High-level Segment of ECOSOC/Ministerial Segment of the High-level Political Forum

The High-Level Political Forum is the world’s main platform offering political leadership and providing concrete guidance for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda.

 

What is hindering the timely implementation of SDGs?

 

We inherited

• accumulated risk factors,
• mostly old-fashioned policies,
• mostly old-fashioned market regulations,
• mostly old-fashioned incentives for investments,
• mostly old-fashioned institutions

But we have

• transformative goals,
• rapidly changing technologies and science.

 

We expect transformation from this combination of components. It is not surprising that transformation is happening much slower than what we wish to see.

 

So, what is needed to significantly accelerate the sustainability transformation?

 

1. Create national transformation strategies, aligned with SDGs. Everywhere.
2. Align regulations with announced goals.
3. Learn how to calculate all important externalities of actions (or inactions)
4. Learn how to reduce the negative externalities of our investments and increase the positive ones across all three pillars simultaneously.
5. Identify and prioritize on game-changing elements in the SDG implementation.
6. Build transparent road map of implementation.
7. Improve science-based validation mechanism of implementation.

 

The good news is that we are still in the game, but now the game itself needs to be changed.

 

In fact, it is now or never.

 

You, Member States, do feel a strong sense of ownership over your development, and we must all sharpen the tools of the UN system to track delivery of commitments and advise on correction of the course of action where needed.

 

Financing the transition needed for achieving the SDGs remains a critical challenge, with the financing gap now exceeding $4 trillion per year, up from $2.5 trillion – as we heard from the Secretary-General.

 

It is a huge amount of money. But let me invite our financing experts to calculate and quantify the benefits of sustainability transformation. Because what we invest should not be an add-on to the traditional way of development, but to change the course of it.

 

We must persist in our efforts to ensure that the international financial system supports the SDGs much better. 

 

The Summit of the Future and the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development will serve as vital opportunities to reach an agreement on the reform package for the international – and consequently – national financial architectures.

 

In all these matters, we simply cannot afford to lose momentum.

 

We have the knowledge we need to steer humanity out of the crises we face.

 

From updating Voluntary National Reviews to creating real time data sets on SDG implementation – we have pioneering tools at our disposal.

 

In two months, the SDG Summit will take place.

 

It will have to be a non-conventional summit.

 

The key challenge of it will be credibility: how to convince the world that, from now on, member states will do sustainable development better.

 

My vision – my hope – for the Summit is that it will result in the supercharging and accelerating of the SDGs’ implementation.

 

The Summit will be the moment to make new commitments to set in motion the gamechangers we will need to agree on in only a matter of weeks.

 

But, for this to happen, there should be an acknowledgement of the global state of affairs, and a genuine recognition of how desperately we need to change how we think and what we do. 

 

Key building blocks such as the development of “Beyond GDP” or the creation of a scientific evaluation system for SDG implementation are transformative elements that we need to commit to.

 

At the March UN Water Conference, you have endorsed other gamechangers, including the integration of water and climate policies and the establishment of a Global Water Information System.

 

The political declaration and the SDG Summit itself should breathe a new life into the sustainability transformation.

 

But this process will not end in September. It will likely not end in 2030 either. 

 

The 2030 Agenda is – and should remain – our map, our nautical chart.

 

Be courageous. Be ambitious. Be determined in your vision of a peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable future.

 

Let us keep the promise of the 2030 Agenda: the promise we have made to our 8 billion stakeholders.

 

Let us transform the world.

 

Let us save the world.

 

Thank you.

 

***

High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development Special Event on SDG6 and the Water Action Agenda

17 July 2023

 

Remarks by Csaba Kőrösi, President of the 77th session of the General Assembly

 

Thank you very much indeed, my good friend, Chairman Gilbert Houngbo and Under-Secretary-General Li Junhua.

 

We made a big mistake with the allocation of this room.

 

And it’s a shame on us because some of those people who are standing in that corner, they were the heroes of the preparation and conduct of the Water Conference.

 

I hope it is the only mistake we are committing today, and in the years to come, to make the outcomes of the Water Conference happening.

 

Please accept my apologies, on behalf of all of us.

 

I am not here today to reiterate that we are off track with SDG6 or that we are facing a water crisis.

 

You know it without me.

 

We have collected the data. We have delivered enough speeches.

 

And we all have agreed on the urgent need to accelerate implementation, most recently during the ominous UN Water Conference in March.

 

I am here today to call for a radical transformation.

