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The United Nations is holding a “Future Summit” at its headquarters in New York on 22 and 23 September, with the participation of senior international officials, delegations of countries, representatives of youth, civil society, the private sector, academia, and local and regional authorities. The summit will be held on the sidelines of the high-level week of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, which will begin on 24 September. Its deliberations will focus on exploring ways of partnerships between multiple stakeholders and working methods that will pave the way for the next chapter of global pluralism to be more inclusive and interconnected.
The Future Summit is expected to produce a number of outcomes that will contribute to changing people’s futures, which were carefully formulated during negotiations between delegations of UN member states, most notably the “Charter for the Future,” which will include chapters on sustainable development and financing for development; international peace and security; science, technology, innovation and digital cooperation; youth and future generations; and transforming global governance. There will also be the “Global Digital Charter” and the “Future Generations Declaration,” which aims to provide a comprehensive vision that takes into account youth participation and the interests of future generations in decision-making and shaping the future.
These outputs, which will serve as historical documents, aim to address current global issues, such as digital transformation, artificial intelligence, peace and security, and financing sustainable development.
Maher Nasser, Director of the Outreach Division at the United Nations Department of Global Communications, said at the United Nations headquarters in New York that the Future Summit comes amidst an atmosphere of unrest and wars that are sweeping many regions around the world, especially the Arab region, which makes it difficult for many to look to the future with optimism.
“With the increasing conflicts and disputes and the increasing numbers of refugees and displaced persons, the importance of the summit is evident in providing more effective mechanisms to deal with humanitarian and security crises,” he said, stressing that although the United Nations is aware that implementing the recommendations and documents that will be issued by the future summit will not be easy because the global challenges are enormous, he considered these outcomes in themselves an important step towards activating the role of the United Nations and enhancing its joint cooperation with member states to confront these global challenges.
