The 2024 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) took place from 8 to 17 July, under the theme “Reinforcing the 2030 Agenda and eradicating poverty in times of multiple crises”. The forum provided a platform for stakeholders to present their progress and challenges in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

On Wednesday, July 17th, Ambassador Beresford-Hill addressed the General Debate. He expressed his concern over the insufficient progress towards achieving the 2030 Agenda. Although the SDGs were adopted in 2015 with a deadline of 2030, current data indicates that the world is far from meeting these targets. The 2023 Global Hunger Index revealed minimal progress in reducing hunger since 2015, with the score improving only slightly from 19.1 in 2015 to 18.3 in 2023, indicating a significant stall in progress.

The address concluded by highlighting the responsibility of the United Nations to end conflict, protect vulnerable populations, and urge wealthy nations to contribute to the rebuilding of damaged societies while confronting climate change. Ambassador Beresford-Hill reiterated the UN’s critical role in ensuring that nationalism does not undermine multilateralism.