2. This observance provides an opportunity not only to commemorate the adoption of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action in 1978, but also to reaffirm the principles and aspirations that continue to guide our collective efforts. The Buenos Aires Outcome Document, adopted in 2019, further strengthened this vision and provided an important framework for advancing South-South and triangular cooperation in accordance with the national priorities, needs and ownership of developing countries.

3. In this context, the Group welcomes the adoption, on 24 July 2026 of the modalities resolution establishing the framework for the comprehensive, inclusive and Member State-led review of the implementation of the Buenos Aires Outcome Document. The forthcoming review provides an important opportunity to assess progress, identify remaining gaps and emerging challenges, and renew political momentum for South-South cooperation.

4. South-South cooperation is guided by the principles of respect for national sovereignty, national ownership and independence, equality, non-conditionality, non-interference in domestic affairs, and mutual benefit. It is voluntary in nature and remains a complement to, and not a substitute for, North-South cooperation. Nor can South-South cooperation substitute for official development assistance or for the commitments undertaken by developed countries in the field of development, as well as on climate finance.

Madam/Mr. President,

5. We meet at a time when developing countries continue to face multiple and interconnected challenges: financing gaps, debt vulnerabilities, constrained fiscal space, climate change, food and energy insecurity, and persistent technological and digital divides, among others.

6. Against this backdrop, the importance of South-South cooperation has never been greater. Cooperation among developing countries enables the exchange of knowledge, technology, expertise and innovative solutions, while strengthening resilience and supporting nationally determined and country-led development priorities, in line with the Agenda 2030.

7. South-South and triangular cooperation can also support productive transformation, strengthen national capacities and institutions, and enable developing countries not merely to be recipients or users of knowledge and technology, but increasingly to act as innovators, producers and co-creators of solutions.

8. Particular attention must be given to closing technological and digital divides and ensuring that advances in artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies do not generate new forms of exclusion or dependency.

9. South-South cooperation is therefore more than a mechanism for exchanging good practices. It is an important vehicle for strengthening collective self-reliance, advancing the development priorities of the Global South.

10. The Group also reaffirms the central role of the United Nations in promoting and supporting South-South cooperation. In this regard, the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation plays a particularly important role in facilitating partnerships, knowledge-sharing and the exchange of development solutions.

11. We stress the need for adequate, predictable and sustained financial and institutional support for UNOSSC so that it can effectively support Member States and fulfil its mandates.

12. The Group commends South-South and Triangular Cooperation initiatives and funding mechanisms, such as the United Nations Fund for South-South Cooperation, the India-UN Development Partnership Fund, the India, Brazil and South Africa Facility for Poverty and Hunger Alleviation (IBSA Fund), the Pérez-Guerrero Trust Fund for South-South Cooperation (PGTF), the Triangular Cooperation Window under the United Nations Fund for South-South Cooperation, and the China-UN Global South-South Development Facility, and other Trust Funds, for their contribution to the Global South. These Funds seek to innovatively put into practice South-South cooperation by contributing resources and expanding partnerships for development cooperation anchored at the multilateral level.

13. As we move towards the forthcoming review of the Buenos Aires Outcome Document, the review should help us close implementation gaps, strengthen institutional support without duplications, expand access to the means of implementation or improve its quality and scale up successful Southern-led solutions to achieve greater impact on the ground, while fully preserving the distinct nature and principles of South-South cooperation.

14. On this United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation, the Group reiterates its readiness to engage constructively to strengthen international development cooperation based on the principle of solidarity being South-South cooperation an instrument of collective action and transformation in support of a more just, peaceful, resilient and sustainable future for all.

I thank you.

2.The Group appreciates the update provided by the Secretary-General, António Guterres, on the UN80 initiative and reaffirms its support for you and for the UN80 initiative overarching objective of achieving "a paradigm shift" in how the UN system organizes its work in order to deliver greater impact on the ground, as well as strengthening multilateralism and international cooperation amid unprecedented challenges.

3.- The Group of 77 and China remains firmly committed to engaging in all relevant deliberations actively and constructively, with the aim of ensuring that all processes are transparent and inclusive, thereby enabling a more effective, efficient, equitable, and truly representative United Nations system. In that regard, while welcoming the convening of this type of briefings, the Group wishes to highlight the need of in depth intergovernmental consultations, with sufficient time and information and transparent processes, on all the work packages that require Member States decision making on structural reforms. Additional guidance from the Secretariat would also be welcomed, particularly bearing in mind the need to determine which specific work packages and actions should be prioritized this year. This would enable Member States to focus on a limited set of concrete and achievable proposals and, in turn, help ensure the delivery of tangible, ambitious and consensus-based results under Workstream 3 of the UN80 Initiative.

