UN in Malaysia partners with Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Summit of the Future briefings

In the lead up to of the Summit of the Future (SOTF), the UN in Malaysia, in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Malaysia, organized two briefing sessions for government and civil society representatives on 30 May 2024. 

The Summit of the Future will be convened during the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, bringing world leaders together on 22-23 September to forge a new international consensus to safeguard the future and turbocharge the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The first consultation involved government representatives from 15 Ministries and 5 Agencies. The second session gathered over 20 CSOs, NGOs and academia. These briefings aimed to offer an in-depth overview of the SOTF and unpack its outcome – the draft Pact for the Future plus its two annexes: the Declaration on Future Generations and the Global Digital Compact.

The briefings were led by Ms. Karima El Korri, the United Nations Resident Coordinator (UNRC) and Mr. Adlan Mohd Shaffieq, Undersecretary, Multilateral Political Division from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Malaysia (MoFA).

When addressing both Government and CSO representatives, Mr. Adlan Mohd Shaffieq acknowledged the UN Secretary General’s call for action and emphasized the Government of Malaysia’s commitment to the SOTF and full engagement in the intergovernmental negotiations. He also highlighted the importance of these consultations to gather further inputs into the SOTF outcome documents. 

RC Karima El Korri described the Summit of the Future as “a unique opportunity to rethink our approaches and reinvigorate collective action by aligning multilateral institutions and frameworks with the political, social, and economic realities of today’s world.” She commended Malaysia’s engagement and determination to follow through on internationally-agreed frameworks.”

Richard Marshall, UN Senior Economist and Juanita Joseph, Head, Office of the UN Resident Coordinator & Strategic Planner, delivered comprehensive presentations on process and outcomes and an insightful reading into the draft Pact for the Future and two annexes. 

The sessions provided an avenue for participants to familiarize themselves with the Summit of the Future process and discuss the objectives, principles, actions and commitments detailed in the drafts of the Pact documents. 

At the conclusion of the briefings, both the UN in Malaysia and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed the crucial role of government agencies and civil society organizations in translating the Pact of the Future commitment and actions into actions and solutions at country-level, building on promising SDG progress to raise the ambitions and deliver an inclusive equitable, inclusive, prosperous and sustainable future for all in Malaysia.