STATEMENT ON BEHALF OF THE GROUP OF 77 AND CHINA BY AMBASSADOR GODFREY KWOBA, DEPUTY PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE, PERMANENT MISSION OF UGANDA TO THE UNITED NATIONS, AT THE SECOND COMMITTEE GENERAL DISCUSSION ON AGENDA ITEM 21: GROUPS OF COUNTRIES IN SPECIAL SITUATIONS (New York, 21 October 2024)

Chair,
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,

1. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China on agenda item 21.

Excellencies,

2. The Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) remain a special case with particular and unique challenges that require targeted support from the international community to enable them to adequately address these challenges and accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. With only six years remaining until 2030, and with the unique challenges that the LDCs and LLDCs face further hindered by the persistent impacts of the COVID-19, climate change, elevated debt levels, biodiversity loss, disasters, pollution and geopolitical tensions, there is an urgent need for the international community to get back on track in supporting the LDCs and LLDCs.

3. The Group of 77 and China's top priority for the LDCs and LLDCs is to ensure that these groups of countries get the required support to enable them to adequately address their unique needs and challenges. We firmly believe that only through targeted support by the international community can the LDCs and LLDCs build the capacity needed to address these challenges. We therefore reiterate our call to the international community, in particular developed countries, to fulfil their previous commitments as well as announce new commitments to support the LDCs and LLDCs to implement targeted policies and measures to address their unique challenges and accelerate their efforts to achieve sustainable development in its three dimensions.

4. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Doha Programme of Action for the LDCs, and the Gaborone Programme for the LLDCs provide frameworks for the international community to address the unique challenges of these groups of countries whose full and timely implementation the international community must prioritize. To accelerate progress towards the full implementation of Agenda 2030, the Doha Programme of Action, and the Gaborone Programme of Action, the G77 and China calls for enhanced global partnership and strong political support. We specifically call upon the international community, in particular developed countries, to provide and mobilize adequate means of implementation to support the LDCs and LLDCs to accelerate their efforts to implement the Agenda 2030 and both Programmes of Action, which are an integral part of the Agenda 2030. We emphasize that the support provided by the international community to the LDCs and LLDCs must be in line with their national and regional needs and priorities.

5. Financing for development remains at the top of our agenda. Ensuring that the LDCs and LLDCs have the required fiscal and policy space to address their unique challenges should be our priority and we support the calls for long-term finance to the LDCs and LLDCs. We also call for a significant increase in grant finance. We fully support the urgent reform of the international financial architecture to address the needs of all developing countries. In addition, the G77 and China recognizes the importance of an inclusive and equitable international tax system. Therefore, we support the ongoing efforts on the promotion of an inclusive and effective international cooperation on tax matters at the United Nations, including the development of the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation.

6. Addressing climate change, biodiversity loss, disasters, pollution remains a priority for the G77 and China in supporting LDCs and LLDCs to build the capacity to adequately respond to these challenges. We are committed to supporting specific actions to address these challenges in line with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and its Paris Agreement, the Convention on Biological Diversity and its Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

Excellencies,

7. The third UN Conference on LLDCs and the Midterm Review of implementation of the Doha Programme of Action for LDCs scheduled in Botswana in December 2024 and the State of Qatar in 2026, respectively, is a unique opportunity for the international community to show solidarity and support the LLDCs and LDCs. It is the Group's hope that this solidarity and support will enable the full implementation of the five priority areas of action in the Gaborone Programme of Action and the 6 key focus areas of action in the Doha Programme of Action. We look forward to actively participating in the 3rd UN Conference on LLDCs and Midterm Review of implementation of the Doha Programme of Action.

8. Finally, the Group reiterates its unwavering solidarity with the LDCs and LLDCs and remains committed to supporting the full implementation of their respective Programmes of Action within the framework of South-South Cooperation.

I thank you.