Governments have united in adopting the Declaration to address poverty, create quality jobs, fight discrimination, broaden social protection, and safeguard human rights. This highlights social development as a moral duty and essential for peace, stability, and growth. The Summit, held in Doha, gathered over 14,000 stakeholders, including 40+ heads of state, 170 ministers, and other leaders, showing social development involves more than just governments. The Doha Political Declaration, named after its host city, reaffirms commitments to the 1995 Copenhagen Declaration and the 2030 Agenda, focusing on poverty eradication, employment, and social inclusion. It ties social justice to peace and security, urging climate action in line with UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement. Financially, it reaffirms the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, welcomes Seville’s financing framework update, and calls for stronger multilateral institutions. The Social Development Commission will lead monitoring with a five-year review. General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock emphasized the need to ensure no one is left behind, noting progress in reducing unemployment and poverty, though disparities persist, especially for women and youth. She stressed interconnected solutions for issues like poverty, climate resilience, and gender equality, highlighting that SDGs represent a unified framework. UN Secretary-General António Guterres noted slow SDG progress and called the Doha Political Declaration a development boost, focusing on social protection, health, education, and closing the digital divide. He underlined the need for global financial reform for equitable development and climate finance. The Summit aims for collective action and political and financial resolve to fulfill promises from Copenhagen. UN News provides live updates from Doha on the Summit activities.
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