“Pandemic opens new possibilities”
New York: Terming the COVID-19 pandemic as a “moment of crisis”, the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres’ today told the Sustainable Development Goals Business Forum that returning to “old, discredited systems is out of the question”.
“This is a moment of crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to the most serious social and economic upheaval since the United Nations was created 75 years ago. It has exposed our global fragility, which extends far beyond health systems. Fragility affects all our global institutions and multilateral efforts. We see it in our inadequate response to the climate crisis, in the weakness of the nuclear non-proliferation regime and the lawlessness of cyberspace,” he said.
“To tackle this fragility, we need unity and solidarity,” he averred and added that although the pandemic was a tragedy — “but it has also created a moment of possibility”.
Citing the very example of the United Nations, Guterres’ said: “In our seventy-fifth‑anniversary year, the United Nations is not interested in business as usual. We need business unusual — business that is stepping up and taking responsibility for today and tomorrow, assessing the long-term costs and benefits of its activities; working in partnership with civil society, young people, academia and more to create strong communities and resilient societies.”
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Stating that the world today was addressing the crucial issue of sustainable development at a crucial moment, he said equality, inclusiveness and sustainability were no longer nice-to-have, optional extras to build a more caring brand. “They are the indispensable keys to recovering from the pandemic and building healthy and prosperous economies and societies.”
Guterres’ said governments and the private sector had already changed their working methods more quickly than ever before and the previously unimaginable had suddenly become possible and even desirable. “Everywhere, we see new thinking, innovation and transformation,” he pointed out and said that governments and businesses must now work together to shift direction.
“That is the only way to weather the pandemic, build resilience for the future and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals,” he said.
At the separate World Health Organization (WHO) event on “Infodemic Management: Promoting healthy behaviours in the time of COVID-19 and mitigating the harm from misinformation and disinformation”, Guterres’ further said that COVID-19 was not just a public health emergency, but also a communications emergency. “Our United Nations initiative, called “Verified”, is fighting misinformation with truth. Working with media partners, individuals, influencers and social media platforms, the content we spread promotes science, offers solutions and inspires solidarity. Only together in solidarity, with a well-informed public, will we emerge from this pandemic safe and better,” he said.
Earlier, while addressing the UN General Assembly yesterday, Guterres’ had recalled that in January, he had identified “four horsemen in our midst — four threats that endanger our common future”. They were 1) The highest global geostrategic tensions in years; 2) An existential climate crisis; 3) Deep and growing global mistrust; and 4)The dark side of the digital world.
“But a fifth horseman was lurking in the shadows. Since January, the COVID‑19 pandemic has galloped across the globe — joining the four other horsemen and adding to the fury of each,” he said. “We face simultaneously an epochal health crisis, the biggest economic calamity and job losses since the Great Depression, and dangerous new threats to human rights. COVID-19 has laid bare the world’s fragilities. Rising inequalities. Climate catastrophe. Widening societal divisions. Rampant corruption. The pandemic has exploited these injustices, preyed on the most vulnerable and wiped away the progress of decades,” he said.
The UN Secretary-General pointed out that for the first time in 30 years, poverty was rising and human development indicators were declining — “We are careening off track in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Meanwhile, nuclear non-proliferation efforts are slipping away — and we are failing to act in areas of emerging danger, particularly cyberspace. People are hurting. Our planet is burning. Our world is struggling, stressed and seeking real leadership and action.”
According to him COVID-19 was not only a wake-up call, it was a dress rehearsal for the world of challenges to come. “We must move forward with humility, recognizing that a microscopic virus has brought the world to its knees,” he said.
– globalbihari bureau
