UN Transcripts — https://transcripts.un.org/fr/ecosoc/2025/21
Economic and Social Council: 21st plenary meeting - 2025 Operational Activities for Development Segment, Day 3 — Economic and Social Council — 22 May 2025
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Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [0:00]:

Okay, distinguished delegates, colleagues, the 21st meeting of the Economic and Social Council is called to order. I now invite the Council to continue its consideration of the sub-item A, follow-up to policy recommendations of the General Assembly and the Council, of agenda item 7, operational activities of the United Nations for International Development Cooperation. The Council will now hold a panel discussion on the —on the title "Supporting countries implementing the SDGs in complex settings: Interlinkages between development and peacebuilding." This session will provide a platform for Member States to engage in exchange on how the United Nations Development System can better support countries in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals in complex settings and cross the silos. This session will explore how investing in peacebuilding efforts contributes to development and achieving peaceful societies by strengthening their resilience and cohesion, enabling social dialogue as well as building inclusive state institutions. Member States will engage directly with the key actors to better understand the extent to which shifts in strategic planning have translated into action at the country level, including through the joint UN Development Program financed by the Peacebuilding Fund, and identify actions to strengthen development response in complex settings. And I'm pleased to welcome our panelists for discussion today. We got Madame Elisabeth Marie Speijer, ASG for Peacebuilding Support. Welcome. Mr. Oscar Fernández Taranco, ASG for Development Coordination. Welcome. And two colleagues who are joining us virtually, the two RCs, We got Mr. François Bétalin-Gaya, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Chad, and Madame Catherine Sozi, United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Mozambique. Both of them will join us virtually. And we got two panel discussions that will respond to the first interventions. That will be His Excellency Yamazaki Kazuyuki, Permanent Representative of Japan, and Mr. Vincent Gaspar, the Chargé d'Affaires and Deputy Permanent Representative of Haiti. And before I give the floor to our panelists, as in the previous sessions, those of delegations who would like to take part in the interactive discussion that will happen just after the panel interventions Please indicate it now so we can build up the programme and know how— if we need to impose any time limits for the interventions. Okay, I got the first request, so it's— having that, first I give the floor to Madame Elisabeth Marisch-Peijer, ASG for Peacebuilding Support. Mr. Sprecher, the floor is yours.


PBSO · ASG for Peacebuilding Support · Elisabeth Spehar [3:14]:

Yes, hello, good afternoon everyone. I would like to start by thanking very much the Ambassador and Vice President of ECOSOC, who also happens to be one of the vice chairs of the Peacebuilding Commission. Thank him very much for the invitation here and for putting this meeting together. It's also a pleasure to be participating with a number of distinguished colleagues, including the gentleman to my right, Óscar Fernández Taranco, who is my predecessor at the Peacebuilding Support Office and is playing an incredibly important role in DCO, as well as the discussants, very important partners and colleagues of Haiti and Japan. I think the topic is incredibly relevant and something that we need to focus on increasingly. Given the state of the world at this time, and that is the interlinkages between development and peacebuilding efforts. We say it often, there's no peace without development and there is no development without peace. It's become somewhat of a mantra here at the United Nations, but I think what's really important is what it means in real terms, what it means on the ground. And if we look at some of the statistics, if we need to be reminded, The research is showing us that countries that are affected by fragility and conflict are the countries that have fallen the furthest behind in terms of the achievement of the SDGs. And some of the prognoses are that by 2030, more than two-thirds of the extreme poor of the world will be in fragile and conflict-affected countries. So if there was If there is anything that shows us very starkly what we are talking about, it is those points. But I want to go beyond the figures and the statistics to remind us that these dramatic numbers represent real people, real families, and real communities, and the suffering is real, this intersection between underdevelopment and conflict. I also want to contrast very quickly these dire statistics with resources, with where the money is going. And we all know that militarization is at an all-time high. We're talking about investments in war that are now in the trillions. And if you contrast that to what the OECD DAC information is telling us about official development assistance, and in particular where peace funding is going, It is going in the opposite direction. It is diminishing. And yet we know, and this is from way back in 2018 through the Pathways for Peace report, a very important landmark report that the World Bank and the UN produced, so 7 years ago now, that $1 of prevention and investment in peacebuilding can save an additional $16, and this was recently updated by the IMF in a study that they did where they showed that for every dollar spent on conflict prevention and peacebuilding, you could generate a return of up to $103 when you factor in the economic losses due to conflict that otherwise would not have occurred. So clearly this is a cost-effective approach, but again, the resources are not coming in at the necessary level. In terms of the first question of reforms, and may I add the word perhaps innovations that could contribute to better coordination and enhancing interlinkages between interventions in complex settings for greater development impact, I would emphasize three things. Number one, the strengthened Resident Coordinator system. I think that's been a very important reform, if you will, alongside common country analyses and UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks, which really have been important tools in bringing the system more together, even in mission settings. So in the past, where you used to have peace operations, there was a bit of a separate— a separate strategy. Now the default is supposed to be always under the UN SCDF, and I think that's a very good reform and innovation, not always applied, but really should be applied. Secondly, the role of the peacebuilding architecture, and this is where I come in as PBSO. The Peacebuilding Commission, I think, has a critical role to play with respect to these interlinkages, and the New Agenda for Peace of the Secretary-General encapsulated it very well. The PBC works at the nexus of peace and development,, and as a result, it has a convening power that can bring everyone from across the system together in support of a member state's peacebuilding priorities, which they themselves articulate across the humanitarian, development, and peace nexus. So a very important tool that I hope the ongoing peacebuilding architecture review of this year will strengthen in very concrete terms. Similarly, the PBSO, Peacebuilding Support Office, and the Peacebuilding Fund also contribute to these interlinkages in a very concrete way. The Office, PBSO, has been described by the Secretary-General as a hinge of the system, so helping to bring coherence across humanitarian, development, and peace work, basically through policy work, but also through the role of the Peacebuilding Fund, which is a global pooled fund, and its modus operandi is to support agencies, funds, and programmes working together in support of a country's peacebuilding priorities, so it has an integrator effect across the system because it is pulling in always more than one UN entity to have a comprehensive approach to a member state's needs. The third thing I would mention is the role of the Peace and Development Advisers. This is an innovative tool that has been around for quite a while. These individuals that really help resident coordinators with conflict-sensitive approaches. And they are also very useful for us at PBSO because they help very much in terms of the types of programs that are shaped for the support of the Peacebuilding Fund based on the input from the country itself and from the UN system on the ground. So I would just— end very quickly by saying that I do think that the peacebuilding tools that we have are a very important way to bring in those, those interlinkages, and that talking about reforms, the reform of 2019 not only was critical in strengthening the Resident Coordinator System, but it also placed the Peacebuilding Support Office in the department, what was then the Department of Political Affairs, and I think that was very significant because it does help us to link what I would call the upstream preventive diplomacy work of the political area— era— of the area of the peace and security pillar to the agency's funds and programmes that do the structural prevention work. So when it works well, we are helping to bring the whole system around a coherent effort in support of member states and very much with the resident coordinators on the ground being our key interlocutors and integrators. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [11:06]:

Well, I thank the ASG for Peacebuilding Support for her statement. It was very interesting. And now I give the floor to ASG for Development Coordination, Mr. Oscar Fernández Taranco. The floor is yours.


DCO · ASG for Development Coordination · Oscar Fernández Taranco [11:21]:

Thank you very much. Ambassador, Vice President of ECOSOC, Excellencies, distinguished delegates and colleagues. Thank you for this opportunity to brief you here today. The discussion on the Resident Coordinator System is especially timely and particularly timely as it relates to countries in complex situations or transitions. In particular, given— again, I bring it up here because I think as many of the discussions over the past 3 days have been focused on data, on assessments of what what the system is actually doing and how it is being measured. So I'm pointing out to this OIOS evaluation of the work of resident coordinators and UN country teams in complex settings. Again, and particularly relevant since this evaluation came up in December in the current context of funding landscapes and funding cuts. Important just to set— start this particular session is that this evaluation reaffirmed the Resident Coordinator System's critical role in enhancing UN coherence, sustaining this development focus in complex contexts, and to support and build around national visions aligned around the SDGs. That was the question that was being asked. In complex setting, is the UN only focusing on the humanitarian or on the political aspects,. And I think this evaluation, for those who haven't read it, hugely important data-driven assessments and surveys of our counterparts. Let me quickly outline 4 key issues for this particular session. The first, and I think Elizabeth was referring to this very important role of how the system works together better today than certainly was the case when I was at DSRSG in Haiti some more than 20 years ago. In mission— integrated mission settings. From Haiti to Libya to Somalia, as Elizabeth was saying, the cooperation framework has now emerged as the unified vision guiding both the UN country team and the missions. And I think this is a big innovation, part of the reform. We used to have many different planning frameworks in mission settings. This is now grounded around the cooperation framework, and we've had very agitated discussions about the centrality of the cooperation framework. In these settings, the Deputy Special Representative, who serves also as the Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator, benefits now from stronger management capacities through this additional capacity that exists when we merge and pool some of the resources of the mission to support mandated activities. And responsibilities, enabling much more synergistic and greater effectiveness between the missions and the UN Country Team capacities, and supporting in a more substantive way UN Country Teams analysis, integrated planning that leads to the joint programming to support strategic priorities. The second is in post-mission transitions, which actually is exposing a new reality the reality of Resident Coordinators, UN country teams operating in as-if-mission settings with no missions, right? And here, Mali, the closure of MINUSMA, no, saw this incredible drop from an almost $1 billion mission operation to the standalone Resident Coordinator's office having to operate with discretionary resources of $100,000, brought by the distinguished Representative of Ireland the other day. Similarly, in Sudan, this abrupt closure of UNITAMS left the Resident Coordinator and the Country Team with immense responsibilities and minimal support. We need— Member States, collectively, all of us— we need to do something much better and have predictable mechanisms to support Resident Coordinators, Humanitarian Coordinators, Resident Coordinator's Office and Country Teams in these new emerging contexts, which are becoming more the norm in many cases. For instance, and as we have seen, and this is part of the innovation reform I think that is happening in real time, where the Resident Coordinator has been named the head of the liquidation process, as happened in Mali and as happened in Sudan, that actually allowed the system to actually provide the type of resources to keep strategic capacities to continue to deliver on the residual aspects of mandates and the expectations of the UN. The third, something that Elizabeth also referred to and has been sort of a constant reference in all the sessions of this ECOSOC OES, is the cruciality of pooled funding mechanisms. They have proven their catalytic dimension. They help and ensure the continuity of UN country team programming in mission settings.. For instance, and as we see, Elizabeth talked about the global pooled funds, and the PBF plays an indispensable role in many of these contexts. But we see also now dedicated— we see the establishment of multi-partner trust funds, a country-pooled funding mechanism, such as the ones that we have in Sudan, which with a $25 million window— this is what's left now for the country team to be, you know, from that big operation to what we have now— that allows the Country Team to support and strengthen resilience and conflict prevention in synergistic work with the Peace Building Fund. In Iraq, the Multi-Partner Trust Fund that is being set up is meant to precisely help this UN pivot away from humanitarian and anticipate the end of the Special Political Mission and to align the UN Country Team around the national priorities of the government of Iraq. So I think these pooled funds play a hugely important role in ensuring that there is better coordination across humanitarian development funds. And this, I think, are, you know, as we are seeing in the case of Somalia and in South Sudan, there have been efforts actually to better mainstream the coordination. Global funds like the PBF, the SDG Joint Fund, and the SIRF are key instruments to provide this type of catalytic support and to promote the integration and the joint action of UN country teams. We've had many sessions where many member states keep asking, what are the incentives and the behavioral change that need to be driven? Incentives and behavioral change— the pooled funds have an incredible track record at demonstrating how behaviors and more strategic intent happens as a result of this collective mechanism. But I would like to also stress, not to just say pooled funds— hugely important that this is a cornerstone of the Funding Compact— the centrality and the importance of core funding for agencies to be able to deploy the type of expertise and capacities that these complex settings require, and much less earmarked and flexible funding that needs to arrive through donor contributions to entities, funds, and programs. The fourth innovation that we have established within DCO is the surge mechanism, which is a rapid deployment of senior development experts to support UN country teams in complex settings. And actually, this is building on the best practice of DPPA with the surge support mechanism for mediation. Our DCO surge support mechanisms deploy in 24 hours, as was the case this year in DRC, and Somalia. And the issue here is to provide rapid support to the Resident Coordinator, the Resident Coordinator's Office, and the Country Team to address rapid shifts in priorities, programming requirements, and align and to drive the narrative of change and repositioning that Country Teams find themselves. For example, as was the case in Mali, when the narrative was the UN has left the country, when in fact The UN Country Team stayed, is delivering, and is continuing to engage, again, through the very important surge support of expertise but pooled funding mechanisms. Elizabeth referred to the cruciality of Peace and Development Advisers. I might add the Human Rights Advisers. These are critical assets in the construct of that support. And Mr. Vice President, just because Elizabeth mentioned a very important number, let me quote. It's the second point in the ask. Data, data is the fuel that powers across all the SDGs. And here, the report that I will quote maybe in the Q&A part, the investment in data pays an average of a dividend of $32 for every $1 invested in terms of reducing transaction costs and focusing the support of the UN in strategic priorities. I'll leave it at that, Vice President. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [20:25]:

Thank you so much, the ASG for Development Coordination. That was very interesting and I hope it was food for thought for everybody. And now I give the floor to one of the first of our online speakers. That's our Resident Coordinator, Resident Humanitarian Coordinator in Chad, Mr. François Mr.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · François Batalingaya [20:53]:

