Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
As this year¡¯s meeting of the HLPF comes to a close today, I am delighted to offer a few highlights and reflections.
We have heard many examples of progress, lessons learned and stories of successful initiatives.
We have listened to the voices of Governments, civil society, and the United Nations system, as well as many high-level experts, scientists, and academic leaders.
Young people, have engaged in record numbers this year, adding their important perspective to the mix.
For the first time at the HLPF, every session included at least one youth speaker, and many more youth contributed to the discussions from the floor.
I thank the President and Bureau of ECOSOC for taking the initiative to ensure that the voices of youth were heard loud and clear.
This year¡¯s forum has also heard many shared calls for action, not only around the SDGs under review, but also throughout the thematic review sessions. These have focused on the need for systemic changes in finance, climate action, gender equality, human rights, and other important areas.
The thematic review discussions and assessment of progress toward the SDGs¡¯ commonly highlighted the importance of enhancing international collaboration. They also spoke to unleashing adequate financing, fighting for true inclusivity, and reaching for pathways to more effective multilateralism.
There were also dynamic discussions on the follow-up to the LDC 5 Conference, the UN Water Conference, the Food Systems Summit, the mid-point review of the Sendai Framework, and the forthcoming SIDS conference.
Delegations and stakeholders outlined the need to use available data and scientific evidence to improve our water and waste management systems.
We heard calls for accelerating access to affordable and clean electricity to ensure just energy transitions.
Speakers shared examples of fostering green and inclusive industrial growth by promoting partnerships, strengthening knowledge-sharing, and supporting small- and medium-sized enterprises.
We heard how water, energy, and industry Goals all converge in the planning and management of sustainable cities and communities. We learned how many communities are striving to meet urbanization challenges, prioritize affordable housing and sustainable transportation, and leverage technology for urban development.
Speakers highlighted the need for greater investment in data gathering, data governance, and analytical capacity to make sharable, reusable, flexible and responsive data available, and to drive transformational change.
Women and girls need to be empowered and engaged in the achievement of all the SDGs.
Vulnerable populations must be seen as key stakeholders and be included at the centre of the decisions and actions for SDG implementation.
The term ¡°polycrisis¡± was used to signify how urgent the global situation is, and how interlinked our responses must be if we are to create real and lasting change.
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The United Nations remains an inclusive multilateral space, dedicated to discussing how we can collectively agree on mechanisms to respond effectively to this rapidly evolving world.
With seven years left to achieve the SDGs, major course correction is needed.
But if we can take action on the innovative policies that we have talked about for the past 10 days, then we can counter these trends by 2030.
It is possible to reform the international financial architecture, promote multi-stakeholder collaboration, and leave no one behind.
The Voluntary National Reviews this year have provided many great examples of actions being taken at the national level to accelerate progress. I wish to thank all countries and the EU for their outstanding presentations and reports.
Now, as we head toward the SDG Summit in September, I invite all of us to reflect and take away the inspiring ideas from this year¡¯s HLPF and build on these.
The world is counting on us to act, and we must act now and we must act together
I thank you all for your participation.