ITC Commits to the Pact of the Future

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, we’re here today because we are facing some sobering realities and some tough odds.

When the Sustainable Development Goals were adopted, it was a moment hailed globally as the dawn of a new era for international cooperation—one that would finally lead to a better, fairer world.

But as we’ve learned in the years since, achieving transformation on this scale is no mean feat—and it becomes even harder when crises seem to darken every horizon.

Now, too often, it is easy to fall prey to pessimism.

To see the world before us—with so much human suffering and loss of life, with an ever-warming climate and mounting conflicts—and fear that things may never get better.

But when I think of the small business leaders who we serve at the International Trade Centre, it’s clear that we don’t have to look far to see what a better world could and should look like.

These small business leaders don’t have the luxury of saying that it’s too hard. And they already live and breathe the values that the SDGs were designed to uphold.

These small business leaders are women, who are running firms that tackle challenges ranging from food security to healthcare.

They are refugees, who are finding new ways to support their families through digital tools, while sharing their expertise with the world.

They are young people, who are teaching us how to safeguard our natural environment, while creating new jobs along the way.

They’ve inspired me to come before you today and make this request.

That when we leave Turtle Bay and begin putting this Pact for the Future into motion, that we ensure the world’s small businesses are front and centre in every decision we take.

We cannot afford to do anything less.

On behalf of the International Trade Centre, we welcome the Pact for the Future, the Global Digital Compact, and the Declaration on Future Generations.

We are already acting on many of the commitments laid out in these documents, from supporting more small businesses to take full part in the digital economy, to championing youth entrepreneurship, to supporting the vision of a UN 2.0.

It’s why we’ve brought young innovators to New York this week to celebrate their solutions for saving our planet at the Youth Ecopreneur Awards.

It’s why we’re showcasing some of the work underway under ITC’s “digital moonshot,” our big strategic push to ensure all small businesses can take full part in the digital economy.

And it’s why I can promise you this: that we at ITC will never shy away from doing the hard work of making sure this Pact for the Future delivers, come what may.