The global context has changed considerably since the adoption of the Millennium Declaration in 2000 and the Monterrey Consensus in 2002. Global economic strength is spread amongst more countries. Innovations, especially in digital technology, have opened both new opportunities and challenges. At the same time, the financial crisis revealed global vulnerabilities and the deficits of the international financial system. While some MDGs have been achieved, other social and economic concerns have arisen, particularly the widening inequality of income and wealth in many countries and its impact on societies. While extreme poverty has been halved, more needs to be done.

There is a greater recognition of the imperative to address climate change and its risks. The effects of global warming on human and economic development are already visible, making it more imperative than ever to cooperate more effectively in both mitigation and adaptation to these challenges. At the 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), the international community agreed to undertake a major effort to promote and mainstream sustainable development in its three dimensions.
Yet, prospects are for slow global economic growth in the medium term, with adverse consequences for the growth of world trade and the exports of developing countries in particular. Much work remains to be done to meet the commitments of Monterrey on systemic reforms to deliver a more enabling international economic environment for development.