Madam President of the Economic and Social Council, Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,

I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. The Group commends the President of ECOSOC for convening today's special meeting on international cooperation in tax matters. We underline that these intergovernmental discussions and deliberations at the United Nations on ways to address the gaps in international cooperation in tax matters is an important step in the right direction.

This meeting takes place at the time when the progress towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remains offtrack and developing countries continue to face the financing gap of USD 4 trillion annually. We emphasize that inclusive and effective international tax cooperation remains a critical prerequisite to the achievement of the SDGs, since it enables developing countries to effectively mobilize their domestic resources to address their financing needs.

We reiterate the importance of addressing international tax cooperation in a global inclusive forum at the intergovernmental level, taking into consideration the existing international and multilateral arrangements. Therefore, we stress the need for inclusive and effective platforms to design and discuss international rules and norms at the United Nations. In this regard, we welcome the decision by the General Assembly in its resolution A/ RES/78/230 to establish a Member State-led, open-ended ad hoc intergovernmental committee for the purpose of drafting terms of reference for a United Nations framework convention on international tax cooperation.

Additionally, we welcome the adoption by consensus of the outline and modalities of the work of the Ad Hoc Committee to Draft Terms of Reference for a United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation at the first organizational session held from 20-22 February 2024. We look forward to the successful completion of the process towards developing a United Nations framework convention on international tax cooperation initiated by the resolution "Promotion of inclusive and effective international tax cooperation at the United Nations" and calls upon all countries to continue to participate and negotiate constructively.

The Group believes that these important steps at the United Nations would go a long way in strengthening international tax cooperation as agreed in the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, and allow all States, particularly developing countries to be involved in setting the international rules and norms on issues related to tax matters. We view the above as critical in addressing the areas that hinder the developing countries' abilities to mobilize domestic resources to address their financing needs.

Finally, the Group remains committed to continue working towards strengthening the inclusiveness and effectiveness of international tax cooperation, while fully taking into account the different needs and capacities of all countries.

I thank you.