 

Of words into deed. Of promises into measurable, visible action.

 

A cooperative water-secure future for all starts with us.

 

Here in this room.

 

It starts with clear-eyed political will to move the dial towards economic intelligence and cultural inclusion.

 

It starts with recognition of what led us to the water crisis – and understanding that we will need integrated solutions to sustainably manage our world’s precious water resources.

 

As our master of ceremonies, Ms. Guli has seen first-hand, people on the frontlines of this water crisis are imploring us to solve it.

 

Shared by all of us, the water cycle is a global common good – a fact we must acknowledge.

 

This is what we should place at the core of our efforts to adapt policy, legislation and financing, accordingly.

 

We know we cannot fulfil our 2030 promise of economic stability and global well-being by only accelerating conventional solutions.

 

We need to hear brave ideas, and unconventional ones, too.

 

We have to learn from the innovative case studies underway across the world, and

We should build partnerships which are more inclusive and rep of the needs to be met

And we must build on our steps on scientific evidence.

 

At the Water Conference, as you may recall, world leaders pledged to move towards an “inspiring, cooperative, transboundary and transformative” Water Action Agenda for sustainable development and resilience.

 

Over those three days, we laid the foundations for future generations to value water and to benefit from its bounty.

 

We re-committed to uphold the human right to water and sanitation for all – and to reach the millions of people who are suffering the adverse effects of the water crisis.

 

The Water Conference outcomes were mandated to inform the High-Level Political Forum for Sustainable Development – the critical work we are undertaking now in this room.

 

Imagine what we can accomplish today.

 

Imagine the difference we can make for tomorrow.

 

This special event is our single best chance to turn what is discussed at the Conference into a toolbox of multilateral solutions – and to position water as a centrepiece for action at the SDG Summit in September.

 

The Netherlands, Tajikistan and Senegal have led efforts on a UN resolution to follow up on the Water Conference outcomes and I commend their determined pursuit of this opportunity.

 

Thank you very much, indeed, to all of you.

 

It is critical that we have a dedicated policy development platform for water at the United Nations.

 

A mechanism that allows us to produce mandated guidance and decisions.

 

And let use the game-changers that emerged from the Water Conference as the basis to transform water cooperation in these last five years of the Water Action Decade.

 

We have the means to deliver fast and effective results at increased scale.

 

The SDG6 Global Acceleration Framework is a best-in-class blueprint for synchronising our work.

 

It needs one implementation plan based on the awareness that a water-secure future is one global challenge with many regional and local characteristics.

 

As you may have noticed, today’s panels are organised around its five building blocks, namely:

 

Governance. This means strengthened collaboration, within countries and across boundaries and sectors, between Member States and stakeholders.

 

We aspire to solve the world’s water challenges.

 

We can do so through a systemic, whole-of society approach that addresses challenges in relation to cross-sectoral benefits, the positive externalities that we can research and leverage.

 

This translates to more support for water, climate, food and related policy integration at national and regional levels.

 

Second, innovation. It is vital to empower stakeholders to participate in water-sector innovation.

 

By creating space, policy, a regulatory environment and a market for innovation, we can make financing and sustainable water systems accessible for all.

 

And we can do this while developing a business case for sustainable development.

 

Third, data and information. Data generation, validation, standardization and open information exchange build trust.

 

They help leaders to arrive at informed decisions, increase accountability and ensure that financing is directed to the most vulnerable.

 

The Global Water Information System will integrate data relevant to SDG6 – making such information freely accessible, consistent and interoperable.

 

This system directly supports the Early Warnings for All initiative to protect people from the impacts of disasters.

 

Fourth, capacity development. Inclusive human and institutional capacities will improve services, technology and job creation at all levels.

 

In addition, a global science-based assessment – similar to the IPCC model – can help decision makers address water challenges which span sectors, systems and disciplines in a truly integrative manner.

 

A global network of water training centres will foster the creation of a diverse and educated work force, equipped with the latest skills to handle myriad water challenges.

 

Finally, financing. Optimised financing is essential.

 

We can improve service delivery by better targeting existing resources and mobilizing additional funding from domestic and international sources.

 

For this, we need an all-hands-on deck approach, linking finance across all sectors related to climate, food security and biodiversity.

 

And we need to reframe the economic costs of pushing our water cycle out of balance in terms that everyone understands.

 

We should also support a water-secure future by augmenting water storage and attempting to decelerate the hydrological cycle.

 

As you will see from our discussions today, we have the bold ideas.

