Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals in the Hindu Kush Himalayas : A smart investment for Asia and the world

This brief outlines some options to help prioritise mountain environments and populations as an essential target of the Hindu Kush Himalayas (HKH) countries’ implementation efforts, regarding the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

• improve regional action and transboundary cooperation;
• articulate the SDGs at the national level and integrate mountain concerns into national plans and programmes;
• direct climate financing to address climate risks and opportunities in mountains;
• direct donor priorities and financing to mountain concerns;
• increase investments in the mountainous region.

The aforementioned actions are needed as the HKH region has challenging physical characteristics, including fragile terrain, high seismic activity, and exposure to climate hazards to floods and droughts. Therefore, when implementing SDGs, special focus should be on disaster risk reduction, through the integration of risks and adaptation into sustainable development. This is important to promote the paradigm shift towards climate-resilient development pathways.