Statement by the Deputy Permanent Representative of Brazil to the United Nations, Ambassador Norberto Moretti, during the annual staff retreat of the UN Office for South-South Cooperation - March 4th, 2024

Madam Director, esteemed colleagues from UNOSSC,

It is a privilege to be able to share with you, on such an intimate occasion, some thoughts and insights on Brazil´s views, priorities and work on the South-South Cooperation front, as well as the much prized mandate and contribution of UNOSSC on this cooperation modality.

South-South cooperation:

The volume of South-South cooperation initiatives tends to increase significantly over the coming years as a result of the intensification of inter-regional political and economic exchange mechanisms, and the expansion of the cooperation agenda of developing countries-led organizations and blocs, including funds and financial institutions.

The current landscape from cooperation among developing countries is one of greater intensification of financing mechanisms' portfolios, technology transfer, and exchange of public policies in the social, economic, and environmental sustainability fields. Developing countries need to improve their policy coordination mechanisms to explore the potential for synergies between national and regional development processes that are underway in Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia. In this context, a key element comes into play: establishing and strengthening international cooperation management focal points in developing countries.

Sustainable development is the soundest pathway towards meeting the demands of the populations in developing countries. In this context, South-South cooperation provides concrete and readily implementable solutions for environmentally sustainable socioeconomic progress. The necessary handling of and humanitarian response to international crises (through the appropriate diplomatic and legal channels) must not overshadow the pursuit of our shared objectives of fulfilling the right to development, eradicating hunger and poverty, and reducing the asymmetries that spread across the world.

Brazil views trilateral cooperation as additional to bilateral South-South cooperation, and has a wide range of partnerships under this arrangement with United Nations agencies and traditional donor countries. However, as appealing trilateral cooperation is to South-South cooperation actors, there remains a need for developing countries to ensure that their interests are upheld when negotiating the establishment of such partnerships. Nor should trilateral cooperation be used as a justification for developed countries to scale down their commitments towards development financing.

Brazil is proud to be expanding South-South cooperation with the African continent. As announced by the President Lula during the opening of the 37th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Brazil intends to establish an outpost for cooperation to work with the African Union, encompassing fields such as agricultural research, health, education, environment, and science and technology. The Brazilian diplomatic representation in Addis Ababa will have employees from government agencies such as the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC), as well as EMBRAPA and FIOCRUZ, which are institutions of the Brazilian Federal Government dedicated to research and development in agriculture and health.

Brazil is further committed to supporting the achievement of concrete results regarding the implementation of the Doha Action Plan (5th Conference on LDC, from March 5th to 9th, 2023).

Brazilian South-South cooperation is also fully aligned with the priorities of Brazil’s G20 presidency: fighting hunger, poverty and inequalities; addressing the three dimensions of sustainable development; and global governance reform.

Moreover, the IBSA Fund has proven its effectiveness in meeting demands of developing countries across the global South, particularly those of the Least Developed Countries. The IBSA Fund is an example of how developing countries can contribute to the global development agenda, through the sharing of their good practices, experiences, and expertise, in addition to financial resources. Over time, the IBSA Fund has undergone continuous improvement processes, adapting itself to the needs of shifting realities, and remaining responsive to the demands it receives, in the interest of global development..

UNOSSC´s role:

We appreciate the efforts by UNOSSC to organize the last session of the United Nations High-Level Committee on South-South Cooperation. We encourage UNOSSC to strive for a preparatory process leading up to the next session, in 2025, that effectively results in a significant turnout and increased visibility. Perhaps more importantly, we hope the session will be used for deliberations on concrete, specific and actionable proposals for the advancement of South-South cooperation within the multilateral system.

As we, again, acknowledge and welcome the actions by UNOSSC in this direction, we feel there is room for UNOSSC to further bolster its efforts towards promoting widespread use of South-South cooperation as a means of implementing operational activities for the development of the United Nations.

Brazil also appreciates the widespread presence and potential for collaboration of UNOSSC, within the scope of its mandate, with a view to strengthening international cooperation agencies and focal points in the developing world. The Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC) is interested in renewing its partnership with UNOSSC, in order to ensure continuity of the support for the sharing of good management practices for South-South and Trilateral Cooperation, which involved representatives from about 40 developing countries from all corners of the world. We have great expectations with regard to support for the establishment of new cooperation agencies in the global South, a topic that is high on Brazil's international cooperation agenda.

I´m honored to inform that the Director of UNOSSC will be invited to participate in the 7th Regional Conference on Trilateral Cooperation, to be held in the city of Salvador, from May 22 to 24, an event that is being jointly organized by Brazil and Germany. The initiative precedes the 3rd meeting of the G20 Development Group, and aims to discuss, among other matters, strategies and opportunities for expanding inter-regional cooperation with representatives of organizations from Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, and international cooperation partners.

Finally, Brazil invites UNOSSC to keep monitoring closely the development of the “conceptual framework” for the quantification of South-South cooperation, an initiative proposed by developing countries and supported by UNCTAD.

With that, I hope those observations will have been helpful as you reflect upon your past and current work and consider ways to make it even more impactful and meaningful going forward.

I thank you.