Global Policy UN Watch
No.7 | 2024
Divergent views on the Ministerial Declaration for the High-Level Political Forum for Sustainable Development 2024
July 2024 | HLPF 2024 Website | Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) | Draft Ministerial Declaration
This year’s High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) convened under the priority theme, “ Reinforcing the 2030 Agenda and eradicating poverty in times of multiple crises: the effective delivery of sustainable, resilient and innovative solutions” from 8-17 July 2024. A three day ministerial meeting was held 15-17 July 2024 with a focus on “From the SDG Summit to the Summit of the Future”.
The 2024 HLPF Ministerial Declaration was adopted , but voting was called for on 2 items: amendment E/HLPF/2024/L.3 ( Nicaragua and co-sponsors Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Eritrea, Iran, Russia, South Africa, Syria, Tanzania, Venezuela, and Zimbabwe) on Unilateral Coercive Measures (UCM) and Paragraph 17 of the declaration on right to self-determination . Both passed with the majority in favour, and the Ministerial Declaration was adopted. North-South divides were evident during explanation of votes, with many Global North countries who voted against on both dissociating from the relevant items.
Voting record on Amendment L.3:
Voting record on Paragraph 17:
South Africa : “…it is unfortunate that we are not able to adopt the declaration of the 2024 High-Level Political Forum by consensus… My delegation is deeply disappointed that no reference to UCMs was included in the draft declaration before us, as we believe it is necessary to refrain from applying such measures against developing countries. My delegation is also perplexed as to why language on UCMs which, was agreed by consensus in the 2030 Agenda, is no longer acceptable to certain partners in the current context. UN member states are forecast to meet only 17% of the Sustainable Development Goals and there's either stagnation or regression on 35% of targets. There is therefore a desperate need to revive our efforts and get back on track to achieve the 2030 Agenda. We need to acknowledge that UCMs endanger our collective aspirations and are an obstacle to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals , as well as the right to development … UCMs violate a solemn commitment to leave no one and no country behind…
My delegation would further like to register our categorical rejection of the European Union's carbon border adjustment mechanisms (CBAMs) as an extraterritorial, unilateral, coercive and trade-distorting measure under the guise of climate protection. This is a regime with dubious environmental benefits that will result in a reversal of climate finance from the Global North to the Global South, to further enrich one constituency of the north, and that would allow developed countries that have the primary responsibility for causing climate change to directly tax private companies of sovereign developing countries that bear the least responsibility for causing climate change. This is illegal, immoral and inadmissible. South Africa will therefore vote in support of the proposed amendment to paragraph 15 and we believe that unilateral extraterritorial economic measures are a violation of the UN Charter and a flagrant violation of human rights.”
EU : “[W]e very much regret the inclusion through what we consider a hostile amendment from a small group of UN member states of an additional paragraph relating to unilateral coercive measures in this year's ministerial declaration. Moreover, the EU and its member states reiterate the central issue of gender equality to the 2030 Agenda and the achievement of all the SDGs. It is disappointing that such a central tenet now appears to be in question, as we could not agree on the inclusion of further elements on into linkages between gender equality and the SDGs and in-depth review, in particular climate action and ending hunger. It is disappointing that the Minister Declaration, as agreed, contains no reference to the importance of sexual and reproductive health, based on targets 3.7 and 5.6 of the 2030 Agenda….
Regarding the EU CBAM , the carbon border adjustment mechanism mentioned by South Africa earlier, it is a logical response to the perceived risk of carbon leakage, which would be an unbearable price that the EU, like any economy in its position, would have to pay for putting in place the right policies regarding climate change. CBAM has been developed in consultation with EU's international partners and complies with EU's international commitments and obligations , including WTO rules .”
The HLPF held in-depth reviews of SDGs 1 (No Poverty), 2 (Zero Hunger),13 (Climate Action), 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) and 17 (Partnerships for the Goals) and 38 countries presented their VNRs ( Armenia , Austria , Azerbaijan , Belize , Brazil , Chad , Colombia , Congo (Republic of the) , Costa Rica , Ecuador , Equatorial Guinea , Eritrea , Georgia , Guinea , Honduras , Kenya , Lao People's Democratic Republic , Libya , Mauritania , Mauritius , Mexico , Namibia , Nepal , Oman , Palau , Peru , Samoa , Sierra Leone , Solomon Islands , South Africa , South Sudan , Spain , Syrian Arab Republic , Uganda , Vanuatu , Yemen , Zimbabwe ).
Next steps in negotiating the o utcome s for the Summit of the Future (SOTF)
July 2024 | SOTF website | GDC Website | DFG Website
In the last month, the second revisions of the outcome documents have been issued. Work in progress, stay tuned.