Thank you, thank you, Your Excellency, for giving me the opportunity. I hope you can hear me. Excellencies, distinguished members of ECOSOC, thank you for the opportunity to address the Council. Chad is currently confronting a convergence of crisis that severely impedes its progress towards achieving the SDGs. These challenges are complex, deeply interconnected, and demand urgent, coordinated, and sustained responses. We are up through— up against three challenges. First, Chad stands on the front lines of the climate crisis. Last year's people resulting in tragic loss of life widespread destruction of livelihoods, and long-lasting disruption to communities. The food security outlook is equally alarming. An estimated 3.3 million people are expected to face food insecurity during the rainy season. This is not a humanitarian emergency but a protracted development challenge that threatens human capital Mr.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [22:23]:

Batalingaia, we lost connection, I think. I don't know if you hear us, but we cannot hear you, that's for sure. If you can maybe just switch to the audio without the picture, we have seen your face already and you know we are there. So maybe that would be easier to just to connect with the audio. Yes, I'm back.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · François Batalingaya [22:50]:

Okay, great. In the Lake Chad region, attacks by non-state armed groups have displaced over 215,000 people. This displacement placed immense pressure on already fragile social and economic systems, reversing development gains and fueling vulnerability in affected communities. Thirdly, Chad is bearing the consequences of regional instability. Conflicts in neighboring countries have triggered large-scale cross-border population displacement. Over the last 2 years, Chad, particularly eastern Chad, has received 833 Sudanese refugees who have sought refuge alongside 280,000 returning Chadian nationals. These populations joined an existing caseload of more than 400 Sudanese refugees who have lived in Chad for nearly two decades. In recent weeks, the pace of displacement has accelerated further following attacks and dismantling of the Zamzam refugee camp in Darfur. All these people are in need of— diminishing. Let me underscore the situation in Eastern Chad. Today, 1 in every 3 residents of Eastern Chad is a Sudanese refugee. This would pose a serious challenge even to the most developed, developed nations. Yet Chad has maintained a generous and progressive asylum policy, a commitment that deserves our recognition and support. However, the strain is becoming evident.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [24:36]:

Shrinking resources are Again, I think we lost the connection. If you try to reconnect, then just please maybe sum up and make a final point and then we can come back to you in the Q&A session. I'm back.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · François Batalingaya [25:15]:

I'm back.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [25:16]:

Okay, so please, we are so happy that you're back. So please maybe just make a final sentence and then we come back to you in the Q&A again. Okay, not to overstretch the link.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · François Batalingaya [25:34]:

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Can you hear me?


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [25:36]:

No. We can hear you. So please like make the final message to us.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · François Batalingaya [25:50]:

We can see you. Can anybody hear me? You can see me?


Speaker 15 [25:56]:

Okay.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [25:59]:

Well, Mr. Batalenga, let us move— let us switch now to our resident coordinator in Mozambique because it's— I think it's we see her and she's ready and maybe we can come back to you later. Thank you so much for the chat and now I invite Madam Catarina Sosi from Mozambique to jump in and we will try to come back to chat again.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · François Batalingaya [26:32]:

Okay, I'm back. So, So to conclude, for decades the context of Eastern Chad has been addressed primarily through humanitarian interventions with limited investment in long-term development, but this paradigm is shifting. The government of Chad, in partnership with the United Nations and key development actors, have launched a medium to long-term resilience and stabilization initiative for Eastern Chad. That initiative is built around three pillars: resilience and development, social cohesion, particularly monitoring and responding, responding to community tensions, and enhancing mechanisms to prevent, mitigate, and resolve conflicts. And thirdly, local governance. Together with the United Nations, European Union, International Financial Institutions, we move beyond emergency response to a sustainable development trajectory. Through a catalyst, catalytic funding such as the Peacebuilding Fund, the UN and the World Bank are jointly analyzing and addressing the root cause of fragility and displacement using the Prevention and Resilience Allocation Tool. This integrated approach linking humanitarian assistance, development, and peacebuilding deserves robust support. It is not— it's not only alibi suffering today, but lays the groundwork for a more resilient and self-reliant future. Excellencies, I hope with your right support we can transform vulnerability into resilience and the crisis into opportunity. What is needed now is sustained international solidarity, predictable funding, and development approach that reflects the scale and complexity of the challenges. Above all, a peaceful resolution of the ongoing and devastating conflict in Sudan is paramount. I thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [28:35]:

Thank you so much, and thank you very much for making all these efforts to keep you connected with us. And we know and understand the situation you are working in, and we do appreciate your presence today. So now I give the floor to full extent to our Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Mozambique, Madame Catherine Sozi. The floor is yours.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · Catherine Sozi [29:07]:

I serve as the UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator here in Mozambique. And thank you for the opportunity. Well, Mozambique presents a deeply complex development landscape. The country is grappling with overlapping crises, recurrent climate-related disasters, a protracted conflict in the north of the country, and entrenched poverty affecting over 75% of the population. Inequality remains stark, especially between urban and rural areas where access to basic services is limited and vulnerability to environmental shocks is high. Since October 2024, you may have heard that over 1.8 million people have been impacted by 3 major cyclones that we've had here in the country, destroying more than 200,000 homes and damaging over 2,000 health and education facilities. These disasters are striking the same regions already destabilized by armed conflict which has been in place since 2017, which has displaced thousands and caused over 2,000 civilian casualties. Meanwhile, drought and the El Niño phenomenon have pushed food insecurity to unprecedented levels. Nearly 5 million people are food insecure this year, with close to a million in emergency conditions. These challenges are compounded by a heavy debt burden and structural inequalities, fueling youth grievances and unrest, as seen in the post-election protests that happened towards the end of the last, last year and beginning of this year. In this context, I think everybody understands that development must operate in emergency mode. It requires a coordinated, systems-based, all-of-society approach, one that bridges the humanitarian response, development, and peacebuilding efforts. As RCHC, I convene and coordinate across these three pillars, working closely with the government at national and provincial and district level, development partners, humanitarian partners, civil society, academia, and the private sector. We've institutionalized this, this collaboration through platforms like the ones we call the Development Coordination Platform, which is co-chaired with two other development partners and myself. And the International Community Crisis Task Force, which I co-chair with the ambassadors of EU, the leader of AFDB, and the US Ambassador under the leadership of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. And of course, I chair the humanitarian country team where the CERF and the regional humanitarian funds play a key role in collaborative efforts. But these mechanisms are delivering results, and I just want to go through these quickly. Some of these quickly. On climate resilience, we supported the government in launching the UN Secretary-General's Early Warning for All initiative last year. This model has already improved cyclone responses, with over 5 million people receiving timely alerts in local languages with informed data systems that we support together with the IFIs. Anticipatory action plans were activated for droughts and cyclones reaching over 200,000 people before disaster struck. On internal displacement, through concerted efforts of the UN agencies and partners, we're backing a 5-year government plan which we've just launched after 3 years of working on the plan to support nearly 1.3 million displaced people, over half of whom are women and children, by integrating durable solutions into the national development strategies. On financing for development, we're exploring innovative mechanisms like debt swaps to fund school feeding, social protection, and climate action. Likewise, on digital transformation, with support from the Joint SDG Fund, we are promoting local-level digitalization to strengthen public service delivery through a joint program supported and implemented by UNDP and UNICEF with a focus on the north where the conflict, the drought, and the cyclones are happening at the same time. And on peacebuilding, through the Mozambique One UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund, we're establishing a local base and deploying a senior coordination officer to the capital of the province to ensure a well-coordinated recovery, resilience, development, peacebuilding engagement in full complementarity with the humanitarian efforts. And alignment with the local leadership strategies in the north, the poorest part of the country. Your Excellencies, after nearly 2 years in this role here in Mozambique, I'm convinced that the UN Development System reform is working. The empowered RC function, a solid Resident Coordinator office, the cooperation framework, and the pooled funding mechanisms which Oscar referred to are enabling us to deliver more coherent, collective and effective support to government priorities and its citizens, connecting with stakeholders including civil society and the private sector in these important actions. But we need your continued support. We urge member states to promote pooled funding and the use of the MPTF1 fund as a central mechanism for implementing cooperation frameworks. Likewise, We urge the continued investments in the CERF and into our Regional Humanitarian Fund, the pooled fund for humanitarian responses that I'm now co-chairing and leading to ensure that national NGOs are at the forefront of the responses that we support so that we can reduce fragmentation, we can foster collaboration, and we can enhance impact at scale. In a world of shrinking ODA and rising expectations, your support to the Resident Coordinator System is vital. Together we can deliver as one for the people we serve, leaving no one behind. Thank you very much for your time.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [35:24]:

Neto, we thank you, the Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Mozambique, for your statement. And now we hear the first, for the first of our panel discussions. Again, I will just remind the delegations who would like to speak to indicate it by pressing the microphone button. So, saying so, I give the floor to His Excellency Yamazaki Kazuyuki, the Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations. Excellency, the floor is yours. Kazu.


Japan · Permanent Representative · Yamazaki Kazuyuki [36:00]:

Thank you. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to Ambassador Szczeruski, Permanent Representative of Poland, for convening this meeting. Your leadership and commitment to foster meaningful discussion as Vice Chair and the informal coordinator between the PBC and ECOSOC are truly appreciated. And I I would like to also express my gratitude to the two ASGs and two RCs for their very lively inputs. And I, to attend this meeting, I, you know, considered several elements, but I found that those, you know, elements I'm sharing with you very much overlap what already ESGs or RDCs mentioned, but that means that we are probably heading in the same direction. So I just wanted to tell in advance. Development does not exist without peace and peace does not exist without development. Japan believes in a comprehensive approach to conflict prevention, peacebuilding, and sustaining peace based on the concept of human security that addresses the complex and multifaceted root causes of conflict and emphasizes humanitarian-development-peace nexus. To this end, the link between development and peace should be included in various ongoing UN processes. Policies, such as the FFD IV and the Peacebuilding Architecture Review. I would like to highlight three points that are critical to strengthening the link between development and peace in supporting nationally-owned and led efforts. These efforts should be taken into account in the ongoing process of UN Development System reform. First, It is important to strengthen the role of Peace Building Commission. As Vice Chair of the PBC, Japan believes the body could utilize its advisory, bridging, and convening role more effectively to advocate for and facilitate discussion between all relevant actors to refine their efforts. In this respect, ECOSOC could advance its engagement in conflict settings by deepening collaboration with the PBC through modalities such as joint meetings and written advice. Second, it is essential to support countries' transitions from the humanitarian to development phase. Resident coordinators are the leading actors for this transition. As they play a pivotal role in ensuring the HDP nexus. The PBC is well positioned to gather and disseminate insights from the RCs to allow for better coordination across the UN system. Finally, institution building and investment in people should be the cornerstone of any conflict prevention and peacebuilding efforts. Aimed at achieving long-term development goals, including SDGs. This approach is fundamental to empowering local and national ownership with a sense of inclusion, as well as restoring the trustworthiness and legitimacy of national government. Development partners must work closely with national and local actors, including women, youth, and civil society to promote peace through a human-centered approach. To conclude, Japan remains committed to achieving sustainable— sustaining peace and sustainable development. I thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [40:09]:

I thank the Permanent Representative of Japan for the statement, and now I give the floor to Mr. Fritzner-Gaspard, the Chargé d'Affaires and Deputy Permanent Representative of of Haiti to the United Nations. Excellency, the floor is yours.


Haiti · Chargé d'Affaires and Deputy Permanent Representative · Fritzner Gaspard [40:25]:

Merci, Monsieur le Vice-président.

