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THE SECRETARY-GENERAL — REMARKS AT 2024 ECOSOC FORUM ON FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT FOLLOW-UP

Published

2 years ago

April 24, 2024

Shanieka

New York, 22 April 2024

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,

I thank ECOSOC for convening this forum on a topic that is essential to development and the better world we all seek — financing.

Financing is the fuel of development.

Yet many developing countries are running on empty.

This is creating a sustainable development crisis.

A crisis of lingering poverty and rising inequality.

A crisis of hunger, lack of education and shattered infrastructure.

A crisis of climate catastrophe and shocks that are becoming more frequent and acute.

And a crisis that, if left unchecked, will undermine stability, prosperity and peace for decades to come.

Crisis after crisis, challenge after challenge, all tied together by a common thread.

Lack of financing.

Many developing countries are simply unable to make the investments they need in sustainable development, and the systems and services their people require.

And when they turn to the global financial system for help, they find that it is unable to provide a global safety net to shield them from shocks.

They find a system incapable of helping them forge stability or sustainability.

They find a system that they had no hand in creating, no voice in shaping — and that remains unresponsive to their needs.

My friends, they find a system that is broken.

The result is plain to see.

The Sustainable Development Goals are hanging by a thread — and with them, the hopes and dreams of billions of people around the world.

The world faces an annual financing gap of around $4 trillion to reach the SDGs — a sharp rise from the $2.5-trillion gap one year before the COVID-19 pandemic.

This growing financing gap is matched by a growing financing divide — between those countries that can access financing at affordable rates, and those that cannot.

This is no longer a question of “haves” and “have nots.”

This is a question of who has access to finance when they need it — and who does not.

This is a question of justice.

Look at the global financial system’s handling of debt.

Many developing countries are being crushed under a steamroller of debt.

Four out of every 10 people worldwide live in countries where governments spend more on interest payments than on education or health.

Annual debt service payments in the world’s poorest countries are 50 per cent higher than they were just three years ago.

In sub-Saharan Africa, debt-servicing consumed nearly half of all government revenue in 2023.

In country after country, development gains are quickly erased by relentless crises, with debt service payments impeding critical social spending and investments in the SDGs.

Money is flowing in the wrong direction — from the countries who need it to the countries who don’t.

When it comes to debt, developing countries are climbing a ladder planted in quicksand.

Excellencies,

A growing economy is the best way to reduce debt burdens and raise domestic revenue for key investments.

We need a surge of investment to bridge the financing gap and give developing countries a fighting chance to build better lives for their people.

We must continue pushing for an SDG Stimulus of $500 billion annually in affordable long-term finance for developing countries.

The Stimulus was welcomed by world leaders at the SDG Summit and in the G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration.

Now it’s time to move from words to action and deliver affordable, long-term financing at scale.

First — developed countries need to step-up, led by the G20.

Discussions on general capital increases for Multilateral Development Banks should start now.

Meanwhile, donors must meet their official development assistance commitments.

In 2022, only four countries met or exceeded the agreed target of 0.7% of Gross National Income.

Official development assistance has risen on paper, but it is increasingly spent within donor countries, leaving developing countries without the resources they need.

I call on all donor countries to meet their targets, and get this financing flowing.

Second — we need Multilateral Development Banks to make better use of the resources they can already access, at no additional cost to shareholders.

This includes finding ways for MDBs, central banks and credit rating agencies to greenlight ways to stretch Banks’ balance sheets, leveraging the vast sums of callable capital that the shareholder countries of MDBs have at the ready, sitting in central banks.

It means deploying innovative financing systems — for example, hybrid capital bonds that increase lending capacity and attract private capital.

And MDBs must readjust their business models to better leverage private finance at a reasonable cost for developing countries.

Third — we need bold action to ease the debt distress.

Any new financing should be used for productive investments and sustainable development — not to service unsustainable and unaffordable debt.

And the debt-restructuring systems and mechanisms in place need to be strengthened.

The Debt Service Suspension Initiative and the G20 Common Framework for Debt Treatments have not delivered on their promise.

The Debt Service Suspension Initiative was too limited in scope and duration, expiring just as interest rates skyrocketed.

Debt repayment pauses must be considered for countries facing liquidity crises.

And for those countries bearing the weight of unsustainable debt, it’s time to revamp the debt resolution architecture to provide deep relief that avoids repeat crises.

Regardless of intent and efforts, the Common Framework has failed to provide this.

Nor has it served many of the countries that face the greatest unresolved debt problems.

It’s time for change.

And fourth — we need to increase developing countries’ representation across the system and every decision that is made.

This July is the 80th anniversary of the Bretton Woods Conference, which ushered in today’s international financial architecture.

But the countries who need these systems and institutions most were not present at their creation — a lack of representation that continues to this day.

