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Mr. Chairman,

1. I have the honor to deliver a statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

2. The Group would like to thank Ms. Bettina Tucci Bartsiotas, Assistant Secretary-General, Controller, for introducing the report of the Secretary-General on Agenda items 14, 117 and 136: Modalities for the Intergovernmental Conference to adopt the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration: Programme budget implications of draft resolution A/72/L.9. We also thank Mr. Carlos Ruiz Massieu, Chair of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), for introducing the related report of the Committee.

Mr. Chairman,

3. The Group welcomes the contributions of Member States towards various United Nations events, such as conferences and summits and in this regard wishes to recall paragraph 5 of General Assembly resolution 40/243, in which the Assembly decided that United Nations bodies may hold sessions away from their established headquarters when a Government issuing an invitation for a session to be held within its territory has agreed, after consultation with the Secretary-General as to their nature and possible extent, and to defray the actual additional costs directly or indirectly involved.

4. In this connection, the Group wishes to congratulate the Government of Morocco for agreeing to host the intergovernmental conference, entitled “Intergovernmental Conference to Adopt the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration “, on 10 and 11 December 2018.

5. The Group additionally welcomes support from all relevant parts of the Secretariat, cooperation with relevant parts of the United Nations system as well as synergies derived from the facilitation of inter-agency cooperation for the realisation of effectiveness and efficiency.

6. Given the importance the Group attaches to this subject matter, the Group supports the request for additional appropriation. We believe that making available required resources while giving due consideration to the recommendations of the Advisory Committee will guarantee a balanced approach to the funding of the Conference.

Mr. Chairman,

7. In conclusion, I wish to assure you of our readiness to engage positively on this important agenda item.

I thank you.

1. The G77 and China acknowledges the hard work and full commitment to success at this COP which was demonstrated by the tireless efforts of the Polish Presidency, as well as ably supported by the UNFCCC Secretariat to whom all we wish to express our appreciation. We also note the significant progress made at this session towards addressing the divergences which existed with regard to the text which we are about to approve. Nonetheless, and despite our best efforts to influence this process and push it into a more co-operative mode, one which is not based solely on stating positions and fighting for them – but also on actually listening to the concerns of others, we did not succeed in that.

2. We say this because finally, and as we look at, and assess the overall package, rather than just the individual components in isolation, we do not see the balance we have consistently called for. Instead, we see a mitigation centric regime in the making, with the urgent adaptation needs of developing countries relegated to second class status, along with consistent resistance to meaningfully reflect the factual differentiation between developed and developing countries, as well as a diluted overall support package.

3. Unfortunately, and despite our best efforts to influence this process and push it into a more co-operative mode, one which is not based solely on starting positions – but also on actually listening to the concerns of others, we did not succeed in that.

4. We say this because finally, and as we attempted to look at, and assess the overall package, rather than just the individual components in isolation, we do not see the balance we have consistently called for. Instead, we see a blatantly mitigation centric regime in the making, with the urgent adaptation needs of developing countries relegated to second class status.

5. We are now clearly creating a regime which chose, consciously, to ignore or at least ignore the very real, factual principle of common but differentiated responsibilities. This principle is not a tactical negotiating tool. It is a reflection of a reality on the ground. It is a translation of the stark differences between countries with regard to historical and current responsibilities and their differences in capacities and their access to technologies and their urgent developmental needs and priorities and needs to pull their populations out of abject poverty.

6. Mr. Chairman, we made these remarks out of concern for the prospects of success of our collective efforts over the past years. The record will show that over the past years and since assuming our responsibility as Chair of the G77 and China, we have NEVER not highlighted the fact that we want an outcome at Katowice, BUT not just any outcome! We want an outcome that can be accepted and embraced and implemented in good faith by all.

7. With that in mind, we are truly fearful for this regime. We all know that this agreement is defined by its “Nationally Determined Character”! It is therefore and in effect a rather fragile regime highly dependent on the goodwill of the parties. If that good will is dissipated and eroded due to the prevalence of short-term obsession with narrow gains and short-sighted approaches related to competitiveness then our new regime will have very little chance of survival.

8. This causes us much concern. We are keenly aware of the existential threats posed by the negative impacts of climate change! Our peoples particularly the poor and most vulnerable are suffering from them daily. We are equally aware that as things stand we remain on a dangerous path to higher increases in global temperature increases and therefore more, not less, needs to be done. We worry that even the perception of imbalance along with the outright rejection of the principle of equity will potentially push many countries to implement this agreement at the lowest possible level. Combine that with clear attempts to backslide, by some, on existing commitments and you have what can only be seen as an extremely worrying picture.

9. Yet the opportunity is still before us. In implementing the outcomes of this COP with regard to the Paris Agreement, we must recall the aforementioned principles of CBDR and equity. We must not gloss over the real differences between developed and developing countries both in responsibility and capability. Texts that simply deny this cannot alter the reality.

10. The stakes are too high for us all to continue on an adversarial path. We need to find a way to do this together. With the elevated threat, and the increasing awareness of the gravity of the issue not only by states but also by non-state actors. We have a good chance of shifting course of taking advantage of a new spirit of advances in technology drops in some prices of inspiring commitment from youth movements around the world of small business investing in climate related micro projects of big business sometimes realizing the value of being more climate friendly and the list goes on…

11. State parties on their part must rise to the occasion. On our part, we will continue to demonstrate full commitment to doing our fair share of the lifting. We have our legitimate development goals but will always strive to show as much ambition as possible when it comes to curbing emissions. We do not see this as a zero-sum equation. Indeed, the opposite should be the case. There is a path that allows us all to benefit. We hope that in the years to come we can find that path and follow it for the benefit of all.

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Group of 77 and China on agenda item 38, entitled “Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against Cuba”.

I would like to thank the Secretary-General for his comprehensive report on the item we are discussing today (A/78/84).

The Group regrets that the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States on Cuba for more than six decades remains in full application and continues to be enforced. We regret the policy established by the recent United States Administration aimed at reinforcing the embargo on Cuba, which remains in effect despite the change in Administration and which we believe is an obstacle to the process of achieving normalized relations between the two countries.

We are deeply concerned about the widening of the extraterritorial nature of the embargo on Cuba, notably through the full implementation of Title III of the Helms-Burton Act. The application of this law is a clear transgression to the freedom of commerce among nations because of its intimidating purpose by punishing any trade or investment transactions between any given country and Cuba.

In the same vein, we urge the immediate removal of Cuba from the US Department of State´s list of countries that are allegedly sponsors of terrorism. Cuba is a long-standing active partner of Members of the Group in promoting South-South cooperation. Thanks to the efforts made by Cuba, many countries within the Group have developed their scientific and technical potential. All we know about Cuba is friendship and solidarity, we know nothing about terrorism.

The inclusion of Cuba in this list does not represent only a reputational damage but is also among the the core elements in the recent reinforcement of the embargo. Because of this categorization, it has been extremely difficult for Cuba to engage in international banking operations, regardless of whether it is the case of state/private companies or private entrepreneurs, which sets extremely harmful conditions for the development and well-being of the Cuban population.

The Group of 77 and China reaffirms its commitment to the purposes, principles and spirit of the Charter of the United Nations, particularly regarding the sovereign equality of States, non-intervention and non-interference in States’ internal affairs and freedom of international trade and navigation. We believe that it is the duty and responsibility of every Member State to strictly comply with those principles and that any policy or action that disregards them – in this case, unilateral economic, commercial and financial sanctions against Cuba – should be immediately repealed.

The Group of 77 and China is deeply concerned about the debilitating impact that the United States’ embargo of more than 60 years has had on Cuba and its people. From March 1, 2022 to February 28, 2023, the blockade caused more than $ 4.8 billion in losses to Cuba. The direct and indirect damage that the embargo has inflicted on Cuba is enormous. It affects all the critical sectors of the Cuban economy, including public health, nutrition and agriculture, as well as trade, investment, tourism and banking. The persecution of Cuban financial transactions in third-country jurisdictions, which has had a significant deterrent effect in economic terms, has continued. The limited foreign investment and difficulty of access to development credits translate directly into economic hardship and humanitarian suffering for the people of Cuba.

The embargo has also been a severe obstacle to the country’s socioeconomic reforms. We are concerned about the possibility that the continuation of economic sanctions, truly undermines Cuba’s development potential by unfairly retarding economic growth and human development. As a result of these unilateral measures, it will be impossible for Cuba to successfully embark on the path towards sustainable development envisaged in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, to which all Member States have pledged support.

Cuba has extensively and consistently contributed to the international community for many decades. Its assistance to other countries in the context of the coronavirus disease pandemic has been a great example of South-South cooperation. We, the members of the Group of 77 and China, reiterate our support for draft resolution A/78/L.5, as well as our call for an end to the United States’ economic, commercial and financial embargo on Cuba.

The urgency and necessity of lifting the blockade is ever clearer, especially considering that this is the thirty-first occasion on which the General Assembly will adopt a resolution to call for its end. We therefore appeal to the international community to step up its efforts calling for the elimination of the embargo, not just to improve Cuba’s prospects but also to help all members of the global community in their quest to fully realize their economic and social development.

I thank you

Mr. Chair, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates,

I have the honor to make this statement on behalf of the G77 and China.

Allow me to take this opportunity to congratulate you and the other members of the Bureau on your election. The world continues to suffer from the effects of a multidimensional crisis that poses particular challenges to developing countries.

After a year of long debates, preparation and intense negotiations on mayor and highly visible international events addressing a multiplicity of development challenges, both within and outside the UN, it is clear to the Group of 77 and China that what has been discussed on those multilateral settings is far from being reflected in concrete actions, for which we face, still, another crisis: an implementation crisis.

