Statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China by HE Mr Pedro L. Pedroso Cuesta, Chair of the group of 77, at the informal consultation with the co-facilitators on the Summit of the Future. New York, 20 April 2023
Dear co-facilitators,
Excellencies,
I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the G77 and China. Our first words are in appreciation of the co-facilitators of this process, who have well interpreted the feelings of many Members States and have called for this meeting in order to gain further clarity on the scope of the Summit of the Future.
The Group has intensively coordinated in the past days in order to provide the facilitators and the whole membership as well, with the priorities of developing countries for the Summit of the Future. Considering we will distribute our position paper through the co-facilitators, we just highlight some of the more relevant points of this document.
The Group reiterates that the priority in the coming months must be the SDG Summit. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals should be at the heart of preparations of any outcome of the Summit of the Future. Since the Summit of the Future will take place in September 2024, it is desirable that this very high-level meeting draws on the debates and outcome of the SDG Summit, which will occur in September this year. The declaration of the SDG Summit should be an essential input for the definitive result of the Summit of the Future.
Taking into account we will enter into the critical phase of the preparations of the SDG Summit starting the month of May, we ask the different co-facilitators on Our Common Agenda related processes and the Secretariat, to slow down significantly the number of meetings they call, to avoid jeopardizing the focus we all should devote to the SDG Summit.
The Group emphasizes that Member States will decide the scope and elements of the Summit and the definition of its tracks, guided by three major elements: firstly, intergovernmental debates and dialogues about all the issues in discussion; secondly, a broad and transparent intergovernmental negotiation process, in order to achieve a concise action-oriented outcome document as agreed in resolution A/RES/76/307, and thirdly, relevant information, as contained in reports across the UN system, including the issues tackled in the Policy Briefs and the High-Level Advisory Board report. On this last issue, we highlight that the content of the Policy Briefs and other reports, will not automatically be part of the Pact for the Future, unless agreed upon by Member States.
It is also the view of G77 and China that the intergovernmental negotiations, in particular leading up to the Ministerial Meeting in 2023, should be devoted only to consultations on the scope, topics and other elements mandated by OP16 a) of resolution A/RES/76/307. Beginning substantive discussions on specific proposed elements, without Member States deciding on the overall scope of the Summit would appear to be premature, and prejudges its general outcome.
For the G77 and China, development is a cross-cutting issue and it should be addressed in a substantive way in the outcome document of the Summit. Since the Summit of the Future is meant to turbo-charge the SDGs, it must address comprehensively the issue of Means of Implementation for the 2030 Agenda, which includes, but is not limited to, financing, technology transfer and capacity building.
The Group underlines the critical importance of Financing for development as one of the main drivers for the achievement of the SDGs and the 2030 Agenda. The reform of the international financial architecture and the establishment of measures that go beyond GDP are going to be critical to close the financing for development gap.
There is an urgent need for a profound and comprehensive restructuring of the international financial architecture, which is controlled today by few institutions. The increasing debt vulnerabilities of developing countries, the tightening of global financial conditions, and fiscal space in developing countries, the increase in global interest rates and strengthening of US dollar, leading to increased debt service costs of developing countries and roll-over risks, require urgent additional actions and further initiatives to reform the international financial architecture for long-term debt sustainability.
The Group also highlights that the Summit of the Future must provide concrete solutions for the promotion of technology transfer and capacity building as well as technological and scientific cooperation from developed countries to developing countries in order to close the
digital divide and foster sustainable development in its three dimensions and the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
We would also like to point out that the Summit of the Future must provide recommendations for the further reform of the international trading system, and building stable and sustainable supply chains to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs through the promotion of export-led growth in developing countries.
In these times of multidimensional crises that weigh particularly on the countries of the South, we can only look to the future with the conviction that solidarity and cooperation must prevail to achieve the development and well-being of present and future generations.
I thank you