In the name of justice, they need and deserve a seat at the table.

The Summit of the Future in September and next year’s Financing for Development Conference will be key opportunities to gather the world together to reform the global financial architecture so it serves all countries who need it.

Excellencies,

Let’s make the most of these opportunities.

Now is the time for ambition.

Now is the time for reform.

Now is the time to shape a global economic and financial system that delivers for people and planet.

I look forward to standing with you in this great effort, as we shape a more inclusive, just, peaceful, resilient, and sustainable world for present and future generations.

Thank you.

Related Topics:#EcosocForumFinancing #unitednations

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80% of the World’s Poor Face Climate Hazards — UNDP Sounds Alarm

Published

6 days ago

October 24, 2025

Deandrea Hamilton

By Deandrea Hamilton | Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE

NEW YORK (October 17, 2025) — A new United Nations report has confirmed what many developing nations already know: climate change is punishing the poor first and hardest. Nearly 80 percent of the world’s 1.1 billion people living in multidimensional poverty — about 887 million individuals — live in regions directly exposed to extreme heat, flooding, drought, or air pollution.

The 2025 Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), released jointly by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), calls the findings “a wake-up call before COP30.” It’s the first time global poverty and climate-hazard data have been overlaid, revealing how environmental stress and social deprivation now reinforce one another.

A World Under Double Strain

The report, titled Overlapping Hardships: Poverty and Climate Hazards, finds that among the world’s poorest, 651 million people face two or more climate hazards simultaneously, and 309 million confront three or four at once. The most widespread threats are extreme heat (affecting 608 million) and air pollution (577 million). Flood-prone areas house 465 million poor people, while 207 million live in drought-affected zones.

“These individuals live under a triple or quadruple burden,” said UNDP’s Acting Administrator Haoliang Xu. “To fight global poverty, we must confront the climate risks endangering nearly 900 million people.”

The Geography of Risk

The pressure points are clear. South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa are the world’s epicentres of climate-linked poverty, hosting 380 million and 344 million vulnerable people respectively. In South Asia, a staggering 99 percent of the poor are exposed to one or more climate shocks, with 92 percent facing two or more.

The Caribbean and small-island developing states weren’t individually ranked but are highlighted as especially exposed — combining low-lying geographies, fragile ecosystems, and high dependence on tourism. Analysts say the MPI’s message is unmistakable: without climate-resilient development, hard-won progress could unravel overnight.

The Rich-Poor Divide Deepens

Lower-middle-income nations shoulder the greatest burden, with 548 million poor people exposed to at least one hazard and 470 million to two or more. “Countries with the highest levels of poverty today are projected to face the steepest temperature increases by the end of the century,” said Pedro Conceição, Director of UNDP’s Human Development Report Office.

That projection underscores why the Caribbean, Africa, and parts of Asia argue that wealthy nations must help fund climate adaptation, debt relief, and just-transition mechanisms.

From Recognition to Action

The UNDP urges world leaders gathering next month for COP30 in Brazil to align climate commitments with poverty reduction strategies — strengthening local adaptation, scaling climate finance, and embedding environmental resilience into every development plan.

“The crisis is shared, but the capacity to respond isn’t,” the report concludes. “Without redistribution, cooperation, and climate-resilient policy, the world’s poorest will remain trapped between heatwaves and hunger.”

Why It Matters for the Caribbean

For island nations like The Bahamas, Barbados, and Turks & Caicos, the MPI’s findings hit home. Even where income levels are higher, inequality and geographic exposure magnify the risk: a single hurricane season can wipe out years of economic gains. The message to regional policymakers is clear — social protection, infrastructure, and environmental defence are no longer separate issues; they’re survival strategies.

As the world counts down to COP30, the UNDP’s data doesn’t just measure poverty — it maps who the planet is failing first.

world news

A Tapestry of Peace: Humanity, Not Politics, Ends the War in Gaza

Published

2 weeks ago

October 14, 2025

Deandrea Hamilton

By Deandrea Hamilton | Magnetic Media

October 14, 2025 – I watched the people, by the hundreds, walk the dusty strip that led back to their home in Gaza. We all knew, as they did, they were heading into hollowed-out neighbourhoods — debris, shattered glass, skeletal walls — reminders of years of despair.

But there was something else too: a buoyancy in their stride, a glimmer in their eyes. The Mediterranean glistened, still impossibly beautiful. The people — strong, proud, indomitable — moved as though carrying both grief and grace in equal measure.

In that moment, I realized this was more than diplomacy. More than the signing of a historic document in distant halls of marble and microphones. This was humanity rediscovering itself — a world beginning to understand that beyond geography and faith and politics, we are all human beings, bound by the same elemental truths: emotion, desire, hope, dream, and love.

