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Info Service on UN Sustainable Development (May24/01) Penang, 2 May (Kanaga Raja) — The “Pact for the Future”, the “action-oriented” outcome document that is expected to be endorsed by countries at the upcoming Summit of the Future in New York this September, must respond to the expectations of the Global South. This message was underlined by the Group of 77 and China in a statement delivered during the latest round of closed informal consultations on the Summit of the Future held at the ambassadorial level in New York on 16 April to take stock of the current state of negotiations on the Pact. In their statement, the G77 and China underscored that the Summit of the Future should be an opportunity for regaining trust and advancing the role of the UN, and should not be a summit “to impose a fait accompli or attempt to change the previously made agreements the General Assembly made, particularly those of importance to developing countries.” According to information posted on the UN website, the Summit of the Future “is a high-level event, bringing world leaders together to forge a new international consensus on how we deliver a better present and safeguard the future.” It said: “This once-in-a-generation opportunity serves as a moment to mend eroded trust and demonstrate that international cooperation can effectively tackle current challenges as well as those that have emerged in recent years or may yet be over the horizon.” It said that the aim of the Summit is two-fold: accelerate efforts to meet existing international commitments and take concrete steps to respond to emerging challenges and opportunities, through the action-oriented “Pact for the Future.” In his statement during the closed consultations, subsequently made public, Ambassador Adonia Ayebare from Uganda, speaking on behalf of the G77 and China, reflected on the reasons why the preparatory process for the Summit is so relevant. “As the name of the Pact reads, this is a document to secure a better future. We need this so emphatically since our own species risks being endangered.” Unfortunately, he said, those who are exposed the most are the peoples of the Global South. “It is in our countries where poverty is the cruelest, it is in our countries where hunger and preventable diseases hit communities most gravely, and it is us who are suffering from anachronisms that impede the rise of our nations,” he pointed out. The Pact needs to set the path to revert this unfair reality, said Ambassador Ayebare, adding that it needs to respond to the expectations of the largest share of the world’s population. “This process needs to be guided by the voices of those who represent the most vulnerable ones. If not, the credibility of the Summit could be jeopardized,” he warned. Highlighting the G77 and China’s priorities ahead of the next round of consultations on the Pact, Ambassador Ayebare said the Group is committed to achieving consensus on an ambitious, concise and action-oriented Pact for the Future to make the multilateral system better fit for purpose. In this regard, he pointed to strengthening the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by focusing on areas of convergence in the upcoming negotiations (on the Pact), while addressing the commitment of developed countries to provide adequate means of implementation, and respecting core principles, especially CBDR (common but differentiated responsibilities), and the right to development. In doing so, he greatly welcomed the organization of this Ambassador-level meeting and looked forward to having it on a regular basis, “as it enables us to review the negotiation progress and navigate the way forward better.” As regards the principles, Ambassador Ayebare said that the G77 believes that highly ambitious and actionable deliverables in every Chapter can provide a good starting point for achieving significant breakthroughs in the implementation of the SDGs. In this context, he recalled the vision of the Secretary-General calling the Summit of the Future to “turbocharge” the SDGs. “We hope that this can be the approach and not deviating from the 2030 Agenda.” Additionally, he said trust must be restored and upheld for the Pact to gather the necessary buy-in from member states and the public. “Rebuilding trust requires concrete actions in areas such as climate change, debt relief for developing countries, technology, and knowledge transfer, and in capacity building.” Ambassador Ayebare said that the principle of upholding the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the honouring of previously agreed commitments, in addition to strengthening the Pact to accelerate the achievement of the SDGs, is also important as it reinforces implementation mechanisms. “In upholding those principles, we believe that the co-facilitators shall become the co-penholders in providing us with the revised version of the zero-draft based on our discussion in the previous readings and from our written inputs.” The Ugandan envoy went on to highlight a few key issues that the G77 and China believes must be addressed in the Rev.1 version of the Pact. On substance, he said that the Pact should be based on foundational documents, including the 2030 Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Political Declaration of the 2023 SDG Summit, adding that these should be reflected in all relevant Chapters. On sustainable development, he said that it must take a balanced approach to all three dimensions of sustainable development. The Ugandan envoy said that the Pact should not erode existing commitments, agreements, and principles such as CBDR, and should also not erode established processes or mechanisms like the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF). He said that the Pact should have actionable proposals to accelerate implementation of existing commitments, particularly those undertaken at the SDG Summit, mainly those on financing, technology transfer and