4.- With regard to the merger proposals, the Group of 77 and China takes note with appreciation the decision 2026/26 approved last week, by consensus, by the Second Regular Session of the Executive Board of UNDP, UNFPA and UNOPS, in which Member States decided that the Board is not yet in a position at this time to make a recommendation of support on the proposed mergers between UNDP and UNOPS and UNFPA and UN Women.

5.- At a time of growing financial constraints and increasing development needs, and taking into account the numerous questions and concerns that continue to be raised by Member States across all regional groups regarding the proposed mergers, the Group of 77 and China believes that the necessary conditions are not yet in place at this time to approve structural mergers that would likely entail a prolonged process of institutional restructuring during 2026. In that regard, the Group agrees with the Board's decision to begin exploring alternative options to enhance coordination and efficiency, including through greater operational alignment and coordination, and looks forward to the updates to be provided by the entities to the Executive Board. The Group of 77 and China also wishes to underscore the importance of respecting the prerogatives of the Executive Board, within the scope of its mandate, to assess the information available and decide whether to present recommendations through ECOSOC to the General Assembly.

6.- The Group of 77 and China appreciates the update provided by the Chairs of the AHWG, Ambassador Brian Wallace, Permanent Representative of Jamaica, and Ambassador Merete Fjeld Brattested, Permanent Representative of Norway, as well as their overall work and leadership of the UN80 workstream 2.

7.-The Group takes note of the draft report on criteria and modalities for mandate implementation review, while welcoming the explicit recognition by the Co-Chairs that the criteria and modalities are intended to serve as practical guidance for Member States and are therefore not prescriptive in nature. The Group further underscores that decisions concerning mandates remain the exclusive prerogative of Member States.

Mr. Secretary General,

8.- The Group of 77 and China's remains committed and constructively engaged with the UN80 Initiative, and supports your leadership and vision, as we work together to advance a more effective, efficient, equitable and representative United Nations that strengthens its impact and enhances its support to programme countries.

Thank you.

Mr. Administrator, the Group of the G77 and China appreciates your comprehensive statement, and reiterates its full and continuous support to the vision and direction outlined in the UNDP Strategic Plan.

As the largest end-to-end UN development organization, UNDP is a crucial partner in enhancing and accelerating assistance to developing countries in implementing their respective sustainable development priorities and supporting their efforts to achieve them through collaboration with the Resident Coordinators.

The Group of 77 and China reiterates its grave concern about the 23.3% decline in official development assistance (ODA) in 2025, with a further decline of 6.9% projected for 2026. The Group is also concerned about the 27% decline in core contributions to the United Nations system in 2025, the largest annual decline on record, and extends its sincere appreciation to all 32 Member States that contributed core resources in 2025. The Group reiterates its longstanding call for a significant increase in core contributions, urging all development partners to reverse the current trajectory by providing adequate, predictable, and flexible funding, which is indispensable to achieving the objectives of the UNDP Strategic Plan.

At the same time, the Group recognizes that, more than ever, it is essential to ensure that every aid dollar is used as effectively and impactfully as possible, and welcomes efforts undertaken to reduce duplication and improve efficiency within UNDP and across the system in the context of the UN80 initiative.

As we approach the final years for implementation of the 2030 Agenda, the Group of the 77 and China stresses that the United Nations development system must intensify its support to programme countries to accelerate progress in line with their national priorities. This requires the timely and effective implementation of the Sevilla Commitment, strengthened multilateral cooperation, fulfillment of official development assistance commitments, technology transfer and capacity-building support, enhanced access to concessional financing, debt sustainability measures, and the termination of unilateral coercive measures that undermine Member States' capacities to achieve sustainable development and constrain UNDP ability to effectively deliver its mandate on the ground.

Mr. Administrator,

As you rightly acknowledged today, developing countries are making significant efforts to invest their own national budgets through UNDP, with Government Development Financing reaching nearly $1.6 billion in 2025 and now representing 29% of UNDP's total contributions. Bearing in mind that public resources are already under increasing pressure, and that the international financing required to achieve national development priorities and the Sustainable Development Goals goes far beyond what traditional aid alone is delivering in the current political context, the Group of 77 and China appreciates your commitment to advancing a new model of development partnerships that strengthens South-South cooperation and mobilizes the private sector as a strategic partner for development, including through initiatives such as the UNDP flagship Investment Accelerator and the SDG Investor Maps.

Amid a challenging development landscape and the multiple global crises we are currently facing, the Group of 77 and China wishes to reaffirm its full support for you and your efforts to adapt and strengthen the development system, based on national ownership, creative international partnerships, and renewed trust through greater coordination and cost-efficiencies, as well as measurable results and deliverables for Member States.

I thank you.