The commitments made and that we have set out in various intergovernmental documents in the area of economic, climate, trade and financial challenges have not yet been implemented.

We are aware of the factors that have contributed to this situation. The so called development fatigue of developed countries donors and the subsequent lack of political will to implement major international agreements that preceded the Covid-19 pandemic, the cumulative effects of the pandemic, geopolitical tensions and deepening of the climate crisis, among others, have strained the response capacity of developing countries and the United Nations development system itself.

High inflation, growing food insecurity, unsustainable debt burdens, supply chain disruptions, currency fluctuations, high borrowing costs, and unilateral coercive measures that are not in accordance with international law and the Charter of the United Nations are also examples of the growing number of problems facing developing countries today that make the implementation of commitments even more difficult.

Attempts to address these issues have remained on the surface of the challenges facing developing countries today. We underscore that the eradication of poverty in all its forms and dimensions is a central imperative of the Agenda for Sustainable Development and emphasize the need to address this issue in order to truly leave no one behind, focusing in particular on the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable.

We, the developing nations, as the major stakeholders of the UN system, have proposed the solutions in different scenarios.

First, reform of the international financial architecture, including reform of the governance of the international financial institutions and multilateral development banks, in particular the IMF and the World Bank, to strengthen the voice and participation of developing countries.

There is an urgent need to immediately expand concessional financing through MDBs and regional development banks for all developing countries, reduce the cost of borrowing for developing countries, and allocate new SDRs, either through general allocation or reallocation of existing unused SDRs.

It is also necessary a comprehensive review of the IMF surcharge policy due to its regressive and pro-cyclical character. The review should consider a suspension of surcharges to support countries with severe balance of payments constraints, a significant permanent reduction in surcharges or their elimination.

In this regard, we reiterate our welcoming of the the Secretary-General’s proposal for an “SDG stimulus” and the ideas and proposals contained in his policy brief on reforming the international financial architecture.

We also welcome the Secretary-General’s proposal to establish measures beyond GDP for access to concessional finance through a United Nations led intergovernmental process, in consultation with relevant stakeholders. The revised criteria must complement existing measures and include social, economic and environmental dimensions in a balanced way.

Second, developed countries must renew their commitments to their ODA targets. In this sense, we recall developed countries to implement fully their official development assistance commitments, including the commitment by many developed countries to achieve the target of 0.7 per cent of gross national income for official development assistance (ODA/GNI) to developing countries and 0.15 to 0.20 per cent of ODA/GNI to least developed countries.

Third, the promotion of a universal, rules-based, non-discriminatory, open, inclusive, equitable and transparent multilateral trading system, including by resolving long-standing negotiating issues, such as agricultural trade and working towards the necessary reform of the WTO, strengthening special and differential treatment for developing countries as a multilateral principle, and ensuring technology transfer to achieve sustainable development.

Fourth, need to immediately eliminate all laws and regulations with extraterritorial effects and all other forms of unilateral coercive economic measures, including unilateral sanctions, against developing countries. We emphasize that such measures not only undermine the principles enshrined in the UN Charter and international law, but also pose a serious threat to the freedom of trade and investment.

Fifth, scaling up investment in digital infrastructure, connectivity, education, skills training and capacity building to ensure that developing countries can better take advantage of the digital economy.

Sixth, developed countries must significantly increase the provision and mobilization of climate finance, in particular for adaptation and resilience as well as loss and damage, to go beyond previous efforts. In this regard, it is shameful that yet developed countries have not met their commitment to provide $100 billion per year up to 2020 in climate finance and at least double climate finance for adaptation. We will not forget this failure at a time when developing countries are being asked to make more sacrifices and when multi trillion dollars of public money is being diverted to fuel the military industrial complex in developed countries.

Similarly, we urge developed countries to comply with their new financial commitments in the biodiversity agenda. We call on them to provide and mobilize resources through the recently established Global Biodiversity Fund under GEF. Their contributions should be commensurate with the financial needs to implement the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

Seventh, given the increasing financial needs to deliver on our climate and biodiversity commitments and recognizing that it is critical to liberate the fiscal space of developing countries to allow them to invest in sustainable development, we call for scaling-up the use of debt swaps for climate and nature with a multilateral approach, standardizing and facilitating the use of these mechanisms while taking measures to avoid downgrades from credit rating agencies.

Eighth, the current digital divide is bound to widen the development divide. Rather, digital technologies should help bridge the development gap. Developing countries should be given preferential access to modern and digital technologies and be involved in all decision-making processes. Moreover, digital cooperation remains essential for all developing countries. Technologies aligned with the SDGs should be transferred or made readily available to developing countries.

As it is known, the G77 and China met at the Summit level in Havana to discuss the current development challenges and in particular the role of science, technology and innovation, with a view to further expand South-South cooperation and devise on how to build together to address our common challenges. As a result of these discussions, a substantive political declaration was adopted, which recognize the important role of South-South cooperation as a complement to, but not a substitute for, North-South cooperation, particularly in the field of science, technology and innovation for sustainable development.

Mr. Chairman,

We believe that the work of the Second Committee during this session should focus on these proposed solutions. As Chair of the G77 and China, I assure you of our full support in facilitating and coordinating the discussion throughout the Committee’s work.

Thank you very much.

Mr. Chair,

1. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China on the organization of work of the Fifth Committee for the main part of the 78th Session of the General Assembly.

2. At the outset, the Group extends congratulations to you and the members of your Bureau on your election. We are glad to see the Mission of Egypt assuming the Chairmanship of the Committee. The skillfulness of the Egyptian delegation in the Fifth Committee has always been very well known, therefore, we are confident this main session will be a success under your able leadership.

3. In the same vein, we would like to express our appreciation to Ambassador Kridelka and the team of the Belgium Mission that steered this Committee during the previous session. We are thankful for the commitment they showed to fulfill their duties. We are grateful as well to the outgoing Bureau members for their commendable work during the 77th Session.
4. We reiterate our deep gratitude for the stellar work of the Secretariat of the Fifth Committee led by Mr. Lionelito Berridge, in facilitating the work of the Committee.

5. The Group also wishes to thank the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) for its invaluable support and assistance to our work. We recognize the challenges that the Secretariat and the ACABQ have had to overcome in carrying out their work.

Mr. Chair,

6. We are committed to a thorough consideration of the agenda items allocated to the 5C. In reports preparedness, we note that several reports are now available for detailed deliberations but we urge the Secretariat to finalize the pending reports as early as possible. The delay in timely provision significantly compromises the Committee’s work.

7. The Group wishes to reiterate that adequate time should be given to each agenda item and that practical steps must be taken to ensure that reports from the Secretariat and the ACABQ are issued in all official languages in a timely fashion, in line with the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly and relevant resolutions to this effect.

8. As we are about to start this intense journey that hopefully will conclude earlier in December this year, we would like to emphasize some of the core principles the G77 and China will defend throughout these weeks.

9. In the first place, we reaffirm the role of the Fifth Committee as the sole Main Committee of the Organization entrusted with responsibilities for administrative, financial and budgetary matters. This means that it is our responsibility to hold accountable the Secretariat for the management of the Organization’s resources; that it is our duty to scrutinize every initiative that is presented to us and to ensure that the Secretariat continues to comply with the mandates entrusted to it by the parliamentary bodies of the United Nations.

10. The United Nations remains an intergovernmental Organization and it is our task in the Fifth Committee to ensure that the management of this institution abides to this notion. The Secretariat is not an independent entity. This is why it is central for the G77 and China in the Fifth Committee to demand transparency, accountability and fairness in the administrative proceedings at the UN. To this end, it is also of cardinal importance for the Group to achieve equitable geographical representation in the composition of the UN staff, which is not only in line with the UN Charter but also indispensable to attain a truly democratic Organization, with a multicultural and balanced Secretariat.

Mr. Chair,

11. The Group reaffirms the critical role of the Committee for Programme and Coordination(CPC), which should only be strengthened, rather than weakened. We would like to call your attention to the mandates enshrined in resolution 77/254, on agenda item Programme Planning. This resolution, in its paragraph 12, decided that the incoming Presidents of the General Assembly and the Chairs of the Fifth Committee shall reach out to and support the Chairs of the Main Committees to ensure these bodies consider the programmes without recommendations from the CPC, as appropriate, and that conclusions and recommendations on these programmes are issued on time.

12. We highlight this matter to avoid undesired delays ahead in the session when it comes to considering major agenda items such as Programme Planning and Proposed Programme Budget for 2024. We would like to remind the longstanding position of the Group that the consideration of the legislative basis comes first, and then the review on the allocation of resources.

Mr. Chair,

13. As always, the Group stands ready to work with you, the Bureau and all colleagues to reach a successful outcome for this session.

I thank you.

Mr. Chair,

1. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China on agenda item 138: “Scale of assessments for the apportionment of the expenses of the United Nations”.

2. The Group of 77 and China would like to congratulate and welcome Mr. Bernardo Greiver for his re-appointment as Chair of the Committee of Contributions. We also congratulate the members who have recently joined the Committee this year and thank the outgoing ones.

3. We also thank the Chair of the Committee and Mr. Chandru Ramanathan, Assistant Secretary-General Controller, for introducing their respective reports.

Mr. Chair,

4. We reaffirm our long-standing position that all Member states should fulfill their legal obligations to bear the expenses of the Organization, in accordance with the UN Charter. All Member states should pay their assessed contributions in full, on time and without conditions.

5. However, the Group recognizes that some developing countries face special and genuine difficulties that prevent them from temporarily meeting their financial obligations. The Group welcomes the recommendations of the Committee of Contributions to extend relief to the states requesting for exemption under Article 19. We are convinced that the inability of the countries in this situation to make the minimum payments based on their assessed contributions is due to factors beyond their control, and therefore we agree they should be permitted to vote until the end of the 78th session of the General Assembly.