Thank you, Vice-president. Vice-president of ECOSOC, ASG, Excellencies, Ambassadors, distinguished panelists, colleagues. I would like to begin by commending the organization of this meeting of the Operational Activities for Development segment. Centered on a theme that in itself reflects the complexity of the international context and reminds us of our obligation to uphold the essential commitments we made as states by adopting the 17 Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. I thank the Vice President of ECOSOC for inviting me to share Haiti's experience in this panel dedicated to the best ways to support countries in implementing the SDGs in complex settings. And to explore the links between development and peacebuilding efforts. I thank the ESG and the Resident Coordinators for their very enriching statements. Mr. Vice President, I do not intend to repeat the figures and statistics found in reports to describe the severity of the security, humanitarian, and socioeconomic situation in Haiti because those numbers can never truly capture the extent of the population suffering, the trauma, and the impact of the daily violence endured by the most vulnerable groups such as women, girls, and older persons. I will simply quote the current president of the Transitional Presidential Council, His Excellency Fritz-Alphonse Jean, who during his inauguration on April 5th, 2025, described the situation in Haiti in the most direct and vivid terms. He said, and I quote, "The country is at war," end of quote. Allow me to say a few words on the SDGs before responding to your two specific questions. The Haitian delegation present at the summit that led to the adoption of the SDGs expressed its strong commitment to this new plan, which addresses the major complex challenges related to sustainable development. As we approach the 2030 deadline, it is clear that we are still far from achieving the 9 main goals that Haiti has prioritized. The severe multidimensional crisis in Haiti is making this task even more difficult. Regarding the first question, in order to put an end to this unique and complex war, many voices have been raised both within the Haitian state as well as within the UN system to sound the alarm. In Haiti's case, the first step is to further strengthen inter-institutional links. Likewise, it is important to avoid duplication. We require coordination and harmonization between the various international and regional actors to enhance synergies. Secondly, we must strengthen the unity of action within the UN, ensuring swift handling of urgent matters in order to deliver effective real-time results for member states. I would also like to highlight the many efforts made by the Haitian government that led to the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2699, authorizing the effective deployment of the MSS in June 2024, thanks to the solidarity enabled here by multilateralism. The MSS presence in Haiti is an example of a tool that supports the Haitian National Police in a complex context aiming to restore conditions— to create conditions for restoring peace and economic recovery and development. In this context, the creation of the UN Integrated Office in Haiti, the Haiti sanctions regime, and the establishment of the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Haiti are also examples of mechanisms seeking concrete solutions to foster development. The closer collaboration between ECOSOC and the Peacebuilding Commission is an example of synergy needed to bring results and to address complex crises and implement peace and social well-being programs in a timely manner. On peacebuilding, We commend the work of the UN Country Team, which is laying the groundwork for Haiti's development by working in the justice sector and supporting credible upcoming elections. Haiti is a beneficiary of the Peace Building Fund in 2025, receiving $33.6 million, which we will be allocated according to government priorities. We are pleased that this aid is aligned with the recommendations of Resolution 72/279, on repositioning the UN Development System as part of the quadriennial comprehensive policy review of the UN's operational development activities. Regarding the second question, we believe that the UN must strive for a better balance among its main pillars. In the context of the SDGs, the integrated development pillar must receive greater attention. The issue of development financing for countries in the region in collaboration with international and regional financial institutions should be central to this development pillar's activities. In that regard, the sustainable development priorities supported by the RCIA aim to facilitate Haiti's economic development through several banks, requiring an investment of $1.34 trillion for the 2024-26 period. This economic recovery could create better conditions for peace and sustainable development. In conclusion, we place great hope on— in the reform of the UN system, and particularly the UN80 initiative, which could provide states with more resources to achieve the SDGs through stronger support and enhanced conflict prevention. We must also consider transformative pathways, especially in food systems, decent work, digital connectivity, climate resilience, and biodiversity, as frameworks that can help prioritize and accelerate national action, as emphasized in the SG's report on the Quadriennium Comprehensive Policy Review of UN Development Activities. Thank you, Vice President.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [47:04]:

I thank the distinguished representative of Haiti and now we open floor to delegation to participate in the interactive discussion. And I would like to remind the speakers that in order to give all those wishing to speak, and we got quite a list, the opportunity to take the floor and the panelists to respond briefly to your interventions, I have to limit the speaking time for each of I will limit you to 3 minutes and with a little margin we will cut off the microphones just to secure the flow of the discussion, so please be aware of that. And saying so, I give the floor first to the Permanent Representative, the distinguished Representative of El Salvador.


El Salvador · Permanent Representative [47:54]:

Thank you. I hope I have 3 minutes.

Thank you. Vice President.

Vice President, distinguished panelists, allow me to begin by thanking you for convening this very important dialogue on how to strengthen the links between sustainable development and peacebuilding in complex contexts. This conversation cannot be more timely, and thank you, Vice President, for putting it on the agenda. In El Salvador, we know through our own experience that investing in long-term development is, in fact, investing in sustainable peace. We have seen that peacebuilding efforts, when they focus on strengthening social cohesion, promoting dialogue, and building inclusive institutions, they can generate more robust conditions in order to move towards sustainable development. The support of the Peacebuilding Fund in my country has been crucial in priority areas such as human mobility, The participation of young people and women, as well as transitional justice processes— these initiatives have contributed not only to preventing violence, but also to building more resilient communities, whose sustainability is key in order to consolidate progress achieved, but also to generate lasting changes. In response to the guiding questions, we would like to point out the important role played by peace advisors on the ground. Their deployment has been key in order to coordinate actions that respond both to the development challenges as well as peacebuilding. And we hope that this program will be strengthened within the framework of reviewing the architecture of peacebuilding. And here we agree with what the— as she said, and we would like to take advantage of this opportunity to ask her, from her perspective, how can this process to review the peacebuilding architecture, how can this support the strengthening of the relationship between peacebuilding and development, especially on the ground, thus maximizing the impact that the UN would have. Vice President, we acknowledge as well that the availability and accessibility of data continues to be a challenge in many contexts, and it's important to improve the way in which we show the tangible impact of peacebuilding on development. One, better evidence would lead to better decisions. Strengthening the national data collection systems and the ability to analyze these will be important to carry out interventions which will be more effective. And lastly, we believe that the RC office must have adequate resources, training, as well as specialized technical support. Vice President Panalis, investing in peace and development are not parallel paths. But rather they're deeply interdependent. Strengthening this interrelationship in the UN as part of the commitments in the QCPR and the Pact for the Future is not only strategic, it's also crucial in order to build societies which are more just, more sustainable, and more resilient. Thank you very much, Vice President.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [51:07]:

I thank the distinguished Permanent Representative of El Salvador. Perfect timing. And now I give the floor to Mozambique, the Permanent Representative of Mozambique, to be followed by European Union and Croatia.


Mozambique · Permanent Representative [51:24]:

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Chair, allow me to start by commending you and the speakers and the panel discussions for their comprehensive insights. I would also like to acknowledge the presence of Miss Catherine Sozi, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Mozambique. Her outstanding leadership in accelerating the implementation of the SDGs in close collaboration with the government is very much appreciated. Notwithstanding the challenging global financial landscape, which which limits the ability to deliver more and better results. Mr. Chair, for a country like Mozambique, peace and development, including its humanitarian dimension, are interconnected and mutually reinforcing. The full implementation of the SDGs is still a challenge worldwide, and Mozambique is not an exception. Nevertheless, The country has made considerable progress in some SDGs, such as Goals 4, 5, 6, 8, 12, 13, and 14. We appreciate the support of the UN Development System in this regard, as Mozambique is among the 42 largest program countries that accounted for 83% of of all development system spending according to the 2025 report of the Secretary-General. Although the SDG 16 is not part of the aforementioned list, it is not by coincidence that it is rated among the top 3 SDGs receiving funding from our government. This reflects the utmost priority that Mozambique attaches to peacebuilding in the context of our nation-building challenges and the recognition of the interconnectivity of all the 17 SDGs. Therefore, as a beneficiary country, Mozambique would like to highlight the critical role of the Peacebuilding Fund as the UN's leading instrument in conflict prevention and peacebuilding. Mr. Chair, we welcome the UN aid initiative, which offers renewed opportunities for the repositioning of the UN development architecture.

This process has the potential to contribute to finding better and innovative responses to the needs of countries in complex settings, as in Mozambique's case. This process must be people-centered and member-state-driven, avoiding a one-size-fits-all approach.

In addition, we are of the view that there is a need for scaling up funding through predictable, adequate, diversified, and resilient financing to support the UN operational activity for development. I thank you. Thank you, Mr.

Chair.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [54:43]:

I thank the distinguished Permanent Representative of Mozambique, and now I give the floor to European Union, to be followed by Croatia and South Africa.


EU [54:56]:

Thank you, Mr. Chair. And let me repeat that phrase once again: there can be no sustainable development without peace, and no peace without Sustainable development. It is indeed a bit of a mantra, but it's also good to remind ourselves that that is right on top there in the 2030 Agenda, in the preamble, and should be really integrated into everything we do, both in development but also in peace. So how do we translate that into policy where development and peacebuilding are integrated? We really want to thank the Chair for including this discussion on the interlinkages between development and peacebuilding in this year's operational activities segment. At a time when we are in the middle of the peacebuilding architecture review, it is critical to discuss how the UN development system can support national efforts in peacebuilding. Allow me to make three brief points. First, as As we have said in the PBAR discussions, effective peacebuilding needs to draw on all relevant parts of the UN system, from the country level on up. This recognition was already well formulated in the 2015 PBAR and should be further developed in this year's process. Second, in the Pact for the Future, Member States decided to strengthen national prevention strategies and approaches and to provide assistance through the UN system to support countries in these efforts. The UN development system has an important role to play here. The Peacebuilding Fund is already working as the hinge between peacebuilding and the development system to implement concrete projects on the ground. The UNDP DPPA Peace and Development Advisers are an excellent tool to support this hinge in countries where they are present. Demand for both the Peacebuilding Fund and the PDAs is going up, but we are concerned about the funding situation, which is going in the opposite direction. The large number of funding vehicles and the heavy reliance on extra-budgetary funding makes the system vulnerable, especially when funding is scarce. Conclusion from this is that we need a system that is better integrated, a system where conflict analysis and peacebuilding support are systematically looked at in the country— common country analysis and the cooperation frameworks at the country level. This will provide a basis for assisting countries in building their national prevention strategies and approaches, and of course, always in full conformity with national ownership and needs. Mr. Chair, we look forward to the joint meeting of the ECOSOC and the PBC in June. And we hope that the next operational activities segment will also include a session on the links between development and peacebuilding. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [57:56]:

I thank the distinguished representative of European Union. And now I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Croatia, to be followed by South Africa and Germany.


Croatia [58:07]:

Thank you, Mr. Vice President. Croatia aligns itself with the statement delivered by the EU on behalf of its member states, and I would like to add some remarks in my national capacity. And, Mr. Vice President, I would like to start just by thanking you for your leadership in organizing this event, and to all the briefers, naturally, for their outstanding work. Discussions during this segment regarding the implementation of QCPR resolution and the UN-80 initiative This initiative will help further align the whole of the UN system to better support countries on their path to sustainable development, peace, and security. We do not live our lives in silos, nor can we have our institutions work in silos. This segment provides an opportunity to identify ways to achieve synergies across all three pillars of the UN to realize sustainable development, peace, and prosperity. The last year's QCPR resolution recognizes the positive role of sustainable development in mitigating drivers of conflict and the need for comprehensive whole-of-system response, including greater cooperation, coherence, coordination, and complementarity to achieve the SDGs. This is also recognized both in 2030 Agenda, where peace is one of the three— five Ps, and in Pact for the Future that calls for strengthened cooperation between ECOSOC and the Peacebuilding Commission to identify and address root causes of conflict. In this regard, we as member states represented in different governing boards need to have a unified position there and at the General Assembly, ECOSOC, and at the PBC, and identify ways to work together on peacebuilding and sustaining peace through regional coordinator system and the UN country teams in cooperation with heads of peace operations, where applicable, and peacekeeping fund to make development more peace-sensitive. There has to be better coordination across development, humanitarian, and peace efforts to achieve coherence and synergy, and more systemic cooperation with the IFIs and regional development banks. For years, we have been saying that results are not being measured by a number of resolutions, and I would add nor by sheer number of projects, but by the impact that they make on people's lives. It is time we start moving from outputs to impacts and outcomes. I hope that OAS will continue on this path in the years to come. I thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:00:34]:

I thank the distinguished representative of Croatia. And now I give the floor to South Africa, followed by Germany and Azerbaijan.


South Africa [1:00:45]:

Thank you, Vice President. Thank you for organizing this meeting on the operational activities for international development cooperation. We appreciate all today's briefers who have highlighted that progress is being made to improve system-wide approaches through the RC system. As we near the end of the timeframe for implementing the SDGs, complex settings should become a focus space for enhanced support. We fully support the linkage of peacebuilding and development. The implementation of the SDGs reinforce peace processes, just as peacebuilding initiatives provide a space for sustainable development. We echo what was said by ASG Sperha, that the peacebuilding architecture does have a role to play. The involvement of the peacebuilding architecture can ensure that this linkage results in positive steps on the peace continuum.

While placing local communities' needs at the core.

For this to be realized, we would like to re-emphasize the following principles: both development and peacebuilding are context-specific needs that require tailor-made support. None of the operations developed through the UN system should be imposed on countries. Both development and peacebuilding require a foundation in national ownership and nationally formulated priorities.

Peace-positive private sector development must be the end goal of supporting this linkage. For development to be peace-positive, it should be bolstered by peacebuilding and a thorough analysis—

—that considers its impact on local communities, its strain on natural resources, and whether the industry is mostly is extractive or is able to beneficiate products locally and reinvest products— profits within the community or country of operation. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:02:38]:

I thank the distinguished representative of South Africa and now I give the floor to Germany to be followed by Azerbaijan and the Kingdom of the Netherlands.


Germany [1:02:49]:

Thank you, Mr. Vice President. Excellencies, ladies and Ladies and gentlemen, Germany welcomes the continued efforts of the UN Development System to strengthen coordination and coherence across all sectors, and including in fragile and conflict-affected settings. According to the latest States of Fragility report, no context affected by extreme fragility is on track to achieve the SDGs. At a time of growing— needs and declining resources, greater effectiveness, coordination and complementarity are more urgent than ever. As current Chair of the Peace Building Commission, Germany recognizes the increasing complexity of crisis contexts and the need for integrated approaches that link short-term responses with long-term development goals and peacebuilding outcomes. As outlined in our National Security Strategy, we follow a comprehensive approach of integrated security, which calls for stronger linkages between peace and development efforts. Therefore, sustainable long-term development must not be postponed in crisis contexts. Rather, it must must be pursued proactively with the necessary agility to adjust programming and reallocate resources in line with evolving conditions on the ground. Germany welcomes the efforts of the DCO in supporting Resident Coordinators through the deployment of rapid search capacities. These provide crucial support in enabling flexible, demand-driven, and context-— specific engagement and recalibration. To fulfill their coordination mandate effectively, RC offices must be strengthened to lead UN country teams and partners toward shared objectives and integrated responses. As largest contributor to interagency pooled funds over the past decade, Germany recognizes their catalytic potential and role here. Finally, let me reiterate that coordination and collaboration are not only essential in acute crisis settings, but should also guide efforts on conflict prevention. In times of record-low prevention spendings, new partnerships for for prevention are urgently needed to do more with less. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:05:34]:

I thank the distinguished representative of Germany and now I give the floor to Azerbaijan to be followed by the Kingdom of the Netherlands.


