12th Session of the Expert Mechanism on the right to development
General debate, 27 October 2025
EU statement
Mr Chair,
The European Union appreciates the opportunity to take the floor and reiterates its resolute commitment to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and to supporting partner countries in developing resilient societies and economies aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals. We will remain a reliable partner in international development, ensuring that no one is left behind. In that respect, the EU and its Member States have maintained their position as the largest global Official Development Assistance provider, accounting for 42% of global ODA.
Last summer, at the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development in Sevilla, we clearly engaged for a fairer, more inclusive global financial system, recognising the importance of innovative, predictable and accessible financing. Our efforts must serve not only economic growth, but the broader purpose of sustainable and equitable development.
The realisation of the right to development is rooted in the universal, indivisible, interrelated, interdependent, and mutually reinforcing nature of all human rights. This means that the right to development is equal to and must be universally realized along all other human rights, with no hierarchy among them. Moreover, effective implementation of existing international human rights obligations, as well as eliminating multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, and the achievement of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs are mutually reinforcing.
As with all other human rights, any policy or instrument to advance the right to development should adhere to international human rights law. While States have the primary responsibility and obligations for the full realisation of all human rights, individuals are the rights-holders and the central actors, drivers, and beneficiaries of the development process.
The realisation of the right to development cannot be seen purely through one single lens, nor can development be considered or interpreted as a pre-condition for the fulfilment of human rights. In other words, different stages of development cannot be used as a pretext by States not to uphold their human rights obligations.
Based on these internationally recognised human rights principles, we continue to have significant reservations to the current draft legally binding instrument on the right to development, which does not enjoy consensus among all UN Member States, nor reflects diverging views expressed. The EU has consistently and constructively shared its concerns regarding the process, the language, and the compliance of the current draft with international human rights law. Both in Geneva and in New York, we will continue to present our comments in a constructive manner, and we hope the NAM shows openness in discussing them.
In light of on-going discussions on rationalisation and efficiency, we have previously expressed our concern about the overlap of the debates and mandates on the right to development.
Finally, the EU remains committed to the elimination of poverty, which is often marked by multiple violations of civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights, and continues its efforts to fight inequalities and to achieve sustainable and inclusive development, in a way that promotes respect, protection and fulfilment of all human rights, without discrimination on any ground.
I thank you
