Facing multiple, cascading global crises, the United Nations development system stands committed to “rescuing the Sustainable Development Goals” as the only viable way forward, Secretary-General António Guterres said today, as the Economic and Social Council opened its annual operational activities for development session.
Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, to the Economic and Social Council Operational Activities Segment, presentation of the report of the Chair of the UNSDG on the Development Coordination Office, in New York today:
The Forum on Forests concluded its seventeenth session today, approving its omnibus resolution and a draft decision that its eighteenth session will be held at United Nations Headquarters from 8 to 12 May 2023, sending both texts to the Economic and Social Council for formal adoption.
Discussion in the Forum on Forests today was dominated by proposals to support the functioning of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests — a voluntary arrangement among 14 international organizations dedicated to improving the sustainable management, conservation and trade of forest-based products around the world.
Home to 80 per cent of all terrestrial species and hailed as “the lungs of the planet” for their ability to generate oxygen, forests hold boundless potential to help solve the most pressing global challenges, speakers in the United Nations Forum on Forests stressed today, as they offered alternatives to the many activities threatening their health, from logging and oil exploration to well-intentioned but ill-conceived conservation efforts.
The Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues closed its twenty-first session today, approving a raft of recommendations related to its theme — “Indigenous peoples, business, autonomy and the human rights principles of due diligence including free, prior and informed consent” — as well as three draft decisions to be sent to the Economic and Social Council for formal adoption.
Closing the Economic and Social Council’s two-day Multistakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals, senior United Nations officials welcomed the convergence of experts from Governments, the private sector, academia and civil society, and stressed how rapid scientific progress can be leveraged to address pressing global challenges, so long as the technology emerging is accessible to all.
The COVID-19 pandemic and emergence of variant viral strains underscore the importance of science, technology and innovation for the recovery and development of global populations, speakers said today as the Economic and Social Council opened its two-day forum on the topic amid calls to urgently address the widening digital gulf between developed and developing countries.
The Commission on Population and Development ended its fifty-fifth session today, approving by consensus a draft resolution urging support for women, young people and other marginalized groups in efforts to achieve sustained and inclusive economic growth.
Speakers in the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues today denounced the persistent side-lining of their languages, cultures, traditions and identities, as they shed light on the myriad ways their rights are violated by Governments, companies or by ineffective policies that do not protect their communities.
Speakers in the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues today pressed United Nations bodies across the system to expand resources and opportunities for indigenous representatives so that they may participate in the Organization’s work, with many calling out practices that prevent their voices from being heard and advocating for a greater focus by the Forum on breaking down barriers.
The Commission on Population and Development zeroed in today on the crucial work that the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs delivers to countries around the world as they cope with a range of demographic challenges that could impact realization of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The Economic and Social Council concluded its annual financing for development forum today with the adoption of an outcome document highlighting the critical need for resources to deliver on the central promise of the United Nations framework for achieving a better, more sustainable future for all by 2030.
Inequalities in financial space and an unfair international corporate tax architecture urgently require reform to foster recovery and growth in developing countries — with private finance and investment key factors — speakers told the Economic and Social Council today as it continued its annual forum on financing for development follow-up with three panel discussions.
Speakers addressing the Commission on Population and Development urged Governments to enact more robust social protection schemes across the human life cycle — aimed at helping young people, women and members of marginalized social groups achieve their full productive potential — as the body continued its fifty-fifth session today.
Indigenous peoples are routinely exposed to highly toxic substances left behind by reckless companies that poison their lands and waters with cyanide, mercury, lead and cadmium, the Special Rapporteur on the issue told the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues today, as participants engaged with three United Nations experts on ways to uphold their basic human rights on the international stage.
Following is the text of UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s video message to the Economic and Social Council special meeting on Sustainable Urbanization and the Implementation of the New Urban Agenda, in New York on 21 April:
Experts outlined demographic and development-based approaches to “building back better” from the coronavirus pandemic while advancing towards full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, as the Commission on Population and Development’s annual session entered its second day today.
The Economic and Social Council continued its annual forum on financing for development today, holding a special high-level meeting with the Bretton Woods institutions (the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF)), the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), to discuss solutions for securing an inclusive and sustainable recovery amidst the economic fallout from COVID-19 and rising geopolitical tensions.
While international standards guarantee the rights of indigenous peoples to self-determination, territories and resources, these fundamental freedoms are trampled upon in the name of mining, logging, oil, gas exploration and even conservation deemed essential to national development, speakers told the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues today, laying out recommendations for transnational businesses to respect their traditional knowledge and inherent dignity.