Rev.2 of Pact for the Future (PFTF), 18 July
Rev.2 of Global Digital Compact (GDC), 26 June
Rev.2 of Declaration on Future Generations (DFG), 2 July; accompanying explanatory note , and Co-facilitators' letter: Revision 2 and updates .
Uganda on behalf of G77 & China : “ While we see that in some of the areas of the Rev1 there are concrete deliverables , when it comes to sustainable development, financing for development, reform of the International Financial Architecture, including the IFIs and the global debt architecture, what we have observed during the process is essentially positive encouragements to elevate the ambition while simultaneously removing and diluting concrete deliverables on these matters, as well as excessive and unprecedented caveats and limitations being introduced on the role of the UN in global economic governance .”
Sign up here for Virtual Consultation on 31 July, 10 AM – 1 PM ET
Deadline : 29 July, midnight ET
Letter from Co-facilitators on 18 July 2024
D o we need a Summit of the Future?
Michèle Griffin, director of UN Summit Office expressed these views to PassBlue :
“What is important in this summit is not to isolate one reform idea but to look at the whole global architecture and to ask ourselves whether it is functioning how we need it to. Don’t look at the Security Council in isolation from the General Assembly and the other principal organs. If the last three years have shown us anything, it is that a lot of people around the world feel that the whole mechanism is not working. Developing countries have not had the support they need to manage a constant series of global shocks. Nobody feels satisfied that we are on top of the climate challenge. The conflicts and violence in places such as Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan and Haiti are absolutely tragic, evidence that we are still not living up to the ideals of the UN Charter to save succeeding generations from the scourge o f war. ”
- 20 and 21 September 2024 Summit of the Future Action Days
- 22 and 23 September 2024 Summit of the Future
Summit of the Future Action Days, 20 & 21 September 2024
Registration: 12 August – 6 September 2024 | Information Website
The Summit of the Future will take place on September 22nd & 23rd and will be preceded by the Summit of the Future Action Days on 20 & 21 September 2024 at United Nations Headquarters in New York. They aim to bring together representatives from Member States, civil society, private sector, academia, local and regional authorities, creative communities, youth, and many more, everyone will be present, included and engaged during the Action Days. For more information on the events, please visit the website .
Registration of participants will be held exclusively through a dedicated INDICO Form . If you do not have an INDICO account, you can set it up here .
- Registration opens: 12 August 2024
- Registration closes: 6 September 2024
There will be no on-site registration. Requests for registration via email will not be accepted.
Pact for the Future: Reform of the UN Security Council?
The Pact for the Future (PFTF) , the proposed outcome of the Summit of the Future, will address Security Council reform in Chapter 5, on global governance. The Pact’s draft and process have a placeholder for input from the Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN), which is due by the end of June 2024.
The linkage of on-going and decades-long Security Council reform with the September 2024 deadline for adopting the Pact for the Future has contributed to the intensity of engagement from all Member States and shaped alignments and alliances that criss-cross a number of Member State groupings and alliances within and outside the United Nations.
This Global Policy Watch Factsheet #6 on the Pact for the Future: Reform of UN Security Council contains Member State perspectives throughout the IGN process, along with the different groupings within, and the ways in which reform of the veto is being discussed.
78th President of General Assembly Dennis Francis (Trinidad and Tobago)
15 July 2024 | 78th PGA’s website | Full speech
At the 2024 HLPF Ministerial Opening, President of the General Assembly Dennis Francis spoke of the ambition needed for the Summit of the Future (SOTF):
“Despite that we are significantly lagging behind, I firmly believe we have tremendous opportunities ahead. The Summit of the Future – now around the corner in September – is part of a continuum of efforts to deliver faster and smarter on the 2030 Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Paris Agreement on climate change .
The Summit’s anticipated outcome – a Pact for the Future – must be transformative enough to justly telegraph the political will that will usher in a brighter tomorrow for all, everywhere. It must also choreograph the direction towards a more equitable international financial system – one that addresses the crippling debt crisis and improves the chances for the achievement of the SDGs by developing countries, especially LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS .
Perhaps most of all, the Summit of the Future must reignite public confidence from our 8 billion constituents and mend the deficit of trust among Member States, and between Governments and the peoples. The expectations from this Summit are understandably high – especially among those with the most to lose if we fail to meet the moment.”
LLDC3 to be held in Gaborone, Botswana
Special Accreditation period: 13 July – 9 August 2024 | LLDC3 Website
The 3rd UN Conference for Landlocked Developing Countries has a new date and host country:
“Welcomes and accepts with appreciation the generous offer of the Government of Botswana to host the third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries , and decides that the Conference will be held in Gaborone for a duration of four days, from 10 to 13 December 2024 , at the highest possible level, including Heads of State and Government, on the theme ‘Driving progress through partnerships.’” ( Further Modalities resolution, A/78/L.87 )
If an organization is not in consultative status with ECOSOC or participated in a UN Conference on sustainable development from this list , the organization must apply for special accreditation in order to register to attend the LLDC3 conference. Apply now for special accreditation for the conference on Indico (until 9 August 2024 ).
