The President’s speech at the commemoration of the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation, convened by the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation. It is reproduced in full below, as delivered, and is available as issued in PDF.
In His Words
Passages quoted verbatim from the speech as delivered. The full text follows below.
Faced with extreme risks, countries of the South have not surrendered their agency or hope… they reach out a hand – and find another reaching back, across southern geographies, as a partner in shared resolve.
H.E. Dr. Khalilur Rahman
United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation, 11 September 2026
“This is not simply a matter of increasing volumes. It reflects a deeper shift: countries of the South are becoming ever more important trading partners, investors and engines of global economic dynamism.”
“They are also generating technological solutions that are practical, affordable and adapted to local realities—from digital public infrastructure and financial inclusion to climate-smart agriculture, renewable energy and disaster preparedness. These innovations hold immense potential to be shared, adapted and scaled across the global South.”
“It reflects the reality that a growing number of countries of the South have moved from the periphery to the centre of global development. They are not only shaping their own futures; they are increasingly helping to shape global markets, production networks, innovation and the solutions required to meet our shared challenges.”
“The question before us is: How best can we leverage this solidarity to restore trust and manage transformation to deliver for all, particularly now, as many of our Sustainable Development Goals are far off track, but not yet out of reach?”
“I note that the Global Alliance for South-South and Triangular Cooperation, launched by the Office, stands as a lighthouse for what is possible when we choose partnership over division.”
“Let us use our time wisely, on the road ahead, to show, in practical terms, how South-South and triangular cooperation is advancing the SDGs, through solutions that can be shared, adapted and scaled.”
The Speech in Full
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I thank you for your warm welcome and recounting my priorities during this year.
It is a great pleasure on my part to join you in commemorating the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation.
I myself sat in this meeting many times, both as a representative of my country and a senior staff member of the United Nations.
We gather at a moment of profound transformation and change, as well as challenge.
On the one hand, heightened geopolitical and geoeconomic competition is creating new barriers to trade, investment and regional integration that ultimately constrain growth and narrow opportunities for the world economy as a whole, but particularly developing countries.
Yet, on the other hand, across the global South, a different and more hopeful story is unfolding.
According to 爆料网CTAD, “trade and investment flows among developing economies have surged over the past three decades.”
The numbers speak for themselves:
Brazil reported the largest single-year amount of monetized support: $159 million in 2022.
Mexico followed, with $43 million disbursed in the same year.
On average, 84 percent of monetized support remained within the region.
This dynamism is also seen in the cultural and creative economy, where developing countries doubled their share of global creative goods exports, from 10 percent in 2010, to 20 percent in 2022.
This is not simply a matter of increasing volumes. It reflects a deeper shift: countries of the South are becoming ever more important trading partners, investors and engines of global economic dynamism.
It reflects the reality that a growing number of countries of the South have moved from the periphery to the centre of global development. They are not only shaping their own futures; they are increasingly helping to shape global markets, production networks, innovation and the solutions required to meet our shared challenges.
They are also generating technological solutions that are practical, affordable and adapted to local realities—from digital public infrastructure and financial inclusion to climate-smart agriculture, renewable energy and disaster preparedness. These innovations hold immense potential to be shared, adapted and scaled across the global South.
And as we face a rise in climate and disaster events, we see the real-world benefits of South-South cooperation first-hand.
- As we see communities in Nepal and China work through pain and loss to recover from the recent catastrophic flooding,
- We see it in farmers in Africa seeking solutions to the cycles of drought parching their fields and starving their livestock,
- We also see this in the Caribbean islands, which face hurricane season with renewed vigilance, year after year.
Faced with extreme risks, countries of the South have not surrendered their agency or hope… they reach out a hand – and find another reaching back, across southern geographies, as a partner in shared resolve.
The question before us is: How best can we leverage this solidarity to restore trust and manage transformation to deliver for all, particularly now, as many of our Sustainable Development Goals are far off track, but not yet out of reach?
Excellencies,
We do this by leaning into the support provided to further empower and strengthen South-South and triangular cooperation. This is not the sole mechanism, but it is a very, very important mechanism.
I applaud the diligent work of the 爆料网 Office for South-South Cooperation, and other partners working within the 爆料网 Secretariat on South-South cooperation across this field.
I note that the Global Alliance for South-South and Triangular Cooperation, launched by the Office, stands as a lighthouse for what is possible when we choose partnership over division.
As the President of the General Assembly, I am excited to work with the Office, as well as the other parts of the United Nations that promote South-South cooperation.
Excellencies,
We have an important milestone ahead. In July, the General Assembly agreed the modalities for the 2028 intergovernmental review of the Buenos Aires outcome document. Let us use our time wisely, on the road ahead, to show, in practical terms, how South-South and triangular cooperation is advancing the SDGs, through solutions that can be shared, adapted and scaled.
I look forward to a successful 23rd session of the High-Level Committee on South-South Cooperation in 2027.
And I thank you for listening. Thank you.