A/RES/72/141 GA

United Nations A/RES/72/141 General Assembly Distr.: General 16 January 2018 17-22927 (E) 190118 *1722927* Seventy-second session Agenda item 27 (a) Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 19 December 2017 [on the report of the Third Committee (A/72/431)] 72/141. Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly The General Assembly, Recalling the World Summit for Social Development, held in Copenhagen from 6 to 12 March 1995, and the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly, entitled “World Summit for Social Development and beyond: achieving social development for all in a globalizing world”, held in Geneva from 26 June to 1 July 2000, Reaffirming that the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development and the Programme of Action of the World Summit for Social Development 1 and the further initiatives for social development adopted by the General Assembly at its twenty- fourth special session,2 as well as a continued global dialogue on social development issues, constitute the basic framework for the promotion of social development for all at the national and international levels, Welcoming the progress made towards the full implementation of the Copenhagen Declaration and the Programme of Action through concerted action at the national, regional and global levels, and expressing its deep concern that, more than 20 years after the convening of the World Summit for Social Development, progress has been slow and uneven, and major gaps remain, Reaffirming its resolution 70/1 of 25 September 2015, entitled “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, in which it adopted a comprehensive, far-reaching and people-centred set of universal and transformative Sustainable Development Goals and targets, its commitment to working tirelessly for the full implementation of the Agenda by 2030, its recognition that eradicating __________________ 1 Report of the World Summit for Social Development, Copenhagen, 6–12 March 1995 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.96.IV.8), chap. I, resolution 1, annexes I and II. 2 Resolution S-24/2, annex. A/RES/72/141 Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly 17-22927 2/14 poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty, is the greatest global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development, its commitment to achieving sustainable development in its three dimensions – economic, social and environmental – in a balanced and integrated manner, and to building upon the achievements of the Millennium Development Goals and seeking to address their unfinished business, Emphasizing the need to enhance the role of the Commission for Social Development in the follow-up to and review of the World Summit for Social Development and the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly, and welcoming the decision of the Economic and Social Council that the Commission, given its mandates and experience in promoting people-centred inclusive development, will report on social aspects related to the agreed main theme of the Council in order to contribute to its work,3 including by offering inputs regarding the effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in a holistic and inclusive manner, Welcoming the decision of the Economic and Social Council that the priority theme for the 2017–2018 review and policy cycle, which shall allow the Commission for Social Development to contribute to the work of the Council, will be “Strategies for eradicating poverty to achieve sustainable development for all”,4 Recalling the ministerial declaration adopted at the high-level segment of the 2017 session of the Economic and Social Council on the annual theme “Eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions through promoting sustainable development, expanding opportunities and addressing related challenges” and the ministerial declaration of the 2017 high-level political forum on sustainable development, convened under the auspices of the Council, on the theme “Eradicating poverty and promoting prosperity in a changing world”,5 Reaffirming that the Declaration on the Right to Development6 also informs the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, along with other relevant instruments, such as the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development,7 Agenda 2063 adopted by the African Union and the International Labour Organization Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization,8 and reaffirming also the strong political commitment to address the challenge of financing and creating an enabling environment at all levels for sustainable development in the spirit of global partnership and solidarity, Noting that the decent work agenda of the International Labour Organization, with its four strategic objectives, has an important role to play in achieving the objective of social protection, as reaffirmed in the International Labour Organization Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization, in which the particular role of the Organization in promoting fair globalization and its responsibility to assist its members in their efforts were acknowledged, as well as in the Global Jobs Pact, Reaffirming the need to achieve sustainable development by promoting sustained, inclusive and equitable economic growth, creating greater opportunities for all, reducing inequalities within and among countries, raising basic standards of __________________ 3 Economic and Social Council resolution 2016/6, para. 3. 4 Ibid., para. 6. 5 Official Records of the General Assembly, Seventy-second Session, Supplement No. 3 (A/72/3), chap. VI, sect. E. 6 Resolution 41/128, annex. 7 Resolution 69/313, annex. 8 A/63/538-E/2009/4, annex. Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly A/RES/72/141 3/14 17-22927 living, fostering equitable and inclusive social development and promoting the integrated and sustainable management of natural resources, Recognizing that social inclusion is a means for achieving social integration and is crucial for fostering stable, safe, harmonious, peaceful and just societies and for improving social cohesion so as to create an environment for development and progress, Recalling its resolution 63/303 of 9 July 2009, entitled “Outcome of the Conference on the World Financial and Economic Crisis and Its Impact on Development”, and recognizing that the remaining effects of the world financial and economic crisis have the potential to undermine progress towards achieving the internationally agreed development goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals, and threaten debt sustainability in many countries, especially developing countries, Affirming its strong support for fair globalization and the need to translate growth into eradication of poverty and commitment to strategies and policies that aim to promote full, freely chosen and productive employment and decent work for all and that these strategies and policies should constitute fundamental components of relevant national and international policies and national development strategies, including poverty reduction strategies, and reaffirming that employment creation and decent work for all should be incorporated into macroeconomic policies, taking fully into account the impact and social dimension of globalization, the benefits and costs of which are often unevenly shared and distributed, Deeply concerned that extreme poverty persists in all countries of the world, regardless of their economic, social and cultural situation, and that its extent and its manifestations, such as hunger and malnutrition, vulnerability to trafficking in human beings, disease, lack of adequate shelter and illiteracy, are particularly severe in developing countries, while acknowledging the significant progress made in several parts of the world in combating extreme poverty, Stressing the importance of removing obstacles to the realization of the right of peoples to self-determination, in particular of peoples living under colonial or other forms of alien domination or foreign occupation, which adversely affect their social and economic development, including their exclusion from labour markets, Stressing also the importance of establishing a just and lasting peace all over the world in accordance with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, supporting all efforts to uphold the sovereign equality of all States and respect their territorial integrity and political independence, and refraining in international relations from the threat or use of force in any manner inconsistent with the purposes and principles of the United Nations, Recognizing that terrorism, trafficking in arms, organized crime, trafficking in persons, money-laundering, ethnic and religious conflict, civil war, politically motivated killing and genocide pose increasing challenges to States and societies in the attainment of conditions conducive to social development, and that they further present urgent and compelling reasons for action by Governments individually and, as appropriate, jointly to foster social cohesion while recognizing, protecting and valuing diversity, Recognizing also that the three core themes of social development, namely, poverty eradication, full and productive employment and decent work for all and social integration, are interrelated and mutually reinforcing, and that an enabling environment therefore needs to be created so that all three objectives can be pursued simultaneously, A/RES/72/141 Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly 17-22927 4/14 1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General;9 2. Welcomes the reaffirmation by Governments of their will and commitment to continue implementing the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development and the Programme of Action of the World Summit for Social Development,1 in particular to eradicate poverty, promote full and productive employment and decent work for all and foster social integration to achieve stable, safe and just societies for all, and recognizes that the implementation of the Copenhagen commitments and the attainment of the internationally agreed development goals are mutually reinforcing; 3. Also welcomes the adoption, in its entirety, of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development10 in which it is recognized that eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty, is the greatest global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development, including goals and targets aimed at the promotion of sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all and the reduction of inequalities within and among countries; Poverty eradication 4. Recognizes that the social integration of people living in poverty should encompass addressing and meeting their basic human needs, including nutrition, health, water, sanitation, housing and access to education and employment, through integrated development strategies; 5. Emphasizes that the major United Nations conferences and summits, including the Millennium Summit, the International Conference on Financing for Development, in its Monterrey Consensus,11 the 2005 World Summit, the Follow-up International Conference on Financing for Development to Review the Implementation of the Monterrey Consensus, in its Doha Declaration on Financing for Development,12 the high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly on the Millennium Development Goals, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, the 2013 special event to follow up efforts made towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals, the third International Conference on Financing for Development, in its Addis Ababa Action Agenda,7 and the United Nations summit for the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda, have reinforced the priority and urgency of the eradication of poverty in all its forms and dimensions within the United Nations development agenda; 6. Also emphasizes that poverty eradication policies should be targeted and strengthened, while tackling poverty by addressing its root and structural causes and manifestations, and that equity, inclusivity, the reduction of inequalities and the empowerment of the poor need to be incorporated into those policies; 7. Stresses that poverty eradication policies should, inter alia, ensure that people living in poverty have access to education, health, water and sanitation and other public and social services, as well as access to productive resources, including credit, land, training, technology, knowledge and information, and ensure that citizens and local communities participate in decision-making on social development policies and programmes in this regard; __________________ 9 A/72/158. 10 Resolution 70/1. 11 Report of the International Conference on Financing for Development, Monterrey, Mexico, 18−22 March 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.02.II.A.7), chap. I, resolution 1, annex. 12 Resolution 63/239, annex. Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly A/RES/72/141 5/14 17-22927 8. Recognizes the need to formulate social development policies in an integral, articulated and participative manner, recognizing poverty as a multidimensional phenomenon, calls for interlinked public policies on this matter, and underlines the need for public policies to be included in a comprehensive strategy for development and well-being; 9. Reaffirms the New Urban Agenda,13 which envisages cities and human settlements that fulfil their social function, including the social and ecological function of land, with a view to progressively achieving the full realization of the right to adequate housing, as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, without discrimination, universal access to safe and affordable drinking water and sanitation, as well as equal access for all to public goods and quality services in areas such as food security and nutrition, health, education, infrastructure, mobility and transportation, energy, air energy, air quality and livelihoods; 10. Recognizes the complex character of the ongoing food insecurity situation, including food price volatility, as a combination of several major factors, both structural and conjunctural, which is also negatively affected by, inter alia, environmental degradation, drought and desertification, global climate change, natural disasters, the lack of the necessary technology and armed conflicts, and also recognizes that a strong commitment from national Governments and the international community as a whole is required to confront the major threats to food security and to ensure that policies in the area of agriculture do not distort trade and worsen food insecurity; 11. Reaffirms the importance of supporting the African Union’s development framework, Agenda 2063, as well as its 10-year plan of action, as a strategic framework for ensuring a positive socioeconomic transformation in Africa within the next 50 years, which is the African Union long-term strategy emphasizing industrialization, youth employment, improved natural resource governance and the reduction of inequalities, and its continental programme embedded in the resolutions of the General Assembly on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development14 and regional initiatives, such as the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme; Decent work 12. Recognizes that full and productive employment and decent work for all, which encompass social protection, fundamental principles and rights at work, tripartism and social dialogue, are key elements of sustainable development for all countries and are therefore an important objective of international cooperation, and supports the promotion of innovative approaches in the design and implementation of employment policies and programmes for all, including the long-term unemployed; 13. Urges Governments, with the cooperation of relevant entities, to develop systems of social protection that support labour market participation and address and reduce inequality and social exclusion and to extend or broaden, as appropriate, their effectiveness and coverage, including for workers in the informal economy, invites the International Labour Organization to strengthen its social protection strategies and policies on extending social security coverage, urges Governments, while taking account of national circumstances, to focus on the needs of those living in, or vulnerable to, poverty and to give particular consideration to universal access to basic social security systems, including the implementation of social protection floors, which can provide a systemic base upon which to address poverty and vulnerability, __________________ 13 Resolution 71/256, annex. 14 A/57/304, annex. A/RES/72/141 Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly 17-22927 6/14 and in this regard takes note of the International Labour Organization recommendation on social protection floors; 14. Reaffirms the commitment to promoting opportunities for full, freely chosen and productive employment, including for the most disadvantaged, as well as decent work for all, including respect for fundamental principles and rights at work, also reaffirms that there is an urgent need to create an environment at the national and international levels that is conducive to the attainment of full and productive employment and decent work for all as a foundation for sustainable development, that an environment that supports investment, growth, innovation and entrepreneurship is essential to the creation of new job opportunities and that human resources development strategies should be premised on national development objectives that ensure a strong link between education, health, training and employment, help to maintain a productive and competitive workforce and are responsive to the needs of the economy, and further reaffirms that opportunities for men and women to obtain productive work in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity are essential to ensuring the eradication of hunger and poverty, the improvement of economic and social well-being for all, the achievement of sustained economic growth and sustainable development of all nations and a fully inclusive and equitable globalization; 15. Recognizes that promoting full employment and decent work for all also requires investing in education, training and skills development for women and men, and girls and boys, strengthening social protection and health systems and applying international labour standards, and urges States and, as appropriate, the relevant entities of the United Nations system and international and regional organizations, within their respective mandates, as well as civil society, the private sector, employer organizations, trade unions, the media and other relevant actors, to continue to develop and strengthen policies, strategies and programmes to enhance, in particular, the employability of women and youth and to ensure their access to full and productive employment and decent work for all, including by improving access to formal and non-formal education, skills development and vocational training, lifelong learning and retraining and long-distance education, inter alia, in information and communications technology and entrepreneurial skills, particularly in developing countries, including with a view to supporting the economic empowerment of women in the different stages of their lives; Social integration 