6. We express our solidarity with the only country prevented to vote at present, a Member of the Group. We call for the removal of the barriers imposed on this country that hamper its capacity to fulfill its financial obligations to the Organization.

7. Regarding multi-year payment plans, the Group appreciates the efforts made by Member States who have honored their commitments under those plans. We reiterate that multi-year payment plans should remain voluntary. The Group encourages Member states with significant arrears to also consider multi-year payment plans in meeting their obligations to the Organization.

Mr. Chair,

6. We reaffirm the principle of “capacity to pay” as the fundamental criterion in the apportionment of the expenses of the United Nations. We reject any change to the elements of the current methodology for the preparation of the scale of assessments aimed at placing an unfair burden on developing countries by increasing their contributions, which are already on the rise.

7. The Group emphasizes that the core elements of the current methodology of the scale of assessments, such as base period, Gross National Income, conversion rates, low per capita income adjustment, gradient, floor, ceiling for Least Developed Countries, and debt stock adjustment must be kept intact and are not negotiable.

8. The Group also reminds this Committee that the current maximum assessment rate, or ceiling, was fixed as a political compromise, though it is contrary to the principle of the capacity to pay. It is a fundamental source of distortion in the scale of assessments. We urge the General Assembly to undertake a review of this arrangement, in accordance with paragraph 2 of General Assembly resolution 55/5 C.

Mr. Chair,

9. The Group rejects any attempt to unilaterally withhold contributions as a tool to pressure the Organization. This is contrary to both the letter and spirit of the Charter, which upholds the principle of sovereign equality of all Member States.

10. The Group of 77 and China also emphasizes that organizations, which have an enhanced observer status at the United Nations, giving them the rights and privileges usually only applied to observer states should also have the same financial obligations to the United Nations as observer states. We urge the General Assembly to consider a decision on an assessment for such organizations.

11. The Group further welcomes the possibility to consider payment of a portion of contributions in currencies other than US dollars for the years 2022, 2023 and 2024, as resolved in resolution 76/238.

Mr. Chair,

12. To conclude, we reaffirm the unity and solidarity of all the Members of the Group on this agenda item.

I thank you.

Mr. Chair,

1. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

2. Our Group wishes to thank Mr. Chandru Ramanathan, Assistant Secretary-General and Controller, for introducing the report of the Secretary-General on this agenda item and we acknowledge him and his team for the efforts in preparing this document. We also thank Mr. Abdallah Bachar Bong, Chair of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) for presenting the related report.

3. We attach significant importance to the consideration of this agenda item. In our view, assessing the performance of the budget management during the previous year is fundamental to determine how efficient we are. Our role as the sole Main Committee with responsibilities for administrative, financial and budgetary matters requires to have an insightful examination on how the budget we approved was implemented.

4. To do so, it is essential for us to have at hand all the information that is required. In this regard, we notice that some elements are missing in the report that has been prepared by the Secretariat. We would like to highlight, notably, that this year the practice of providing information on the transfers between sections has been suspended. This is one case where the General Assembly is impeded to carry out its duties, in accordance with the Financial Regulations and Rules, specifically, Regulation 5.6.

5. In the case of the special fund commitments, we remind that this issue was subject to discussions during the previous main session. Yet, there is need for further information with regard to the management of these funds. Financial Regulation 5.3 basically states that appropriations shall remain available for 12 months following the end of the budget period to which they relate and that the balance of appropriations should be surrendered. However, we still don´t know whether the balance of 17.7 million in special funds commitments for 2020 was used, for what purpose it was used or whether it was returned to Member States. In the same vein, we would like to have further clarity on why it has taken more than the established time to surrender the positive balances across the regular budget. We refer to the special fund commitments but also to the balance of 21.7 million resulting from the transfer of the regular budget fund to the cost recovery fund by the end of 2020.

6. Also, as a matter of concern, we notice the negative results that have been repeated as a trend when it comes to the policy of forward purchasing of currencies. This policy was mandated by the General Assembly with the aim to protect the United Nations against exchange rate fluctuations. Nonetheless, since 2014 the balance has been more than twice as many losses as gains. Against this backdrop, the current contract arrangements to forward purchasing of foreign currency, as well as the possibility to diversify the basket of currencies need to be revised.

Mr. Chair,

7. Now I will turn to a matter that has been raised consistently by the G77/China during the last year. I´m referring to the cost-recovery surplus, in this case in the Regular Budget. To our surprise, the cost-recovery surplus continued to grow during 2022. At present, there is not detailed information on why this is happening and more importantly, what this money is being used for.

8. We remind that pursuant to the cost-recovery policy and guidelines issued in December 2021, the overall fund balance should not exceed one year of operating expenses and the difference between income and expenditure per year should not vary more than +/-10 per cent of the costs incurred. In 2021, the accumulated surplus was approximately 1.8 times the expenses of the cost-recovery fund. This year, the pattern is the same. Therefore, we insist once again that this Committee needs to have a clear understanding on this issue and to decide on the funds that have been accumulated.

9. To conclude, Mr. Chair, I convey the willingness of the Group to follow closely these discussions and to work constructively to ensure the best outcome on this agenda item for the benefit of our Organization.

I thank you.

Mr. Chair,

1. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

2. Our Group wishes to thank Ms. Elia Yi Armstrong, Director of UN Ethics Office, for this first presentation of the annual report by the Ethics Office to General Assembly, in accordance with resolution 77/278.

3. We will follow the discussions on the findings raised in the report, with a view to ensure that the Ethics Office continues its outstanding work in fostering a culture of ethics, integrity, transparency and accountability in the Organization. In this regard, the Group welcomes the efforts of the Office to increase awareness of ethics-related issues through outreach, training and education.

Mr. Chair,

4 Ethics is critical for the functioning as well as the credibility and reputation of United Nations system organizations. Having a dedicated and effective ethics function is thus a prerequisite for accountability and integrity of UN system organizations.

5 The Group believes that a culture of ethics must contribute to ensure that staff members observe and perform their functions in a manner consistent with the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity, as required in article 101 of the Charter of the United Nations. This also includes the observation of the principle of the equitable geographical representation while considerating the employment of the staff and the determination of the conditions of service.

6 The Group notes that in 2022, the Ethics Office responded to 1 822 requests. 395 of them were related to the financial disclosure programme, an increase of 152 compared to 2021. In this regard, we note that OIOS will be implementing a planned internal audit of the UN financial disclosure programme, the findings of which will be reported upon its conclusion this year. We look forward to receiving further information on this issue.

7 On another note, we recognize the potential of an enhanced work of the Ethics Office in the field, given the risk environments that field-based operations face. In this respect, we note that the Secretary-General will be presenting a more detailed resource requests in the forthcoming budget proposals for the Ethics Office. By that time, we will look forward to receiving detailed justifications and information on this matter.

8 Furthermore, we believe that the Ethics Office should start also looking at the issue of the occupancy level at the UN headquarters and other UN Secretariat offices. In this regard, we note that despite the efforts and actions taken by the management structures there is still a significant number of offices that remain empty because the staff chose to continue working from home. We reiterate that physical presence of the secretariat staff is fundamental for the work of the organization and meeting the requirements of member states as per the UN rules and regulations.

Mr. Chair,

9 The Group reiterates its strong support towards an effective and efficient culture of ethics that is embedded in the working habits of the United Nations. In this spirit, we remain ready to engage constructively during the consideration of this agenda item.

I thank you.

Mr. Chair,

I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

We are at the crossroads of important milestones for developing countries.

At this time of meetings and adoption of new development commitments and targets for LDCs and LLDCs, the international community and the United Nations system must take stock of the process of implementing previous targets. This is an opportunity to see how effective the policies adopted have been and how unfulfilled the commitments made remain.

At the halfway point in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the results are far from the desired ones, and in the case of LDCs and LLDCs, the scenario is even more discouraging.

It is inconceivable that, although LDCs account for less than 4% of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions, they are the most adversely affected from the climate crisis. In the last 50 years, 69% of global deaths from climate-related disasters occurred in LDCs. This situation cannot continue. We are facing an inequality crisis in which 46 countries comprising 14% of the world’s population risk being left behind, while in the last 10 years, the richest 1% of humanity has cornered more than half of all new global wealth. This is simply unacceptable.

The implementation of the Doha Programme of Action is an important step in the right direction. However, its timing coincides with the final years of action to achieve the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs, which will require a renewed global partnership, real solidarity and means of implementation to meet the LDCs’ requirements.

As a first step, access to Covid-19 vaccines and treatments cannot continue to be a challenge for LDCs. We must adequately and timely provide safe, quality, effective and affordable vaccines for this group of countries.

Secondly, we must confront the unsustainable debt burden in many LDCs and take urgent and necessary measures to reduce the debt situation if they are to return to normalcy. Immediate actions such as substantial debt relief and restructuring, reallocation of unutilized Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) and a new allocation of SDRs are necessary.

Thirdly, it is imperative that developed countries meet their ODA commitments. These countries must fulfill their historic commitment to allocate between 0.15% and 0.20% of their GDP to ODA for the least developed countries.

The LDCs’ process of graduation to a higher stage must be re-evaluated to ensure the sustainability of the progress achieved in each case. It is unreasonable for LDCs, once graduated, to stop receiving specific treatment when their vulnerability is still evident. This is in line with the urgent need to measure sustainable development beyond GDP. Graduated LDCs would not face this reality if developed countries were to fulfill their commitment to contribute 0.7% of their GDP to Official Development Assistance, which is still a mere pipe dream today.

For LLDC the situation is similar, the last half of the implementation period of the Vienna Programme of Action was marked by the devastating impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, which stalled or reversed socioeconomic development gains that had been achieved by landlocked developing countries. The fragile recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic has been further disturbed by the challenging global macroeconomic conditions, resulting in the exacerbation of their structural and geographical vulnerabilities.

