‘Seize the Moment’ to Show Global Cooperation Can Still Deliver as Raw Power Tests Multilateralism, Secretary-General Tells Economic and Social Council

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres' opening remarks, as delivered by Deputy Secretary-General Amina J Mohammed, at the 2026 Economic and Social Council coordination segment, in New York today:

It is my honour to speak to you today on behalf of the Secretary-General as we begin this year's coordination segment.

Last week, the Economic and Social Council marked its eightieth anniversary as the UN Charter body mandated to promote international cooperation in economic, social and environmental matters.

Since its inception, the Economic and Social Council has been a platform for global dialogue and decision-making, a place for turning aspirations into commitments in our countries, and a catalyst for mobilizing resources and promoting coordinated action. Over the past eight decades, it has been an engine of progress for sustainable development and human rights around the world.

But much work remains to be done. Our world today faces multiple interconnected crises - from raging conflicts and widening inequalities to climate chaos and runaway technologies. Yet raw power is testing the resilience of multilateralism. The Economic and Social Council must seize this moment and show that global cooperation can still deliver.

I welcome its continued commitment to optimizing the work of the UN development system - in alignment with the UN80 Initiative's vision of a stronger, more effective UN that delivers for people and planet, particularly at the country level. And I count on the Council's determination to drive transformative, equitable, innovative, and coordinated action.

This includes actions that are needed to unlock financing for development, lift our crushing debt burdens, help developing countries climb supply chains, promote dignity, advance equality, empower women and girls, and foster the opportunity for youth, and so much more.

Over the next few days, you will hear from experts in a wide range of fields - among them representatives of Member States, our own UN systems, and Economic and Social Council subsidiary bodies. They will brief you on work being done to deepen coherence, foresight, innovation, and data-driven coordination across the Economic and Social Council system. This coordination segment is also a vital opportunity for additional stakeholders to share their views.

From the start, the Economic and Social Council has excelled at enabling civil society, the scientific and technological community, the private sector, and many others to participate and influence the decisions - helping to ensure that we do keep our no one left behind commitment.

We have just five years left to achieve the 2030 Agenda. Yet progress on many of the Sustainable Development Goals is alarmingly off track. Now is the time to double down and deliver. Major commitments in recent months have put wind at our backs.

I am thinking of the Compromiso de Sevilla, adopted at Fourth Conference on Financing for Development, the Awaza Political Declaration, adopted at the Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries, the Doha Political Declaration, adopted at the Second World Social Summit, and the Belém Political Package, adopted at COP30 [Thirtieth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)].

We have to build on this momentum. I am counting on your policy guidance to the ECOSOC system over the next few days - and in the months ahead - to help light our way. Your engagement will be critical in turning these commitments into concrete and measurable actions on the ground, and in ensuring that these activities - at global, regional, national and local levels - are concerted and impactful.

This Coordination Segment is a chance to optimize the work of the Council and the wider UN development system - by assessing progress that's been made, aligning our strategies, and strengthening collective efforts towards achieving the 2030 Agenda.

With this in mind, I also welcome the upcoming General Assembly reviews of the Economic and Social Council and the high-level political forum. The Council has evolved significantly over the years, and this exercise offers a further opportunity to strengthen its deliberative work, heighten its real-world impact and ensure that we are future-ready.

The complex global challenges we face make the Economic and Social Council's role more vital than ever. In our divided world, it offers a forum for boosting solidarity, fostering those partnerships and strengthening them, and guiding collective action towards our commitments.

Now I believe we have time for decisive action, but let's reaffirm and strengthen the core values and principles of the UN - with robust, inclusive multilateralism that promotes peace, justice, and humanity; above all gives hope to the many who do not see tomorrow.

Let us renew our commitment to a future grounded in cooperation, dialogue, resilience, and a shared responsibility. And with the Economic and Social Council as a pillar of multilateralism, let us take action to make the vision for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development a reality for all.