Azerbaijan [1:05:42]:

Thank you, Vice President. We also thank ACG and other speakers and discussant for their insightful remarks. Meanwhile, we wish to share our general points drawn from our— national perspective that we believe deserves attention in the context of today's discussions. Peacebuilding and sustainable development nexus is most successful when it is tailored to specific contexts and national priorities, implemented in close consultation, coordination, and cooperation with national governments, and backed by adequate, consistent, sustainable, and predictable international financing. Having endured the profound impacts of conflict, my country acknowledges the significance of timely, sustained, and well-coordinated international support that complements and reinforces the prevention, recovery, peacebuilding, and development policies of conflict-affected countries in their respective paths, including those undergoing post-conflict transition. It's also essential to recognize the strong linkage between peacebuilding and sustained development and disarmament in advancing our collective goals in a coherent and integrated manner. Therefore, effective peacebuilding and development framework require renewed commitment to disarmament obligations to mitigate the humanitarian impact of conventional weapons, notably those of landmines and explosive devices. As my country Azerbaijan's example demonstrates, the ongoing presence of landmines and explosive remnants of war indeed poses a serious challenge to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. These lethal hazards hamper the safe movement to schools, increase the rate of mortalities and disabilities, violate the right to life and to live without fear, and cause lifelong psychological trauma. It also impedes the ongoing rehabilitation, reconstruction, humanitarian efforts, and delays the safe return of the internally displaced persons to their homes. Due to its direct link to SDGs, Azerbaijan declared the humanitarian demining as the 18th national SDG. Therefore, demine action should be at the heart of the peacebuilding and sustainable development framework. Thanks. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:08:09]:

I thank the distinguished representative of Azerbaijan, and now I give the floor to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.


Netherlands (Kingdom of the) [1:08:17]:

Thank you, Mr. Vice President. Thank you to the panellists, the ASGs, and a special thank you to the resident coordinators on the line for the tremendous important work that you do, as you've both pointed out in your interventions, in very complex context, supporting coherence among UN entities on the ground, aligning the UN's work to national priorities, as well as bridging the gap between the different UN pillars in-country. I would therefore like to highlight once again the Kingdom of the Netherlands' strong support for the RC system, as well as the Peacebuilding Fund. The Kingdom of the Netherlands is proud to be the second largest donor of this important fund, with an annual— multiannual contribution of $22 million per year. However, the system-wide evaluation confirms that challenges remain, especially— and I quote from the evaluation— joining peacebuilding interventions to development and humanitarian programming.

While financing remains one of the main challenges—

and I think this message is well heard, well expressed in all the different interventions— leadership at UN country level requires further investment, especially in consistently integrating peacebuilding considerations and conflict analysis across agency programming in fragile context due to the continued siloed nature of UN entities and lack of institutional backing for leaders seeking to improve the HDP nexus in conflict-affected context. The evaluation cites 19 different recommendations, but I'd be interested to hear from the panelists on your views on how to bridge the gap between peacebuilding development and humanitarian support in-country. Thank you very much.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:09:57]:

I thank the distinguished representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. We have heard the last speaker in the interactive discussion, so now I invite the panellists to briefly respond to the comments and questions from the delegation. Each of you has got 3 minutes to respond, so shall we start with Eiji Sperhar? The floor is yours.


PBSO · ASG for Peacebuilding Support · Elisabeth Spehar [1:10:23]:

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, Vice President, and thanks to all who have intervened today, and particular thanks for also all of the positive mentions of the role of the Peacebuilding Fund, which I think has played a very significant supportive role in bringing together the different strands of the UN entities across the nexus in a number of country settings. There was a specific— well, now two specific questions about how to better strengthen the interlinkages between sustainable development and peacebuilding at field level, including this issue of backing the RCs to be able to do that more successfully. I would say in terms of the first question from El Salvador about how to strengthen the interlinkages between sustainable development and peacebuilding at field level and the role of the current peacebuilding architecture review, which was the specific question, I think the peacebuilding architecture review could focus on a number of things, and I'll just throw out a few of them. One is really focusing on how specifically to strengthen the Peacebuilding Commission, which has been mentioned several times, and its convening role across the system to promote a more coherent approach in specific country and regional contexts. And linked to that also, I think the review should focus on how to either mandate or promote very concrete follow-up of PBC meetings and actions so that we really can have an impact on the ground. Something that I think is very important about this year's Peacebuilding Architecture Review is that in the terms of reference for this review that were approved by all member states, it was specifically tasked to focus on more effective implementation at field level of peacebuilding and more of a focus on impact.. So I think that definitely has to be the key focus of this review. Secondly, the peacebuilding architecture review could, again, make a very strong case for adequate, predictable and sustainable funding for peacebuilding and sustainable development, and to link that to the importance of investing in pooled funding mechanisms. I mentioned pooled funding and the important integrator effect of of such mechanisms to really get the system to work together. My colleague from DCO mentioned the same thing. PBF is one example of that at the global level. He mentioned— it has also been mentioned— the CERF and the SDG Fund, and then country-level pooled funding mechanisms. The Peacebuilding Architecture Review could also perhaps further lend its support for developing more work in the area of innovative financing mechanisms, because we know that official development assistance will never be enough in terms of the very significant needs in terms of peacebuilding and sustainable development finance, and so it could perhaps in particular lend its support through— with respect to the work of PBSO, for example, which has been working very hard on the UNIFI's nexus and trying to help resident coordinators to work with the international financial institutions in their respective countries for a more strategic alignment of tools to support Member States in building and sustaining peace efforts, as well as efforts to bring in the private sector for peace-positive investment in fragile and conflict- affected settings. And then, just finally, in terms of the point made by the Netherlands, in terms of how we can support RCs in particular to really have a less siloed approach on the ground, I think it really does mostly go through the lens of getting that pooled funding as a mechanism for them, because that incentivizes the agencies, funds, and programs to work together, funded by these pooled funding mechanisms. And again, bringing also the support of IFIs and others could help as well.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:14:57]:

Thank you. I thank the ASG Spehar, and now I give the floor to ASG Taranko.


DCO · ASG for Development Coordination · Oscar Fernández Taranco [1:15:05]:

Thank you very much, Vice President.

Everybody here quoted the importance and the link between development and peace, and we have two crucial pooled funding mechanisms for peacebuilding and development. Currently, they are absolutely undercapitalized. The Funding Compact calls for a target of $500 million a year to be able to do the lift and shift that we keep talking about. And so we have no lift and we have no shift until we refocus and put funding into mechanisms that de-risk and provide the incentives to do different type of programming. Joint programming, joint analytics, joint risk assessments only happen when you put pooled funding at the heart of the assessment situation. And so until we have a common vision, common data, shared analysis,— it is impossible to have a coherent response that is fragmented because we give priority to donor-driven earmarked little projects that are not adding up to this famous equation about there's no peace without development and no development without peace. So that is my first point. The second point is that this is enshrined in the cooperation framework. The Cooperation Framework and the Common Country Analysis have been redone to precisely include in the analytics the multidimensional risk analysis. Here we are now also infusing it with the UN 2.0, and the UN80 is going to be a crucial part, because either the Cooperation Framework is the reference document or it is not. When I was in PDSO,— there used to be a separate peacebuilding strategy that needed to come up. We decided to make the cooperation framework the one strategy that the governments, when they come asking for the SGs' funding from the Peacebuilding Fund, it has to be an integrated strategy from the very start. This speaks not only to the peacebuilding-development, but it speaks to the development-humanitarian nexus linked to human rights. Unless we have a common critical document that ascertains the gaps, the risks, the drivers of exclusion, the drivers of poverty, the drivers of discrimination that then go and create those opportunities to build social cohesion, to build reconciliation, to actually look and have local authorities and governments as the real partners of this endeavor. We are all talking and not doing. So let me bring this back because this has been an ongoing— and the 2015 peacebuilding architecture review that led to that 2016 famous resolution, a lot of those commitments have not been made. And so we are here, we are again talking about commitments of 10 years ago that are not happening. It is extremely important that as we— the resident— how do you strengthen the resident coordinator system? That you strengthen the resident coordinator. The authority cannot be written as this was a terms of reference. I mean, the minute we go to terms of reference and math, it means we have a problem. The authority comes with decision-making power. These pooled funds bring the country team, bring the government, bring the major development partners and key private sector and civil society partners to have a very transparent, a very accountable discussion about what is the priority, who has capacities to implement what. These pooled funds should not become a Christmas tree decoration of many little projects.. It's about the fundamentals. What— where does the UN make a crucial difference? And here, to the question of how we can strengthen the nexus, we need to also get real about the conditionalities that come from Member States about how you put your funds into humanitarian, development, peacebuilding, and human rights efforts. And unless that flexibility runs across funds, it's never going to happen. We keep driving silos.— that is extremely important. The OIOS report has very crucial recommendations. It's about the lack of capacities in crisis and complex settings. The cooperation framework that identifies what needs to be done is not derived in country program documents and is not configured in the UN country team. We keep having the same problems in mission settings, in non-mission settings. We have country team configurations that respond to 10 years before any crisis has hit. It took us 7 years to change the configuration in places like Burkina Faso. 7 years. So this is crucial. The authority comes with what happens in the boards, what happens in the funding, what happens in the decision-making with national authorities. And then finally, just because, I mean, there's a lot to be said here, we do have an internal mechanism, the Joint Steering Committee, that brings PBSO, DCO, OCHA, and UNDP and the wider UN system precisely to address issues of the nexus, as it's called. I mean, interestingly, the nexus is a word that never makes it into the QCPR, but here we are talking about nexus, nexus, and nexus. And yet the politics of nexus has everything to do with the proportionality of how much funding we put in development, because the solutions are in the development. Unless we strengthen the SDG Fund, that today only is able to approve $80 million, I cannot tell— I mean, the demand for PPF is huge, but for the SDG Fund, it's monumental, because this is how you prevent crisis. You invest in prevention through the PPF and the SDG Fund. It's not one or the other. This has to be a simultaneous process. So this is just, you know, some comments. I have many more, but let me stop.

Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:21:02]:

You are surely already invited for the next year, OAS. And now I will try to connect to our RCs if they would like to jump in for the comment or last observations. So maybe we start with Mozambique and then we move to Chad.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · Catherine Sozi [1:21:27]:

I appreciate very much the presentation by the colleagues online and the questions from the, the member states. I reiterate once again that in a context like Mozambique, development must operate in emergency mode, but that requires coordination systems-based, all-of-society approach, and one that really must bridge not only the response to life-saving assistance through a humanitarian response, but through development and peacebuilding efforts. My request is to reiterate what Oscar has said, which is to support me as an empowered resident coordinator to do the meaningful active coordination with leadership that is believed to understand what the context is in, in harmony with the government which leads the response, and to ensure that other stakeholders, communities, societies, private sector are also engaged. But please, to also allow us to use the pooled funding mechanisms to allow us to make decisions in the country teams, whether it's the UNCT, the humanitarian country team, or the other platforms I talked about, and make decisions based on that rather than being donor-driven in this case. Thank you very much for your attention.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:22:54]:

Thank you so much for your presence and for your interventions. And now we try to go back to chat if it's feasible. Mr. Batalinga, can you hear us?


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · François Batalingaya [1:23:41]:

Sorry, I, I don't know whether I lost the opportunity.

No, I just want to say thank you for the opportunity.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:23:48]:

Oh boy, yeah, we see you and we hear you.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · François Batalingaya [1:23:57]:

Of funding the Peacebuilding Fund. This fund has been a catalyst to us to not only to initiate initiatives but also to access other funds. I will give example of the World Bank. With the World Bank, basically using the, the, the, the PPF fund, we're able to do the joint analysis and operation and using the The Prevention and Resilience Application Tool. And with that, we are able to basically support the country address the root causes of fragility and displacement. This is the initiative that should continue to be supported, and really, in Chad, it helps me a lot.

And thank you for everything.

I'll stop there.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:24:45]:

Thank you so much. I thank all the panelists and the panelists, the panelists, the discussants. For their interventions and thank you very much to all the delegation for their comments and questions. With saying that, we are closing this panel discussion and we are briefly now pause the meeting to allow the podium to be rearranged for the next panel discussion. We already seen on the screen that the panelists are already there, so they are ready to jump in. Okay, thank you so much for this one. Just a short pause. Okay, colleagues, I invite you to take your seats as this is the shortest session of all. We just have an hour and 15 minutes, so we have to be brief and well organized. Those who want to participate in this session, please take your seats. Okay, the Council will now hold a panel discussion on the development needs and solutions for internally displaced persons, IDPs. The session will discuss how to embed durable development solutions for internally displaced persons into development planning and ensure sustainable for sustained engagement across the United Nations system and beyond. The session will open with a global look at how the UN and international financial institutions are addressing internal displacement through development and financing efforts, followed by the country-level insights and best practices. And I'm pleased to welcome our panelists for this discussion: Mr. Ghulam Mohammad Isatshai, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General, United Nations Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Iraq, who will join— who will be joining us virtually. Madame Clementine Awou Nkweta Salami, United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, also joining virtually. Madame Nicole Ruder, Assistant Director-General at the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation., and Mr. Robert Piper, the former Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Solutions to Internal Displacement, who is also joining us virtually. So, our panel discussion— okay, as the panel discussions, we will have His Excellency Raúl Esteban Sánchez Niño, Deputy Permanent Representative of Colombia, and Mr. Sindov Baebi Endoni, Chargé d'Affaires at the Permanent Mission of Nigeria. So first, I give the floor to the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Iraq, Mr. Ghulam Mohammad Isatshari. Mr. Isatshari, the floor is yours.


