Your Excellency Mr. Tarek Ladeb, Vice President of ECOSOC,
Your Excellency Mr. Denis Francis, President of the General Assembly,
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
The United Nations development system has had a decades-long commitment to support the needs of Member States from the ground up.
We constantly adjusted our support over time until the creation of the SDGs, which marked a pivotal moment in Member States approach to sustainable development. With the 17 SDGs as a clear and unifying framework for action, Member States charted a reform pathway that the UN system has successfully embraced.
Through better informed policies and strategies, and greater collaboration and cooperation, the UN development system continues to help countries improve lives and livelihoods and secure the future we need for our people and planet.
Excellencies,
With just six years left to deliver on the SDGs, the world faces huge challenges. The need for agile, responsive, and demand-driven support is greater than ever before.
The ECOSOC Operational Activities Segment provides an opportunity for Member States to assess if the UN development system has met their expectations and to provide guidance on how this support can be strengthened.
The meetings over the next three days will provide an opportunity for you to engage with the Deputy Secretary-General on the analysis, recommendations, and insights from the Secretary-General’s report on the QCPR. You will also hear updates from her, as Chair of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group, on the work of the Development Coordination Office and the Resident Coordinator System.
You will have an exchange with Executive Heads of UN development system entities, where you can discuss delivery mechanisms, policies, and system-wide evaluations.
This meeting will also explore how to accelerate SDG implementation—through innovation, capacity-building, financing, and sustainable funding.
You will also have an opportunity to dialogue on ways to further strengthen the Operational Activities Segment as an accountability mechanism.
The Department of Economic and Social Affairs is pleased to have provided the technical, substantive and organizational support to these preparations, in close collaboration with UN system partners.
We invested heavily in the conduct of the 2023 QCPR surveys and in ensuring the collation and analysis of the data gathered to ensure a sound evidence base for your discussions.
Excellencies,
I urge active participation in this Segment.
The perspectives and recommendations that you put forward over the next three days should lay the groundwork for an ambitious quadrennial comprehensive policy review in October. Your voices matter.
I look forward to the discussions and outcomes in the days ahead and I wish you successful deliberations.
Thank you.