UN chief wants world leaders to adopt new development goals

A new universal Sustainable Development Agenda will be launched next year after the expiry of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Friday.

The UN chief added that governments will be expected to append their signatures to the new mandate that will help solve problems that bedevil communities globally, Xinhua reported.

"Air, water and soil are under pressure of human activities and this is to be the main mandate of the newly formed UN Environmental Assembly (UNEA)," he said while closing the week-long assembly here Friday.

The post-2015 development agenda will build on the progress achieved through the MDGs' eight goals that were established in 2000, he said.

"The post-2015 agenda will need a new innovative and transformative means of implementation, including new partnerships that can work in an integrated manner, technology transfer, capacity building, information access, and monitoring and reporting for accountability."

He called on governments to help combat climate change by adopting workable measures that have been developed by scientists and other experts to avoid the implications on agriculture, environment and ecosystem in general.

Ban urged world leaders to embrace sustainable development for the sake of the planet, adding that the global community needs to act decisively to change humanity relationship with the environment.