strategies and Capacity Building Branch, UN DESA
Moderation: Mr. Jean Paul-Adam, Director for Policy, Monitoring and Advocacy, UNOSAA
Contact Persons:
- Sara Hamouda, Senior Continental Governance Officer, APRM Continental Secretariat. sara.hamouda@aprm-au.org
- Bernadette Yiga, Agenda 2063 Researcher, Bernadette.Yiga@aprm-au.org.
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