Madam Chair,

1. I have the honor to speak on behalf of the Group of 77 and China on agenda item 139: Pattern of Conferences.

2. The Group of 77 and China thanks Mr. Hussein Roshdy, the Chair of the Committee on Conferences, and Mr. Movses Abelian, the Under-Secretary-General for General Assembly and Conference Management, for introducing their respective reports.

3. The Group appreciates the Committee on Conferences for the work carried out during its session in September 2025 and for the quality of its report. The Group hopes that the proposed draft resolution will provide a good basis for consideration of this agenda item.

Madam Chair,

4. The Group extends its deep gratitude to the staff of the Department for General Assembly and Conference Management (DGACM) for their dedicated efforts in supporting the work of intergovernmental bodies. We underline the importance of ensuring quality conference services and equal treatment of all six official languages of the United Nations.

5. We stress that the principle of sovereign equality of all Member States, as enshrined in the Charter, must be safeguarded in conference modalities, ensuring equal participation without obstacles.

6. The Group notes that the liquidity challenges continue to affect recruitment, particularly in the language services. We encourage efforts to engage language professionals from developing regions, especially Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean, in order to enhance geographical diversity.

7. We welcome the measures taken to improve access to conference services for persons with disabilities, including support provided by the Accessibility Centre and the use of sign language. We encourage continued efforts to ensure accessibility across all duty stations.

8. The Group also recalls the need to address the deteriorating conditions and limited capacity of the UNON Conference Centre and looks forward to the progress of the project.

9. Finally, the Group of 77 and China underlines the importance of adhering to the administrative guidelines governing the use of United Nations premises. Activities hosted must always align with the purposes and principles of the Organization.

Thank you.