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STATEMENT BY MR. LOH SECK TIONG, COUNSELOR, PERMANENT MISSION OF MALAYSIA TO THE UNITED NATIONS, AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE WORK OF THE COMMISSION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (CSD-20), NEW YORK, 20 SEPTEMBER, 2013
Mr. Chairman,
On behalf of my delegation, I would like to thank you for convening this meeting, which will be held for the last time, under the Commission of Sustainable Development (CSD). My appreciation also goes to the distinguished panelists for their insightful thoughts on the CSD and what need to be done to steer the work of sustainable development to greater heights through the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
2. I wish to align my delegation with the statement made by the distinguished Permanent Representative of Fiji on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.
Mr. Chairman,
3. In retrospect, Malaysia, was the first Chairman, when the Commission on Sustainable Development convened its first meeting way back in 1993. Since then, Malaysia together with other Member States and other stakeholders from the Major Groups have made significant contributions to the work of the Commission, which saw the body growing from strength to strength leading it to achieve remarkable success in steering sustainable development agenda to greater heights during the early years of its establishment.
4. On this backdrop, it is difficult to see the work of this Commission coming to an end, as it is replaced by the High-level Political Forum which we have agreed in Rio more than a year ago. As my delegation has mentioned in a number of occasions, the failure of the Commission is not due to the lack of its structure, but rather due to the lack of political commitment from Member States.
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5. Going forward, the Secretary-General’s report on “The lessons learned from the Commission on Sustainable Development” in this regard, would be a good source of reference for the High-level Political Forum to take stock. This would help the Forum to build on the good elements of the CSD, that would allow it to respond to new and emerging issues of sustainable development in an efficient manner.
6. In closing, I would like to assure you, Mr. Chairman, of my delegation’s continued commitment and support in the work of sustainable development through the High-Level Political Forum in the context of post-2015 sustainable development agenda.
Thank you.