UN · Deputy SRSG; Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · Ghulam Mohammad Isatshai [1:29:57]:

Thank you very much. I just want to do a sound check. Can you hear me properly?


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:30:01]:

We have you properly. Yes, thank you.


UN · Deputy SRSG; Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · Ghulam Mohammad Isatshai [1:30:03]:

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, and also greetings from Baghdad where it's 11:35 PM in the evening. Distinguished guests and colleagues, it's an honor to join this panel as the UN Resident Coordinator to speak on the topic of development needs for internal displacement. This is a signal that the international community sees Solutions to displacement not only as a humanitarian imperative, but as a development and governance challenge that should be addressed through long-term, nationally anchored strategies. Iraq is one of the countries most affected by internal displacement in the past decade. While over 5 million people have returned, thousands remain in protracted displacement. In the early days of the ISIS defeat, solutions to displacement were met through emergency and humanitarian assistance programs. But over the past 3 years, the UN system in Iraq has worked hard to shift this imperative from the humanitarian cluster system to development coordination, from direct service delivery to supporting the government as the first responders, and from short-term aid to long-term recovery. In Iraq, our strategy anchor for this transition is the Durable Solutions Roadmap.— a framework we developed with the support of the Office of Special— Secretary-General's Special Adviser on IDP Solutions and after extensive consultation with the Government of Iraq to guide our collective work. The Roadmap reflects a whole-of-government and a whole-of-UN approach, and the Roadmap is structured around 4 commitments. First, guaranteeing the right to safe housing, which includes property compensation and housing support. 2, expanding access to essential services and infrastructure such as electricity, water, education, and health. Third, overcoming political and security barriers to return through intentional surveys, shareholder engage— stakeholder engagement, and localized peacebuilding. And fourth, ensuring long-term inclusion and stability through civil documentation, social protection scheme, livelihood, and education. The roadmap offers three solution pathways: return to area of origin, relocation to other areas, and local integration where people currently reside. Both the federal government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government have committed to supporting these alternatives. As UN Durable Solutions actors, our role is not to substitute government functions, but to support national and subnational authorities in assuming their responsibilities. And to advance national ownership, the government has taken on key roles in coordinating displacement efforts at local level. For example, in several conflict-affected governorates, local coordination platforms known as Joint Coordination Forums have been established with UN support and are now co-led by both government and UN partners. The purpose of these forums is to facilitate return and reintegration of IDPs in their communities. Today, data from 4 key governorates shows that around 40 to 57% of returnee households have achieved high progress across key reintegration indicators, meaning they are now safely housed, economically active, and have legal identity and access to basic services. In this regard, I welcome the Secretary-General's Action Agenda on Internal Displacement and the establishment of the Interagency Solutions Hub. The deployment of a Solution Advisor to my office and the designation of the UNHCR, IOM, and UNDP as Solution Champions are tangible manifestations of the UN renewed commitment and support to the IDP solutions. I would like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate my colleague Robert Piper for spearheading this shift. We have also worked to institutionalize the solution agenda within our broader development cooperation framework. Durable Solution is now fully integrated into the new UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework covering period 2025-2029 in Iraq. This is to ensure that displacement is not treated as a parallel humanitarian issue but is addressed within the national development agenda. Looking ahead, a key opportunity lies in strengthening alignment of displacement data across government of Iraq institutions, and the United Nations. Despite progress, data discrepancies continue to challenge coordinated planning and equitable service delivery. Addressing this is critical to ensuring all displaced populations are visible in national policy and planning. My office with UN-Habitat, IOM, and UNDP has developed a joint program supported by the Internal Displacement Solutions Fund, which is a window of the SDG Fund, to partner closely with the national stakeholders to harmonize data system and build a unified evidence-based solutions. This is essential to keeping solution for displaced population as a national priority. While Iraq displacement cases may be shrinking, our responsibility to support the government in ending protracted displacement is growing. We look to the UN development system and forums like this to continue exchanging lessons and experiences. Thank you, Mr. Chair.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:35:36]:

I thank the Deputy SRSG for joining us to this late-night talking. And now I give the floor to the Resident Coordinator in Sudan, Madame Clementine Awonkweta Salami.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · Clementine Awou Nkweta Salami [1:35:56]:

Of the ECOSOC. Ladies and gentlemen, please accept my warm greetings from Port Sudan, the world's worst humanitarian crisis.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:36:15]:

Excuse me, Madam, we are losing your voice. Can you just try something to do with your mic? Because you just We hear you very badly. Can you just do something about the mic?


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · Clementine Awou Nkweta Salami [1:36:29]:

Can you hear me now?


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:36:31]:

Now it's better.


UN · Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · Clementine Awou Nkweta Salami [1:36:35]:

Okay, I'll try again. Sudan is currently experiencing one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, driven by an ongoing conflict that erupted in April 2023. These hostilities have caused widespread destruction, massive displacement, and severe deterioration in basic services across the country. The crisis has reached catastrophic proportions in regions like Darfur, where active fighting continues to obstruct the delivery of aid and imperil civilian lives. The conflict itself has resulted in the world's largest displacement crisis, with 11.3 million IDPs throughout the country. As the control of cities changes hands, we are also seeing growing return movements. Even though these returns are occurring in less than ideal circumstances, they highlight urgent reintegration needs. The 2025 Humanitarian Response Plan targets 21 million people, and while focusing on life-saving needs and interventions requiring integrated humanitarian and peace actions, our planned cooperation with the Sudanese authorities between 2026 to 2028 promotes joined-up solutions to address fragility poverty, and humanitarian challenges. In line with the UN Secretary-General's 2022 Action Agenda on Internal Displacement, as Resident Coordinator, I collaborate with the UNCT by providing strategic leadership and robust coordination among humanitarian, development, and peace stakeholders, including international agencies, NGOs, civil society, and local authorities. We have in place mechanisms such as the National Durable Solutions Group and localized area-based working groups. Stakeholders ensure coordinated assistance strategies, maximizing resource effectiveness, avoiding duplication, and responding flexibly to evolving situations. Structured engagement and regular dialogue at all levels across Sudan, national, state, and locality, where this is feasible, are crucial for aligning efforts across the humanitarian development and peace nexus, enhancing responsiveness, effectiveness, and resilience building. Community engagement and ownership are key to sustaining long-term displacement solutions. Active participation throughout the project cycle ensures local buy-in, supports effective implementation, and fosters continuity beyond the project itself. What are we doing in terms of solutions at the country level? Well, the National Durable Solutions Working Group, established under the Resident Coordinator's Office and co-led by UNDP, UNHCR and DRC support the strategic integration of durable solutions across humanitarian, development, and peace assistance. It plays a central role in enabling coherent coordination, inclusive stakeholder engagement, and adaptive programming in the face of Sudan's complex and challenging operational environment. The Working Group and Solutions Unit facilitate context-specific, evidence-driven approaches, ensuring interventions effectively combine humanitarian efforts with development solutions and community resilience. The interventions prioritize a comprehensive area-based approach to ensure inclusive assistance that simultaneously addresses the immediate humanitarian needs of IDPs and promotes development solutions. The UN and partners in Sudan are coordinating with authorities to operationalize locally owned solutions, aligning displacement responses and ensuring community needs and rights are central to implementation. In order to foster evidence-based and conflict-sensitive programming, Durable Solutions interventions in Sudan are attempts to converge humanitarian data with development solutions needs. This includes joint assessments, vulnerability analyses, and ongoing monitoring to enable more coherent planning and ensure appropriate, timely, and conflict-sensitive assistance and investments. Continuous community engagement, inclusive Inclusive participation, consult— consultations, and adaptive programming further ensure that interventions remain responsive and protective, mitigating risks including social tensions and enhancing, and enhancing sustainability. In terms of strategic advocacy and international support, the Resident Coordinator's Office and the UN Country Team engage in proactive advocacy efforts for sustained and flexible international support vital for effectively operationalizing an integrated humanitarian development and peace solutions approach. Advocacy efforts emphasize not only resource mobilization and financing for solutions but also strengthening local coordination and institutional capacities, which are critical for the long-term sustainability interventions and the stabilization of affected communities. The challenge of achieving solutions for over 11 million IDPs will be immense and will not be achieved unless there are sustained strategic and coordinated efforts by a wide range of actors at all levels. Operationalization of the solutions agenda in, in Sudan demonstrates the importance of effective coordination and strategic integration across humanitarian, development, and peace assistance efforts. Continued international engagement, flexible and multi-year funding mechanisms, advancement of innovative financing, and integrated approaches remain essential to sustainably address Sudan's complex displacement dynamics and promote development solutions to support affected communities. The dominant solution currently being witnessed in Sudan are returns, and this is likely to increase over time. And as I said earlier, these are returns in less than ideal circumstances. The UN is not facilitating returns. Our response, therefore, should be to support the most vulnerable in areas of return in an area-based approach, initially with their basic needs while simultaneously laying the groundwork for longer-term solutions. Allow me to stop there.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:44:09]:

I thank Madame Kutassalamy for your intervention. Thank you so much. And now the next, I give the floor to the assistant Assistant Director General for the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Madame Nicole Rüder. The floor is yours.


SDC · Assistant Director-General · Nicole Rüder [1:44:29]:

The Swiss newspapers were dominated by one story, and I expect that you do not read the Swiss newspapers. There's a landslide that is threatening a very small village in the mountains, and a few families had to leave their homes. Now, we heard interviews, concerns, questions. They are temporarily internally displaced. While their individual worries might be very real, what they are living absolutely pales into insignificance when we compare it with the situation of the 83 million IDPs around the world and the situations have just been described by the RC in Sudan. Sudan, and in Iraq. The number of IDPs keeps rising. New displacement continues—climate change, natural disasters, conflict—but then also people remain stuck in IDP situations because the design, the implementation of durable solutions is a complex endeavor. It needs funding and it needs time. And yet, the IDP durable solution is is something where we have seen real momentum in recent years. The SG's Action Agenda on Solutions has been a real driver of change and progress. The new UN institutional framework is the UN at its best. When the UN develops new approaches, when it is interdisciplinary and draws on interagency expertise, when durable and sustainable solutions are developed and are proving to be effective. We'll hear Robert Piper a bit later with more information, but the testimony of the two RCs really demonstrates that IDP situations are hybrid situations. Hybrid because they're somewhere between humanitarian and peace and development efforts, and the RCHCs have a have a crucial role to play. Now, this statement, the RCs have a crucial role to play, is one that we have heard over and over again this week. We're expecting an awful lot from the RCs, so we should really also give them the backing they need to fulfill that role. When it comes to IDPs, we expect them to ensure that local voices and affected communities are not just heard, but actually listened to, and that their concerns and ideas are integrated into solutions. IDPs must have agency. We also expect them to identify and seize opportunities for durable solutions, even in the midst of humanitarian response and crisis. And we expect them to engage with host governments to include IDPs into national planning. RCHCs are key, but ultimately it is a collective effort, a collective effort that allows us to link global policy dialogue with country situations, that allows us to bring short-term humanitarian aid and long-term development efforts together, and that allows us to combine instruments. It is something that has proven to be effective. Effective, and it is the way forward that we need to take. And as Switzerland, we firmly remain engaged in advancing these durable solutions and this multidisciplinary, multi-instrumental approach to finding solutions for our global challenges. Thank you very much, and again, a huge thank you for the RCs, HCs out there who are doing all this work and are translating into our words into real action.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:48:14]:

I thank Madame Director Rüder for her statement, and now I give the floor to the former Special Adviser to Secretary-General on Solutions to Internal Displacement, institution of himself, Mr. Robert Piper. The floor is yours.


