"Egypt and the UN: 80 Years of Contribution

Your Excellency Ambassador Al Jowaily, 

Your Excellency Professor Abdelsadek, 

Your Excellency Professor Hanan, 

Dear Students, Dear colleagues, ladies and Gentlemen,

It is an honor to be here with you today!

I would like to thank Cairo University and Ministry of Foreign Affairs for this exciting initiative, which marks the 80th anniversary of the United Nations - 80 years of shared commitment for peace and hope for a better future for humanity. 

As a founding member of the UN, Egypt has a distinguished track record over the past 80 years, as a responsible, substantive and committed multilateral partner. 

The historic leadership role of Egypt stretches back to the founding of the Non-Aligned Movement and is visible to date in the voice of authority that Egypt brings to the G77. 

The leadership was also personified by eminent personalities such as Dr. Mostafa Kamal Tolba, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP 1975 -1992), Dr. Boutros Boutros Ghali UN Secretary General 1992-1996; and at present by USG Ghada Waly,  Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). 

Dear students, allow me to elaborate on three main points:

First: Why do we need the UN today?

Second: What is the UN agenda and how it evolved over time? 

And third: How does UN contribute to this agenda both globally and also as the UN in Egypt?

So, why do we need the UN today?

Because the challenges ahead of us, as mankind, as a global community, are so large and complex that they cannot be tackled by countries alone. 

From the climate crisis to the multiplication of conflicts – including the ongoing wars; the governance of weapons of mass destruction; health emergencies such as COVID; and the global refugee protection regime - the challenges are serious and multi-dimensional.

No nation is immune. And that is precisely why we need to work together, that is why we need multilateralism. Because no state can solve the challenges ahead of us alone. 

The UN has evolved over the years to keep pace with a rapidly changing world. But one thing has stayed the same: it remains the only place in the world where all the world’s nations come together, to discuss common problems, and find shared solutions that benefit all of humanity and future generations.

In today’s world, the UN is needed more than ever. The UN stands as a symbol of solidarity in a world fragmented by divisions, a unique platform for global dialogue to devise solutions to the multi-dimensional crises we are facing, including conflicts and the climate crisis. 

I come to my second point. What is the UN agenda? And how it has been continuously evolving in response to the global challenges?

At the heart of the UN’s mission are the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): these are 17 interconnected global goals that were adopted in 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly and are intended to be achieved by 2030. They constitute a global agenda to eradicate poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all by 2030.

The 17 SDGs recognize that poverty, inequality, and environmental degradation are interconnected challenges that require integrated solutions. As such, the SDGs are indivisible and strongly intertwined. They provide a shared blueprint for all countries, including Egypt, to build a more sustainable and equitable future. 

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on climate action stand as testaments to our shared vision for a better world - a world where no one is left behind. 

Recognizing that the world is facing unprecedented pressures threatening all the UN values, Member States realised that such interconnected challenges require a new approach: One that moves beyond fragmented solutions and adopts a more integrated forward-looking vision. 

Within this framework, in September 2024, the UN held the Summit of the Future.

The Summit marked a crucial opportunity for world leaders to address current global challenges while anticipating future ones, strengthening international cooperation, and reforming global governance.

The Summit reflected the need for a fundamental reset, a chance to reimagine global cooperation for a world drastically different from the one in which the UN was founded. It represented a transformational moment, that secured a more sustainable, peaceful, and just future for all, whilst ensuring that the UN remains fit for purpose in the 21st century.

The Summit culminated in the adoption of the Pact for the Future, which outlined concrete actions across key areas such as sustainable development, peace and security, digital cooperation, and youth empowerment. This Pact constitutes a comprehensive vision for global cooperation, reaffirms the centrality of the UN in addressing global challenges and underscores the need for renewed commitment to multilateralism. 

As a regional leader and a key player in shaping global governance, Egypt actively contributed to the Summit of the Future and its outcomes, namely, advocating for financing for development, international peace and security, science, technology and innovation and digital cooperation, youth and future generations, and transforming global governance.

Further on, the continued commitment of Egypt has been exemplified in its hosting of major global events – such as the global climate conference, COP27 and the 12th edition of the World Urban Forum. 

Egypt is also home for the League of Arab States, a key regional multilateral institution, and also, the Cairo International Center for Conflict resolution, Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding, CCCPA, an important African center of excellence and the driving force behind the annual Aswan Forum for Sustainable Peace and Development.

All this illustrates Egypt’s multilateral credentials.

I come to my final point: How does UN contribute to this agenda both globally and also as the UN in Egypt? 

The UN is, by far, the largest supplier of humanitarian aid in the world. UN agencies are everywhere where there is conflict, where there are natural disasters, independently of the dangers. The UN has played a crucial role delivering humanitarian aid in highly complex contexts, including in Gaza, Sudan, and Ukraine, finding concrete solutions to reach populations in need, for whom receiving aid, is a matter of life or death. 

The UN has been very active in relation to climate change. I believe that probably the strongest voice in relation to climate change has been the voice of the UN. 

The UN is also a powerful advocate for the reform of the international financial system, pushing for a new and more just model of international financing based on shared goals and equal partnerships across its Member States.   

As UN in Egypt: 

The UN presence in Egypt is one of the largest in the region with 31 offices, including 18 UN regional offices. Tracing its partnership with Egypt to 1952, as of early 2022 the UN employs over 2,500 staff in Egypt.

Our longstanding and extensive presence demonstrates our strong engagement with Egypt. In the development landscape of Egypt, the UN distinguishes itself through three comparative advantages: 

Firstly, the UN provides integrated policy advice and programmatic support to deliver on the implementation of the SDGs.

Building on the expertise and know-how of the entire UN Development System, we provide proof-of-concept that can be scaled up by the Government and other development partners.

Secondly, the UN in Egypt has unique convening power as a trusted and reliable partner of the GoE, the international community and different stakeholders, including civil society and the private sector.

We leverage this capacity to bring together different actors to coordinate development cooperation efforts, create innovative partnerships, and provide thought leadership on emerging strategic issues.

Thirdly, the UN provides targeted direct support to specific people in Egypt that are at risk of being left behind. This includes service delivery in areas such as health, education and food and nutrition, to migrants and refugees and others that are in vulnerable situations.

In this way we seek to respond to the promise of the SDGs to Leave No One Behind. 

Beyond development progress, the UN and Egypt have partnered effectively in addressing humanitarian crises. Recent events in Sudan and Gaza underscore the importance of this collaboration. Egypt’s leadership in responding to these crises is a testament to its commitment to humanity and solidarity. The United Nations in Egypt has mobilized its full capabilities to support these efforts, working alongside the Egyptian Red Crescent and other partners to deliver aid to those most in need.

As we look ahead, we must ask ourselves: Are we doing enough? Are we moving fast enough?

The UN's 80th anniversary doesn’t only reflect a momentum to celebrate eight decades of vital work for peace, development and human rights, but also an opportunity to reflect and shape the future.  That’s why this dialogue with you, the future leaders of Egypt and the world is so important.

Dear young people, dear partners,

Allow me to conclude my remarks by affirming the words of UN Secretary-General António Guterres “the values that have powered the UN Charter for the last 80 years — peace, development, human rights, and opportunity for all — have no expiry date.”

In this regard, I hope that this partnership will bring us more together around the values of the UN Charter as we commit to working for a better world and more empowered future generations. 

I thank you for your attention and wish you a very successful workshop.