The pandemic disrupted global supply chains, leading to shipment delays and high shipping costs from mid-2020 to the end of 2022. In 2021, global freight rates experienced a steep increase, reaching a record price of nearly $10,400 per forty-foot container in September 2021.2 In June 2023, the global freight rate was $1,500, which is close to pre-pandemic levels.

The group emphasize that building the productive capacities of landlocked developing countries, promoting value addition and export diversification and moving up global value chains are vital to increasing their trade potential. Landlocked developing countries’ efforts need to be supported by enabling multilateral trading and financial systems.

Landlocked developing countries, in cooperation with transit developing countries, need to continue to develop and implement trade facilitation measures to simplify border crossing operations, implement joint border management systems and harmonize customs and other border crossing rules, procedures and documentation with a view to ensuring faster and cheaper cross-border trade. It will also be necessary to automate border processes and adapt to emerging technologies for seamless, contactless and paperless border crossings.

It is necessary to promote the integration of LLDCs in global trade by, inter alia, enhance support for capacity-building and technology transfer to develop digital infrastructure and policies to support e-commerce and the digital economy.

It is necessary to promote enhanced structural transformation, including through intensified industrialization, and a greater utilization of science, innovation and technology.

The Group upholds the importance of fostering strong synergy and coherence in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Vienna Programme of Action and encouraged coordination and coherence in the follow-up of their implementation.

The Third Conference of the LLDCs will be an opportunity to renew our commitments to this group of countries with the adoption of a ten-year action programme that responds to the concrete needs of the LLDCs.

The G77 and China reaffirm its solidarity with the LDCs and landlocked developing countries and its willingness to firmly support the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action and the Vienna Programme of Action within the framework of South-South cooperation and in complement to the cooperation to be undertaken by our developed country partners.

Thank you.

Mr. President:

I have honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, as an explanation of position on the adoption of the Political Declaration of the Second High-Level Meeting of the General Assembly on the Fight Against Tuberculosis, contained in document L.4.

Throughout the negotiation process of this draft political declaration, the Group engaged with a constructive spirit and demonstrated great flexibility and willingness to compromise. Regrettably, and despite having been clear in its legitimate priorities and concerns, the Group was put in the unfortunate situation of having to break silence twice.

In this regard, the Group recalls its letter dated 1 September 2023, addressed to the President of the General Assembly.

The Group notes that most of the issues on which it broke the second silence procedure remain unsolved. Particularly on the most substantive of the Group’s concerns, there was not even an attempt to find a compromise solution and those objected elements were pushed forward when the lack of overall consensus was crystal clear.

The Group of 77 and China comprises more than a two third majority of the United Nations, 69% of it, to be precise. The aspirations, priorities and legitimate concerns of developing countries should not be blatantly neglected, which is what happened when the same text that our Group broke silence on was put forward as the outcome of a negotiation process that unfortunately had its shortcomings. This “take-it-or-leave-it” does not reflect the spirit of multilateralism and cooperation that should prevail in the United Nations, if it is that we truly want to leave no one behind.

It is also unacceptable, and discriminatory, that the co-facilitators decided to weaken agreed language of the previous political declaration on tuberculosis, in an effort to accommodate one single delegation; when at the same time they took the deliberate decision to ignore the concerns and proposals of the largest Group of the United Nations, most of them based on agreed language.

This way of proceeding is simply not acceptable, and should not create any precedent or practice into future processes.

In this regard, the Group would like to put on record its dissatisfaction with the shortcomings of the negotiation process and outcome of the 2023 Political Declaration on the Fight Against Tuberculosis. This process was not conducted in a balanced and fair manner, and delegations from developing countries were not taken into account in the same footing as others.

On substance, the Group would like to mention the following shortcomings of the Political Declaration to be adopted:

– First, there is no reference to Unilateral Coercive Measures and the need to refrain from applying them against developing countries, despite it being agreed language of the 2030 Agenda.

– Second, there is no reference to the need for developing countries to have unhindered access to necessary resources and means to address tuberculosis.

– Third, the language on sufficient financial support for developing countries is rather weak or heavily caveated, and there is no debt dimension to the text.

– Fourth, the language on TRIPS is weaker than the one contained in the previous political declaration on tuberculosis.

– Fifth, the language on technology transfer is insufficient and excessively caveated.

Mr. President,

The Group came to this process in good faith, believing that our partners were interested in an outcome document that reflected the interests and aspirations of all. Their actions during the negotiation process, trying even to delete references to the special situation of developing countries, the disproportionate impact of tuberculosis that many in our Group face, and their uneven capacity to respond to this disease, have demonstrated that, for some, “leaving no one behind” is just a slogan. Regardless, our Group reiterates its commitment to the fight against tuberculosis, as part of overall efforts towards implementing the 2030 Agenda and achieving sustainable development.

The Group requests that this statement is properly reflected in the records of this meeting.

Thank you.

Mr. Chair, Excellencies, Colleagues,

I have the honor to deliver this statement on agenda item 16 and 17 on behalf of the G77 and China.

The Group expects to have serious discussions under these agenda items taking into account the huge setbacks in attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals and in particular in the fight against poverty and hunger as a result of the compounding crisis which we are facing today, the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic and the significant decline in multilateral international cooperation for development, especially in the provision of development financing and technology cooperation. All of these have produced severe shocks to developing countries’ economies.

The persistent socio-economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitical tensions, continued global tightening of monetary policy, unilateral coercive measures, the adverse effects of climate change, to mention a few, have exacerbated challenges for developing countries.

The current international financial architecture has failed to deliver financing and stability needed to achieve the SDGs. This architecture designed in 1945 to safeguard the stability of the global monetary and financial system was negotiated in the absence of the majority of developing countries which were then still under colonial occupation. Over the past decades, the inequality of these arrangements has become visible. In all sectors, the gap between developed and developing countries has become wider. Most developing countries have been unable to scale up public finance and investment, owing to limited fiscal space and a lack of access to affordable long-term financing. Borrowing space is also limited. As noted in the Financing for Sustainable Development Report 2023, 52 developing countries face severe debt problems.

The Group emphasizes that numerous efforts have been made to reform the imbalances of those arrangements and to bring inclusivity, especially at the UN and its related organizations, like UNCTAD.

An example of those efforts is the proposals for a New International Economic Order that were adopted by the UN General Assembly. However, today there is still a need for stronger political will to establish a fair, just and equitable international economic order.

The current crisis requires urgent actions, not promises and empty speeches.

First, we need to seize the momentum and reform the international financial architecture. The responses that developing countries need go beyond the capacities of the existing multilateral and international financial institutions like the IMF and the World Bank.

The ongoing sixteenth general review of quotas of the IMF provides an opportunity to meet the commitments in the Addis Ababa Action Agenda to strengthen the voice and representation of developing countries. If the largest developed economies continue to hold de facto veto powers in the decision-making bodies of these institutions, there won’t ever be an inclusive international system.

We also need to take urgent actions such as a comprehensive review of the IMF surcharge policy due to its regressive and pro-cyclical character.

The United Nations provides a universal, inclusive and legitimate forum for addressing these challenges. Its unique situation needs to be used as a platform to advance the reforms to the international architecture.

Second, an improved global sovereign debt architecture with meaningful participation of developing countries cannot be postponed any longer. In 2022, 25 developing countries dedicated more than a fifth of their total revenue to servicing external public debt which constrained their ability to invest in recovery and sustainable development, and raised the risk of future debt crises.

Third, financing for development continues to be the key for implementing the SDGs. Therefore, we urge developed countries to fulfill their unmet ODA commitments to developing countries to achieve the target of 0.7 % of gross national income and 0.15 to 0.20 % of ODA to the least developed countries. The current crises should not be used as an excuse to slow down or go back on the obligations and commitments of our developed partners towards the developing countries.

Fourth, the voluntary rechanneling of unutilized Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) to developing countries and a new allocation of SDRs needs to be implemented and a mechanism that allows for a more automated process for issuing special drawing rights should be considered. As indicated in the SG’s Report, it took 11 months for the Board of Governors of IMF to agree on a new special drawing rights issuance following the onset of the 2008 global financial crisis, and 17 months following the COVID-19 outbreak. A smooth SDRs rechanneling mechanism is, therefore, urgently required.

Fifth, it is imperative to materialize the mobilization of resources by developed countries to tackle climate change. It is deeply disappointing that the goal to mobilize 100 billion dollars by developed countries per year up to 2020 was never met. We sincerely hope that this goal would be met this year for the first time, as announced at the G20 New Delhi Summit in September.

We also expect developed countries do not fail to comply with their new financing commitments under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Given the significant financing gaps in both the climate and the biodiversity agendas.

Sixth, the UN Secretary-General’s proposal for an “SDG Stimulus” for developing countries, in particular the most in need and distressed countries, could alleviate their economies and accelerate the recovery process towards the implementation of the SDGs. In this regard, we call upon the international community to follow up and support the SG’s “SDG Stimulus” proposal.

Seventh, we express our deep concern that there is still no single global inclusive forum for international tax cooperation at the intergovernmental level. We insist on the need for inclusive and effective platforms to design and discuss international tax rules and norms at the UN.

Eight, it is important to advance in the establishment of the set of measures of progress on sustainable development that complement or go beyond gross domestic product to inform access to concessional finance and technical cooperation by developing countries through a UN-led intergovernmental process in consultation with all relevant stakeholders, which will also require increased investment in national statistical systems, in data collection, and in capacity building for national statistical agencies.

Ninth, The Group remains deeply concerned and rejects the increasing trend by developed countries to impose unilateral and protectionist measures that undermine the multilateral trading system and negatively impact the access of developing countries’ exports to the global markets.

