Papua New Guinea’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Justin Tkatchenko, has laid down a bold challenge to global leaders in a powerful address ‘We do not need rhetorical statements and unmet pledges’ at the High-Level Meeting on the Summit of the Future in New York.
“The lackluster progress for the Sustainable Development Goals, at just seventeen percent, seen globally, including in my own country, demands that we all must do better.
“Despite notable strides in recent years in areas such as health, education, infrastructure, agriculture, governance, justice, peace and security, Papua New Guinea recognises that we can do better to deliver on the SDGs and we are working hard on it,” he said.
Tkatchenko’s remarks came as he expressed strong support for the newly adopted “Pact for the Future” and its associated documents, which he argued are crucial for creating a better world.
“This Pact is complementary to Papua New Guinea’s own Vision 2050, where we want to be a middle-income country that is peaceful, prosperous, and caring.
“It also underscores that multilateralism, under the ambit of the United Nations, is crucially important for all of humanity. This deserves our strongest support, going forward,” he said.
Highlighting the urgency of multilateralism, Tkatchenko urged the international community to translate ideals into actionable outcomes for all nations.
“As leaders of our peoples and countries, we now need real and genuine action to translate the Pact for the Future and its accompanying outcome documents to benefit, in an inclusive, fair and just way, all of us,” he said.
His comments were underlined by the pressing realities faced by his country, which has struggled to advance the Sustainable Development Goals.
“Despite notable strides in health, education, and infrastructure, we recognise that we can do better.
“Improving national leadership and investing in women, girls, and youth is a step in the right direction.
“Investing in our women and girls wellbeing and empowering our youth, through sustained investment in quality education, lifelong skills and capacity building, providing economic opportunities and instilling environmental stewardship is a strong and sure foundation for a better future. This is why my Government is now prioritising investment in our women and girls and youth in our development agenda,” he said.
Addressing the issue of global financial systems, Tkatchenko lamented the debts that stifle development.
“In a world suffocating from the heavy burden of debt that is preventing countries from meeting their people’s development needs for a better life, the overwhelming and loud outcry worldwide for the long overdue reform of the outdated and unfriendly international financial system cannot be delayed any further.
“We need a global financial architecture that puts people’s lives and livelihoods first over profit for a well-off few.
“The Multi-dimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) is one but such a transformative tool that must be effected soon to support small developing countries, like my own, to better support our development financing needs and to address the worsening impact of the climate crisis,” he explained.
With climate change looming large, Tkatchenko stressed the dire need for swift climate action.
“As a member of the Blue Pacific Continent, where many of us are on the frontline of the climate crisis, which is the single greatest threat to our peoples and communities, compounded further by the rising sea-levels, the urgency for climate action cannot be overemphasised.
“We remain seriously concerned that the climate finance we need is not happening at speed and scale and in some cases, like in my own country, there is hardly a trickle. We need better support on this front from the multilateral system established for it,” said Tkatchenko.
He reaffirmed Papua New Guinea’s commitment to peace and security as foundational to sustainable development.
“Without peace and security, there is no sustainable development,” he warned. “That is why we are committed to the Pact for the Future,” said Tkatchenko.
