Nordic Statement at the informal consultations on the Summit of the Future

- Check against delivery - 

On behalf of the Nordic countries, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and my own country Sweden;

I thank Ambassador Antje Leendertse, Permanent Representative of Germany to the United Nations, and Ambassador Neville Melvin Gertze, Permanent Representative of Namibia – co-facilitators on the intergovernmental consultations on the Summit of the Future – for presenting their proposed Roadmap towards the preparatory Ministerial Meeting for the Summit of the Future.

The Summit of the Future represents a unique opportunity to bolster our global governance mechanisms for global commons and amplify our commitments on peace, security, the climate crisis, and sustainable development, including accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. 

The Nordic countries fully agree that the SDG Summit will be the centrepiece moment of 2023. We need to increase our efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda. We support a close coordination between the co-facilitators of the SDG Summit and the Summit of the Future. A successful SDG Summit is a prerequisite for a successful Summit of the Future and the preparatory ministerial meeting should include follow-up on the SDG Summit.

We look forward to the Policy Briefs foreseen to be released over the coming months. We support the co-facilitators’ suggestion to organize informal briefings in conjunction with the policy briefs’ publications. They will provide important guidance on the different tracks towards the Summit, and help us forge consensus on what to include in the Summit. 

We welcome the transparent and inclusive multi-stakeholder approach in which you have chosen to conduct this work. 

The meaningful participation of civil society, including women and youth, academia, the private sector, and other relevant stakeholder across all the different tracks will ensure the legitimacy and sustainability of this process.  

Chair,

We also thank the co-Chairs of the High-Level Advisory Board on Effective Multilateralism, H.E. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and H.E. Stefan Löfven, for updating on their report. Together with the policy briefs, the recommendations of HLAB will form an integral part of the preparatory work ahead of the Summit. Please rest assured of the Nordic countries’ support and constructive engagement.

Please allow me to pose two questions on behalf of the Nordic Countries:

- How can we together assure that we have a well-defined and consensual agenda for the Summit of the Future by the time of the Ministerial Meeting later this year? 

- How do you think we can best leverage the synergies between the SDG Summit and the Summit of the Future?

Thank you.