Rules-based order crucial to development,
says Philippine envoy
Ambassador Evan P. Garcia delivers the Philippine statement during the
70th session of the UNCTAD Trade and Development Board (TDB)
GENEVA, 20 June 2023 – Philippine Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva Evan P. Garcia urged the international community to uphold multilateralism as the world reels from current economic challenges at a meeting of the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) here.
“The global economic difficulties we are experiencing may have been triggered by the pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine, but they have been brewing for quite some time. They are caused by persistent inequities and inequality between and among countries,” Garcia told diplomats gathered here for the 70th session of UNCTAD’s Trade and Development Board.
“As my President said at the General Assembly last year, these inequities and inequality are one of the four transcendent challenges that make the current historical juncture a watershed moment for the international community. Amidst these challenges, the international community must continue to affirm the open, inclusive, and rules-based international order that is governed by international law and informed by the principles of justice and equity,” the envoy said, referring to the remarks of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. at the United Nations in October.
Garcia stressed that “the global governance system works if it is allowed to work” in a manner that is “insulated from politicized dynamics driven by ideological and strategic competitions.” UNCTAD, he said, plays a central role in this system, and could do more in supporting states as they tackle issues such as food security, energy security, and climate action.
UNCTAD is the U.N. body tasked with promoting global development through consensus-building, research and analysis, and technical cooperation. It has proven its relevance recently through its Secretary-General’s role in brokering the Black Sea Initiative, which facilitates the transfer of export of grains and oil amidst Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It also plays a role in the U.N. Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy, and Finance, which works to arrest the economic impact of the pandemic and the Ukraine conflict. END