The imposition of unilateral coercive economic measures against developing countries, which are inconsistent with the principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations, does not contribute to economic and social development, including dialogue and understanding among countries, and impede the capacity of targeted countries to promote post-pandemic recovery. Therefore, we reiterate the urgent need to eliminate them immediately.

Mr. Chair,

Without urgent policy changes and concrete actions, the gaps between developed countries and developing countries threatens to become a vicious circle, with the financing divide limiting countries’ ability to invest in the SDGs and their resilience, making them in turn more vulnerable to external shocks.

Thank you.

Agenda item 15: Information and communications technologies for sustainable development

Mr. Chair,

I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the G77 and China.

Information and Communication Technologies have become a driving force expanding learning opportunities and development of skills; improving healthcare access, increasing financial inclusion; enhancing agricultural productivity; facilitating disaster monitoring and coordination during emergencies, among other advantages.

However, the use of ICTs has been limited for developing countries due to the lack of the required infrastructure, computer capacity, human resources and expertise. In this context, emerging technologies and the rapid digitalization process have put additional pressure on these nations who need these tools to attain higher levels of development but do not have equal access to them.

The digital divide persists, with 2.7 billion people still offline worldwide, impacting the ability of countries to effectively use digital technologies as an implementation tool for the SDGs. In this regard, the first step must be to bridge this divide and turn it into a digital opportunity for all. This will require enhanced international cooperation, technology transfer and capacity building in order to strengthen the ability of developing countries to optimally utilize digital technology for sustainable development.

For the Group, the important issues pertaining to digital cooperation encompass an inclusive digital economy and literacy; internet content fitting local specificities and needs, including local languages; access to digital networks and connectivity; capacity building and technology transfer on favourable terms, including on concessional and preferential terms; investment in digital infrastructures; data protection; data governance; artificial intelligence; avoiding Internet division and fragmentation; countering the proliferation of disinformation and misinformation, and to outline shared principles for a digital future for all to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

We should leverage the role of the United Nations as the main channel in global Internet governance to take urgent action aimed at reducing digital divides and inequalities in data generation, infrastructure and accessibility within and among countries and regions, as well as between developed and developing countries, with special attention to the poorest and most vulnerable among them and to ensure equal participation of all countries, while respecting their rights in choosing their own model of network development and governance. In this regard, a universal, ubiquitous, equitable, non-discriminatory and affordable access to, and use of, ICTs, considering different national circumstances, must be ensured not only in their use but also in their management and governance. In the same vein, the United Nations needs to play a key role in advancing a more balanced global data governance.

In the G77 and China Summit on Science, Technology and Innovation held in Havana, the Group has reaffirmed the vision of building an inclusive, people-centered and development-oriented information society and has urged the creation of the necessary conditions to provide developing countries with affordable and reliable connectivity, aimed, inter alia, at promoting digital access and inclusion. Concrete actions are needed if we aimed to achieve this goal.

The Group has sent its contributions for the Global Digital Compact (GDC) and looks forward to constructive, meaningful and real negotiations. The GDC must focus on the pressing need to address the major structural impediments that developing countries face in engaging with and accessing new and emerging technologies.

Agenda item 19: Globalization and Interdependence

Mr. Chair,

Globalization has reached unprecedented pace and scope. It has spawned new opportunities and realities as well as persistent and new challenges for the acceleration of economic growth, development, and poverty eradication. Much remains to be done to ensure an equitable global trading system so that all countries and all people can benefit from the full potential of globalization.

We have to reinvigorate our focus on reducing inequalities through trade and development, reinforce international cooperation and respecting each country’s policy space.

We must reaffirm our commitment to creating an enabling international environment for development and to facilitating the necessary means of implementation, particularly in the areas of finance, technology and capacity-building for developing countries, and in this regard call for a sincere follow-up on the global commitments of all actors, particularly developed countries.

The Group reaffirms that a reinvigorated multilateral system, with the United Nations at its center, is the cornerstone of a renewed approach toward a more inclusive and sustainable globalization. This is necessary, we believe, in order to address cross-border and other global and new emerging challenges.

Mr. Chair,

We stress the important role of science, technology and innovation as pillars, enablers and catalysts to support sustainable growth, accelerating the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda. In this context, we call upon the international community, the United Nations System and the International Financial Institutions to support the efforts of the countries of the Global South to develop and strengthen their national science, technology and innovation systems.

We acknowledge the contribution of science to the creation of innovative technologies and solutions to move towards more sustainable production and consumption patterns. In that context, we call for the provision of the necessary means of implementation to developing countries to strengthen their scientific and technological capacities. We reaffirm the need for political decision-making at all levels to create an enabling international environment for science, technology and innovation development and to take into account, in the first instance, available scientific knowledge and innovation, as well as the use and promotion of traditional, local, afro-descendant and indigenous knowledge and capacities.

The successful G77 Summit on Science, Technology and Innovation held in Havana on September 15 and 16 launched an urgent call for science, technology and innovation to be built around the unwavering goal of sustainable development. There, we decided to resume the work of the Consortium of Science, Technology and Innovation for the South, in order to promote joint research projects and foster productive linkages.

We also agreed to promote the convening, by 2025, of a High-Level Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly on Science, Technology and Innovation for Development.

Furthermore, the Group recognizes culture as an enabler and a driver of sustainable development. We stress the importance of respect and understanding for cultural diversity and fostering intercultural understanding and dialogue. Culture represents a source of identity, innovation and creativity, and makes important contributions to the three dimensions of sustainable development and the achievement of the SDGs. We recognize the efforts and initiatives of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the mandated United Nations agency in this field.

Mr. Chair,

The Group reiterates the urgent need to identify ways and means to ensure that the diverse and specific development needs of middle-income countries are appropriately considered and addressed, in order to leave no one behind. In this context, the UN development system must improve its support to different countries, given their diverse contexts, including how to provide better coordinated, more efficient and focused support to middle-income countries.

The reform of the international governance system, particularly in the economic and financial areas, with more voice and participation of developing countries in decision making is fundamental if we want the globalization process to be less exclusive and better prepared to manage and solve the new emerging challenges.

In closing, the Group of 77 and China urge the international community to collectively address these challenges through continued and constructive dialogue.

Thank you

Mr. Chairman,

I have the honor to speak on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

The recently concluded SDG Summit marked, the mid-term review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Took place at a time of extremely critical juncture, in which developing countries still face multiple challenges and an unjust economic order that perpetuates inequalities and poverty.

The reports prepared by the Secretary General contain undisputable figures that portray a rather somber reality. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic the word was already off track to meet the SDGs.

We will reach 2030 with 575 million people living in extreme poverty. By then, barely one third of countries will succeed in halving national poverty levels. We will not end hunger as agreed. On the contrary, today 735 million people face chronic hunger, more than in 2015. At the current pace, none of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals will be met and more than half of the agreed targets will be missed.

Mr. Chairman,

We need to promote global structures and policies which can end inequity and inequality, among and within nations, and enable all developing countries to achieve the SDGs.

The Group pioneered the genuine demands of developing countries for the reform of the international financial architecture.

The reform must be aligned with the SDGs. This implies sustainable management of sovereign debt, larger concessional finance from MDBs; issuance of additional SDRs; reducing borrowing costs for developing countries; and upscaling climate finance.

We must continue to uphold the role of the General Assembly in dealing with these issues if we want to make sure that the voice of every nation is properly heard and taken into account in such important matters pertaining global governance.

In this regard, we call upon the international community to follow up and support the UN Secretary-General’s proposal for an “SDG Stimulus” for developing countries, which aims at massively scaling up affordable long-term financing for development and aligning financing flows with the SDGs.

We also call on developed countries to finally fulfill their unmet ODA commitments.

The Group call for the full implementation of commitments made by developed countries to immediately provide the means of implementation necessary for developing countries to achieve the goals set for sustainable development.

The G77 and China upholds the principles set in the Rio Declaration, particularly the principles of equity and CBDR-RC. Those principles must guide every discussions on sustainable development. Referencing them should not constitute a matter of big dispute within Second Committee.

Mr. Chairman,

The Group recognizes historical advancements in environmental fields.

The Group welcomed the historic decision of the establishment of the Loss and Damage Fund and calls for its full operationalization by COP28.

We urge developed countries to fulfill their commitments under the Convention of Biodiversity on the provision of means of implementation to developing countries, including the goal to mobilize at least $20 billion per year by 2025 and to mobilize at least $30 billion per year by 2030 as agreed in the GBF, as well as to strengthen capacity-building and development, access to and transfer of technology, and access to innovation and technical and scientific cooperation.

The Group reaffirms that SIDS remain a “special case” for sustainable development in view of their unique and particular vulnerabilities, and acknowledges the close interlinkages between the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the SAMOA Pathway. In that regard, the group looks forward the convening of the 4th SIDS Conference, that will take place in Antigua and Barbuda. This meeting will mark the implementation of the commitments made in SAMOA Pathway and will set the scenario for the next 10 years of discussions on how to better support SIDS.

The Group gives high priority to the role of science, technology and innovation in the context of sustainable development, specially the spaces we can create by enhancing the South-South cooperation.

In that regard, the Havana Summit on STI and its political declaration launched an urgent appeal to follow a pathway of enhanced capabilities through science for the achievement of the SDGs.

At the same time, we underscore that developing countries’ efforts to implement the 2030 Agenda must also be backed up by concrete actions on technology transfer and capacity building as well as North-South cooperation to foster industrialization and investment in quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure.

Mr. Chairman,

Finally, unilateralism and protectionism including unilateral trade protection and restrictions, incompatible with the WTO Agreements, should be speedily eliminated.

That is also the case for those countries suffering the imposition of unilateral coercive measures that constitute a serious violation of the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.

