Remarks by the President of the General Assembly
Mr. Philémon Yang
Global Development Initiative Side Event:
‘GDI support for the Global South: We are in action’
25 September 2024
[As Delivered]
Your Excellency, Mr. WANG Yi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of China,
Your Excellency, Mr. FU Cong, Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations, Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is an honor to join you today and I thank everybody who has organized this meeting.
Allow me to commend the Government of China for its leadership in spearheading the Global Development Initiative.
With an estimated 590 million people still living in extreme poverty, and with 600 million people facing hunger, we need every single tool at our disposal to reverse these trends.
The Global Development Initiative, which is now supported by more than 80 countries, is therefore a commendable effort to mobilize much needed resources and drive collective action.
It is encouraging to note that more than 600 projects have received support, with US $10 billion earmarked for implementation.
The achievements of the Global Development Initiative are extremely valuable and can contribute to fast-tracking the Sustainable Development Goals, which we all know.
The Summit of the Future reinvigorated action, and we must leverage every opportunity before us.
Excellencies,
As President of the General Assembly, I must reiterate the importance of achieving sustainable development in the Global South, and in Africa in particular.
We need to close the digital divide, to empower young people, to foster peace, and to drive sustainable socio-economic progress all over.
Doing this requires cooperation across all levels and platforms, and it requires innovative new resources of funding.
The Global Development Initiative must certainly be our new and invaluable tool.
Today’s discussion offers an opportunity to reflect on progress, understand the challenges, and to build new momentum for implementation of the Initiative and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
I thank you.
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