UN · Former Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Solutions to Internal Displacement · Robert Piper [1:48:29]:

Thank you, Ambassador, and distinguished guests. You hear me okay? Let me just check also. We hear you okay. Excellent. Thank you so much. I think I'm going to complement quite nicely what has come before, but let me start with a big congratulations to the Bureau of ECOSOC for placing this issue of internal displacement on the development agenda, and it's just so important that the QCPR has also seized on this issue. It's, it's really a major breakthrough. With my initial intervention of 4 minutes, I'm going to make just 4 main points. First, the breakthrough of recent years on solutions has been first and foremost about government leadership at the national level, at the regional and local level. To go to scale is to go through government. In our pilot countries, and we've heard it from Gulam just now, we have watched the international aid system switching from delivery to support and accompaniment. Government must lead. To find real solutions requires unlocking political leadership. To go to scale, as I said, is to go through government. The field is now more crowded than ever with development actors like the IFIs, UNDP, FAO, and beyond. This is the pivot we so need to break patterns of protracted crises. My second point is that resident coordinators have been a force multiplier as Nicole said so nicely, just as we had hoped when we introduced the 2017 reforms. RCs have worked with governments to move the issue out of the purely humanitarian into the political and development realms. They have bridged the humanitarian and development community. They have mediated where multiple agencies are converging around the same challenge. The Solution Fund, which provides catalytic funding for UN country teams to make the switch from response to accompany governments for solutions has been a true game changer, placing flexible resources quickly at the disposal of the UN Country Team, putting muscle behind the RC's authority. Our thanks to Switzerland, Norway, Germany, UK, and most recently Spain for, for getting this fund off the ground. I hope others in the room will join soon. Placing temporary advisors in the RC office via the UNDP deployment facility has also made a big difference to RCs, as Ghulam mentioned, and I know Clementine also has advisors in her office. This is a model potentially worth replicating, I believe, on other issues, like perhaps climate or risk reduction. Not permanent roles, temporary roles. Very importantly, RCs are not expected to maintain this level of attention on internal displacement forever. We need to use our leadership catalytically as well, repositioning the issue, reconfiguring the UN team and donors, then stepping back and letting the agencies provide the leadership and maintain the momentum, as we've seen at the global level, where UNDP, UNHCR, and IOM have stepped forward to underwrite the new global hub and to serve as conveners on a rotating annual basis. I think it's fair to say we've made great strides on government leadership, UN interagency systems, planning and policy. Our understanding of what needs to be done has progressed substantially. Awareness has never been higher. But we still have some major challenges. My third point then is about speed, because time is our greatest enemy in this solutions work. Every day an internally displaced person remains displaced, the more vulnerable they become, the more they dip into their savings, the more they erode their capa— coping systems and make irreversible decisions like taking daughters out of school. The longer they are unable to farm, the more their dependency grows. Building the necessary government policies and systems to design and implement solutions takes time, but there are no shortcuts. My appeal is not that this capacity building goes faster. Rather, I want to make the point that donors need to be willing to provide resources for these kinds of no-regret investments much earlier. After everything has settled is too late. We need a lower risk threshold for early capacity-building investments in these environments if we are to break these patterns of protracted crisis. Fourth and finally, funding also remains an Achilles heel for these solutions efforts. Not volume, quality. No amount of humanitarian funding will bring existing IDP numbers down. Humanitarian spending is already around $5 billion a year. This is critical, life-saving investment, but it does not provide an exit ramp. Governments themselves have understood, and they have responded. Iraq, the government of Libya, uh, the government of Colombia, the government of Somalia, These have all, for example, committed in some cases very substantial national funds to the task. Local and regional governments have also joined this effort. The state governors of northeast Nigeria, for example, the regional government of the Somali regions in Ethiopia, the mayor of Bogotá. But many IDP-affected countries need some substantial new development investments to move the needle. Somalia will need $2 billion for 1 million solutions. Ethiopia, a similar amount, uh, Ethiopia, a similar amount for about 2 million solutions. Mozambique, $600,000 for almost 900,000 solutions. Our proposition to the donor community, captured in a pre-feasibility study we published in December, is that if development donors were to invest the equivalent of 10% of their humanitarian spending into an IFI-administered concessional financing mechanism, we could truly create the necessary incentives and the scale of the response required to reverse this trend line. Let me stop there and thank you again, Mr. Chairman, for this opportunity. Back to you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [1:54:54]:

I thank Mr. Piper for His statement and now we move to the panel discussions and then the interactive discussion. So I invite delegation wishing to participate in the interactive discussion to indicate by pressing the microphone button now and we should all take into account the limit— time limit. We have 45 minutes and the list is growing. We really need to have a kind of time discipline in our statements. Saying so, I now give the floor to His Excellency Raúl Esteban Sánchez Niño, the Deputy Permanent Representative of Colombia. Excellency, the floor is yours.


Colombia · Deputy Permanent Representative · Raúl Esteban Sánchez Niño [1:55:42]:

Muchas gracias, señor vicepresidente.

Thank you very much, Vice President. I'd like to begin by thanking I'd like to thank you for the initiative and thank the Permanent Representative of Poland to allow this segment to be devoted to the problems of development and certainly displaced persons. For Colombia, this is a topic that is extremely important. There are major efforts that my country has made with respect to the political institutions to see to the problems of internally displaced persons, which we have seen over the last few decades.

Colombia—

—is facing a major challenge with respect to internally displaced persons, with figures that exceed 7.3 million people according to the last report on internally displaced persons. Colombia's response has not fallen short in any way. It has involved all of the layers of national government and the state as a whole, and that's why this response has included the— integration of victims of Colombian armed conflict, and that's one of the major axes of our national development plan. And that's why, to talk about forced displacement, and in this case internal forced displacement, we've had to develop national policies which would help us achieve overall peace. Allow me, Vice President, to refer specifically to one of those Más Planes, which is the strategy of unity for the victims of armed conflict in Colombia. This strategy has the objective of transforming territories and contexts in order to allowing the population to return to their, or to their place of origin or sustainable areas. With the strategy, we are trying to generate income, improving housing, strengthening the social fabric, as well as elements associated with peacebuilding and participatory sectoral priority to make sure that we are addressing the needs of people. The Colombian government has devoted public resources to address to this situation of internally displaced persons, and there's a system of monitoring as well of the victims unit. And through the system, we're able to carry out 6-month evaluations. We have a register of displaced persons which allow the Colombian government to better follow their progress, as well as the policies and programs for these victims, and to see how these programs are helping them improve their situation. We'd also like to say, Vice President, that there has been internal displacement because of disasters, with more than 1 million people displaced as a result of this phenomenon, that there is a great concern as to how this could affect proper care for people affected and how this could impact— how this could affect the GDP of the country to be able to handle this phenomenon. Now, as a reference, at the regional level in the Americas, There's been an increase in internal displacement because of disasters. It's gone from 2 million in 2023 to 3 million in 2024. And Vice President, we need to promote dialogues in order to find better coordinated responses, in order to implement successfully actions and solutions that will help to strengthen cooperation and to learn from good practices. The coordination among institutions, among agencies, along with international cooperation in a more efficient way will provide the keys to the development and implementation of the lasting solutions. So thank you very much, Vice President.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:00:03]:

I thank the distinguished representative of Colombia and now I give the floor to Nigeria.


Nigeria · Chargé d'Affaires · Sindov Baebi Endoni [2:00:16]:

Thank you, Mr. Vice President, for organizing this very important segment that seeks to discuss how the United Nations operational activities for development are responding to the complicated needs of internally displaced persons across the globe. Mr. Vice President, the number of internally displaced persons have been steadily rising. According to the United Nations Human Rights Council, as of mid-2024, an estimated 122.6 million people worldwide were forcefully displaced due to persecution, conflict, violence, human rights violations, or events seriously disturbing Public order. This represents an increase of 5% or 5.3 million people compared to the end of 2023. These figures represent not only a humanitarian concern but a development failure. Nigeria, a nation that has faced multiple displacement crises, has evolved its national response from a sole focus on emergency relief to a more comprehensive approach that integrates internally displaced persons into broader recovery and development frameworks. This shift reflects Nigeria's interest in ensuring that the United Nations development system is well equipped to address displacement settings effectively, delivering aid and advancing solutions. Nigeria's decade of experience with IDPs have led to this interest in deploying homegrown initiatives and ensuring that the UN development system is fit for purpose in displacement settings. Permit me, Mr. Vice President, to offer some key reflections to help frame today's conversation. One, coherence. Too often UN assistance to internally displaced persons remains fragmented, divided between short-term humanitarian interventions and disconnected development programming. Effective solutions require coherence, linking early recovery to long-term reintegration, peacebuilding, and resilience. In Nigeria, where UN entities have adopted area-based and joint programming in affected states, we have witnessed more tangible outcomes. We encourage scaling such approaches system-wide. Two, efficiency. The reforms introduced under the reposition of the UN Development System aimed at advancing coordinated delivery. In this practice, this necessitates reduced duplication, improved resource sharing, and a unified field presence in displaced areas. The needs are vast and resources are limited, but duplication is a failure we can no longer afford. 3. Accountability. We must redefine accountability beyond simply reporting to donors. The true measure is whether displaced persons feel safe, protected, and engaged. In Nigeria, we have established feedback platforms and participatory needs assessment involving displaced communities. We urge the UN to further emphasize people-centered accountability, particularly in planning, monitoring, and evaluation. And 4, impact. We must shift our metrics from inputs and outputs to meaningful and measurable changes, such as safe return, reintegration, and access to housing, education, and livelihood. The UN should support national efforts to track these outcomes and adopt and adapt strategies accordingly. The true success of UN's operational activities for development will not be measured by framework or funding appeals, but rather by whether displaced persons regain their agency, their future, and their dignity. Nigeria remains committed to strengthening its collaboration with the United Nations to ensure that development efforts contribute not only to temporary relief but also to lasting solutions.

I thank you, Mr. Vice President.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:04:43]:

I thank Mr. Sindhoff Paebi Endoni, Chargé d'Affaires of the Permanent Mission of Nigeria, for his statement. And now we open up the interactive discussion. And in order to give all those wishing to speak the opportunity to take the floor, I We should imply the very strict 3-minute limit for the statement and the mic will be cut off after 3 minutes just to have the— just regarding the time limits we have for this session. Okay, and so we start and first I invite the single representative of Georgia to take the floor followed by Mexico and Azerbaijan.


Georgia · Deputy Permanent Representative [2:05:26]:

Thank you, Mr. Vice President. All protocols observed. The inclusion of internal displacement in last year's CQCEPR resolution represents a significant move encouraging the UN development system to support countries in implementing long-term, locally-driven solutions. Furthermore, we value the SG's internal displacement action agenda. As we speak, raging conflicts compounded by global challenges continue to exacerbate the already dire situation of displacement, including in my own country and region. As we speak, hundreds of thousands of internally displaced persons expelled from Russia-occupied Georgia regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia as a result of several waves of ethnic cleansing are still deprived of their fundamental right to return to their homes. Let me also stress the continuously deteriorating humanitarian and human rights situation in both occupied regions, which severely affect the everyday lives of people residing therein. The UN Secretary-General's annual reports reiterate that no major changes were observed regarding the right to return for these persons. Before they are able to return to their homes, the Government of Georgia continues to prioritize protection of the rights of IDPs. Our policies and programs are aimed at providing them with decent living conditions as well as durable social services and housing solutions for IDP families. According to the different needs, government is implementing various state programs to provide durable housing solutions for IDP families. Despite efforts, 48% of IDP families remain without accommodation, with some still living in collective centers in Georgia. In addition, major challenges that we are facing are access to livelihood sources and social assistance of IDPs, as well as small business grants, professional training, and equipment. As for IDP social assistance, besides monthly allowance, they are participating in targeted social assistance programme of their choice. Georgia will further continue pursuing efforts to this end. I thank you, Mr. Vice President.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:07:33]:

I thank the DPR of Georgia for his statement, and now I give I leave the floor to Mexico, to be followed by Azerbaijan and Germany.


Mexico [2:07:43]:

Gracias, señor presidente. Thank you, Vice President. We'd like to thank you for including this very important dialogue as part of the agenda, in line with the QCPR agreements. Given the historically high figures of internal displacement, it's crucial that the entire UN development system address the needs of internally displaced displaced persons and find lasting solutions for them. The root causes of internal displacement are manifold. The recent mounting figures are the result of the alarming increase in conflicts and violence around the world, as well as due to unpredictable factors such as natural disasters or the effects of climate change. In this respect, this phenomenon can take place anywhere at any time on this This planet— the technical experience and inter-operational nature of the RC system plays a decisive role in the assistance that is provided to countries that are tackling this issue. We believe that the Solution Centre for Internally Displaced Persons would be key to facilitate cooperation and to draw up reintegration strategies for people returning to their place of origin. It's not possible to provide solutions to internally displaced persons without robust coordination between humanitarian development activities as well as peacebuilding. We must incorporate a perspective where we move from a dependency on humanitarian assistance to lasting solutions which are development-based. We're pleased to note that 90% of the governments recognize the effectiveness of country programs to mobilize domestic resources directed to social protected— social protection programs in order to address the needs of internally displaced persons. This is a sign that the legacy of the work of the Special Advisor for Solutions for Internal Displacement continues. To conclude, Mexico believes that the data collection is one of the main actions that we can take to move forward with this objective. Taking this into consideration, what added value can the regional collaboration platforms offer in order to analyze the possible intersection between the different root causes of internal displacement in order to draw up recommendations for public policies in this area. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:09:56]:

I thank the distinguished representative of Mexico, and now I give the floor to Azerbaijan, to be followed by Germany and United Kingdom.


Azerbaijan [2:10:05]:

Thank you, Mr. Chair. We thank the speakers for their presentations. The issue discussed now holds critical importance to our delegation, as my country has endured one of the highest per capita rates of forced displacement in the world due to the nearly three decades of occupation. Since the end of the conflict in November 2020, Azerbaijan has embarked on large-scale post-conflict rehabilitation and reconstruction work with a view to ensuring the safe and dignified return of over 700,000 internally displaced persons to their homes. These efforts include the implementation of innovative initiatives such as Smart City, Smart Village, green energy zone projects. However, the widespread contamination of these territories with landmines and other explosive remnants of war remains a major impediment to these efforts and poses a serious challenge to the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals. In this connection, as my colleague mentioned in previous panel, Azerbaijan has declared the humanitarian demining as the 18th national SDG. Despite the substantial efforts undertaken by the government of Azerbaijan, the vast extent of contaminated areas necessitates enhanced and adequate level of international support to reinforce national humanitarian demining capacities. We acknowledge the United Nations' fundamental dedication to the global mine action efforts and commend its leading role in this field in Azerbaijan. In this context, Azerbaijan considers further increased assistance assistance from the UN to be critically important for advancing its humanitarian demining capabilities to tackle this complex issue. To conclude, a comprehensive and holistic approach is vital to effectively address the situation of IDPs and achieve sustainable long-term solutions to the challenges IDPs are facing. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:11:53]:

I thank the distinguished representative of Azerbaijan and now I give the floor to Germany to be followed by United Kingdom and Armenia.


