Director-General/Executive Director
Ambassador Laura Gil, Chair of the Group of 77, Vienna Chapter
Distinguished heads of the Vienna-based Organizations,
Distinguished Ambassadors and delegates,
Colleagues, friends,
It is my honour to address you as we observe the handover of the G77 Chair, and look ahead to another year of fruitful partnership with you.
It is always a personal joy for me to be among this Group, which I proudly belong to.
I would like to commend and congratulate Ambassador Khokher of Pakistan for leading the G77 Vienna Chapter through another challenging year with dedication, wisdom, and grace.
And I would like to welcome Ambassador Gil of Colombia as the incoming Chair.
Muchas Felicidades Ambajadora.
We have already seen Ambassador Gil play a prominent leadership role, most notably at the UNCAC Conference of States Parties in Atlanta. I am confident that she will prove to be a very able G77 Chair.
The United Nations Office at Vienna and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime is looking forward to working with you.
Excellencies,
The G77 is a voice for many of the world’s voiceless, and a prime example of how multilateralism can bridge gaps of geography, culture, and ideology in pursuit of the common global good.
With key intergovernmental discussions on the agenda this year, the Group and its Vienna Chapter will have a central role to play.
The mid-term review of international drug policy commitments at the CND is approaching, alongside many other important meetings and debates.
We are also approaching the Summit of the Future in September, where the world must make a stand to rescue the SDGs, and where the issues of drugs, crime, corruption, and terrorism must be on the agenda.
But the shift to a multipolar world is creating complex dynamics, including in the halls of the United Nations.
As always, your Group must speak with a united voice for the urgent needs of the developing world, and champion multilateralism at a time when it is dearly needed.
Madam Chair,
As I always proudly declare, the G77 speaks for the parts of the world where we do most of our work.
Eight out of UNODC’s ten regional offices around the world are in G77 countries.
And in 2023, the majority of our 381-million-dollar delivery was in G77 countries and regions.
We remain determined to help you in your pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals, and to stand with you against threats to the rule of law.
Determined to understand and respond to shifting flows of illicit goods and routes of migrant smuggling and human trafficking.
To confront surging terrorism and organized crime threats with sustainable responses.
To support health and wellbeing as illicit drug markets expand, both synthetic and plant based.
To address the debilitating effect of corruption and strengthen institutions.
To protect women from exploitation and gender-based violence, and to empower them across the justice sector.
To engage young people in creating solutions and promoting the rule of law, and I know that G77 countries are blessed with young populations.
And determined to explore the promise of technology through digitalizing criminal justice systems, supporting remote access to public services, and improving data collection, sharing and analysis.
Excellencies,
In a year of political transitions and ongoing crises, international cooperation is key to promote stability and the rule of law, towards prosperity and sustainable development.
I congratulate you once again Madam Chair, and I thank you.