[As spoken]
Your Excellency, Mr. Philbert Abaka Johnson, Chair of the Commission of Narcotic Drugs,
Ms. Ghada Waly, Executive Director of UNODC,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is with great pleasure that I join you today at this 67th session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), in the enchanting city of Vienna – a city I am glad to return to, though on this occasion in a different capacity, that of President of the General Assembly.
I extend my gratitude to Your Excellency Mr. Philbert Abaka Johnson, Permanent Representative of Ghana, and Chair of the CND for the 67th session, for your kind invitation.
Let me also congratulate you, Chair, and the other Bureau members, on your deserved election to guide the work of this important Commission. – I wish you the utmost success.
A special acknowledgment to the Executive Director, Ms. Ghada Waly, and her team at the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, for your unwavering dedication in supporting Members States with the implementation of crucial conventions, declarations and other commitments and strategies to address the global drug problem.
My message to you today is this: we need to supercharge our multilateral and international cooperation efforts in every workstream, including effectively tackling the drugs problem.
The complexity and multifaceted nature of the global drug issue – permeating every sector of global society and breeding corruption, terrorism, and violence – cannot be overstated.
The 2016 General Assembly Special Session on the World Drug Problem was an inestimable opportunity to assess our achievements and challenges – and to make additional robust commitments – in combating this scourge.
Today’s record levels of drug cultivation and consumption are beyond alarming.
And, in a geopolitical climate so fraught with crises and conflict, we know that the world drug problem exacerbates existing challenges, even feeding off and into conflicts – disproportionately harming the most vulnerable and marginalized in our societies.
Today, my thoughts are with those who have lost their lives or loved ones to the global drug pandemic. I also reflect on those whose lives are currently endangered by the scourge of the illicit drug trade – especially those in conflict-ridden regions, where the trade thrives unabated amid heightened lawlessness.
While this scourge knows no borders, its impact is far from uniform across nations and communities. It is the most impoverished who bear the heaviest of the burden – whether as victims of drug abuse or trafficking, with the Global South enduring the harshest consequences.
The scope and scale of this challenge has grown so immense and its problematics so intertwined – that no single nation can confront it alone.
Excellencies,
We must – unfailingly – collectively shoulder the responsibility and integrate drug policy by enhancing international cooperation within the broader framework of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Both engagement with civil society, youth, and affected communities – and recognition of the linkages of the drug problem with other cycles of harm, such as poverty, abuse, and systemic disenfranchisement – are critical to crafting effective responses.
The ferocious emergence of synthetic drugs – particularly fentanyl – must also be decisively tackled in our response to this ever-widening crisis.
Addressing the global drug problem requires our coherent and coordinated efforts to approach its different dimensions holistically – including through the promotion and protection of human rights, advancing sustainable development, focus on health, as well as the fight against corruption and organized crime.
I welcome the 2019 Ministerial Declaration adopted by the CND - wherein Member States evaluate the progress made in implementing all international drug policy commitments. This document sets a clear path forward, and we must advance their implementation leading up to the final review in 2029.
I also commend the Pledge4Action initiative and encourage all to champion initiatives that lead us toward tangible progress and a brighter future.
Excellencies,
Dear Colleagues,
In closing, I cannot overemphasize that we should seize this moment to reimagine multilateral cooperation and to secure a better future for both the present and future generations.
As part of this, highlighting the connections between drug policy commitments and the upcoming Summit of the Future is paramount.
The Summit’s outcome documents, inter-alia The Pact for the Future and the Declaration on Future Generations – along with the process itself – serve as the cornerstone of the current General Assembly session.
These processes call upon us to envision how multilateral cooperation can adeptly address pressing issues confronting present and future generations.
I encourage you all to actively engage and follow the ongoing preparations for the Summit.
From New York to Vienna, efforts to integrate drug policy within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals must be synergized and bolstered.
I remain convinced that, together, we can build a future that is equitable, resilient, and compassionate.
I thank you.
