Director-General's remarks at the UNOG-NGIC High-Level Meeting "From Promise to Impact: Implementing the Pact for the Future and COP29 Commitments"

UNOG – NGIC High-Level Meeting: “From Promise to Impact:
Implementing the Pact for the Future and COP29 Commitments”
Thursday, 16 January 2025 at 10.00 a.m.
Room V, Palais des Nations

Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Welcome to the Palais des Nations. It is a great pleasure to open this High-Level Meeting on the theme “From Promise to Impact: Implementing the Pact for the Future and COP29 Commitments”.

I extend my sincere gratitude to the Nizami Ganjavi International Center for co-organizing this event, which has become a valued annual tradition at the Palais des Nations. This gathering continues to provide a unique platform for exchanging perspectives on pressing global issues.

Today, we convene in a room that was recently renovated through the Strategic Heritage Plan. Its design, blending architectural motifs from around the world – from the skyscrapers of New York to the pagodas of China – serves as a reminder of our shared responsibility in tackling global challenges.

The world today stands at a crossroads. A convergence of crises – climate change, geopolitical tensions, rising inequalities and divisions, and rapid technological disruptions – is challenging our progress and fueling a growing trust deficit in multilateralism and global governance. As UN Secretary-General António Guterres has warned, “The status quo will not get us to 2030 or beyond”. Bold and decisive action is imperative to restore trust, reinvigorate cooperation, and address these interconnected crises.

The Pact for the Future provides a comprehensive roadmap for addressing these challenges. It envisions a more equitable, sustainable, and peaceful world, emphasizing areas such as disarmament, global governance and financial reforms, and opportunities for women and youth. It also calls for ethical guardrails on emerging technologies, ensuring that innovation serves humanity while upholding human rights and the principles of the UN Charter.

Our discussion today on the implementation of the Pact for the Future and COP29 commitments is therefore extremely timely. Let me briefly comment on the priority areas to be discussed in our five panels and luncheon:

Equitable, Inclusive and Effective Global Governance in a context of current challenges (Session 1)

The Pact for the Future shows a global commitment to the United Nations and aims at an international system that delivers on its promises, while leveraging the collective strength of governments, civil society, and other key partners.

The first session of our meeting focuses on global governance, a central topic of Chapter 5 of the Pact, which contains the most significant commitment to reforming the Security Council since the 1960s, prioritizing greater representation for historically underrepresented regions, along with empowering the General Assembly and revitalizing ECOSOC. These measures aim to make the United Nations more inclusive, effective, and responsive to the challenges faced by the Member States. Reforming global governance structures is essential to rebuilding trust in multilateralism and ensuring that the UN can meet the needs of all its members.

In addition, the Global Digital Compact adopted at the Summit of the Future establishes the first universal framework for artificial intelligence governance, uniting all countries in a shared commitment to managing AI responsibly. 

Similarly, the recently adopted United Nations Convention against Cybercrime – the first international criminal justice treaty negotiated in over two decades – demonstrates the success of multilateralism even in challenging times. Such forward-thinking initiatives exemplify how the United Nations can adapt to emerging challenges, reinforcing its role as an indispensable actor in solving global problems.

Financing SDGs for the Developing Countries (Session 2)

The 2024 Financing for Sustainable Development Report highlights a $4 trillion annual investment gap faced by developing countries. Many spend more on debt servicing than on education or health, with the least developed countries bearing the highest debt service burden since 2000. Addressing these financial disparities is essential to achieving the SDGs.

The Pact for the Future calls for urgent reforms to the global financial system, which has become ineffective as it fails to provide vulnerable countries with the support they need in overcoming obstacles to reaching sustainable development.

A key proposal under the Pact is the SDG Stimulus initiative, which aims to transform the operational model of Multilateral Development Banks. This would significantly enhance their lending capacity to developing countries, ensuring more resources are directed to sustainable development initiatives. 

The Conference on Financing for Development and the Summit on Social Development will be two crucial milestones this year in advancing these efforts forward and turning commitments into tangible actions.

COP29: from Promise to Progress (Panel 3)

Climate change remains one of the defining issues of our time as we have just suffered from the top ten 10 hottest years on record – that have all happened in the last 10 years. 

At COP29, the international community reaffirmed its commitment to the Paris Agreement with ambitious targets for emissions reductions, adaptation, and financial flows. The conference agreed to triple finance to developing countries, from the previous goal of $100 billion annually to $300 billion annually by 2035[1]. 

Urgent action is needed to put the world on a safer path. Countries must deliver new economy-wide national climate action plans, starting with the biggest emitters.  But we can only meet the goals of the Paris Agreement if every country has the means to accelerate climate mitigation and adaptation action.

Health and Climate Change (Panel 4)

The intersection of health and climate change is another urgent priority. Climate change is directly contributing to humanitarian emergencies. Rising temperatures, extreme weather events, and shifting disease patterns are also straining healthcare systems worldwide, particularly in vulnerable regions. 

Further delay in tackling climate change will increase health risks, undermine decades of improvements in global health, and contravene our collective commitments to ensure the human right to health for all. Building climate-resilient health systems and addressing these inequities are critical to integrating health into broader sustainable development strategies.

Green Digital Action’s Implementation (Panel 5)

Technology holds immense potential for advancing sustainability. Innovations such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, and data analytics are transforming the ability to address environmental challenges. However, the digital divide remains a significant obstacle, excluding millions from these advancements. 

As mentioned before, the Global Digital Compact is a groundbreaking global framework for digital cooperation and AI governance. It was followed by the Declaration on Green Digital Action[2] at COP29 that recognized the importance of digital technologies to mitigate and adapt to climate change, while calling for a reduction of the environmental footprint of digital technologies along with leveraging their potential to tackle climate change. It also calls for capacity-building, equitable access, and ethical governance to ensure that technology acts as a force for inclusive and sustainable progress.

The World’s Refugee Crisis (Luncheon discussion)

The global refugee crisis continues to highlight collective challenges. As of the mid-2024, over 122.6 million people were forcibly displaced globally, including 43.4 million refugees, with the 71%[3] hosted in low- and middle-income countries. These numbers demand renewed efforts to address root causes, ensure durable solutions, and uphold the dignity of displaced persons as highlighted in the Pact. And ultimately, addressing root causes – notably, ongoing conflicts so that those forced to leave can return home.

In Baku, the UN Refugee Agency launched the “Refugees for Climate Action” network, an initiative designed to amplify the voices of displaced communities in the global climate debate. The COP29 ended with an urgent call on governments to address the impact of the climate crisis on refugees and displaced communities worldwide. 

Ladies and gentlemen,

The Palais des Nations, since its completion in 1936, has served as a hub for dialogue and partnership – a space where history is made. This historic venue reminds us of the vision and ambition required to tackle global challenges, through a community of nations, working as one global family.

The success of the Pact for the Future and the COP29 commitments will be measured by their implementation. I look forward to hearing from our distinguished panelists on how to transform these declarations into decisive actions – at the national, regional and global levels – and create new momentum for sustainable development, peace and human rights. 

I wish you fruitful discussions.

Thank you.