Those measures gravely hinder the efforts of the affected countries towards the achievement of the SDGs and sustainable development in general. The international community, including the United Nations system, should continue to firmly reject the imposition of those measures and to work for their unconditional lifting.

Count on our commitment of engaging in a constructive manner during the works of the Second Committee in these issues and also count on our full determination to defend to the fullest extent the interests of the most vulnerable, of those of us who have been left behind.

Thank you.

Mr. Chair,

1. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

2. The Group thanks the Secretary-General for his report on the activities of the United Nations Office for Partnerships, as per the request of General Assembly decisions 52/466 and 53/475.

Mr. Chair,

3. The Group commends the United Nations Office for Partnerships for its outstanding work in advancing the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and for providing partnership advisory and outreach services in response to the demands of the United Nations system and its Member States.

4. The Group emphasizes that the year 2023 marks the halfway point for the achievement of the SDGs and it is clear that we are far off track. Against this challenging backdrop, we appreciate the initiatives undertaken by UNOP to advance the 2030 Agenda, through addressing many of our global challenges, among them post COVID19 pandemic recovery, other health issues and climate change.

5. The Group notes the effective use of social media platforms for public through SDG’s advocates. The annual meeting of the Advocates with the Secretary-General in 2022 raised issues of the utmost importance for developing countries that need to be addressed holistically if we truly want to achieve the SDG by 2030, namely, the reform of the global financial architecture, debt relief and a sophisticated data system to accurately measure global progress on the Goals.

6. We further note that the United Nations Foundation has been acting as fiscal agent for various UN entities. In 2022, the Foundation disbursed $27.3 million in funding through the UN Fund for International Partnership (UNFIP) for various United Nations initiatives. The Group may want to know more about it in later consultations.

Mr. Chair,

7. The Group recalls Goal 17 of the SDGs which underlines the need to revitalize global partnerships, including through multi-stakeholder partnerships, and urges UNOP to continue engaging with partners and to explore opportunities for collaboration within the United Nations system in support of developing countries in their implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on Financing for Development. We also urge UNOP to strengthen partnerships with regional and sub-regional organizations.

8. Finally, the Group encourages UNOP to enhance accountability and transparency in the future and to embark on a comprehensive evaluation of its activities with a view to sustaining impactful partnerships and exploring innovative approaches that can catalyze resources and accelerate solutions to keep the promises of the SDGs, paying special attention to the needs of developing countries.

I thank you.

Mr. Chair, Excellencies, Colleagues,

I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

The Group welcomes this joint meeting and its theme as it is related directly to economic growth in developing countries.

Commodity dependence continues to be a challenge for the Global South. As indicated in the UNCTAD’s Report: The State of Commodity Dependence 2023, 94 per cent of commodity dependent countries are developing countries. This phenomenon which is prevalent in Africa, Oceania and South America, also affects a disproportionate share of countries with special needs: 81 per cent of LLDCs, 74 per cent of LDCs and 61 per cent of SIDS are commodity-dependent.

Developing countries are interested, therefore, to discuss and analyze how to move away from this high dependence on commodities that makes them vulnerable to negative shocks that affect the price of these products and use commodities, instead, to increase economic growth, distribution of income and achieve sustainable development.

To the Group of 77 and China, high price volatility undermines the development prospects of its members that are commodity dependent. Instability of commodity prices adds to increasing risks to trade and investment and to uncertainty in revenues prospects.

For most developing countries the longer-term solution is to transform their economies structurally, which have been impacted for decades by the unfair and unbalanced international economic order that has perpetuated poverty and underdevelopment.

Developing countries aspire to create more value-added products and thus, increase their income to lead sustainable economic growth. An increase in productivity resulting from technological change and the diversification of productive and export sectors could lead to prosperous economies, creating employment, promoting investments in infrastructure and accelerating structural change.

However, to diversify their economies and to establish high-tech sectors is not easy for most of developing countries. Adding value to the commodities they produce is limited due to the difficulties in access to finance, technology and adequate infrastructure, just to mention some few constraints.

Excellencies, Dear colleagues,

To implement diversification strategies successfully, developing countries require human and physical capital accumulation, including infrastructure; technology transfer on concessional and preferential terms and capacity building.

Developing countries also require technical assistance and capacity development aimed at improving competitiveness of producers. This may include providing technical assistance to ensure conformity with overseas market standards and setting up export promotion agencies.

Developing countries further need financial support and investment, including foreign direct investment in specific areas of the value chain, including non-traditional industries, which facilitate technology acquisition or innovation to address specific challenges.

Developing countries require support and assistance of the international community to enhance their technical expertise and address barriers in order to participate actively in the global supply chain.

To conclude, there can be no resilience without international cooperation. Developing countries look forward to creating and implementing initiatives and projects with development partners to diversify their economies, provide added value to their products and therefore, promote economic growth that translate into benefits for their populations and higher levels of development.

Thank you

Mr. Chair,

1. I have the honor to speak on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

2. proposed programme plan and budget for 2024. We also thank Mr. Abdallah Bachar Bong, Chair of the Advisory Committee, for introducing the Committee’s related report.

3. We wish to recognize the Vice-Chair of the Committee for Programme and Coordination (CPC), Ms. Hind Jerboui, for introducing the report of the CPC. We want to thank the whole Bureau of this Committee for their efforts during the committee’s deliberations this year.

Mr. Chair,

4. Given the primacy we attach to the intergovernmental guidance on mandate implementation, we would like to refer first to the agenda item Programme Planning. In this regard, we emphasize the fundamental role the CPC plays in the Organization in ensuring the proper interpretation the Secretariat makes on the mandates entrusted to it. To this effect, we remind that the terms and expressions referred to in the proposed programme plans must be intergovernmentally agreed.

5. We would like to recall as well the provisions set out in paragraph 11 of last resolution on Programme Planning, whereby the Main Committees of the General Assembly are requested, as appropriate, to provide recommendations on those programmes where consensus could not be reached during the CPC`s deliberations.

Mr. Chair,

6. Now, we would like to refer to the proposed programme budget for next year, and in particular to the impact that the UN budget could have at the operational level, especially in those programs and activities of interest to developing countries.

7. Most of the UN regular budget is conceived to cover personnel costs taking as a reference the cost of living in New York. While we acknowledge the importance of maintaining the United Nations as an attractive organization to skilled professionals, the realities in most of the countries from the Global South are quite different from that of New York.

8. Developing countries need the UN more than ever. This Organization must step up and provide meaningful examples of tangible cooperation for the benefit of those most in need, which is why the Group of 77 and China has constantly called on you Mr. Secretary General to explore innovative ways of engaging and Liaising with regional and sub-regional Organisations. In fact, the regular budget provides some tools to help get back on track with the SDGs.

Mr. Chair,

9. Two of these important tools are the Regular Programme of Technical Cooperation and the Development Account. Both instruments receive considerably low financing to carry out concrete projects to promote development and capacity building in the field. These two instruments are key to ensure that the UN can actually produce a positive impact on people´s livelihoods.

10. Being aware of their crucial importance, the Group of 77 and China is determined to augment the dimensions of both instruments in order to increase the contribution the UN could have on sustainable development through its regular budget and its accumulated expertise. A business-as-usual approach on the discussions on the regular budget would only undermine the prestige of this Organization, for which we believe it should not be an option to anyone.

11. In these endeavors, Mr. Secretary General, we will be inspired on your continuous calls for the achievement of the SDGs and the full weight of the United Nations in the upcoming High Level Meetings in 2024 especially:

– The Twelfth Session of the World Urban Forum to be held in Cairo, Egypt, – The Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries to be held in Kigali, Rwanda, and; – The Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States, to be held in Antigua and Barbuda, and; – The United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), the world’s highest-level decision-making body for matters related to the environment to be held in Nairobi, Kenya.

12. As usual we count on your support, in seeing to a budget that addresses the needs of the people we serve, and their concern’s in 2024. Likewise, we expect the same spirit guide all our colleagues in this Committee, as it was the unanimous claim during the High-level week.

I thank you.

Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am honored to speak on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

Allow me, at the outset, to thank you for the kind invitation to participate in this important meeting, as part of the efforts of maintaining coherence and coordination between our Groups in the interest of representing, as best as we can, the interests of developing countries in this complex global scenario.

The note on the reform of the Multilateral Financial System for the Challenges of the 21st Century, distributed as “issues for discussion” for this meeting, raises a number of questions of utmost importance for the Global South, particularly when leaders of the world just adopted the Political Declaration of the Summit on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, a couple of weeks ago.

During the long and complex negotiations that we held with developed countries to arrive to consensus on that Political Declaration, the questions related to the reform of the international economic and financial system were among the most difficult ones, since from the very beginning it became very clear the lack of interest of the North to engage in a serious exercise to change the status quo and undertake the fundamental reforms the system needs.

In our view, even if the language achieved on issues such as debt, trade, reform of the international financial architecture, Special Drawing Rights and Multilateral Development Banks, does not reach the level of ambition defended by our Group, yet it serves the purpose of keeping these concerns alive and at the center of the development agenda, while stressing the role of the United Nations as a setting for these discussions, something that was all along resisted by developed countries.

For us, the inclusive participation of all countries in the shaping of a new global financial system is crucial if we want to ensure that the views and concerns of our countries are duly taken into account in a reform anchored on development, something only possible at the United Nations. In that regard, some important questions would have to be discussed in any serious reform effort that take into account the seven policy priorities outlined in the “Issues for discussion” at hand.

