United Nations, Jan 14 While pressing for reforming the Security Council and the international financial system, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres praised the efforts of the Global South's efforts for justice.
The machinery created in 1945 is "woefully unfit to meet today's challenge" and "has failed to adequately deliver the level of support your countries need and deserve," he said on Monday, addressing the Global South's Group of 77.
"I applaud your group of countries -- individually and collectively -- for pushing for maximum ambition and maximum justice for all," he said.
The international decision-making system created in the aftermath of World War II "has failed to adequately deliver the level of support your countries need and deserve," he said.
"And more fundamentally, it has kept your voice from being fairly heard and heeded at key decision-making tables," he added.
The Pact for the Future adopted at the September summit of world leaders makes "a clear commitment to expand representation on the Security Council and to reform the international financial architecture."
He called it an important example of "global commitments to update our institutions to better reflect, and address, today's realities."
Guterres spoke at the ceremony at which Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Fuad Hussein took over the chair of the 'Group of 77'.
The group founded by Nonaligned Nations in 1964 with 77 members has grown to 134, with China a supporter but not a full member.
While Guterres called for increasing development assistance, especially for developing countries, to meet the challenges of global warming, he also stressed the importance of reforming international commerce.
"We need an open, predictable, inclusive multilateral trading system that can help developing countries build links to global value chains, drive prosperity and fight poverty," he said.
Reiterating his warnings about the dangers of climate change, Guterres said it was essential to keep the increase in global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius.
This requires reducing global emissions of greenhouse gases by 9 per cent every year till 2030 "by ensuring a just transition from fossil fuels to renewables," he said.
In these efforts, he said, "the biggest countries -- the G20 -- must lead."
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