Distinguished Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is my pleasure to address the High-Level Segment of the nineteenth session of the UN Forum on Forests. As the head of the Department for Economic and Social Affairs, which hosts the Secretariat of the UN Forum on Forests, I welcome the strong participation of senior officials from Member States, and international and regional organizations in this meeting today.
Excellencies,
We are meeting in troubled times. Too many of the Sustainable Development Goals are off track, including Goal 15 on life on land. And we are struggling to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
The increasing number of conflicts around the world, raises the risk of political and economic fragmentation.
Unforgiving financial conditions, tightening fiscal space and slowing trade challenge public investment.
And the war against nature rages on.
Our planet is in peril. Global warming, biodiversity loss, deforestation, and other ecosystem degrading phenomenon have ravaged our resilience, leaving us vulnerable to both disruptive shocks and slow-on-set disasters.
But there is hope, with our determination and action.
At the SDG Summit last year, world leaders committed to conserving and sustainably using forests, and protecting biodiversity, ecosystems and wildlife. They also committed to accelerating the pace of SDG investment to bridge science, technology and innovation divides and to enhance the collective ambition for climate action.
It is our collective responsibility to deliver on these commitments.
Today¡¯s High-Level Segment of UNFF19 is an important milestone in the global policy dialogue on forests, and an excellent opportunity to advance a coherent and collective approach to address global challenges through forest-based solutions.
There is some progress to build on.
A greater portion of the world¡¯s forests now fall under management plans or within protected areas.
These plans and promises must translate into action.
We have to ensure the full implementation of the UN Strategic Plan for Forests and its Global Forest goals.
Distinguished Delegates,
The adoption of ambitious and action-oriented outcomes of UNFF19, will be critical to guide our work on forests towards 2030.
Your energy and insight must inform the Summit of the Future this September and its ¡°Pact for the Future¡±, ensuring that sustainable forest management and protection feature prominently in the way forward.
I look forward to your deliberations and wish you a successful session.
Thank you.