Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change Matthew Samuda departed Jamaica on Sunday, July 12, to participate in the 2026 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) at the United Nations (UN) Headquarters in New York.
The HLPF, convened under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), held under the theme, “Transformative, equitable, innovative and coordinated actions for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals for a sustainable future for all”, will be held from July 7 to 15, 2026.
The forum brings together world leaders, policymakers and stakeholders to review progress toward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Samuda will deliver an address in his capacity as president of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-8) during the ministerial segment of the forum, scheduled from July 13 to 15.
Samuda is expected to convey UNEA’s key messages and highlight its contributions to the deliberations of the HLPF, underscoring the assembly’s central role in advancing sustainable development.