Deputy Secretary-General's remarks at the Roundtable Discussion of the 2026 June Management Segment of the Economic and Social Council [as prepared for delivery]

Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Thank you for the opportunity to join you today.

We meet at a pivotal moment for sustainable development.

With just a few years left to achieve the ambition of Agenda 2030, the pace of progress is far too slow. Only 36 per cent of the 139 SDG targets assessed are on track or making moderate progress, while 15 per cent have gone into reverse. At the same time, global challenges are mounting in scale and complexity – growing more interconnected and harder to address through fragmented approaches and amidst weakening international cooperation. 

That makes the work of the Economic and Social Council more important than ever.

ECOSOC occupies a unique place within the multilateral system. It brings together the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. It serves as an inclusive platform for policy dialogue and coordination among governments, the UN system and stakeholders. And it plays a critical role in the follow-up and review of progress towards the Goals.

The Council’s subsidiary bodies, including the five regional commissions and many functional commissions and expert bodies, are central to that mission.

Together, they foster mutual accountability and generate analysis, evidence, expertise and recommendations across the full spectrum of sustainable development issues. They also help identify emerging challenges, shape policy responses and support Member States in implementing internationally agreed commitments.

Today’s discussion offers a powerful illustration of how the different parts of the ECOSOC machinery are working to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs and mobilize adequate financing for sustainable development.

To make the goals a reality by their 2030 deadline we need data to understand where progress is being made and where gaps persist. One of the main achievements of the past decade is the progress on data. We measure better, and with data available for over 80 percent of the targets, policies can reach the furthest behind. 

We need geospatial information to connect those realities to specific places and communities enabling better planning of urban and rural areas, designing better transportation networks, and protecting the oceans and forests. 

We need strong public institutions capable of turning policies into concrete results through better and faster access to public services for everyone.

We need gender-responsive solutions that work for everyone across the lifecycle – from equal access to social protection system to equal pay and gender parity in decision making positions. 

We need responses that address the complex health challenges that pose not only a risk to people’s health but have social and security dimensions that need solutions.

And we need regional cooperation to adapt global ambitions to diverse circumstances and contexts. The Regional Economic Commissions plays an important role, linking global frameworks with country-level implementation, fostering regional cooperation on transboundary dimensions of sustainable development and providing evidence-based policy and technical support. 

Through their different mandates, areas of expertise and institutional perspectives, the Council’s subsidiary bodies, including those that are represented here today, can help us understand challenges more fully, connect knowledge across disciplines, identify solutions and drive policies that are more integrated, inclusive and effective and support critical intergovernmental decision-making.

The question before us is how to ensure that this  work translates more effectively into coordinated action, implementation and results on the ground.

How do we reduce fragmentation, enhance coherence and create stronger feedback loops across the system?

And how do we ensure that the Council’s subsidiary architecture functions as a force multiplier for SDG delivery in the final stretch towards 2030?

This is the task of the  ECOSOC itself. Through its guidance, coordination and oversight functions, the Council can weave these diverse strands of expertise into a coherent whole, helping to transform knowledge into action, implementation and impact.

The Secretary-General’s UN80 initiative challenges us to ensure that the United Nations remains fit for purpose and focused on impact. At its core, UN80 is about ensuring that our institutions deliver better results for people.

At the same time, Member States are engaged in the review of General Assembly resolutions 75/290 A and B on ECOSOC and the HLPF. Looking ahead, ECOSOC itself will undertake a review of its subsidiary machinery during its 2027 session.

These processes should not be viewed in isolation.

Together, they offer an opportunity to consider how ECOSOC can further strengthen its role as a platform for integrated policy guidance, coordination, accountability and follow-up for sustainable development. 

The upcoming review of the Council’s subsidiary bodies is more than a procedural exercise.
It is a moment to ask whether our current architecture is helping us respond to today’s challenges with sufficient speed, coherence and impact.

A chance to identify synergies, reduce duplication, strengthen collaboration and ensure that recommendations are connected more directly to implementation and results on the ground.

And an opportunity to ensure that the Council continues to evolve in response to changing realities and continues to support Member States in delivering the SDGs.

Excellencies,

The Chairs and members gathered here today represent an extraordinary wealth of expertise and experience – from data and geospatial information to governance, gender equality, regional cooperation and beyond – that is central to the achievement of sustainable prosperity for people and the planet.

I hope this discussion will generate timely and practical ideas. Ideas that help position ECOSOC’s subsidiary architecture to accelerate development action. Ideas that strengthen the Council’s role as a platform for accountability and follow-up. And ideas that help us ensure that our institutions can respond to the complex challenges of our time and the future.

Thank you.