Addis Ababa: UN Secretary-General António Guterres emphasized on the importance of deep reforms both in the international financial Architecture and the security council to make it more reflective of today's world.
World leaders adopted the potentially game-changing Pact for the Future by consensus on Sunday in New York, with a small group of just seven countries holding out, having failed to pass a last-minute amendment.
The centrepiece of the Summit of the Future is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reimagine the multilateral system and steer humanity on a new course to meet existing commitments and solve long-term challenges, it was learned.
Speaking on the occasion, Guterres underscored that we are here to bring multilateralism back from the brink.
The Secretary-General called for this summit to consider deep reforms to make global institutions more legitimate, fair and effective based on the values of the UN charter.
'I called for this summit because 21st century challenges require 21st century solutions, frameworks that are network and inclusive, and that draw on the expertise of all of humanity,' he said.
Guterres explained that the unprecedented challenges that the world is facing including conflicts which are raging and multiplying from the Middle East to Ukraine and Sudan with no end in sight.
'Our collective security system is threatened by geopolitical divides, nuclear posture and the development of new weapons and theaters of war.'
Noting that resources that could bring opportunities and hope are invested in death and destruction, the UN chief indicated that huge inequalities are a break on sustainable development.
'Many developing countries are drowning in depth and unable to support their people, and we have no effective global response to emerging, complex and even existential threats.
The climate crisis is destroying lives, devastating communities and ravaging economies, and we all know the solution that just phase out the fossil fuels, and yet, emissions are still rising'
When the United Nations was established nearly eight years ago, it had 51 member states, he recalled, indicating that today they are 193. The global economy was less than 112 of its current size.
As a result, our peace and security tools and institutions and our global financial architecture reflect a bygone era.
The Secretary-General further elaborated that the United Nations Security Council is updated, and its authority is eroding. And unless its composition and working methods are reformed, it will eventually lose all credibility, he noted.
Similarly, the international financial architecture was established when many of today's developing countries were under colonial rule.
'It does not represent the realities of today's global economy, and is no longer able to resolve economic challenges, depth, climate action, sustainable development was established when many of today's developing countries were under colonial rule.'
He added this establishment does not represent the realities of today's global economy, and is no longer able to resolve economic challenges, depth, climate action, sustainable development.
Acknowledging the world is going through a time and turbulence and the period of transition, Guterres underlined that but we cannot wait for perfect conditions.
Therefore, he stated that: 'We must take the first decisive steps towards updating and reform in international cooperation and make it more networks, fairer and more inclusive now.'
As a result, the pact for the future has promised a breakthrough on reforms to make the Security Council more reflective of Today's world, addressing the historic and the representation of Africa, Asia, Pacific and Latin America.
t also represents major progress towards groundbreaking reforms of international financial architecture.
Source: Ethiopian News Agency