– As delivered –

Statement by H.E. Mrs. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, President of the 73rd Session of the UN General Assembly

24 September 2018

UN Private Sector Forum Lunch – Building and Investing in Peace for all

Distinguished Heads of State and Government,

Mr. Secretary-General,

Ministers,

Excellencies,

Business Leaders from around the world,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

Thank you Ms. Lyce Doucet for your thought provoking, and generous opening remarks. Your work as a correspondent has taken you to every corner of the world, many parts of it wracked by terrible conflict. This gives you a remarkable vantage point from which to observe and to share valuable insights that we try and create a sustainable economic future for everyone.

Thank you also Lise Kingo, Chief Executive Officer of Global Compact, for kindly inviting me here today to make a few brief remarks.  Your leadership has been vital and inspirational. It has played no small part in bringing together this group of important partners, especially from the business sector.

Ladies and Gentlemen, It would be entirely remiss of me not to begin by recalling the important work that the late UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan played in launching the Global Compact, now the world’s largest corporate responsibility and sustainability project, some 18 years ago.

He would have been delighted to see the flowering of his vision in this room today in the guise of such a diverse, multi-stakeholder group of leaders from the private sector, government, the United Nations and civil society. His vision and enthusiasm will be sorely missed by all of us. For he knew that strong and inclusive economies and societies, that share rewards fairly, are indispensable for peace and stability.

One of my main priorities for the coming year is pushing for leadership and action for full economic and work opportunities for women, young people and those with disabilities. Extremely important.  That is going to be my priority – decent work for all, but more importantly, for the economic empowerment of women, for young people and for persons with disabilities, the most numerous minority of our world. If we are to build resilient and peaceful societies, we have to acknowledge the vital importance of creating decent jobs and prosperity for all.

As the United Nations System and Governments work to deepen partnerships with the private sector to enhance the efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it is my hope that more attention would be paid to the link between women and sustaining peace.

While research shows that economies and communities prosper when more women participate fully in the economy and, when there is gender equality as well, women are too often overlooked when it comes to efforts to achieve and sustain peace. So we look to the private sector to design creative and innovative business models to foster the business climate in post conflict areas, working with women, and youth as well.

I look forward to hearing of the many important ways through which the private sector is already collaborating with others. I am sure everyone here is also keen to hear of the new and innovative ideas and ways for creating the best conditions for peace and security and for sustainable development.

Thank you again for inviting me today.