“Our world is going through a time and turbulence and the period of transition, but we cannot wait for perfect conditions. We must take the first decisive steps towards updating and reforming international cooperation,” said UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
The United Nations’ General Assembly approved a blueprint to bring the world’s increasingly divided nations together to tackle 21st-century challenges on Sunday.
Those issues range from climate change and artificial intelligence to escalating conflicts and increasing inequality and poverty.
The 42-page “Pact for the Future” challenges the leaders of the 193 member nations of the UN to turn promises into real actions that make a difference to the world.
“Our Summit for the Future has given us a pact,” said UN General Assembly President Philemon Yang.
“The commitments embodied in the Pact, and its annexes, reflect the collective will of Member States and must guide our actions and encourage us to promote international peace and security, invigorate implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, foster just and inclusive societies, and ensure that technology is always for the common good of mankind.”
The pact was adopted at the opening of the two-day “Summit for the Future” called by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
In his words, the group was gathered to “bring multilateralism back from the brink.”
International delegations in attendance at the summit included German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai.