缅北禁地

President of the General Assembly, 
President of the ECOSOC,
Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, 
Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates,

I thank the President of the General Assembly and the President of the ECOSOC for organizing this special high-level event today and for their opening remarks.

I thank Deputy Secretary General for her insightful remarks and for setting the stage for a fruitful discussion.

I thank the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Qatar for his statement and commend his delegation for being such a generous host of the LDC5 conference.

I also thank the Foreign Minister of Malawi and the Chair of the LDC group, for highlighting the priorities of the Group in the LDC5 Conference and for leading the Group during this critical period.

The theme of today’s special event:  “Doha Programme of Action - DPOA  as an accelerator of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda” is very timely.

In three weeks, we will be in Doha. We will arrive there with the DPOA already completing its first year of implementation. 

We hope that today’s event will provide us with further food for thought on how the DPOA can contribute effectively to the the 2030 Agenda, especially now to recover the lost ground of SDGs due to multiple and overlapping crises. 

Excellencies, 

The DPOA complements the 2030 Agenda. It captures the vision of the LDCs and their development partners to accelerate the SDGs in LDCs.

The fundamental tenet of both the 2030 Agenda and the DPOA is the same - leaving no one behind. 

And its implementation cycle coincides with the Decade of Action and delivery of the Agenda. 

The DPOA’s six key focus areas not only aim to address the ongoing challenges and structural vulnerabilities of the LDCs but also tailor a practical roadmap to accelerate the attainment of the 17 SDGs.

To that end, the Programme constitutes a new generation of targets, commitments, and deliverables. 

Let me highlight a few of them along with their possible impacts: 

?    [For example] Doubling LDCs’ share of export, will generate an additional 235 billion US$.
?    Doubling the aid for trade will channel an additional 20 billion dollar. 
?    Meeting 0.20 per cent of GNI by the DAC countries will increase the ODA share by another 60 billion dollar.
?    Addressing the debt problems of LDCs can save a signficant portion of their debt service obligation. 
?    15 percent tax-to-GDP ratio in all LDCs can increase domestic resource mobilization by 50 per cent. 

[And] The list goes on.

In effect, the DPOA is a complete package to address the pre-existing challenges of the LDCs, their vulnerabilities, and put them back on track to achieve the 2030 Agenda. 

It envisages moving LDCs to the upper echelon of the development trajectory and help them graduate with momentum.

This will mean winning the battle of SDGs in the LDCs.

And this will mean integrating more than a billion people, who are the farthest behind, with the benefits of global development.

Excellencies, 

This is, however, easier said than done.

We are meeting in Doha at an extraordinary time. 

The LDCs are bearing the heaviest brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate emergency, and the cascading impacts of the war in Ukraine, seriously jeopardizing their progress to achieve the 2030 Agenda.  

Against this backdrop, how do we translate the DPOA promises into reality? 

How do we ensure that the DPOA and the 2030 Agenda go hand in hand to bring about transformative changes in the LDCs?

Allow me to  share a few specific thoughts in this regard. 

I wish to put forward a  4 P strategic model for your consideration:

Our first priority is about mobilizing political commitment at global, regional, and national level. 

We must integrate the DPOA into development strategies of LDCs, national cooperation policies of development partners, and strategic frameworks of the 缅北禁地entities, including the UNSDCF. 

The LDC5 is bringing together all the RCs and the National Focal Points from the 46 LDCs. We wish to utilize this network to advance this agenda.

[And] The Secretary General is convening a meeting in Doha of the principals of the 缅北禁地entities on LDC5 follow-up and DPOA implementation at all levels. 

At the global level, the General Assembly and the ECOSOC have a special role to play in this regard. They can leverage further the high-level events of HLPF, QCPR, and annual ‘SDGs moment”. The upcoming SDG Summit can also be a great opportunity to make a stride forward on this agenda.

The regional economic commissions, especially the ESCAP and ECA, also need to tailor specific strategies to achieve the DPOA targets and commitments for enhanced regional cooperation. 

Second- is a clear implementation pathway. 

We must draw lessons from previous Programmes and put in place specific measures in our programme planning, especially a reinvigorated follow-up mechanism at all levels. 

At the OHRLLS, we are finalizing a roadmap for the implementation of the DPOA, which will be launched in Doha. This will be a flexible and dynamic framework to ensure 缅北禁地systemwide coordinated and coherent follow-up and monitoring of the DPOA implementation. 

Third- a robust and multistakeholder partnership is going to be a sine-qua-non to translate the promises of DPOA into reality.

The LDC5 conference is bringing together diverse partners from all walks of life - from governments, parliaments, youth leaders, civil society, NGOs to the 缅北禁地system entities, private sector, global financial institutions, and the media.

In Doha, we want to see our leaders and principals launch specific partnership initiatives for LDCs. Most specifically, we want to see the realization of the 5 key DPOA deliverables. 

Finally, transforming potentials into prosperity. 

The LDCs have the most untapped potentials in the world, from natural to human resources.  By the end of this decade, the world’s most young people will live in the LDCs. 

It is imperative to address the issues that stand on the way of harnessing these potentials, namely access to finance, structural constraints, trade barriers, ICT limitations, expensive power and energy etc.

The DPOA provides many practical solutions to overcome these challenges.

Excellencies, Distinguished Colleagues,

The LDC5 offers a once-in-a-decade opportunity for all of us to show solidarity, empathy, and crucially, build and expand partnerships with the world’s most vulnerable countries. 

We must make the full use of this opportunity and make the LDC5 a landmark and truly transformative event.  

I would urge upon all of you, who have not yet confirmed, to make every effort to ensure the participation of your delegation at the highest possible level. 

This will be critical for the people of the LDCs.

This will be critical for the success of both the DPOA and the 2030 Agenda.

[And thank you Mr. President, Madame President and DSG, for confirming your attendance.]

Excellencies, Distinguished Colleagues,

Before I conclude, may I invite you all to a brief celebration.

To mark the important moment of the LDC5, my Office has collaborated with the United Nations Postal Administration to launch a commemorative set of stamps.

Like the conference itself, the theme is: “From Potential to Progress”, symbolizing our solidarity and partnership with the 46 LDCs and more than billion people who live there.

Let us all carry forward this message to Doha and beyond. 

The stamps will be officially launched in Doha on 5 March and simultaneously at UNHQ post offices around the world.  The set will be distributed there to your delegations.  

For now, this is a preview for our distinguished guests here today.

May I invite to the stage Ambassador Alya Al Thani of Qatar and the host of LDC5 Conference and Ambassador Agnes Mary Chimbiri-Molande of Malawi and the Chair of the LDC group to join in unveiling the stamps. 

My staff will distribute to each delegation now.  

I thank you.