Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation

PM’s address in ECOSOC commemoration of UNs 75th Anniversary

  • Excellencies Ladies and Gentlemen, This year we celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. It is an occasion to recognise the UN’s many contributions to human progress. It is also an opportunity to assess the UN’s role and relevance in today’s World, and to shape a better future for it.
  • Excellencies, India was among the 50 founding members of the United Nations immediately after the Second  World War. A lot has changed since then.
  • Today the UN brings together 193 member countries. Along with its membership, the expectations from the organisation have also grown. At the same time multilateralism is facing many challenges today.
  • Excellencies, From the very beginning, India has actively supported the UN’s development work and the   The first president of ECOSOC   was an Indian. India also contributed to shaping the ECOSOC  agenda,   including the Sustainable  Development  Goals.
  • Today, through our domestic efforts, we are again playing a salient role in achieving Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals. We are also supporting  other developing countries in meeting their Sustainable  Development
  • Excellencies, India is home to one-sixth of humanity. We are mindful of our weight and responsibility. We know that if India succeeds in achieving its development objectives, it will go a long way in achievement  of global goals.
  • And so we have taken “whole-of-society” approach- by engaging our States, our local governments, our civil society, communities and our people.
  • Our motto is ‘Sabka Saath,  Sabka Vikaas,  Sabka Vishwas’  – meaning   ‘Together,  for everyone’s growth,   with everyone’s trust’. This  resonates  with the core SDG principle of  leaving no one behind.   Be it access to  nutrition ,   health   education,    electricity    or housing  – we are making great progress  through our inclusive programmes.
  • Excellencies, Last year, we celebrated  the 150th birth anniversary   of the Father of our Nation,  Mahatma Gandhi, by achieving full sanitation coverage   in our six hundred thousand villages.
  • In five years, we built over 110 million household toilets, which improved our rural sanitation cover from 38 % to  100 %. Our massive    awareness generation programmes are empowering our women. We have achieved  gender  parity in elementary and  secondary education.
  • Nearly 70 million women in rural India are part of self-help groups   under our Livelihood Mission. They are transforming lives and livelihoods on a big scale. Over a million women are elected representatives of our local governments, leading the process of  participatory
  • In the last six years, we opened 400 million bank accounts for the unbanked, out of which  220 million are owned by women. We have leveraged the power of technology for financial inclusion. This is based  on the trinity  of a  unique identity number, a bank account,  and a mobile connection  for everyone. It has allowed us to make Direct Benefit Transfers of 150 billion dollars to over 700 million persons. Our food security programmes reach 813 million citizens.

Author