“Industrial development is essential for strengthening economies, fighting poverty and creating jobs and prosperity,” the UN said. Secretary-General António Guterres in his message on the occasion of the event, delivered by the senior UN official in Saudi Arabia, Mohamed El-Zarkani.
Ease the burden of poverty
Delegates from governments, the private sector and civil society arrived in the Saudi capital for the week-long event at a delicate time for struggling economies: several rich countries have cut their development aid spending. The COP30 climate conference, which concluded on Saturday, laid bare the scale of the climate crisis, which poses an existential threat to some countries, including small island developing states.
Mr. Guterres urged governments and businesses to join forces to ease these burdens by scaling up sustainable industrialization (adopting cleaner, resource-efficient technologies, upgrading infrastructure, and ensuring that industrial development does not result in excessive social or environmental costs), an important recommendation of the Pact for the futurethe UN plan for international cooperation, peace and development.
The summit serves as the 21st General Conference of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), which is dedicated to promoting inclusive and sustainable industrial development that reduces poverty, improves economic competitiveness and supports environmental sustainability in developing countries.
Discussions at this year’s conference, UNIDO’s highest decision-making body, will focus on three main themes: how to reduce emissions and support renewable energy; eliminate hunger through agro-industrial innovation to improve food security; and sustainable supply chains that ensure trade benefits workers, communities and the environment.
It’s time for a “fair new global deal”
Addressing delegates on Sunday, UNIDO Director-General Gerd Müller, who was re-elected for a second four-year term, called on the developed world to do more to combat inequality: “The rich nations, the industrialized countries, the oil states, we have to live up to our global responsibilities,” he said, clearly asking why, 30 years after promising to devote 0.7 percent of their annual development aid budget to abroad, they have still not reached this figure.
It is time, Mr. Müller continued, to establish a “New Global Fair Deal”, in which developing countries would have better access to the global financial system and – with reference to recent US policies – tariff-free access to markets.
Budget cuts are ‘nothing less than a death sentence’
On the other side of the world, in South Africa, leaders of the world’s major economies are meeting at the annual G20 summit. Mr. Müller directly called on them to reverse significant funding cuts, of up to 40 percent, to UN aid agencies, including the World Food Program (PAM) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
“This is nothing short of a death sentence for millions of children, refugees and people living in crisis zones around the world who depend on humanitarian aid,” the UNIDO chief warned.
We acknowledge The European Times for the information.
