Finland
United Nations General Assembly
The United Nations Sustainable Development Summit 2015
United Nations, New York
Statement by
H.E. Mr. Sauli Niinistö,
President of the Republic of Finland
New York, 25 September 2015
(check against delivery)
Mr. President,
Mr. Prime Minister,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Your Excellencies,
It is a great honour for me to address this Opening Plenary Summit that just
adopted the new Sustainable Development Agenda. I would like to thank the
Secretary General for his relentless work in supporting the achievement of
previous goals and setting new ones. I would also like to thank President
Museveni and Prime Minister Rasmussen for chairing this historical event.
For 15 years, the Millennium Development Goals have inspired us in our
pursuit of development. Significant progress has been made in achieving all
of the goals. Global efforts have helped to lift more than one billion people out
of extreme poverty. To put this into perspective, it means 200 times the
population of my own country, Finland, or 27 times that of Uganda.
More than a billion people have better possibilities today than just 15 years
ago. Today, more girls can attend school than ever before. Progress has
been made in the fight against hunger and inequality. This work is now
continuing.
It is also important that the MDGs have kick-started progress where it has
been lacking, especially in Africa where there has been unprecedented
economic growth and poverty reduction.
Your Excellencies,
Such progress has not been easy or without setbacks. Not all of the goals
have been achieved. While progress has been made in achieving all of the
MDGs, more has been achieved in some cases than in others.
Gender inequality and violence against women are proving to be intractable
challenges. Broad progress towards gender equality has wavered. This is a
challenge that we must take seriously.
Investing in gender equality is a direct path towards poverty reduction,
inclusive growth and prosperity. An ambitious agenda for achieving gender
equality and women’s rights must be matched by ambitious resources.
We simply cannot solve the world's problems while keeping half of the
population out of leadership positions and subordinated to the other half. To
achieve this goal, we need to change the way in which we act and think.
Another critical factor, besides gender equality, that we cannot overlook or
overcome is environmental sustainability. Addressing climate change and
health, food and water provision requires coordinated global monitoring and
the modelling of several factors — social, economic and environmental. This
also requires an ambitious climate deal in Paris in 2015. Decisions made in
Paris will be the world’s best, last chance of reaching an agreement on cutting
carbon emissions.
The changing climate is affecting the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of
people. What we have seen in Europe during this autumn is only a sad
prelude to what will happen in the future, if we fail to achieve environmental
sustainability.
Your Excellencies,
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a global deal in which each
and every one of us is a participant and thereby responsible for ensuring its
success. There is no room for disputes or failure – succeed we must. The
alternative is simply too expensive, with too much human suffering and misery
on the way.
We can choose whether our legacy is one of hope or despair. It is still up to
us to decide.
Thank you!
The United Nations Sustainable Development Summit 2015
United Nations, New York
Statement by
H.E. Mr. Sauli Niinistö,
President of the Republic of Finland
New York, 25 September 2015
(check against delivery)
Mr. President,
Mr. Prime Minister,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Your Excellencies,
It is a great honour for me to address this Opening Plenary Summit that just
adopted the new Sustainable Development Agenda. I would like to thank the
Secretary General for his relentless work in supporting the achievement of
previous goals and setting new ones. I would also like to thank President
Museveni and Prime Minister Rasmussen for chairing this historical event.
For 15 years, the Millennium Development Goals have inspired us in our
pursuit of development. Significant progress has been made in achieving all
of the goals. Global efforts have helped to lift more than one billion people out
of extreme poverty. To put this into perspective, it means 200 times the
population of my own country, Finland, or 27 times that of Uganda.
More than a billion people have better possibilities today than just 15 years
ago. Today, more girls can attend school than ever before. Progress has
been made in the fight against hunger and inequality. This work is now
continuing.
It is also important that the MDGs have kick-started progress where it has
been lacking, especially in Africa where there has been unprecedented
economic growth and poverty reduction.
Your Excellencies,
Such progress has not been easy or without setbacks. Not all of the goals
have been achieved. While progress has been made in achieving all of the
MDGs, more has been achieved in some cases than in others.
Gender inequality and violence against women are proving to be intractable
challenges. Broad progress towards gender equality has wavered. This is a
challenge that we must take seriously.
Investing in gender equality is a direct path towards poverty reduction,
inclusive growth and prosperity. An ambitious agenda for achieving gender
equality and women’s rights must be matched by ambitious resources.
We simply cannot solve the world's problems while keeping half of the
population out of leadership positions and subordinated to the other half. To
achieve this goal, we need to change the way in which we act and think.
Another critical factor, besides gender equality, that we cannot overlook or
overcome is environmental sustainability. Addressing climate change and
health, food and water provision requires coordinated global monitoring and
the modelling of several factors — social, economic and environmental. This
also requires an ambitious climate deal in Paris in 2015. Decisions made in
Paris will be the world’s best, last chance of reaching an agreement on cutting
carbon emissions.
The changing climate is affecting the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of
people. What we have seen in Europe during this autumn is only a sad
prelude to what will happen in the future, if we fail to achieve environmental
sustainability.
Your Excellencies,
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a global deal in which each
and every one of us is a participant and thereby responsible for ensuring its
success. There is no room for disputes or failure – succeed we must. The
alternative is simply too expensive, with too much human suffering and misery
on the way.
We can choose whether our legacy is one of hope or despair. It is still up to
us to decide.
Thank you!
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