Celebrating the 79th anniversary of the United Nations with focus on the future

On this day 79 years ago, the United Nations Charter came into force, creating an international organization that has since served as THE global forum for countries to discuss common problems and develop shared solutions in pursuit of a better world.

As Secretary General António Guterres has repeatedly said: for all of its successes over the last decades, the UN is showing its age. To make it fit to adequately respond to the challenges of the 21st century, it needs to be made fit for purpose – and the decision-making structures of the multilateral system need to resemble the global realities of today, rather than of 79 years ago.

The Philippines has been a strong UN supporter and advocate for UN reform for longer than most.

As one of the 51 founding members of the UN, it was a contributor to the drafting of the UN Charter. Filipino statesman Carlos P. Romulo was the country’s delegate to the United Nations Organization Conference in San Francisco. He later went on to become president of the UN General Assembly and the Security Council.

In 1982, as one of the last living signers of the UN Charter, Mr. Romulo was interviewed by the United Nations Oral History Project for his insights on the organization. At the time, he was pushing for a “restudy” of the Charter to give new members – by then, total membership was 157 – the chance to comment on the agreement.

When asked why he was so strongly advocating for this review, he shared a conversation he had with Russian diplomat Andrei Gromyko: “[He] once came to me and he said, ‘Now, General, why are you insisting on this restudy of the Charter? You are a father of this baby and you want to kill it.’ I said, ‘Mr. Gromyko, I’m not killing this baby, I’m just trying to give it more vitamins to make it stronger.”

Decades later, I am proud and honored that Filipino leaders and the Filipino people continue to be strong partners and supporters of the United Nations, as well as stewards of multilateralism – a fact emphasized by Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo at the General Assembly in September, when he said: “The multilateral system must prevail amidst the current global challenges… [the UN] serves as the ground for states to find convergence amidst crisis and conflict.”

Pact for the Future

Indeed, the recent General Assembly and the Summit of the Future held alongside it reaffirmed not just the Philippines’ but the entire international community’s commitment to multilateralism.

This is illustrated most acutely by the adoption of the Pact for the Future, the most wide-ranging international compact in many years. The Pact will help international institutions deliver results in a world that has changed dramatically since the organization was created. It makes clear commitments and outlines concrete deliverables on a range of issues, with strong attention to human rights, gender and sustainable development.

The adoption of the Pact for the Future is a victory for multilateralism, and it matters right here in the Philippines.

It represents global commitments that will have local impacts. For example, the Pact reinforces commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and calls for scaled-up action, including increased financing to be made available, which the Philippines can take advantage of.

As a country where youth make up 28 percent of the population, the Philippines will benefit from the Pact’s emphasis on youth participation in global decision-making. The commitment by countries to keep the interests of young people and future generations in mind when making decisions.

The Pact confirmed the commitment to keeping global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels – a goal that is particularly crucial for a country like the Philippines, which is vulnerable to increasingly severe and unpredictable natural disasters and sea level rise caused by climate change.

The Pact calls for total nuclear disarmament. While admittedly it is only realistic in the medium-term, this provision is important for the Philippines, given the country’s strategic location.

Finally, the Pact includes the most ambitious and concrete progress on Security Council reform since 1963, including a commitment to increase the representation of developing countries and develop a consolidated reform model in the future.

A more representative Security Council and more representative and strengthened global financial institutions will make multilateralism more relevant to today’s world.

The plans and ambitions outlined in the Pact for the Future, coupled with critical structural reforms of the UN system, will create a more fit-for-purpose United Nations that will give a stronger voice to middle powers and countries that believe in and strengthen multilateralism like the Philippines.

As we begin our 80th year of existence, we look back with gratitude at the contributions of the Philippines and the Filipino people to the organization.

The United Nations remains committed to continued close collaboration with the Philippines guided by the 2024-2028 UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework to ensure that no one is left behind as we work towards building a just, inclusive and sustainable future.

Happy United Nations Day and let’s unite in our efforts to strengthen this important institution.

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Gustavo González is the United Nations Resident Coordinator in the Philippines.