Resident Coordinator's speech: Workshop on the Pact for the Future - Measuring Progress Beyond Ringgit and Sen

Co-chairs of the Malaysian CSO–SDG Alliance, 

• YBhg. Datuk Indrani Thuraisingham, and Ms. Omna Sreeni-Ong,

Esteemed speakers, Members of the Alliance,

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

A very good morning to you and salam sejahtera. 

Mr. Robert Gass, the UN Resident Coordinator ad interim, conveys his warm regards. He is unable to join us today as he is speaking at a concurrent event, so please allow me to deliver his remarks on his behalf.

The United Nations in Malaysia is pleased to support this event, as it aligns closely with the ambitions of the Pact for the Future and our collective commitment to accelerating the SDGs. This work goes to the core of our shared mission: to rethink how we understand, measure, and advance progress in Malaysia and globally.

And we deeply appreciate the leadership of the Malaysian CSO–SDG Alliance in convening this important dialogue, which strengthens national conversations on what truly matters for people, communities, and the planet.

The Global Turning Point: The Pact for the Future

On the 22nd of September 2024, UN Member States adopted by consensus the Pact for the Future, together with the Global Digital Compact and the Declaration on Future Generations. 

This Pact represents the most comprehensive attempt in a generation - to recalibrate global cooperation to the cascading risks of our time - from climate pressures - to technological disruption - to rising inequalities.

Within it, Action 53 stands out. For the first time in UN history, Member States mandated the creation of a global framework of metrics that complement and go beyond GDP. 

This is nothing less than a mandate to reshape how the world defines development itself.

Why GDP Is No Longer Enough

GDP has been a useful tool - but it tells a deeply incomplete story. As highlighted in the UN policy brief Valuing What Counts, 

GDP:

• does not account for human well-being or quality of life;
• does not reflect environmental depletion, ecosystem health, or biodiversity loss;
• ignores unpaid household and care work - largely carried out by women;
• hides inequalities and vulnerabilities across communities, such as those faced by persons with disabilities and Indigenous populations, among others;
• fails to capture the social value of education, health, and security;
• and often rewards harmful activities - from deforestation to fossil fuel consumption - simply because they generate economic output.

Malaysia’s own experience speaks to these gaps.

When floods, haze, heatwaves or landslides strike, GDP does not reflect the human suffering and environmental loss. 

When a family falls into poverty due to a medical bill, GDP cannot tell that story. 

And when women reduce paid work to shoulder family care, the economy appears unchanged, even though society clearly is.

These blind spots create perverse incentives and obscure the realities of today’s crises. 

As the UN Secretary-General reminded us when announcing the High-Level Expert Group in May this year: And I quote:

“The well-being of people and the planet must be at the centre of what we measure and value.” Unquote

A New Framework to Value What Counts

The UN policy brief proposes three pillars for countries, Malaysia included, to support this shift:

First, a renewed political commitment to “value what counts.”

- This new framework must be anchored in the 2030 Agenda and deliver three outcomes:

• Well-being and agency;
• Respect for life and the planet;
• Reduced inequalities and greater solidarity.

Second, a rigorous technical and scientific process.

• The High-Level Expert Group will develop a concise dashboard of 10 to 20 Beyond GDP indicators that are:
• Universally applicable;
• Scientifically robust; and
• Meaningful for policymakers.

These will build on the SDGs, the Human Development Index, environmental-economic accounting, gender data, and the forthcoming Multidimensional Vulnerability Index.

Third, major global investment in statistical capacity.

• Moving Beyond GDP requires modern, integrated national data systems that are disaggregated, dynamic, and able to incorporate big data, geospatial information, and new technologies.
• As with GDP itself, this transition must be supported by strong national statistical capacity.

Malaysia’s Opportunity

Malaysia has already recognized that GDP alone cannot capture the aspirations of the Malaysia MADANI vision - a vision of a nation that is compassionate, sustainable, fair, and resilient.

The national development plans reinforces this shift, emphasizing shared prosperity, environmental protection, and well-being. 

Malaysia has taken concrete steps that place it at the forefront of this global transition:

• The SDG framework is embedded in national planning.
• Civil society - including many of you here - has long advanced rights-based, gender-responsive, and environmentally grounded approaches.
• DOSM and the National SDG Centre are pioneering environmental-economic accounting, valuing forests, water, land use, and ecosystems.
• Malaysia’s Green Budgeting initiative, led by the Ministry of Finance, is reshaping fiscal planning around environmental impact.
• Efforts toward gender-responsive budgeting recognize that women’s contributions must be visible and valued.
• And as a dynamic upper-middle-income country, Malaysia stands to gain significantly from a global financing system that looks beyond GDP alone.

Your expertise across data, governance, gender, youth, environment, finance, and community development - is essential - in shaping Malaysia’s next-generation metrics.

Aligning Malaysia with the Pact for the Future

The three pillars of the UN’s Beyond GDP framework align closely with Malaysia’s trajectory:

1. A commitment to value what counts – reflected in Malaysia MADANI, the 13th Malaysia Plan, and national ambitions for a well-being economy.
2. A technical process to create a value dashboard – where Malaysia can contribute through DOSM, the National SDG Centre, BNM’s climate-risk work, and the various efforts of academia and civil society.
3. Investment in statistical capacity – already underway through digitalization, climate-risk analytics, and modernized national data systems.

Malaysia therefore enters this global conversation - not as a passive participant, but as a country with strong foundations and much to contribute.

The Road Ahead: Five Years to 2030

With only five years remaining to deliver the SDGs - amid climate shocks, economic pressures, and rising inequalities - countries cannot afford to rely on incomplete metrics.

A measurement system that genuinely reflects the health of societies, ecosystems, and institutions is essential to ensuring that no one is left behind.

• Better metrics lead to better decisions.
• Better decisions lead to better outcomes.
• Better outcomes build a fairer, more resilient future for Malaysia.

Closing

The world is in the midst of redefining progress. And this workshop is part of that historic shift. 

Let us seize this moment to ensure Malaysia’s path forward is guided not only by what grows the economy, but by what strengthens dignity, fairness, resilience, and opportunity.

With that I thank you for your attention and wish you all fruitful discussions today and tomorrow.