Global efforts towards the SDGs so far have proved insufficient. As the UN Secretary-General’s latest Progress Report shows, we are severely off track. Science tells us that we can still turn the tide if we work together more actively and faster. The SDG Summit is a unique opportunity to renew our shared global commitment to accelerate SDG implementation, and the EU is determined to make it a success.

Peace and security are prerequisites for sustainable development, in line with the 2030 Agenda’s integrated nature. The EU and its Member States condemn Russia's aggression against Ukraine, which violates international law and the UN Charter, and reiterate their solidarity with Ukraine. This aggression puts global peace, stability and security in jeopardy, affects people in all parts of the world and imperils the SDGs. We support the Secretary-General’s call on Russia to stop the war. The EU and its Member States remain committed to providing, along with partners, financial relief to Ukraine, and supporting its resilience and long-term reconstruction.

The political and economic disruptions, brought about by the aggression against Ukraine, are leading to soaring food and energy prices and increasing inequalities within and between countries already exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the run-up to the SDG Summit, the EU and its Member States reaffirm their commitment to the 2030 Agenda’s full implementation, while explicitly highlighting the importance of all its three dimensions (economic, environmental and social).

In this perspective, the EU recently adopted its first-ever EU Voluntary Review on the Implementation 2030 Agenda, which [was just] presented at this HLPF. This Review shows how the EU’s priorities help drive, both at home and globally, the transformations necessary to deliver on the SDGs, while leaving no one behind. It puts forward a comprehensive summary of internal and external EU measures to support the implementation of the SDGs, as well as policy coherence between activities on both levels, having regard to impacts and spillovers on partner countries, and SDG interlinkages. Internally, the EU displayed leadership to implement the SDGs through deeply transformative domestic policies and strategies, such as the European Green Deal. Externally, acting in a Team Europe approach, the EU and its Member States are committed to continue to support partner countries achieve the SDGs through their international partnerships.

The Voluntary Review illustrates how the EU and its MS, providing collectively EUR 92.8 bn in 2022, which is 43% of global Official Development Assistance, are supporting partner countries to implement the SDGs. As highligted in the Voluntary Review, EU’s Global Gateway strategy – as the EU’s key offer to investing in sustainable infrastructure worldwide – will directly contribute to supporting partner countries’ progress on SDGs, both through public funding and by mobilising private sector financing. 

The EU and its Member States are committed to the continued strengthening of the HLPF as the central coordination body for the 2030 Agenda’s global implementation, including through active participation of civil society and stakeholders. The peer-learning character, inclusiveness and accountability of VNRs need to be strengthened.

The EU and its Member States support an SDG Summit that builds the momentum, which is much needed as we head in to the second half of the implementation phase. The Summit must be a real moment for multilateral cooperation and multi-stakeholder engagement.

As groundwork for the SDG Summit, the EU looks forward to closely engaging with its partners during and beyond the HLPF. The world needs a boost in commitment towards the 2030 Agenda, and an accelerated implementation of the SDGs. And the EU and its Member States are willing to continue to play our leading role in it.

Thank you.