It was not politicians who brokered this new peace, but visionaries who remembered the simplicity of service — that peace, like business, depends on relationships, trust, and respect. Perhaps it took a businessman to remind the world that excellence in service to humanity means meeting people’s needs with empathy, not ideology.

The Trump Peace Agreement, signed in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, brought to a close more than two years of suffering and opened, in the words of the signatories, “a new chapter for the region defined by hope, security, and prosperity.” Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, who hosted the summit, called it “the dawn of renewal — not only for Gaza, but for how we see one another.”

Under the accord, 20 living hostages held in Gaza have been freed and reunited with their families, marking the end of one of the most painful sagas of the conflict. In addition, the agreement mandates the return of 28 deceased hostages, with four sets of remains already handed over. The deal also includes the release of thousands of Palestinian detainees, allowing families long separated by war to embrace again — mothers and sons, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives.

For the first time in decades, the streets of Gaza and Tel Aviv echoed the same sound — weeping and relief.

The agreement’s language was strikingly human: a shared vision of “tolerance, dignity, and equal opportunity for every person,” where faith is not a dividing line but a moral compass. It pledges to protect sacred sites across Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, recognizing that this narrow strip of land carries deep spiritual meaning for much of humanity.

The declaration also commits to dismantling extremism “in all its forms,” replacing radicalization with education, opportunity, and respect. In a time when rage had become routine, the world seemed to pause — if only for a moment — to breathe again.

Observers call it a diplomatic miracle; others see divine timing. But either way, this peace feels different — grounded in the recognition that people cannot be endlessly broken without consequence. The Muslim and Arab world, long accused of intolerance, appears to be turning a page: moving from rejection to reconciliation, from ideology to empathy.

For a generation raised on images of rockets, ruins, and rage, the simple act of dialogue has reclaimed its power. The leaders who signed the document — Donald J. Trump, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan — pledged to resolve future disputes through negotiation, not war.

Standing before the Knesset in Jerusalem the following day, President Trump declared,

“This peace will not end with signatures. It will endure through every handshake, every investment, and every act of mercy that follows. Peace is not an event — it is a way of life.”

And as I watched the people of Gaza — battered, barefoot, but unbroken — I couldn’t help but believe that this time, maybe, the world has finally begun to live that truth.

We have not just reached peace; we have rediscovered the tapestry God Himself has woven — of difference, dignity, and divine connection — the beauty of being human.

Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.

Caribbean News

US Strike on Venezuelan Drug Boat Sparks Fierce Caribbean Divisions

Published

2 months ago

September 6, 2025

Deandrea Hamilton

Deandrea Hamilton | Editor

September 6, 2025 – In a dramatic escalation along the southern Caribbean, U.S. forces on September 2 launched a military strike on a boat allegedly carrying illicit narcotics from Venezuela. Officials say the strike killed 11 members of the Tren de Aragua cartel, which the U.S. has designated a terrorist organization, part of a broader “war on narco-terrorism” tied to the deadly spike in fentanyl and other drug deaths among Americans.

Within CARICOM ranks, reactions were deeply divided. Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, voiced unequivocal support—saying drug traffickers “should be killed violently,” citing the nation’s struggle against cartel-driven violence and addiction.

Conversely, Barbados Foreign Minister Kerrie Symmonds and other regional diplomats expressed reservations about the U.S. operation’s legality, calling for greater diplomatic coordination and transparency to prevent further destabilization.

On the U.S. domestic front, Democratic lawmakers demanded answers. Many were excluded from a scheduled briefing, fueling concerns over executive overreach. Critics questioned the legality of a lethal strike in international waters without Congressional approval, warning of constitutional and international law violations.

A former Biden administration official, Juan González, also warned that the U.S. risks becoming entangled in a “disastrous” intervention in Venezuela—a conflict scenario more complex than past U.S. operations in the region.

In response to mounting regional pressure, the U.S. is ramping up its military presence. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed continued operations against narco-terrorists. The Pentagon has deployed ten F-35 stealth fighter jets to Puerto Rico as part of a broader naval and air buildup. Senator Marco Rubio echoed the aggressive stance, stating more such strikes “will happen again.”

Meanwhile, Venezuela denounced the strike and dismissed U.S. claims as fabricated. Venezuelan officials pointed to the video evidence released by President Trump as misleading or manipulated.

What’s at Stake:

International law & sovereignty: Experts have questioned the legality of using lethal military force against suspected traffickers on the high seas without clear legal justification.
CARICOM unity: The divided responses highlight deeper tensions over U.S. security policy and Caribbean sovereignty.
Escalating militarization: The strike signals how Washington is blending drug interdiction with geopolitical pressure on Caracas, setting the stage for ongoing regional friction.

As Washington defends the strike as necessary for protecting American lives against a fentanyl-fueled crisis, Caribbean leaders worry the fallout may bring greater instability, not safety.

PHOTOS: Screenshots from U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) video