2. The Group of 77 and China would like to express its appreciation for the co-facilitators' for conveying today's informal meeting on enhancing the synergies, and coherence and reducing overlap where it is found to exist in the agenda of the General Assembly, Economic and Social Council, and their subsidiary bodies, as well as the high - level political forum, and other the related forums in light of the adoption of the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. The Group took note of the co-facilitators draft element paper.

3. The Group of 77 would like to make the following procedural comments on the draft element paper, as follows:

- Mandate of GA resolution: the G77 is of the view that the proposed way forward for the Secretary General (SG) to conduct a survey goes beyond the GA resolution 71/323 (Op30). As the SG has no role or mandate in this process, which should be owned and driven by Member States. The G77 would like to find out if such survey has been conducted before, in the context of the GA process? The role was given to the SG is outside the GA resolution mandate.
 
- Consensus: G77 has a strong conviction that only consensual paragraphs can go to the revitalization process. There has not been time and opportunity to start a negotiation process on this issue. Therefore, in our view, none of the proposed elements enjoys the consensus of all Member States and cannot be introduced as such to the revitalization process. We are in the third year of consultations and we have not reached consensus as Member States have different vision and views of the process. This process should not be un-necessarily rushed, and should give Member States sufficient time to reconcile their differences.

- Role of the President of the General Assembly (PGA). The mandate given through the proposed para in the draft element paper goes beyond the PGA procedural and organizational functions. As well as the role of the Chairs of the committee. Chair of Committee have limited functions. We request that the PGA should continue his work to reach a consensus among Member States.

- Deadline: We have strong reservation over the timeline for the completion of the process in view of the multiple ongoing event, such as the HLPF, we are of the view that the co-facilitators should not impose a deadline on a Member States driven process.

On Substance:

4- The draft proposals should not disregard the effort of last years; it should be built based on the previous co-facilitators work.

5- The G77 has from the first informal consultation on the 3rd of May put forward a clear position paper we have consistently maintained to this day.

6- The G77 underlines that the co-facilitators draft elements paper is their own recommendation, as it does not reflect the view of the G77 Member States nor the balance that should be for the outcome of the intergovernmental process.

Thank you.

2. This has been a particularly intense and challenging session. We have extended beyond the end of June, and into the new fiscal year. The Group notes that we had expressed concern at the outset on the heavy agenda and the late introduction of items in this session, but exercised flexibility in the interest of progress. The Group of 77 and China is satisfied that we have reached a successful conclusion, and we acknowledge the role of the Chair and your Bureau. We hope that this session will remain the exception and not the rule.
 
Mr. Chair,

3. Peacekeeping is a crucial part of the United Nations' work. Peacekeeping budgets must provide the necessary resources to enable the Organisation to fulfil its mandates. The Group does not believe in arbitrary, across-the-board, cost-cutting exercises that do not take into consideration the situation on the ground. We acknowledge that our negotiations over the last two months have been difficult at times. It was not easy to reach consensus. We hope that the conclusions we have reached will enable the Secretariat to carry out its work effectively and efficiently.

4. The Group regrets that once again, we could not reach agreement on addressing closed peacekeeping missions. When we next consider this issue, we trust that there will be new options for a sustainable solution to address claims payable to Member States, particularly troop- and police- contributing countries, from the budgets of closed peacekeeping operations.

5. At the broader level, the Group notes the progress that the Secretariat has made over the past year in making peacekeeping more field-focused and effective. We look forward to continued efforts in this regard, including the full utilisation of the Regional Service Centre in Entebbe.

6. In addition, the Group of 77 and China is pleased with the outcome of our review of the standard rate of reimbursement to troop- and police-contributing countries. This resolution has also increased death and disability compensation rates, which have not been addressed since 2010. The Group of 77 and China takes this opportunity to pay tribute to those who have made sacrifices in the cause of peace.
 
Mr. Chair,

7. The Group of 77 and China welcomes the adoption of two historical resolutions on the restructuring of the peace and security architecture, and on management reform. Negotiations on these two resolutions have been long and difficult at times. However, the Group is pleased that we have reached a successful conclusion that will help the Secretary-General to make the Organisation work better for its Member States.

8. On management reform, the Group of 77 and China is proud of achieving a balanced outcome that lays the foundation for building a more effective, efficient, accountable, and transparent Organisation. With this resolution, significant changes will be made to the structure of the Secretariat, as well as critical system-wide functions such as procurement and ICT. The Group looks forward to a more effective Secretariat that will work to deliver better results for Member States, and complement reform processes in other tracks.