Germany [2:12:01]:

Yeah, thank you, Mr. Vice President. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, first of all, Germany would like to underline that durable solutions to internal displacement are a central issue for sustainable development indeed. Internally displaced persons are often amongst the most vulnerable, and as such are unable to participate in or profit from sustainable development. It should therefore be one of the goals of sustainable development to resolve internal displacement. Moreover, displacement situations often last for multiple years on end. Short-term humanitarian support is therefore not enough and has to be complemented supported by and lead to long-term development approaches. Germany is strongly committed to the implementation of the UN Action Agenda on Internal Displacement. We welcome the efforts within the UN system to set up new structures for its work on internal displacement, including the Global Solutions Hub and the Solutions Champions. This is very timely and in align with the UN Haiti reform process. One goal of the UN Haiti reform is to develop agile working methods on cross-cutting issues such as IDPs. So we see this as an opportunity to foster even closer collaboration between UN agencies working on internal displacement and create better synergies and more efficient solutions.. We would like to emphasize the importance for the Global Solutions Hub to continue the coordination function between the humanitarian system, the development system, and most importantly, the affected countries that ASG Piper so well filled. Finally, we would like to request close involvement of the member states from the Solutions solutions champions, namely IOM, UNDP, and UNHCR, via the relevant fora such as the Group of Friends on Solutions to Internal Displacement. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:14:19]:

I thank the distinguished representative of Germany, and now I give the floor to United Kingdom, to be followed by Armenia and Russian Federation.


United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland [2:14:29]:

Thank you, Vice Thank you, Mr. President, and I will just start by saying that the UK government is fully committed to supporting the over 83 million people who are internally displaced worldwide and the governments that support them. But we were also translating this commitment into action. We are implementing bilateral and multilateral programs that seek to address the needs of those who are displaced and to find solutions for them. We believe it is vital that the UN development system maintains momentum on this issue, building on the mandate that was provided by the 2024 QCPR resolution. We also fully welcome the establishment of the Global Hub for Solutions to Internal Displacement and the commitment the UN agency have made to this. A concerted approach across silos is exactly how the UN system needs to be operating on this issue to be making progress. The UK is contributing financially to the Internal Displacement Solutions Fund, which is giving the hub the resources it needs to take things forward at the country level, and we really do encourage others to consider supporting the Fund as well. Close collaboration with the international financial institutions will be essential if these efforts are to succeed. They have significant expertise and resources which must be fully engaged and aligned with those of the UN development system. We fully appreciate the challenges the UN system is facing now. But that is exactly why we need this work. We believe that ensuring comprehensive development-based approaches to internal displacement and robust support to host countries to find solutions is now more important than ever before. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:16:37]:

I thank the distinguished representative of United Kingdom, and now I give the floor to Armenia, to be followed by Russian Federation and IOM.


Armenia [2:16:47]:

Mr. Vice President, Excellencies, first I would like to thank all the panellists for their insightful presentations. The international community is currently witnessing an unprecedented surge of displacement, driven largely by armed conflicts, natural and human-induced disasters, climate change, and economic and social challenges that far exist available resources, placing immense pressure on our development efforts. In this regard, we emphasize the need to ensure that the UN development system is responsive and adaptable to shifting realities on the ground. The humanitarian challenges deriving from displacement require closer coordination and synergies across development, peacebuilding, and humanitarian action, bridging emergency response with sustainable development efforts while ensuring that no one is left behind. Dear colleagues, Armenia has long been affected by unresolved waves of displacement and refugee crisis and is acutely aware of the profound humanitarian consequences they cause. With the forced displacement of more than 115,000 refugees in 2023, the number of refugees constitutes 4% of the entire Armenian population, which adds to the already 4,078 recognized refugees from Iraq, Syria, Ukraine, Egypt, Myanmar, Congo, and Sudan already present in the country. Armenia has been actively implementing long-term and midterm humanitarian and development programs, ensuring that these displaced population refugees can rebuild their lives in our country. For that purpose, the government initiated assistance programs with an allocated budget to support displaced people and refugees in housing, inclusion into labor market, access to quality education, and primary healthcare system.. In conclusion, I would like to reiterate the importance of coordinated international response to meet the life-saving protection and early recovery needs of displaced populations and refugees, while simultaneously strengthening the capacities of the host communities and advancing progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. I thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:18:41]:

I thank the distinguished representative of Armenia, and now I give the floor to Russian Federation, to be followed by IOM and our NGO partner Children and Youth International, and I welcome the President of the ECOSOC, Ambassador Bob Rae, in the room.


Russian Federation [2:18:57]:

Thank you. Uh, Mr.

President, Vice President, we thank the briefers for sharing information on the work of the UN Development System in order to address the issue of IDPs. We would like to recall that the Russian Federation was one of the delegations that supported the inclusion of this issue in the last QCPR for operational activities. We believe that country teams, with coordination carried out by the Resident Coordinators, can and should play a greater role in addressing the issue of IDPs. At the same time, we express our regret in connection with attempts by delegations to politicize this discussion. As you can see, the entire session has been reduced to mutual accusations instead of discussing development matters. And this is something we warned about during the briefings on the agenda for the session. We would also like to reject the accusations voiced by the representative of Georgia. We will not waste time. Delving into the issue that was raised in more detail. We have repeatedly done this in relevant fora and we are convinced that the ECOSOC Operational Activities for Development Summit is not the appropriate forum. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:20:28]:

I thank the representative of Russian Federation and now I give the floor to IOM to be followed by the Children and Youth International.


IOM [2:20:39]:

Thank you, Mr. Vice President. IOM also expresses its appreciation to everybody for including this action on solutions to internal displacement on the OAS agenda. Significant progress has been made during the 2.5-year mandate of SG Special Adviser on Solutions. IOM again extends its thanks and appreciation to Robert Piper for his dedication to the role as well as his participation in this session today. Thanks to his work and the agencies supporting it, we now have a greater visibility on internal displacement and better integration of development approaches. Collective efforts and supported government leadership for new solution strategies to support 11.7 million IDPs on solution pathways. We have agreed on a system-wide approach to internal displacement, and the new institutional arrangements following the Special Adviser's mandate reflects this. The goal of these structures is to put governments in the lead, to promote a more substantive role for the development finance community, and reform how the UN system works together on a new generation of efforts on IDP solutions. The follow-up arrangements are convened on an annual rotation basis by IOM, UNDP, and UNHCR. IOM has assumed these responsibilities as convener of the Principal Level Champions Group, the Global Solutions Working Group, and Internal Displacement Solutions Fund. Member States' engagement and institutional dialogue is a top priority. And it continues engagement with member states is key to advance visibility, accountability, and ownership on solutions to internal displacement. In the long term, we believe it is essential that there are dedicated space in international governmental agenda for states to discuss strategies, success, report gaps, and priorities on these issues. So in closing, we thank the member states who have ensured that IDP solutions are regularly included in the agenda in 2025. Thank you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:23:03]:

I thank the representative of the IOM, and now I give the floor to the Children and Youth International.


MGCY · MGCY · Loretta Chingandu [2:23:12]:

Excellencies, distinguished delegates, and colleagues. What does it mean to be forced from your home? Not once, once, not twice, but repeatedly, without ever crossing a border and without ever finding true safety? That's a question we must all ask ourselves. My name is Loretta Chingandu, and I speak today on behalf of the Major Group for Children and Youth, representing young people whose lives have been disrupted by conflict, climate disasters, and crisis-driven displacement. Internally displaced youth are among the most invincible. Too often unheard and yet far from being voiceless, they are leaders, innovators, and peace builders, and not just victims of circumstance. Addressing displacement means going beyond emergency response. It requires dismantling the systemic barriers that block the access to education, livelihoods, protection, and full social inclusion. As a major group for children and youth, We call for the following urgent actions. Number 1: Secure resettlement and land rights. Displaced youth need more than shelter. They need a place to belong. They need to rebuild and to thrive. Therefore, access to land and safe housing must be a priority. Without these basic rights, they are left vulnerable to secondary displacement. We call for policies that to guarantee displaced persons the rights to shelter, the rights to rebuild, and the rights to live with dignity. Number 2, in over 100 conflict zones today, young people are paying the price for the— of peace that they did not start, and often forced into informal and illegal activities. We therefore urge the international community to invest in nonviolent youth-centered programs that prevent recruitment by criminal gangs and groups. And we also call for international support for children and youth that are in conflict zones. Peacebuilding must include creating environments where young people can thrive without resorting to risky survival strategies. Number 3, climate disasters today are uprooting communities at alarming rates, and it remains as one of the many drivers of internal displacement, disproportionately affecting youth, particularly young women and girls. We therefore call and urge all stakeholders to prioritize investments that support resilience before, during, and after displacement. Today, We see how initiatives like Youth on the Move being laid by MGCY, UNICEF, and UNV are already working. These programs show what is possible when displaced youth are trusted, resourced, and heard.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:26:14]:

I thank our colleague from the Children and Youth International for her valuable statement, and that we have heard the from the last of the speakers in this interactive discussion. We've got 10 minutes for the wrap-up by our panelists, so maybe I should start with Mr. Robert Piper to give his few last comments and wrap-up. Mr. Piper, the floor is yours.


UN · Former Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Solutions to Internal Displacement · Robert Piper [2:26:44]:

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to those delegations for sharing their thoughts for your thoughts and contributing to this discussion. Truly, it's very inspiring to see the momentum that is continuing on this work, truly. I think a couple of key final points from my side listening to this discussion. No one has— only a few people mentioned the numbers. I just want to illustrate the scale of the challenge in front of us. When the Secretary-General commissioned the High-Level Panel in 2019, there were 49 million IDPs around the world. So 2019, 49 million IDPs. When I started, uh, opened the office, uh, with the new action agenda in 2022, there were 69 million IDPs. The latest numbers that came out last week from IDMC for the end of 2024 is 84 million IDPs. So just from 2019, when that High-Level Panel started its work, to today, the jump is quite extraordinary, from 49 to 84 million people. And as Nicole said, no one is safe. It's in Switzerland, the US has had 11 million displacements last year in 2024 because of, of fires and— and hurricanes. Every country is affected by this growing phenomenon. I think we have left behind a sustainable framework. A number of people have mentioned the Hub. I'm very grateful to IOM for its leadership of this new group of champions. I think this rotating concept of shared responsibility, where each agency of the three takes the lead each year and then passes on to the next one, I think is a great model. I really want it to work because I think then it can be applied in other places on other issues. I think the Catalytic Solutions Fund is making a difference. I think placing advisors for a short period of time is also really making a difference. So I think, thank you. I hope this momentum will continue. I feel very confident listening to the discussion, listening to the panelists, The leadership of the RCs, of course, is so important in this. And congratulations to the OAS and the QCPR process for bringing us to where we are today. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Back to you.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:29:18]:

I thank Mr. Robert Piper for his final comments. And now I move— we move to Iraq, to Mr. Ghulam Mohammad Isatay, Deputy ASRSG. RC and HC coordinator in Iraq. Yes, the floor is yours.


UN · Deputy SRSG; Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator · Ghulam Mohammad Isatshai [2:29:39]:

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And also, let me also add my appreciation and thanks to all the member states for their very valuable comments. I just want to highlight 3 points. One, much as we have focused on developing solutions for IDPs, I think we also have to recognize that some of the IDP caseload would also require security and political solutions. So I think we also have to look at the confluence of the three solutions coming together to address some of the most protracted and difficult IDP issues. And in Iraq, again, as we said, we— while the government has done a tremendous job to return over 5 million, we still have some IDPs that would require political solution as much as also proper security condition to return. So I just wanted to, to flag that. Secondly, a lot has been said also about the phenomena of climate-induced IDPs. And I think there we also have to focus on prevention. And again, Iraq being one of the 5th most affected countries by climate change, we are working with the government to invest, especially in, in the south where water scarcity and drought are driving people from their farmlands. So I think investment in prevention would be very essential. The third point, which was also echoed by a few delegates, is the importance and the critical role of the Multi-Partner Trust Fund to serve as a tool to empower the resident coordinator, really to coordinate across the UN system, but also to avoid duplication and bring programmatic coherence. In that regard, what we have so far benefited from the Solution Fund has been very catalytic to really identify specific areas of intervention that would bring the scale, the kind of scale that Mr. Piper also talked about. Thank you very much.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:32:06]:

I thank you very much, Mr. Isachai, the Deputy SRSG in Iraq. Colleagues, the reality— our colleagues from the United Nations Development System in which they are working are harsh and power has been cut off in Sudan, so we cannot have Madame Clementine anymore with us just because there is no more power. So, saying so and just wishing All the best to her. We move to Madame Nicole Rüder for her final statement.


SDC · Assistant Director-General · Nicole Rüder [2:32:58]:

So, I promise to limit myself to just one statement, one sentence. What needs to underpin all our efforts, everything that has been described and discussed, I think, is what the youth representative said. IDPs have agencies, IDPs have dignity, and durable solutions need to be their solutions, not our solutions. Thank you very much.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:33:28]:

I thank Madame Rutter for the powerful statement, and that is closing our panel this discussion. So I would like to thank all the panelists for sharing their insights, as well as delegations for participating in this productive exchange of views. So now we briefly pause the meeting to allow the podium to be rearranged for the closing segment. So we have like 5 minutes break to stretch the legs and please be back in the room a quarter to 6 for the final part of the session. Thank you.

Okay, colleagues, please take your seats. We will start promptly.

