Lula says 2030 Agenda may be UN’s “biggest failure”
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said Tuesday (Sep. 19) that the United Nations’ (UN) sustainable development agenda could be the organization’s biggest failure. Opening the general debate of heads of state at the 78th UN General Assembly in New York, President Lula said that inequality is the main challenge facing humanity, and, in order to overcome it, “hunger, poverty, war, disrespect for human beings” should inspire indignation among political leaders.
The president advocated a reform of the global governance system and said that the international community is immersed “in a maelstrom of multiple and simultaneous crises.” The president cited the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, as well as food and energy insecurity, which he said are amplified by “growing geopolitical tensions.”
“If we had to sum up these challenges in a single word, it’d be inequality. Inequality lies at the root of these phenomena, or works to aggravate them. The UN’s broadest and most ambitious collective action for development, the 2030 Agenda, could become its biggest failure. We are halfway through the implementation period and still far from achieving its goals. Most of the sustainable development goals are moving at a slow pace,” he declared.
“The moral and political imperative to eradicate poverty and end hunger seems to have been anesthetized. In the seven years we have left, reducing inequalities within and between countries should become the overarching objective of the 2030 Agenda,” the Brazilian president added.
“Only if we are moved by the force of indignation can we take action with will and determination to overcome inequality and effectively transform the world around us. The UN needs to fulfill its role as a builder of a more just, supportive, and fraternal world. But it will only do so if its members have the courage to proclaim their indignation at inequality and work tirelessly to overcome it,” he told world leaders.
Brazil, he went on, wants to “make its due contribution to tackling the main global challenges.” He mentioned initiatives implemented by the Brazilian government—such as the Brasil sem Fome program against hunger, the Bolsa Família welfare, taxing the super-rich, the law on equal pay for men and women, the fight against femicide, and the defense of the rights of LGBTQI+ groups and people with disabilities.
President Lula also said Brazil is committed to implementing all 17 sustainable development goals, “in an integrated manner,” adding he wants to achieve racial equality in Brazilian society, as an eighteenth goal, “which we’ll adopt voluntarily.”
General debate
This year, the theme of the UN General Assembly general debate is “Rebuilding Trust and Reigniting Global Solidarity: Accelerating Action on the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals Towards Peace, Prosperity, Progress and Sustainability for all.” In it, the heads of UN member states are invited to give speeches on their perspectives and concerns about the multilateral system.