First, the question of representation linked to the voting power at the International Financial Institutions (IFIs), which according to its current functioning, limit the effective participation of developing countries in the decision-making and standard setting processes within these institutions and restrict their access to their resources. The thorough review of the shareholding system, including a new quota formula and data update, would be essential for the very much needed power rebalancing within the IFIs and to incorporate global South perspectives in the shaping of development strategies at all levels, considering that the current IMF quota formula creates distortions and tends to favor developed countries. Building on this, it is important that we push for a review of the IMF’s surcharge policy, which is regressive and pro-cyclical, and increases the vulnerabilities of countries in a debt distress situation.

Second, the question of Special Drawing Rights. These are currently issued and allocated according to countries’ quotas within the IMF, meaning that developing countries could only receive under two-fifths of these resources. One of the key transformations that could be addressed to correct this situation is the issue of the double accounting per which the Fund distinguishes between “general resources” and SDR accounts, a system that turns unused SDRs into a virtually non-accessible resource for countries most in need among developing countries. Under the current quota system, developed countries receive 26 times more SDRs than the Least Developed Countries and 13 times more than all African countries combined. An SDR contingency mechanism should be created to ensure that in future crises, these resources are issued quickly and automatically, including through Multilateral Development Banks. An additional SDRs allocation should be approved to facilitate public investments of developing countries to achieve the SDGs.

Third, the question of external debt. It is essential to move towards improved international debt mechanisms with meaningful participation of developing countries, to assist in managing over-indebtedness problems. In 2022, 25 developing countries dedicated more than a fifth of their total revenue to servicing external public debt, a situation which constrains their ability to invest in recovery and sustainable development and raises the risk of future debt crises. The new mechanisms should include measures from cancellation to alleviation of debt burdens as appropriate, promoting debt sustainability, finding a balance between the interests of debtors and those of creditors and establishing clear transparency standards for both. That balance could include the strengthening of contractual provisions to minimize economic disruption when debtors experience difficulties, such as in the case of natural disasters and other large economic shocks, when automatic suspension of debt service should be applied. Similarly, it would be important to develop mechanisms to encourage private creditors to participate, along with official creditors, in debt treatment exercises.

We also recall the commitment to continue to assist developing countries in avoiding a build-up of unsustainable debt and in implementing resilience measures so as to reduce the risk of relapsing into another debt crisis, while recognizing the importance of new and emerging challenges and vulnerabilities in regard to developing countries’ external and domestic debt sustainability, as stated in the Political Declaration of the SDG Summit. While recognizing that they do not replace debt management solutions, debt swaps for SDGs, including for climate and nature, should be escalated, where applicable, to allow developing countries to invest in sustainable development.

Fourth, the role of the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs). These institutions are uniquely positioned to help governments achieve the SDGs. They must embrace and drive the new growth paradigm for the 21st century, one based on innovation and investment in new technologies, including environmentally sound technologies, as well as in adaptation and resilience to accelerated climate change. MDBs can also create a new avenue for private financing by partnering with the private sector, reducing the cost of capital through blended financing and increasing their own direct financing for large complementary public investments in physical and social infrastructure. Their role in assisting all developing countries in formulating financing innovative mechanisms in concessional terms should be enhanced.

Fifth, the question of the global tax architecture. We should address the challenges posed by tax evasion, as Governments around the world lose $483 billion USD each year to tax evasion and avoidance. We stress that appropriate emphasis must be placed on an enabling global environment and global partnership for development. We should reiterate the commitment to working to strengthen regulatory frameworks at all levels to further increase transparency. These efforts would be also crucial to enhance domestic resource mobilization in support of advancing the SDGs and the development agenda as a whole. United Nations should also serve as a platform to harmonize different initiatives in this regard, and to ensure a universal and inclusive approach to global tax cooperation.

The decisive advancement towards a meaningful reform along the lines of what we have discussed is no longer an option, it is an imperative, a question linked to the very survival of countries and peoples. Developing countries must continue leading up the fight towards a more just, equitable, sustainable and development-oriented international economic order, including through a strong call for the lifting of all unilateral coercive measures that hamper the ability of the countries of the South to achieve sustainable development. That would also be essential to build a common future for all and a better world for current and future generations.

I thank you.

Mr. Chair, Excellencies, Colleagues,

I have the honor to deliver this statement on agenda item 22 and its sub-items on behalf of the G77 and China. At the outset, allow me to extend our appreciation for the presentation of the Secretary General’s reports. These will enrich our deliberations on the relevant issues under consideration.

The path towards Sustainable Development is under serious threat. Developing countries continue to face multiple challenges that limit their capacity to recover their economies and, at the same time, invest in the wellbeing of their populations and future generations.

We need as a matter of urgency to work on strengthening multilateralism and reaffirming through actions our commitments in the 2030 Agenda to leave no one behind.

During this QCPR cycle, despite some advances, development activities have not received the same attention and resources from the international community as other matters. In 2021, as indicated in the SG Report, spending on development activities reached $20 billion for the first time, while spending on humanitarian activities surpassed $25 billion, to name one example.

As this cycle nears its conclusion and we begin to prepare for the new QCPR cycle in 2024, we wish to reiterate the key principles that should continue to drive the United Nations System.

The system should retain its strong development focus, bearing in mind the different development levels and realities on the ground in all developing countries and ultimately the eradication of poverty in all its forms and dimensions should remain its overarching objective.

The Group reiterates the call to the United Nations development system to continue to support countries, upon their request, in the acceleration of the implementation, follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The Group reiterates that a more stable, predictable and sustainable funding for United Nations operational development activities is key to poverty eradication. Such funding must be aligned with national development priorities and strategies of program countries with a view to reflect national ownership of their development trajectory. In this vein, the overall funding of the UNDS, especially for areas related to poverty eradication, should be increased and accelerated.

We express our concern at the continuing decline of core contributions to the UNDS, which negatively affect the efficiency and effectiveness of its functions. Reversing this trend, along with enhancement of core contributions to UNDS entities, will ensure achieving the objectives of operational activities for development. In this regard, we continue to urge donors to contribute to the system in a way that is more beneficial to its coordinated efforts through core funding.

As programme countries, we greatly appreciate the progress made thus far in the repositioned development system and the RC system. However, we are also concerned about the funding shortfall to the Resident Coordinator system and how this affects operational activities in the field. As indicated by our Group in May during the OAS Segment, we note the SG decision to provide a report in the second half of the year to consider options for funding this system.

The Group of G77 and China attaches great importance to the need to provide sustainable, predictable and adequate funding to the Resident Coordinator system and reiterates its commitment to engage constructively in the consultations to come on that particular subject.

The Group reiterates its commitment to work closely and constructively with the Secretary-General and his Team, other delegations, and all members of the UN Sustainable Development Group, to collectively implement and achieve the 2030 Agenda.

Mr. Chair,

We wish to reaffirm that South-South cooperation is a complement to, and not a substitute for, North-South cooperation. It should continue to be guided by the principles of respect for national sovereignty, national ownership and independence, equality, non-conditionality, non-interference in domestic affairs and mutual benefit. We also reaffirm the need to work towards an international cooperation system that puts development at the center.

We continue to look forward to the invaluable contributions that South-South and triangular cooperation makes in the realization of development in its three dimensions, and so, we reiterate our call to the United Nations development system to continue enhancing its support to South-South and triangular cooperation, at the request and with the ownership and leadership of the developing countries.

We welcome the outcomes of the 21th session of the High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation which is the second session after the adoption of the landmark outcome document of BAPA+40. In the same vein, we recognize the positive debates and outcomes of the Summit of the Group of 77 and China that took place in Havana, last September on Science, Technology and Innovation, which have contributed to strengthen collaboration among the countries of the South to take advantage of their potentials and enhance cooperation in this field.

Finally, Mr. Chair, you can also count on the Group’s commitment to engage constructively and contribute to the discussions under this agenda item.

Thank you.

Mr. Chair, Excellencies, Colleagues,

I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

At the outset, the Group of 77 and China would like to thank the Secretariat for the presentation of the Report submitted for our consideration under this agenda item.

The Group welcomes the SG report on “Economic and social repercussions of the Israeli occupation on the living conditions of the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan”, contained in document (A/78/127-E/2023/95), which highlights the detrimental effect of the protracted Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory and the Syrian Golan on the living conditions of the Palestinian and Syrian populations, as well as on social and economic development in the occupied territories.

The Group reiterates its unwavering and unequivocal support for economic development efforts and aspirations of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the Syrian people in the occupied Syrian Golan.

Mr. Chair,

The 2030 Agenda has recognized that “sustainable development cannot be realized without peace and security; and peace and security will be at risk without sustainable development,” and called for “further effective measures and actions to be taken, in conformity with international law, to remove the obstacles to the full realization of the right of self-determination of peoples living under colonial and foreign occupation, which continue to adversely affect their economic and social development as well as their environment.” Nevertheless, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) report has concluded that the “Israeli-imposed restrictions, expansion of the illegal settlements and other practices not only prevent development but also exacerbated the fragmentation of the Palestinian territory. These policies and practices have had a severe humanitarian, economic, social and political impact on Palestinians and their ability to exercise their fundamental human rights.”

In this regard, the Group is deeply concerned that halfway time has passed since the adoption of the 2030 Agenda, while the occupied Palestinian and Syrian peoples are still far behind in its implementation, and they would not be able to attain the sustainable development, as long as they do not have sovereignty over their natural resources.

Mr. Chair,

The Group is deeply concerned about the further deterioration of the social and economic conditions of the Palestinian people as a result of illegal Israeli practices, which include, but are not limited to, the continuing colonization of Palestinian land by Israel in grave breach of international humanitarian law and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, as well as in flagrant violation of relevant UN resolutions, including, inter alia, Security Council resolution 2334.

While recalling Security Council resolution 2334, we reaffirm that the establishment by Israel of settlements in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, has no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law and a major obstacle to the achievement of the internationally recognized two-State solution and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace. Once again, we demand that Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and call upon all States, to distinguish, in their relevant dealings, between the territory of the State of Israel and the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967.