Okay, distinguished delegates. Dear colleagues, Madam Deputy Secretary-General, Mr. President of the ECOSOC, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, it's hard to say but we have reached the conclusion of our 3 days of deliberations during the Open Lunch Activities for Development segment. Saying so, I now invite the President of the Economic and Social Council, His Excellency Bob Rae, the Permanent Representative of Canada to make a closing statement.

Bob, the floor is yours.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:45:34]:

Thank you very much, Excellencies, Madam Deputy Secretary General, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen. I think that covers everyone in the room. Opening, I wish to congratulate our distinguished Chair, Ambassador Krzysztof Czerski, and his team for delivering a successful and I think very productive meeting of the Operational Activities Segment of ECOSOC. I want to thank the SG and the Deputy Secretary-General who's with us today, the Executive Heads, Resident Coordinators, Member States, for taking the trouble to come and to spend time and to share their insights and their active participation. This year's meeting takes place against the background that can only be described one of great uncertainty, many challenges, as we've heard and most recently just heard in his final remarks from Mr. Piper, rising conflict with inevitable consequences of significant displacement, both externally and externally, continuing socioeconomic inequalities which are made worse by the tariff crisis, by the slowing down of economic growth in many countries, the climate crisis, which continues relentlessly along its way, and now the United Nations' simultaneous liquidity and funding crisis. It's important for us to remember the distinction between these two simple concepts. Liquidity because of the assessment failure to pay assessed contributions. Which creates an immediate crisis for the United Nations and all of its funding agencies because the United Nations and funding agencies cannot borrow money. If you run out of money for the week, you may have a credit card, you may have a line of credit, you may or may not have any of those things, but if you don't, you're in trouble. Uh, and we have no other sources of revenue apart from the revenue that is received from membership. We are not allowed to take out loans, we are not allowed to borrow money, we are not allowed to float bonds in significant ways, and so we are faced with this challenge. Over the last 3 days, what has been impressive is that the UN system and member states remain strongly committed to addressing these challenges, and they are real challenges, and to accelerate the delivery of actions towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. And as I've said before, the SDGs are not technical. The SDGs are what I would call the common decency of humanity. They are simply an expression that the decent things we want for ourselves, we also want for others. And we take part in the struggles of the life of the world precisely because we know how fundamental and foundational these goals are. They have nothing to do with ideology, unless you consider ending hunger and providing healthcare and education to be somehow a product of some kind of ideology, which is nonsensical. We've been able to do a lot over the last several years in what I would call an ongoing, never-ending process of reform and improvement. We've heard from the SG and the DSG about the things we've been trying to do that are quite foundational: stronger country leadership. I would say even stronger than that, stronger country ownership, of countries taking ownership for their own prosperity and recognizing that that one step itself can be quite transformational in the lives of citizens in the world. Improving coordination, and a system that is much more aligned and efficient in delivering results on the ground. So we spent quite a lot of time talking about the RC system, and I have to pay tribute to Christophe because he is the one person in our group at the Bureau who said, "We've got to get the RCs here, and we've got to allow them to speak, and we've got to give them voice." to tell us what's going on in the field. And I think we've seen that while there's much more that needs to be done to ensure that the RCs are well-resourced and have predictable funding, which is a constant challenge in the, in the UN, and we want to make sure that they're able to support the coordination, delivery, accountability, and sustainable of the UN system, we have to recognize that what we have today is much better than what we had 5 years ago, and it's because of the consistent efforts that everyone has made to establish and pay for this system and to allow one UN to become a reality on the ground. And I dare say that as part of the necessary reforms which you're going to have to continue to make in the months ahead and the years ahead, this principle of making the one UN real is going to become even more of an issue, just as is the question of how do we make good on the nexus, which, to remind everybody who has forgotten what it is at 6 PM on a Thursday afternoon, it's quite simple: it's peace and security, it's human development, and it's human rights, and seeing how we can pull those three things together. So we need to deepen the reforms, and this has been echoed by the executive heads, UN leadership at both the regional and the country level. We have to capitalize on AI and digitization. We have to make this an organization that is forward-leaning when it comes to the application of the latest technologies. We have to continue the efforts that we've made to protect against any kind of sexual exploitation and abuse, as well as to ensure that robust policies on gender equality, disability, equity, inclusion, and access continue. Let me repeat these words: gender equality, disability, equity, inclusion, and access. And as your President of the Economic and Social Council, I'm proud to repeat those words wherever I go. They are a foundation, again, of what is the common decency that people have to one another, how can we ensure that people are included, and how can we ensure that people have access. If you think somehow there's something radical about these ideas, or wrong-headed about these ideas, think about what the opposite of each of these things is. So instead of inclusion, we say exclusion. Well, do— who's gonna stand around here and say, "I'm in favor of excluding people from being able to benefit from the good things in life." I want to make sure that people who are in a wheelchair have no access to a building so they can't come in and they can't be here. I want to make sure that we have gender inequality so that men go way ahead of women and stay there for the rest of all time. What kind of nonsensical ideas are these? There's nothing woke about these ideas. They're simply common sense, common decency. What I like about these sessions is that we not only hear from us ourselves, we also hear from people in the field, and we've been able to hear from them as well as from member states. We all, I think, have come together in a remarkable way with some common sense ideas, some common feelings about country needs, about enhancing cooperation with the IFIs, about improving reporting and evaluation, increasing accountability and transparency, and trying to find savings and efficiencies in the UN system. These are common threads that have come forward from the field, from people working. Can you see some waste? Yes. Is there some duplication? Yes. Report it in, let's deal with it. Now, there are huge challenges. The gaps in financing are real and are going to create even more problems. We have hurdles still in coordination, and we do have the need for stronger data and for evaluation systems. But we're up to it. And we also know that different stages of development require different responses. But above all, we have to ensure that we're going to have equal and valid ways of concluding, of getting to some of these issues as best as we possibly can. So let me just turn to one last thought, and that is it's important for us to overcome our differences. In looking at the reform of the international financial architecture, looking at innovative ways to address the debt burden, and looking at how we deal with the cycle of poverty for those people who are struggling. We have to be clear-eyed about these challenges, and while we count on the Secretary-General to provide us with vision and the DSG, we also have to accept our responsibilities as member states in that process. And we have to understand that what we do or don't do has consequences consequences not only for this generation but for future generations. So let me once again just thank the Secretariat, all the people who are here, thank our Chair for doing such a great job, thank the interpreters for the work that they're doing and continue to do, and thank all of those who've been panelists and moderators as well as member states for participating. We certainly have work to do as we go forward. We have some challenging times as we deal with with the realities of UN80 as well as with the challenges of financing for development, but I think we have to show ourselves and everyone else that we are up to the challenge.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [2:55:17]:

Thank you so much. Thank you so much, Mr. President, and taking into account our new working realities, we have 10 minutes more for the meeting before everything— the lights will turn off and the interpreters will leave us. Mr. Deputy Secretary-General, the floor is yours.


UN · Deputy Secretary-General [2:55:37]:

Thank you very much, Vice President Ambassador Cherevsky, Ambassador Bob Rae, our Council President, Excellencies, colleagues. This week you've heard from nearly every speaker about the development emergency before us. It's amidst a world in turmoil and uncertainty, as Ambassador Rae has said, but more, I think, problematic to us is all the young people in this world that feel a sense of anxiety. So indeed, it is a time of crisis and countries are struggling still to recover from the impact of the pandemic. There is a war in Europe and the tragedy and injustices that we see in Gaza, in Sudan, in Myanmar. At this juncture, I think it's important for us to pause and reflect on the progress that has been made and set our trajectory for the year ahead. And as such, I really do want to acknowledge the vital leadership that we've had from Ambassador Chodziski in guiding our discussions over the past 3 days. I'd like to acknowledge and appreciate you, the member states, for your constructive and active engagement, and our principals of our agencies, funds, and programs, especially my vice chair, Achim Steiner, our resident coordinators who participated, the UN country teams, and the entities who contributed with perspectives and insights from the ground. Excellencies, this week ahead, we've heard a shared readiness to respond to the challenges before us from Member States, Resident Coordinators, and the UN Development System entities. Allow me to set out my humble takeaways from this segment. First, let me say I've heard from a majority of you that we are delivering on your expectations of a coordinated and coherent system. You were clear, Resident Coordinators, must be at the forefront of efforts to deliver on this. Second, I've heard your concerns about funding and the challenging landscape before many UN Development System entities. Third, I've heard your acknowledgement of the immense progress on delivering on efficiencies, but noted that we still have a long way before us on the common back offices, our general services, and premises. You are clear about your expectations for the road ahead, that we need to shift towards a more tailored UN Development System, We are in the process of recalibrating DCO to optimize the ability of the RC system to meet country needs and priorities. As the Director of the Systemwide Evaluation Office highlighted earlier today, derivation of country-level programming instruments also have to be strengthened. The country configuration exercises would need to be reinvigorated. And we need to move away from a stagnant UN development footprint and ensure that we have an agile and responsive footprint and presence. We need to redouble our efforts to ensure that entities are fully aligned with the reform imperatives. The Business Model Review of the UN SDG entities is an important opportunity to assess alignment and propose some adjustments. We also need to continue to strengthen transparency and accountabilities. The forthcoming review of the Management and Accountability Framework provides an opportunity to do so. Your acknowledgement of the transparency and information provided is welcome and a testament to the progress that is being made in enabling your oversight. Over the course of the next year, we are committing to make progress on these areas. And furthermore, we'll continue to strive to provide you with the tools that you need to monitor our adherence to the reforms and encourage you to follow up these discussions at the Governing Board. In my capacity as UN SDG Chair, I will keep you updated on the progress we make as we tailor the UN Development System's response, including the Development Coordination Office. Many of you have stressed that U.N. 80 could provide a drive for addressing these aspects and others highlighted this week, such as renewed efforts to drive efficiencies and accountability. U.N. 80 provides a welcome momentum to continue implementing reforms reforms across the development system. Now is the time for us, I believe, to invest in that future. As we approach 2030, the actions that we are going to take now will have a lasting impact on our ability to deliver on the SDGs and our promise to leave no one behind. The Secretary-General could not have been clearer: our efforts will only bear fruit if the broader changes in the international financial systems agreed in the Pact for the Future are implemented. And therefore our Financing for Development Conference taking place in Seville, the World Social Summit, the Food Systems Stocktake COP, and all of these represent pivotal opportunities to put the goals back on track, but also to demonstrate why it is and how it is the UN system, this incredible institution, brings people together, challenging the opportunities, challenging those who say that things cannot be done and give hope to how they can be done, particularly at the country level. Excellencies, there is no time to lose. We do have a deadline around the corner. We can transform our current challenges into opportunities, take the dividends from this crisis and make them happen, but we need to act together and act now. We must, I think, underscore— and I hear Bob— that, you know, really people have a right to justice. They have a right to a life of dignity. And in solidarity, I believe that we can show that this reality is possible for all people on this arid earth. So thank you so much for the opportunity this year. Lots of homework that we've taken away, and we will, as we say, to be continued.


Poland · Vice President of ECOSOC · Krzysztof Szczerski [3:01:12]:

Thank you so much, Madam Deputy Secretary-General. So in closing, let me just express my words of gratitude First, I would like to, and foremost, extend my words of appreciation to all Member States who took the floor. Your guidance is the most important part of this segment. Madam Deputy Secretary-General, please extend my gratitude to Mr. Secretary-General for his very frank engagement with the Member States. And of course, I thank you personally for the same and for informing us on the condition of the UN Development System in details. I thank all other panellists and panellists, discutants, for accepting our invitation and their interventions. My special thanks and words of appreciation goes to Resident Coordinators, who first of all work at the frontlines of operational activities every day, and we got the chance for these 3 days to hear from Indonesia, Lesotho, Papua New Guinea, Tajikistan, South Africa, Uruguay, Bangladesh, Chad, Mozambique, Iran, Iraq, and Sudan. That was a very impressive list of the RCs that we were able to have exchange with. In this segment, we have also heard from the youth representative, Madame Antoine, and other voices from the civil society highlighting the need to invest in the UN delivery for the youth and ensure their engagement in development decision-making.. I hope that this was a valuable perspective and I hope that it will be included in the next operational activities segments in the future. And I also want to thank all those behind the scenes: the Department of the Social Economic Affairs, Executive Office of the Secretary General, Department for General Assembly and Conference Management, and of course my own skillful team, Veronika and Malgorzata, just behind me. And of course a very special thanks to our interpreters for their hard work and dedication over these 3 days, with— as well as the technical staff who facilitated the ability to hear from the countries and the UN staff outside New York and in the field from all over the world. I hope that we are all taking away from this year's segment frank and open discussions which led us to assess where we are and get to the bottom of what needs to be addressed. Our discussions highlighted, for example, to the need for further updates on the reconciliation of the RC system and DCO, particularly in the context of ongoing UNHCR discussions that we just heard. With the OAS deliberations now complete, I can say that the meeting has fulfilled its role—and I hope you feel the same—as a platform for accountability of the UN Development System. Following the OAS, Member States are expected to consider an ECOSOC decision on operational activities. As Vice President responsible for this segment, I will prepare a summary of our discussion that will be shared on the ECOSOC operational activities website. So thank you. And before closing, please allow me to bring to your attention that the Secretariat has prepared a very short evaluation form to gather views on this year's operational activities for development segment. This is an important way to provide feedback on the segment. I encourage you kindly fill the form on your desk and/or to download the form from the ECOSOC Operational Activities Segment website. Thank you all for participating in this year's segment. I hereby declare concluded the Operational Activities for Development segment of the 2025 session of the Economic and Social Council. The meeting is adjourned.