9. On the restructuring of the peace and security architecture, the Group welcomes the shift to a new way of working, towards a more integrated and coordinated UN. We are pleased that there will be four stand-alone divisions for Africa. We look forward to how the changes will truly enable a "whole-of-pillar" approach in working with entities system-wide, to strengthen the coherence of the Organisation's support and response for peace operations at every point on the peace continuum.

Mr. Chair,

10. The Group of 77 and China extends our appreciation to all facilitators and burden-sharers who played key roles in our negotiations. We thank our colleagues for their flexibility and constructive engagement during this session, which enabled us to reach consensus on many difficult issues.

11. In particular, the Group of 77 and China would like to thank the members of the Secretariat, especially Ms. Sharon van Buerle and her team, for their dedication, hard work, and endurance through many long nights. We are grateful to the other members of the Secretariat, conference officers, interpreters, and support staff for their work. We also thank the Secretariat of the G77 and China for their continued support to the Group.

Mr Chair,

12. As we conclude this session, some of our colleagues will be leaving us as they go on to a different phase of their lives. We extend our warmest wishes for their continued success in future endeavours, and hope that they will take their memories of their time here with them, as well as friendships built over the many long hours spent together in the basement of the United Nations.

13. Finally, the Group reaffirms our commitment to always engage constructively in the work of the Fifth Committee, as we look ahead and prepare for the seventy-third session. We hope the spirit of cooperation and flexibility will continue to prevail. The Group of 77 and China stands ready as always to work with all colleagues towards our common goal of building a better United Nations that works for the interests of all Member States.

I thank you, Mr. Chair.

2. The Group of 77 and China would like to express its appreciation for the co-facilitators' for conveying today's informal meeting on enhancing the synergies, and coherence and reducing overlap where it is found to exist in the agenda of the General Assembly, Economic and Social Council, and their subsidiary bodies, as well as the high - level political forum, and other the related forums in light of the adoption of the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. The Group also acknowledges the efforts by the co-facilitators to produce the second "Food for thought Paper".

3. The Group underscore that the full and effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda is of the highest importance for the Group. With this in mind, any alignment process should lead to a comprehensive coverage of the 2030 Agenda, and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals and targets, with the understanding that eradication of poverty in all its forms and dimension is the overarching priority.

4. In this regards The Group reiterates its strong conviction on the critical need to genuinely address gaps, and targets that remain uncovered under the General Assembly, and the ECOSOC agenda. In this regard, we should consider serious discussions to create new agenda items where deem appropriate and necessary to give those goals and targets a placement to be followed-up and reviewed. The indivisible nature of Agenda 2030 make it imperative, and urgent to ensure equal attention and consideration to all goals and targets of the SDGs aiming at a successful implementation of the Agenda in its entirety.

5. As we are moving forward in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, emerging and relevant issues could give rise to new agenda items for the work of the General Assembly if not ECOSOC and other relevant bodies

6. The Group underscores that any exercise regarding overlapping must prevent the elimination of substantive topics on existing agenda items, nor call for a joint UN reports, it must safeguard and strengthen the United Nations Development System. Duplication does not necessarily mean repetition; overlaps should be studied in a case-by-case basis, taking into consideration specific mandates and perspectives of UN organs.

7. The Group would like to underline that this exercise of addressing overlapping and avoiding duplication should not only focus on the work and agenda items belong to the 2nd committee, but has to go beyond and cut across the work of all committees.

8. The Group would like to underscore the ownership and leadership of Member States to this exercise. The primary responsibility remains in the hands of the states to decide on the action to be taken on this agenda, in addition, we should ensure and preserve their rights to present and submit proposals for new agenda items.

Distinguished Co-facilitators,

9. On the way forward and continuation of this work, we have the following comments: the Group believes of the importance of building on, and benefit from the results of the work has been already carried out in the past years under this framework, these efforts cannot be ignored, as we should avoid repeating, or duplicating the same efforts again. We also believe that it is important to be realistic when setting timeframes for the completion of the alignment process, which requires further consultations, and thorough discussions among the membership. The Group is of the view that this exercise will greatly benefits by learning how the UN system its relevant entities, fund and programs align itself with the 2030 Agenda, we are looking forward for such briefing by the UN system.

10. The Group of 77 and China would like to express its commitment to engage constructively in this process.

Thank you.