General Assembly General Assembly

G77 MINISTERIAL MEETING

ACHIEVIING THE SDGs: ADDRESSING PRESENT CHALLENGES AND BUILDING RESILIENCE AGAINST FUTURE CRISES’

UNHQ Conference Room 4, 1000 hrs, 15 December 2022



Excellencies,

Distinguished Members of G-77,

I convey warm greetings from our External Affairs Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar.



2. It is pertinent that the premise of this gathering is on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. We are now eight years away from the 2030 timeline. International institutions and countries are struggling to refocus on the 2030 Agenda of Sustainable Development, Paris Agreement and Financing for Development framework, which remain fundamental to recovery. Humanitarian requirements which have been given high priority have further reduced funds available for achievement of SDGs and the larger development goals. In his letter to the leaders of the G20 counties recently, the United Nations Secretary General stated that the SDG’s are issuing an SOS, that the recent cascading crises had wiped out the progress on poverty eradication, and that the Human Development Index has fallen for two years in a row, the first time in over three decades. In short, we have work to do.



3. The COVID-19 pandemic belied our reliance on existing structures of cooperation. The developing world not only saw vaccine inequity, but wide gaps in therapeutics and diagnostics. It laid bare the need to swiftly improve public health infrastructure and build capacity. We cannot keep doing things the same way and expect a different outcome. We need to forge new partnerships to bridge these gaps, including making every effort to ensure that vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics become global public goods.



4. The global shortages of food, fuel, and finance emanating, inter alia, from the Ukraine conflict, require us to respond creatively. Rising costs are now adversely affecting a number of developing countries. The outcome document to be adopted today underlines a series of systemic and structural reforms needed in the international economic system to end inequity and inequality. But only waiting expectantly for these changes to occur will not do, we will need to carefully examine our structures, systems, and processes to adapt to the current changes.



5. A focus on the fundamentals can never go wrong. We too need to learn from practices that have proven to be unsustainable in the past. Financial responsibility, transparency and viability must be at the forefront when looking at financing options, including financing of infrastructure projects, to avoid imposing further unsustainable debt burdens on already vulnerable communities. It is equally important for project sustainability that they be accompanied by skill and technology transfer. 



6. The global transformation in the area of digital transition fueled by exponentially increasing amounts of data and information is undeniable - from discerning trends in public health and patterns of disease to developing rational infrastructure plans, using behavioral knowledge to encourage sustainable consumption, developing personalized government services, and building smart grids and cities. There are many ways data intersects with the SDGs and this needs to be harnessed to accelerate progress on the SDGs. Remaining gaps in digital connectivity must be bridged, because there now exist templates on which data for development can be used.



7. Focus on fighting climate change must resolutely remain under the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) and the Paris Agreement. We reaffirm the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, in the light of different national circumstances. Our focus must now be on ensuring the steady and firm progress on the COP27 Implementation Plan and hold to account the developed countries on their commitments. Developed countries cannot be allowed to pass on their obligations to developing countries.



8. A common thread undergirding the many issues faced by developing countries is to heed the call for reformed multilateralism. This means the reform of multilateral institutions to correct the imbalance, so that the voice of the Global South is reflected, as it should, on the decision-making table.

 

9. Finally, the developed countries will need to do more and focus equitably on the three pillars of sustainable development, namely economic, social and environment. Focusing on one pillar to the exclusion of the others will only serve to distort recovery and, in fact, become counter-productive.



Mr. Chair,

In conclusion, as a founding member of G-77, India remains steadfast in her commitment to work with our partners in the G-77 to address these challenges and together, move towards realizing the Sustainable Development Goals.



 Thank you.