 

We also know that the costs of inaction far outweigh the price of proactive investments we make to bring our global water cycle back into balance.

 

We must now move from reactive water management to proactive, science-based solutions.

I look forward to hearing your ideas and I hope that today’s discussions will yield actionable results.

 

I thank you.

***

Harnessing the power of science for the 2030 Agenda

(HLPF side event)

17 July 2023

 

Remarks by Csaba Kőrösi, President of the 77th session of the General Assembly

 

 

I’m so happy and thrilled to present at the launch of the Global Commission’s report.

A report that envisages nothing less than the renewable of the science of sustainability. It has been long overdue.

 

The sharing of data, knowledge and experience through a unified information system would stimulate a vibrant global learning community.

 

It’s a missing pillar now in from our sustainability transformation.

 

It will also provide a significantly more accurate picture of our efforts in such critical areas as food, water, energy and climate, and their nexus.

 

I cannot stress how close these intentions are to my heart.

 

Claude Bernard once said: “Art is I; science is we."

 

Yes, science cannot be an individual enterprise anymore.

 

Nowadays, great things in science are never done by persons or one group of researchers, but by a much larger team of people.

 

In most cases, people from a variety of fields.

 

If we hope to achieve the 2030 Agenda – and I’m so proud to see my good friend and partner in crime, Ambassador Macharia Kamau, with whom we spent days and nights to craft the SDGs.

 

So if we hope to achieve the Agenda 2030 – which is our business – we urgently need this type of interdisciplinary approach.

 

Human activities exceeded six of the nine planetary boundaries. 

 

The only good news is that we are still in the game, but now the game itself needs to be changed.

 

How do we shift gears? And how do we do so in this era of deep mistrust stretching from East to West and North to South?

 

The SDG Summit in September will be the pivotal moment to locate the gaps and supercharge the efforts, using science as a catalyser of agreement and alignment.

 

It is imperative that we bridge the gap between science and decision making if we hope to create just and inclusive outcomes for all of humanity.

 

Narrowing this gap has been a prime focus of my Presidency, guided by the motto of “Solutions through Solidarity, Sustainability and Science”.

 

But what is hindering the timely implementation of the SDGs?

 

Why do we need to look for tools helping not only to accelerate actions but to change gears, to change course, and change the game?

 

What we know for sure is that we inherited accumulated risk factors.

 

We inherited mostly old-fashioned policies, mostly old-fashioned market regulations, mostly incentives for investment, and mostly old-fashioned institutions.

 

On the other hand, we also have transformative goals. Once again, many thanks to Macharia.

 

And rapidly changing technologies and science. And we expect transformation of this combination of components.

 

It is not surprising that transformation is happening much slower than what we wish to see.

So what is needed to significantly accelerate the sustainability transformation?

 

Let me offer you seven points. In the country that I’m coming from, seven is a magic number.

 

One – Create national transformation strategies based on SDGs. Not all countries have that yet.

 

Two – align regulations with announced goals. We have contradictions in many countries, and globally, as well.

 

Three - Learn how to calculate all important externalities of actions or inactions.

 

Four – Learn how to reduce negative externalities of our investments and increase the positive ones across all three pillars simultaneously.

 

Five – Identify and prioritize on game-changing elements in the SDG implementation.

 

Six – Build transparent road map of implementation. We don’t have it now.

 

Seven – Improve science-based validation mechanism of implementation. We are badly missing it in the UN, and maybe in some of the countries, as well.

 

For this, we need robust scientific support. Welcome aboard.

 

Member States have shown greater interest in harnessing the power of science to promote transformation.

 

I am very encouraged by the launch of the Group of Friends of Science for Action, an initiative announced by India, Belgium and South Africa at the General Assembly’s second scientific briefing in April. Thank you very much.

 

I am equally pleased that several countries led by Serbia have expressed interest in launching the Decade of Science for Sustainability to buttress knowledge-based decision-making in the United Nations and beyond.

 

It is true, as Carl Sagan said, that “somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.”

 

This speaks to the power of science to drive progress towards the sustainable and dignified future we are working to achieve.

 

Because transformation is going to happen anyway. How well we are equipped will make the difference what world awaits us: victims or master of the transformation. 

 

I sincerely hope that science may be one of our most important weapons in humanity’s historic, and, apparently, final battle for sustainability.

 

Final, because, in this struggle, there will be no second chances.

 

I wish you much success in your endeavor to use science as efficiently as possible to transform and save our world.

 

Thank you very much.

[END]