capacity building. In this context, the G77 expressed hope to see its actionable proposals put forward in the zero draft to bridge the SDG Financing Gap and for the reform of the International Financial Institutions reflected in the Rev.1 text. The Group further reaffirmed its view regarding eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty as the greatest global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development. The Group also renewed its view that “an improved global sovereign debt architecture with the meaningful participation of developing countries, allowing for fair, balanced, and development-oriented treatment is urgently needed.” Ambassador Ayebare said it is equally important to close the digital divide between developed and developing countries, including by increasing connectivity and access to technologies, tackling the infrastructure divide, developing digital skills and literacy, and guaranteeing technology and knowledge transfer. In this regard, he called on the co-facilitators to produce a new document that is concise, but captures enough details on the key proposals, so that it remains meaningful. The G77 and China reiterated that international development cooperation, especially North-South cooperation, remains a fundamental catalyst to sustainable development. As North-South cooperation is the main channel of development financing, the international community must uphold the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” (CBDR) and reinvigorate North-South cooperation to continue to play its key role, Ambassador Ayebare said. “As we review the Pact of the Future and discuss how to move it forward, let us remember the overarching importance of solidarity, ambition, and action,” said the Ugandan envoy. “This historic initiative must serve as a catalyst for the transformative change needed to achieve the SDGs and build a more equitable, sustainable, and prosperous world for all our people, especially the most vulnerable,” he added. The G77 and China confirmed its commitment to actively engaging in this very important intergovernmental (process) through focusing on key priorities, calling for and exercising compromise and through flexibility, and considering aspects where the General Assembly is united and where consensus emerges. This summit should be an opportunity for regaining trust and advancing the role of the UN, said Ambassador Ayebare. “It should not be a summit to impose a fait accompli or attempt to change the previously made agreements the General Assembly made, particularly those of importance to developing countries.” In conclusion, the G77 and China looked forward to reaching “a concise, action-oriented outcome agreed by consensus through intergovernmental negotiations that respect the rules of procedure and the intergovernmental decision-making in the United Nations.” EU’S PRIORITIES FOR THE SUMMIT In a statement at the closed informal consultations that was also made public, Ambassador Stavros Lambrinidis, head of the European Union delegation, speaking on the EU’s expectations on the Rev.1 text, said that the Pact should be “a stepping stone, not the end of the journey.” “We are not negotiating a UN resolution, but a Pact for the Future with new commitments and new language. And new hope! A text that will be endorsed by our leaders to make global governance more efficient and effective.” He said that this opportunity should be seized to reinvigorate multilateralism and “turbo-charge” the SDGs. He recalled that the EU has been continuously arguing for a balanced approach of the three mutually reinforcing pillars of the UN – fostering peace and security, boosting sustainable development, and safeguarding human rights. The EU envoy said the text “needs to reflect the world we want (our “what”), and identify concrete ways of “how” we can achieve our vision together. The multilateralism we want, in other words.” As to the “what”, he said: “We cannot merely re-litigate past agreements, but think of better ways to implement them.” “We must address today’s new challenges. This includes addressing the climate crisis, but also a fast-evolving digital world that needs to be effectively regulated, both promoting innovation for positive change and addressing potentially existential risks, including of Artificial Intelligence.” In addition to proposing longer-term structural changes, effectively preventing and addressing future crises, peace, stability and rights, more than on their own, should also be a major focus of the work, said Ambassador Lambrinidis. “The UN must be able to convince its members and citizens that it can collectively address crises that impact peace, stability and prosperity, and rights, more effectively than can any individual member state on its own.” As regards the “how”, the EU envoy said concrete new commitments and a forward-looking vision have to be accompanied with action-oriented measures, where possible. “A dedicated section in the Pact, such as Chapter 5 (Transforming Global Governance), needs to focus, where possible, on the “how” for both old and new commitments.” He said coherence must also be ensured with other processes and not duplicate efforts of ongoing discussions that are already taking place in other established fora. “Finally, we must resist easy and forced polarization. When we talk about the future, we must refrain as much as possible from re-litigating the past. We must resist the temptation of pointing easy fingers, and strive instead to join hands.” “This may not always be easy. But if we approach each other from a position of respect and trust, we may succeed. We are convinced of this,” he said. Ambassador Lambrinidis said that the EU is fully committed to working constructively with all towards building consensus. “We need a Pact that is ambitious and future-oriented for our leaders,” he said, once again expressing the EU’s full support for the difficult task ahead. +
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