Mr. President,
Distinguished Members of the Executive Board,
Mr. Administrator,

I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. The Group of 77 and China sincerely appreciates Mr. Achim Steiner for his eight years of transformative leadership at UNDP. Through bold strategic planning, he positioned the organization as future-ready, led impactful responses to COVID-19 and multiple crises, and advanced key priorities such as climate action, biodiversity finance, digital governance, and sustainable financing. His legacy reflects a deep commitment to innovation, inclusion, and multilateralism.

1. At a time of converging global crises including conflict, climate change, hunger, poverty, food insecurity, rising inequalities, declining official development assistance, and rapid technological disruption we echo the Administrator's call to reaffirm development as a fundamental pillar of peace and security. Development must be at the center of all our efforts.

2. The Group welcomes the draft Strategic Plan 2026-2029. Many of the priorities reflect the evolving needs of developing countries and provide a strong and adaptive framework to tackle complex development challenges.

3. We are encouraged by the Plan's broader vision of prosperity as a pathway not only to overcome hunger, poverty, and inequalities, but also to build enduring resilience and human development to prevent relapsing into poverty. Prosperity must be inclusive, sustained, and underpinned by structural transformation.

4. The Group strongly supports the prioritization of digital and AI tools as enablers of development. As underscored by the Administrator, this technological shift must become a driver of inclusion and empowerment, not deepened inequality. We call for targeted investments to close the digital divide, build public sector capacity, and ensure that no country or community is left behind in the digital era.

5. We welcome UNDP's efforts to leverage innovative SDG-aligned financial instruments and mobilize both domestic and international resources. In this context, we stress the urgency of delivering concrete outcomes at the upcoming Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) to support national financing frameworks and scale up resources for developing countries.

6. We commend UNDP Country Programmes continued emphasis on national ownership and leadership, which are indispensable to address developing countries' specific needs and priorities. Development interventions must be fully aligned with the priorities of programme countries and anchored in the 2024 QCPR.

7. The Group expresses grave concerns regarding the alarming funding situation of the UN development system, and commends UNDP for its significant efforts to diversify the funding basis and address the current funding shortfalls. We reiterate that efficiencies, while critical, should not be achieved at the detriment of programme support at country level.

8. Programme countries continue to demonstrate strong commitment, having contributed nearly a quarter of UNDP's overall funding in 2023. This reflects our shared investment in development cooperation. We reiterate our call to developed countries to increase predictable, flexible, and core funding to enable UNDP to deliver at scale and with agility. The lack of such funding impacts UNDP's ability to deliver on its much needed support to developing countries. The Group reminds developed countries that they have a commitment to assist developing countries meet their development objectives.

9. Securing core funding for development activities is indispensable to achieve the goals set out in the 2030 Agenda, UNDP's Strategic Plan, and to sustain its central role in the reinvigorated development system. The Group reiterates, in this regard, the importance of meeting ODA commitments, which remain crucial for achieving sustainable development and the SDGs.

10. The Group emphasizes that global coordinated efforts are needed to ensure real progress towards the SDGs and the well-being of our populations. Cutting funding for development can have irreparable effects in developing countries.

11. The Group of 77 and China reaffirms its full support for UNDP and remains committed to working closely with all partners in shaping a future of shared prosperity, dignity, and peace. We look forward to engaging constructively with the new leadership and the Executive Board in delivering the goals of the Strategic Plan 2026-2029.