For more background, see GPF’s factsheet on LLDC3.
Excerpts of statements from 2nd LLDC3 PrepCom in June :
Botswana (LLDC Chair) : “As the Chair of LLDCs, [we] recognize that the Outcome Document is not any perfect; we do believe however that we collectively produced a document that represents an ambitious framework addressing the unique challenges and priorities of LLDCs… The agreed deliverables, including Regional Agriculture Research Hubs, Infrastructure Investment Finance Facility, and the Secretary-General's High-Level Panel of Experts on the Freedom of Transit, are critically important… It is important to note that this text is only the first step. The true measure of our success will be determined over the next decade, as we implement and fulfill the commitments outlined in the Programme of Action.”
US (2:35:22) : “ Nothing in the draft programme of action can be interpreted as altering or influencing those authorities. For that reason, we underscore that trade language negotiated or adopted by the General Assembly has no relevance for US trade policy or the agenda at the WTO… In this regard, we reiterate that the proper forums to discuss eligibility measures for concessional finance and official development assistance are the boards of the international financial institutions themselves and the OECD … [T]he United States recognizes that an increase in the volume of finance to LLDCs from all sources, including domestic resources may be highly desirable. However, there is no mandate requiring a substantial increase, with no specific UN target for ODA to LLDCs nor internationally agreed commitments to allocate ODA equally among all LLDCs. The United States is the largest ODA provider by volume, however, we have not committed to the UN ODA GNI targets.”
Member States campaign to become members of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and UN Security Council (UNSC)
Pakistan, Somalia, Panama, Denmark and Greece elected to UN Security Council, 2025-2027
6 June 2024 | Press Release
They will replace Ecuador, Japan, Malta, Mozambique and Switzerland on 31 December 2024. The new members will join current non-permanent members Algeria, Guyana, the Republic of Korea, Sierra Leone and Slovenia, whose terms started on 1 January, and the Permanent Five Members (China, France, Russia, UK, US).
“Global public debt rose to a record $97 trillion last year.” Developing countries are hard hit
4 June 2024 | Full article on AP
UN Trade and Development, formerly known as UNCTAD, said the value of money owed by governments rose by $5.6 trillion from 2022. In its report entitled “ A World of Debt ,” the agency said high interest payments are outstripping growth in essential public spending.
“Developing countries must not be forced to choose between servicing their debt or serving their people,” the report said. “The international financial architecture must change to ensure a prosperous future for both people and the planet.”
In the developing world, which is home to 3.3 billion people, 1 in 3 countries spends more on paying interest than on programs in “critical areas for human development” such as health care, education and climate action. In 2023, public debt in developing countries hit $29 trillion, or about 30% of the total worldwide – an increase from a 16% share in 2010, the U.N. office said.
See also: UN Trade and Development 2024 report – “ A World of Debt ” to delve into the interactive graphic on the metrics of debt distress.
UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights calls for an urgent rethink on GDP
26 June 2024 | Full report: A/78/175
Olivier De Schutter , UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, issued a scathing report on the obsession of governments and international organizations with ‘growthism’ – the use of GDP as a measure of progress to reduce poverty.
Speaking to the UN Human Rights Council , he said: “The current growth model is the source of a deeply unequal exchange, in which growth in the global North relies on exploiting resources in the global South, and in which wealth creation in the global South largely depends on producing for the high-value markets of rich countries, in large part to pay back a foreign debt labelled in hard currencies. Thus, while the North imposes social and ecological costs on the South, countries in the global South depend on transfers and on imports from the North. No ‘beyond growth’ strategy can ignore such dependencies inherited from colonial patterns of domination.”
The fight against income and wealth inequalities – “vertical inequalities”, as opposed to the “horizontal inequalities” between groups that human rights law has traditionally been more concerned with – should be at the heart of the search for post-growth approaches to poverty eradication.”
He focused on moving from “the profit-driven economy to the human rights economy”, and confronting the challenge of global interdependencies.
“GDP and our addiction to consumerism have become dangerous distractions from what is actually important: people’s ability to lead a decent life on a liveable planet. That means guaranteeing a set of fundamental rights to all, including access to social services and the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.”
Global Policy UN Watch 2024 No. 7 – Global Policy Forum
2024 HLPF, SOTF, UNSC, Human Rights, 78 PGA, LLDC3, Debt, UCM, Beyond GDP, Inequalities