The 2026 UN Global Business Forum on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has concluded, with participants calling for a greater role for the private sector in achieving the goals.

This year, the forum was held under the theme “Business and the Real Economy: Delivering Sustainable Development in a Changing Global Context”.

Business leaders, government representatives, and international organisations discussed the contribution of the private sector to accelerating progress towards the SDGs.

Participants focused on Goal 9, dedicated to industry, innovation and infrastructure, as well as the implementation of action 55(c) of the Pact for the Future.

The document was adopted by UN Member States at the Summit of the Future in 2024 and outlined directions for modernising global governance and accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Action 55(c), in particular, provides for strengthening cooperation with the private sector and increasing business accountability. The business forum programme included two thematic discussions.

The first focused on key trends shaping modern industrial policy, including digitalisation, the development of artificial intelligence, the green transition and the transformation of global supply chains.

During the second session, participants examined practical aspects of implementing action 55(c) at the national level, presenting examples of cooperation between government bodies and businesses, including in the preparation of Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs).

Opening the forum, CEO and Executive Director of the UN Global Compact, Sanda Ojiambo, noted that timely investments in sustainable development can become a driver of global economic growth and energy transformation.

In turn, Chair of the Board of the UN Global Compact Network in Central Asia, Umut Shayakhmetova, highlighted the importance of regional cooperation in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

Fatou Haidara, Deputy to the Director-General and Managing Director of the Directorate of Global Partnerships and External Relations (UNIDO), said that private business has already become a major driving force behind modern industrial transformations.

“When we think about the future of industrialisation, we can say that the private sector is already at the centre of ongoing transformations from the green transition to the restructuring of global supply chains.

President and CEO of the African Finance Corporation (AFC), Samaila Zubairu, said that the continent has reached a point where it needs to move from discussing financing needs to creating competitive economies.

The speeches by forum participants were complemented by assessments from representatives of the technology sector, who highlighted the importance of digital solutions in advancing the sustainable development agenda.

Valery Sherman, Technical Director of MEFERI, said the agenda of the SDG Global Business Forum reflects an important trend being increasingly assessed not through declarations but through real changes in the economy.

The outcomes of the forum are expected to be used in preparing subsequent intergovernmental events in 2026, including the Private Sector Forum and the United Nations Water Conference.

The SDG Global Business Forum was held as a special event within the framework of the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF).

Its theme in 2026 is “Transformative, Equitable, Innovative and Coordinated Actions for the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda”.

During the HLPF, an in-depth review of five Sustainable Development Goals is being conducted, while 36 countries, including Brazil, Tanzania, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay, will present their Voluntary National Reviews.

A man suspected of killing his wife and two daughters in Bedfordshire has been in court in South Africa after UK authorities submitted an application to extradite him.

Nothabo Zandile Tshuma, 42, and her daughters Natalie, 15, and Nala, five, were found dead by police in a house in Great Denham, near Bedford, on 6 July.

The Crown Prosecution Service has authorised three murder charges against Ndodana Mkhanyisi Tshuma, 45, who is a British citizen of Zimbabwean heritage.

He has appeared before magistrates in Johannesburg where he confirmed his name and was told a further court hearing would take place on 22 July.

During the hearing he indicated he would be speaking in English.

His mother and sister were seated in the court’s public gallery, and Tshuma waved to his family as he was taken down to the holding cells at the end of Monday’s hearing.

South African police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe explained that the court proceedings concern the extradition request and a charge of illegal possession of firearms.

She said: “We can confirm that South Africa has received a provisional extradition request from Interpol Manchester through to Interpol Pretoria.

“We will be awaiting a full extradition request within 40 days, which will include the case docket as well as supporting evidence.

“However, we can confirm that, for now, we do have the warrant of arrest from UK authorities.”

Police added that he travelled from Heathrow Airport in London to South Africa, via Dubai, and he briefly went to Zimbabwe before returning to Johannesburg.

He was arrested in the Kensington suburb of the city on Friday.

In a tribute, family members said “words cannot begin to express the depth of our emptiness and sorrow in the fact of this tragic and senseless loss of life”.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul has defended his country’s defence budget against renewed criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump as NATO leaders are due to gather in Ankara for a two-day summit on Tuesday.

“We’re looking at the numbers, and they are pointing up,” Wadephul told Germany’s Deutschlandfunk radio.

Responding to demands from Trump, who has repeatedly complained about unfair burden-sharing within the defence alliance, NATO allies committed last year to raise core defence spending from two to 3.

Wadephul said Germany was on track to reach the 3.

“We are spending more than many of our partners. What Germany is doing is also being noticed in Washington,” he stressed.

Trump has continued to pressure allies, branding their defence spending as “ridiculous” just days before the summit, singling out Germany in particular.