“Integral Human Development – Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda”

His Eminence, Cardinal Turkson;
His Excellency, Archbishop Jurkovic;
Dr. Kituyi;
Mr. Sy;
Dr. Loures;
Mr. Lupoli;
Ms. Isler;
Excellencies;
Ladies and Gentlemen:

I am pleased to participate in today’s event and would like to transmit to you a special greeting from Mr. Michael Møller, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva. The Director-General regrets very much that he cannot be here with us and asked me to deliver the following message on his behalf and I quote:

“Last month, a singular event took place at the TED2017 conference in Vancouver, Canada. His Holiness Pope Francis addressed a conference synonymous with the latest in innovation and technology to deliver a timeless message common to all faiths and philosophical traditions: be compassionate. The pope’s intervention served as a powerful reminder of the invaluable role that the world’s religions and schools of wisdom play in shaping our answers to today’s challenges. It is why I am particularly pleased that His Eminence, Cardinal Turkson is here with us today at the Palais des Nations. I would like to thank His Eminence for sharing with us the Roman Catholic Church’s vision for the newly created Holy See Discastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development and its efforts on behalf of the most vulnerable among us.

I would also like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See and UNCTAD for organizing today’s event. I would also like to thank the panellists, who play essential roles in our collective efforts here in Geneva and beyond for peace, rights and well-being.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development embodies many of the foundational values of world religions and philosophies: compassion, solidarity and respect for the sanctity of human life. The Agenda defends human rights for all, it leaves no one behind, it reaches first to help those most in need and it is universal. It is also deeply personal as we are all implicated – as citizens, consumers and activists – in the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals. In his 2015 address to the United Nations General Assembly, Pope Francis called the 2030 Agenda “an important sign of hope” in a world marked by “growing and steady social fragmentation”.

Already the hub for policy and action on health, migration, humanitarian crises, trade, development and so many other international issues, Geneva will be at the centre of the global effort for sustainable development. “Leaving no one behind” is in our DNA here and today’s panellists represent International Geneva’s commitment to compassion and solidarity. Although they are each ostensibly dedicated to a specific field of action – be it development, HIV/AIDS, humanitarian relief or migration – they share a common purpose and the unique ecosystem found here helps them all collaborate. In July 2016, for example, UNAIDS and UNCTAD joined forces to support investments in local pharmaceutical production in Africa, especially of antiretroviral medicines. For their part, the IFRC, its National Societies and the International Committee of the Red Cross routinely work hand-in-hand around the world with IOM and others to help the most vulnerable.

Transforming the aspirational goals of the SDGs into concrete realities, requires that we go even further in sharing best practices, working collaboratively and breaking down outdated bureaucratic barriers. To get the impact needed on the ground, we – the United Nations System and our partners – are abandoning wasteful duplication in favour of collaboration, where each of our respective competitive advantage is leveraged to support Member States and their people in implementing the SDGs.

UN Geneva is actively engaged in promoting greater collaboration across the UN System and beyond and we are fortunate to also have many important non-UN partners, such as the Global Alliance for Vaccines, Immunization and the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria and the Inter-Parliamentary Union. Together, we complement each other’s strengths by focusing on areas of comparative advantage.

In my office, the recently launched SDG Lab is a novel initiative to bring together all the relevant actors in Geneva and beyond. By creating additional opportunities for collaboration, innovation and the sharing of best practices, the SDG Lab will help insure that we have a strong influence at the local- and country-level, where the success or failure of the SDGs will be decided. I am happy that the Director of our Lab is here today on this panel, as a clear indication of my office’s support in the implementation of the SDGs.

The United Nations Library and Knowledge Hub at Geneva has also lived up to this challenge by creating a Sustainable Development Research Guide. This ground-breaking platform mobilizes the unprecedented amount of knowledge accumulated by the United Nations System over more than 70 years in an online format and classified by SDGs. The scale and quality of the information made available to the public is simply staggering. Just for SDG 3 – Good Health and Well-Being – the Library provides access to nearly 50 million documents to those working on the frontlines of SDG implementation. In addition we have created a portal called GVAData.ch which contains the data of over 100 organizations, all organized by SDGs.

Ultimately, the future of the SDGs will be decided by national governments and their people. Our efforts in Geneva and beyond will only bear fruit if these actors are involved and supported. In this effort, we will need to forge new alliances to empower the powerless, ensure the gains of development are shared, defend human rights and protect our planet. On all of these fronts, I know that the partnership between the United Nations and the Roman Catholic Church – as well as all other faiths – will be essential. On that note, I am particularly happy that we have agreed to cooperate on raising awareness of the SDGs. I look forward to greater collaboration to come on sustainable development.

In his Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’, His Holiness Pope Francis wrote eloquently of the pressing need for all of us to come together to care for our embattled “common home”. His moving words carry a vision that should be shared by all of us: “economic growth will only be sustainable if it is accompanied by peace, social progress, and justice – for both mankind and our planet. This integrated, holistic and universal perspective is the approach of the future; the only one that can right the environmental and social wrongs of today.”

This is the end of the Director-General’s message.

Thank you.