Watch the video: https://s3.amazonaws.com/downloads2.unmultimedia.org/public/video/ondemand/2942092_MSG+DSG+AMINA+MOHAMMED+UNDP+KEYNOTE+30+SEP+22.mp4

Dear Administrator, Dear Achim, Resident Representatives,

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

I am excited to be part of the UNDP Leadership Retreat this year.

Regrettably, I am unable to join you in person today, as I had hoped.

These are not easy times.

We are living through a moment defined by growing and cascading crises.

The COVID-19 pandemic is still very much with us.

Violent conflicts are at their highest levels since the end of the Second World War.

The annexation of parts of Ukraine is a real danger of going over the abyss into a nuclear war.

We are now faced with a shocking cost-of-living crisis that is pushing people into poverty and hunger; a growing debt and liquidity crisis; and the threat of an outright recession in 2023.

People in every corner of the globe are witnessing a climate emergency that is hitting much harder and faster than expected.

And divisions have deepened between people: not only in terms of resources but also in terms of trust.

Healing those divisions for people and planet will require much more from each of us at the United Nations.

But we are not hopeless.

The Secretary-General and I believe that it is precisely at this moment when the UN will need to rise to the occasion once again.

We can and must rescue the SDGs with a response that fits the context.

To help countries raise ambition on climate.

To advance human development where we save lives but also livelihoods.

To leverage data that will be crucial for the stocktake in 2023.

To change the game on our road towards 2030.

Looking ahead, we have new areas of focus inspired by Our Common Agenda – moving beyond GDP, a new social contract, the digital compact, the global financial architecture and looking ahead way into the future.

UNDP is a critical part of the solution. You are not just another agency. It has never been so.

You are our development agency lead.

Where integrated solutions can emerge and prosper.

The platform where UNCTs can pivot to enhance our focus on policy options and transitions such as energy, food systems, digital that are so key to the SDGs.

The agency with unparalleled global reach and a unique understanding of complex field dynamics.

That is the UNDP we need right now.

Colleagues,

We all know the impact of the UN will not depend merely on each agency do their best on their own…

… But the system stepping up together for impact and scale.

I know it is not easy. Challenges are huge. And our funding environment is playing against us.

But I also know that in many countries, we are leading the way. I see this in my country visits.

So I ask you that we continue to challenge ourselves to change the game everywhere.

This year’s leadership meeting is an opportunity to hear from you on what will it take for us to raise the bar universally, as a UN family.

We count on you to be the right-hand that our Resident Coordinators need at this critical point in time. To be part of the solutions we require to keep the SDGs alive.

And we look forward to hearing from you on what else is needed from the leadership of the Secretary-General all the way down to RCs to support you…

… And to enable UNDP to maximize the impact of its unique mandate.

In Our Common Agenda, we are reminded that the Sustainable Development Goals mean that our “best world” is still ahead of us if we can support countries to make the right choices for people and our planet.

In that spirit of hope and determination, I wish you an inspiring and productive Leaders for 2030 Retreat.

Thank you.