Excellencies,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries North Macedonia*, Montenegro^*, Serbia^*, Albania^*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Georgia as well as Armenia, Andorra and San Marino align themselves with this statement

First, let me thank the Co-facilitators H.E. Ms. Sophie de Smedt Permanent Representative of Belgium and H.E. Mr. Omar Hilale, Permanent Representative of Morocco for their work on this important process, as well as the Secretariat for its support.

We look forward to the upcoming negotiations. I stress that the zero draft is a good starting point for that. You can rest assured that the European Union and its Member States will engage actively and constructively in a spirit of cooperation. 

With this Declaration, we need to address the gaps, to review progress, and to recommit to the Copenhagen Declaration and its Programme of Action, also give further momentum towards the full and timely implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

The three core pillars of the Copenhagen Declaration will of course still be central to the Summit’s Political Declaration. But we also need to take into account the changes in the world since 1995, such as the social (including demographic), digital, and green transitions. It is important to address the transformation of work, and new opportunities and challenges linked to these transitions.

The World Social Summit and the Declaration should also provide momentum to the implementation of the Pact for the Future. The Pact and its annexes represent clear commitments and deliverables on sustainable development and financing, peace and security, digital cooperation, youth, future generations and global governance. They contain concrete actions related to combating inequalities, promoting human rights, universal access to quality education and life-long learning, and gender equality, as cross-cutting issues.

We fully agree with the zero draft, when it points out that the slow progress on many of the commitments is a matter of concern, particularly regarding poverty eradication, ending hunger, eliminating child labour, reducing inequalities, and ensuring decent work for all. 

We welcome the holistic approach to eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions as well as the human rights perspective. We are committed to effective multilateralism and strengthened international cooperation aimed at social development, social justice, decent work, global solidarity, just transitions, and reduced inequalities within and among countries. Special attention should also be paid to gender equality and to transformative approaches to achieve this overarching goal. Closing the gender pay gap is a key element here. 

I would like to commend the co-facilitators for including a gender perspective, and for taking into account perspectives of different groups such as young and older persons, persons with disabilities, as well as persons in vulnerable situations. The human right-based, the whole-of-society, and the whole-of-government approaches are indispensable for social policy coherence and social development.

In this context, the Political Declaration should also recognise that renewing the global social contract, anchored in human and labour rights, is key to rebuilding trust, social cohesion, and solidarity. International labour standards are the basis for working towards social development that is just, fair, inclusive, sustainable and equitable. 

Committing to the global social development agenda is not just the right thing for us to do, but also a strategic economic decision. We emphasize the Economy of Wellbeing approach, which underlines the mutually reinforcing nature of economic growth and wellbeing. Policies and structures supporting social development and human capital are investments providing economic and social returns as well as stability, security and resilience for societies, often not reflected in GDP numbers alone. 

We recommend a separate section dedicated to social protection. It is an important tool to reduce multidimensional poverty overall, and has interconnections with all other thematic areas as well. 

Colleagues,

Strengthening multi-stakeholder engagement and partnerships, including with civil society, social partners, academia, and the private sector is indispensable for implementing the commitments of the Declaration on the ground.  The Declaration should recognise the central role of the International Labour Organization in promoting social justice and decent work for all. The Global Coalition for Social Justice should be instrumental in ensuring the Summit’s effective follow-up.

During the upcoming informal consultations, we will make further suggestions for improvements of this Declaration. We are looking forward to more detailed exchanges on the text in the next few weeks, with a view of reaching consensus in June. You can count on the EU and its member states to work tirelessly and constructively towards this end.

Thank you.

* North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.