The Group encourages all States and international organizations to continue to actively pursue policies to ensure respect for their obligations under international law with regard to all illegal Israeli practices and measures in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, particularly Israeli settlement activities and the exploitation of natural resources.

In this regard, the Group reaffirms the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and of the population of the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources, including land, water and energy resources, and demands that Israel, the occupying Power, cease the exploitation, damage, cause of loss or depletion and endangerment of the natural resources in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and in the occupied Syrian Golan, which constitute violations of international law and severely undermine their ability to pursue sustainable development.

The Group welcomes the continued Secretary General reaffirmation of the validity of Security Council resolution 497 (1981), in which the Council decided that the Israeli decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights was null and void and without international legal effect.

In closing, Mr. Chair, the Group reiterates its call on the international community to shoulder its responsibilities to provide international protection to the Palestinian people, in accordance with international law and the relevant UN resolutions.

We also emphasize the need for urgent mobilization and the deployment of multilateral efforts to preserve the prospects of achieving a just and lasting solution for the people of Palestine, on the basis of the two States solution, with the peoples living side by side in peace and security, within secure and recognized pre-1967 borders.

I thank you.

Mr. Chair,

On behalf of the Group of 77 and China, I thank the Department of Global Communication [USG Ms. Melissa Fleming] for the comprehensive presentation on the report of the SG on Questions relating to information.

We commend the Department for its continued efforts in raising awareness of the work and activities of the United Nations globally.

The Group assures you, Ms. Fleming, and your team of our full support and cooperation in your endeavors to advance the activities of the Department.

We also commend Ambassador Aamir Khan of Pakistan for his able Chairmanship of the 45th session of the Committee on Information (COI), which led to a successful conclusion and an outcome document adopted by consensus.

The 45th session of the COI was an essential platform to discuss how the United Nations might enhance its methods for communicating the message of the Organization to the world, particularly in the current context when we are grappling with multiple challenges and crisis.

Mr. Chair,

We commend the Department’s global strategic communications response to a broad range of new and ongoing challenges, such as (COVID-19) pandemic, climate change and proliferating conflicts.

The crises added a new dimension to the Organization’s efforts to combat misinformation and disinformation and foster international solidarity. In this regard, the Department’s work built on existing efforts such as, the Verified campaign, originally focused on COVID-19, by expanding its reach to other issues such as climate change and hate speech deserves appreciation.

The group also commends the Department of Global Communication’s ‘efforts to support the United Nations agenda on issues such as sustainable development, peace and security, and human rights.

Mr. Chair,

While supporting the activities of the Department, the Group would like to make the following observations and recommendations:

First, the impacts of climate change are wreaking chaos with increasing frequency and fury, all around the globe as evidenced for instance by the massive flood disaster, sand and dust storms, hurricanes, among others occurrences in many places of the world.

The efforts of the United Nations to shine a spotlight on the climate crisis and offer solutions must remain a continuing focus for communication of the Department. Information tools must be used effectively to raise awareness.

As the world has entered a climate emergency, a key communications priority for the Department must be to highlight the challenges of climate change.

The Department, in cooperation with the countries concerned, and with the relevant organizations and bodies of the United Nations system, must continue to take appropriate measures to enhance world public awareness about, inter alia, reinforcing multilateralism, unprecedented humanitarian crises and needs in the world, in particular strategic coordination in humanitarian relief, especially in natural disasters and other emerging crises due to climate change.

Second, The United Nations remains the indispensable foundation of a peaceful and just world. Its messages must be heard in a clear and effective manner. The information provided by the United Nations needs to be accurate, reliable and impartial. Similarly, the Department of Global Communications should avoid the editorialization of breaking news stories and news alerts.

The Department of Global Communications, guided by the UN resolutions, is leading by example in adhering to the highest standard of accuracy, integrity, and accountability as well as full compliance with the purposes and principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations.

In this regard, taking note of the United Nations Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech, the Group encourages the Department of Global Communications to establish and further strengthen partnerships with new and traditional media to address hate speech narratives and to promote tolerance, nondiscrimination, pluralism and freedom of opinion and expression.

The Group also encourages the Department to support the efforts of Member States and the United Nations System to eliminate all forms of discrimination, xenophobia, stigmatization, and hate speech targeting migrants and diasporas, as well as stereotyping and misleading narratives that generate negative perceptions of migration and migrants, bearing in mind their role as agents of sustainable development and as right holders.

Also, the Group wishes to highlight that the DGC’s should bring the information to the attention of the public of all Nations in their languages and in a creative way, in order to assure that the key messages are spread and can reach all peoples.

Third, the growing trend of “fake news” and disinformation on online platforms including on social media, which is exacerbating social discord, competing nationalisms, discrimination, and hate speech and has contributed to rising racism, xenophobia, islamophobia, negative stereotyping, and related intolerance.

The Group expresses great concern at the increasing amount of disinformation and misinformation directed against United Nations peacekeeping operations, and encourages the Department to support their efforts to provide accurate content, including in local languages and in coordination with national authorities, to help to strengthen the understanding of their mandates, manage expectations and garner trust and support.

The Group takes note of the report of the Secretary-General pursuant to resolution 76/227 noting that countering the different manifestations of disinformation requires addressing underlying societal tensions, fostering respect for human rights, online and offline, and supporting a plural civic space and media Landscape.

We strongly urge the DGC to intensify its support for the efforts of the United Nations System to fight against disinformation. We also reiterate our call for increased focus on the dissemination of factual, timely, targeted, clear, accessible, multilingual, and science-based information on all platforms. At the same time, we urge the promotion of messages of tolerance, peaceful coexistence and interfaith and cultural harmony among all religions, ethnicities, and nations

Fourth, the Group expresses serious concern at attacks and violence against journalists and media professionals and associated personnel. Impunity for attacks against journalists remains one of the greatest challenges to the safety of journalists. Ensuring accountability for crimes committed against journalists is a key element in preventing future attacks.

Fifth, as we stand at the critical halfway point of our collective journey to achieve the SDGs by 2030, we reiterate the importance of the existing multilateral framework for achieving the SDGs by 2030. The Group hopes that the Department of Global Communications will be able to pay particular attention to the promotion of sustained economic growth and sustainable development in accordance with the relevant resolutions and commitments.

Sixth, the Group of G77 and China attaches immense importance to leveraging digital technologies for enabling socio-economic development and facilitating more effective and efficient governance and public service delivery. At the same time, the Group is deeply concerned about digital disparities which are emerging as a new form of inequality between and among states.

We encourage the relevant organizations, while respecting countries´ sovereignty, to take steps to secure greater Internet connectivity, especially in developing countries and rectify the imbalances of the present development of information and communication technology to make the world of media more just, equitable, and impartial.

We should seek an equitable international information technology regime which bridges the digital divide and enables developing countries to “leapfrog” into the global digital economy of the future.

This is essential for the global transition to modern and efficient national economies and effective international cooperation, including an inclusive digital economy and connectivity, as well as to outline shared principles for a digital future for all to achieve the 2030 Agenda.

Seventh, the Group stresses the importance of mainstreaming multilingualism in all of the Organization’s activities. This is an essential pillar for mutual understanding which would help to ensure inclusivity, diversity, and tolerance.

We encourage the Department of Global Communications to mobilize adequate resources, including by exploring innovative financing options as well as voluntary contributions to promote multilingualism to maximize its outreach at the grassroots level.

General Assembly resolution 76/268 recognizes that multilingualism promotes unity in diversity and international understanding. The Group fully supports its integration into the activities of the United Nations. While noting that some progress has been made, the Group continues to be concerned at the disparity in the use of all official languages in United Nations public information materials and platforms, including various social media campaigns.

In addition, we also encourage the United Nations Information Centres and Country Offices to disseminate information about the work of the United Nations in local languages. This will not only help overcome the language barrier faced by a large portion of the world population, but also enable them to participate in the discourse on global issues.”

The Group highlights that the United Nations must overcome the culture of translations and progress in favor of the production of content in different languages, according to the recently adopted Resolution on Multilingualism.

Eighth, we also welcome the promotional campaigns of the DGC, showcasing troop/police-contributing countries and encourage the Department to develop more effective and integrated communications strategies to highlight their contributions in an effective manner.

Ninth, The Group also appreciates the Department to continuing its work on developing a global code of conduct for Information Integrity on Digital Platforms, which could serve as an important reference for Member States for their respective practices in this field, based on their individual national conditions. The Department began a desk review of threats to information integrity across the world, as well as of the applicable regulatory efforts occurring at the national and regional levels. The Group also highly recognizes, the intensified exchanges of views developed by the Department, with Member States and relevant stakeholders in the field of information integrity, including think tanks, academia, media institutions and the United Nations system.

Tenth, The Group takes note with interest of the Policy Briefs on specific initiatives such as the Policy Brief 8: Information Integrity on Digital Platforms in view of the preparatory work of the Summit of the Future. The Group believes these documents would serve as important inputs, among others, for the preparatory process leading up to the Summit in 2024, keeping in mind that Member States will make the final decision on the intergovernmentally agreed elements to be included in its outcome, the “Pact of the Future”.

Finally, we urge the DGC to continue to support and strengthen the UN information centers and carry out the rationalization process of such centers in consultation with all concerned Member States, the countries served by those information centers and other interested countries in the region.

In Conclusion the group once again commends Department’s efforts to communicate effectively on the wide range of unfolding crises, as well as key challenges such as climate change, that has reinforced the importance of the Organization as a source of accurate, trusted, and unbiased information for the global public good.

Looking ahead, the Group extends assurances of its full support to strengthen the Organization’s work and purposes and to engage with people worldwide and mobilize them for action.

I thank you.