Achieving the SDGs and ensuring no one is left behind
UK National Statement at the UN High Level Political Forum
Your Excellencies, colleagues and friends.
The Sustainable Development Goals remain an invaluable framework for the world to come together, to build back better from COVID-19, and ultimately to make sure that no one, wherever they are, is left behind.
In this respect, the UK remains committed to meeting the SDGs by 2030.
Reaching this milestone will, of course, I recognise will be a huge challenge, but one that we cannot allow to be derailed by COVID-19.
The scarring caused by the pandemic is not felt equally.
The impacts of this pandemic, this global pandemic, have been particularly profound for those in the poorest parts of the world and in the most vulnerable countries, and on people who were already tragically grappling with conflict, issues of climate change, and a chronic lack of resources and infrastructure.
That is why we, the United Kingdom, notwithstanding our domestic challenges, have continued to be counted. We have committed over £1 billion of UK aid to support the international response to COVID-19. This will help defend hard-won development gains and accelerate progress towards the achievement of SDGs, by supporting the most vulnerable and protecting against future crises.
In this regard, to protect the most vulnerable, we must make equitable access to vaccines a reality.
It’s why at the G7 summit last month, our Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for an international effort to vaccinate the world by 2022. And in this regard, G7 leaders came forward with a commitment to share and, importantly, finance an additional 1 billion vaccine doses over the next year, particularly supporting the important COVAX facility which is directed towards those in the greatest need.
And in this respect, I again urge those people, wherever you are, to do what you can to back this ambition and share and finance further doses directly with COVAX.
We have also used our G7 Presidency to put equal societies, including a priority of our Prime Minister of girls’ education, quality 12 years of quality education for every girl in the world, at the heart of our work.
In this respect, the UK will spend £400 million on girls’ education bilaterally, helping deliver our global target to get 40 million more girls into education, and 20 million more reading. By when? Well, within the next five years.
Later this month, alongside Kenya, we will co-host the Global Education Summit in London, which will raise funds for the vital work of the Global Partnership for Education.
And in this respect, we have recently announced our pledge of £430 million to the Global Partnership, which is our largest ever, and, indeed, a 15% uplift from our current position as the top bilateral donor.
Of course we recognise we cannot build back better without tackling the threat posed by climate change. In November, the UK will host COP26 in Glasgow and drive progress towards SDG 13 on Climate Action.
The most important thing COP26 can deliver is keeping 1.5 degrees within our collective reach. To achieve this, we will set the world on a path to net zero, by speeding up emissions reductions and cleaning up our own economies.
We will also help countries adapt and become more resilient. We are determined to deliver on the pledge we all made back in Paris, to mobilise $100 billion of climate finance each year, to support climate vulnerable and developing countries.
In this respect, we hosted an Adaptation Action Coalition event at this year’s High-Level Political Forum. As co-chairs, we call on all nations and countries to join the Coalition to deliver increased ambition through inclusive, locally-led adaptation. We will carry this momentum through to a successful COP26 summit later this year.
But we can only truly achieve an inclusive and resilient recovery if we reach the most vulnerable - those most in need.
The pandemic has not only hit them hardest, it has put global data systems under strain, making it even more difficult, more challenging, to assess the full extent of the impact.
Timely and comprehensive data is essential to enable us to track progress towards the goals and ensure that everyone, wherever they are, is counted.
Therefore, we ask you to join us in championing fair and inclusive data to truly ensure, on the information we act upon, no one is left behind.
In this respect, everyone has a role to play in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Local, regional, national governments, businesses and civil society, individuals, wherever you are. We all have our part to play. We must all work collectively together to share knowledge, mobilise finance, and, ultimately, deliver upon the SDGs.
None of us can afford to fail. So let’s make it happen.
Thank you.