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On December 21, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the sixth meeting of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Promotion Headquarters at the Prime Minister’s Office.
 
During the meeting, there was discussion on the SDGs Action Plan 2019 and the second Japan SDGs Award.
 
Based on the discussions, the Prime Minister said,
 
“The Abe Cabinet will contribute to the development of human resources and nation building around the globe based on the belief that we must realize a society where no one is left behind in a world that is changing at an unprecedented speed. The underlying theme is nation-building toward a prosperous and dynamic future, a Japan that our children and grandchildren are proud of, and Japan as a leading country of the international community.
 
First, we will promote nation-building toward a prosperous and dynamic future. We will spread trends towards the promotion of the SDGs from major corporations to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and spread the dynamism of the SDGs across the country. We will make use of the latest innovations in science and technology and work toward the vitalization of regions via smart agriculture, forestry, and fishery industry measures, as well as the creation of a sound material-cycle society through countermeasures for plastic waste in the oceans. We will exert every effort for the creation of a sustainable and resilient country in order to respond to national disasters, which are increasing in intensity due to climate change, as we saw this year.
 
Second, we will boldly invest in children, who bear the future, and women, in order to create a Japan that our children and grandchildren are proud of, towards the advent of the 100-year life society. We will jointly host the World Assembly for Women (WAW!) and Women 20 (W20) in March, and draw the attention of the world to Japan’s initiatives towards the creation of societies in which all women shine. We will set up a platform for the promotion of the SDGs centering on the next generation such as students and young professionals in order to make use of their voices and efforts.
 
Third, we will communicate Japan as a leading country in the international community to the rest of the world. Next year, Japan will host the G20 Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy and the Seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 7). We will demonstrate Japan as a strong leader to promote the SDGs to the international community, making use of these opportunities where Japan caught the attention of the world. Through the G20 and TICAD 7, we will lead initiatives on the creation of high quality infrastructure, disaster prevention, measures against plastic waste in the oceans, climate change, and other issues. We will prioritize women, health, and education as the foundations for human security and development of human resources.
 
As the G20 president, we will communicate the outcomes of these efforts to the international community at the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development that is set to be held during the United Nations General Assembly in September of next year.
 
Based on this, I ask all of the relevant ministers to make and strengthen concrete actions toward our next SDGs Promotion Headquarters meeting, which will be held just before the G20 meeting, so as to demonstrate Japan’s leadership.”