16. Urges Member States to strengthen social policies, as appropriate, paying particular attention to the specific needs of disadvantaged social groups to ensure that these groups, inter alia, children, youth, persons with disabilities, people living with HIV/AIDS, older persons, indigenous peoples, refugees, internally displaced persons, migrants and other persons in vulnerable situations, are not left behind; 17. Recognizes the importance of providing social protection schemes for the formal and informal economy as instruments for achieving equity, inclusion and stability and cohesion of societies, and emphasizes the importance of supporting national efforts aimed at bringing informal workers into the formal economy; 18. Reaffirms the commitment to gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, as well as to the mainstreaming of a gender perspective into all development efforts, recognizing that they are critical for achieving sustainable development and for efforts to combat hunger and malnutrition, poverty and disease, to strengthening policies and programmes that improve, ensure and broaden the full participation of women in all spheres of political, economic, social and cultural life as equal partners and to improving the access of women to all resources needed for Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly A/RES/72/141 7/14 17-22927 the full exercise of all their human rights and fundamental freedoms by removing persistent barriers, including ensuring equal access to full and productive employment and decent work for all, as well as strengthening their economic independence; 19. Stresses the need to allocate adequate resources for the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women in the workplace, including unequal access to labour market participation and wage inequalities, as well as reconciliation of work and private life for both women and men; 20. Acknowledges the important nexus between international migration and social development, and stresses the importance of effectively enforcing labour laws with regard to labour relations and working conditions of migrant workers, inter alia, those related to their remuneration and conditions of health, safety at work and the right to freedom of association; 21. Recognizes that, since the convening of the World Summit for Social Development in Copenhagen in 1995, advances have been made in addressing and promoting social integration, including through the adoption of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing, 2002,15 the World Programme of Action for Youth,16 the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, 17 the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples18 and the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action;19 22. Welcomes the International Decade for People of African Descent (2015–2024), and urges Member States to promote the social development of people of African descent, particularly women and girls, by eradicating any form of discrimination, ensuring access to quality education and eliminating challenges and specific risks with regard to health; 23. Reaffirms the commitment to promoting the rights of indigenous peoples in the areas of education, employment, housing, sanitation, health and social security, and notes the attention paid to those areas in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; 24. Recognizes that steps should be taken to anticipate and offset the negative social and economic consequences of globalization, giving priority to agricultural and non-farm sectors, and to maximize its benefits for poor people living and working in rural areas, while paying special attention to the development of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises, particularly in rural areas, as well as subsistence economies, to secure their safe interaction with larger economies; 25. Encourages Member States to pursue social and economic policies to support the creation of farm and off-farm jobs, as appropriate, especially labour- intensive and higher-productivity jobs in micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises, and recognizes that redistributive land policies and improved access to formal credit markets through greater financial inclusion, as well as structural transformation policies that help to shift labour to high-productivity manufacturing and services sectors, may be considered by Member States within their national contexts and legislation; 26. Reaffirms the need to address all forms of violence in its many manifestations, including domestic violence, particularly against women, children, __________________ 15 Report of the Second World Assembly on Ageing, Madrid, 8–12 April 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.02.IV.4), chap. I, resolution 1, annex II. 16 Resolution 50/81, annex, and resolution 62/126, annex. 17 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2515, No. 44910. 18 Resolution 61/295, annex. 19 Report of the Fourth World Conference on Women, Beijing, 4–15 September 1995 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.96.IV.13), chap. I, resolution 1, annexes I and II. A/RES/72/141 Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly 17-22927 8/14 older persons and persons with disabilities, and discrimination, including xenophobia, and recognizes that violence increases the challenges faced by States and societies in the achievement of poverty eradication, full and productive employment and decent work for all and social integration; Sustainable development 27. Reaffirms the importance of rethinking and strengthening social development in the contemporary world by, inter alia, appraising progress made, identifying gaps and challenges in achieving the internationally agreed social development goals and realizing opportunities for social development; 28. Recognizes that eradicating poverty and promoting prosperity require collective and transformative efforts, putting the furthest behind first and adapting institutions and policies to take into account the multidimensional nature of poverty and the inherent interlinkages between different Goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; 29. Stresses that more concerted efforts are required to boost smallholder productivity in a sustainable manner, including scaling up public investments in agriculture, attracting responsible private investment in agriculture, improving the quality and quantity of rural extension services and ensuring that smallholder farmers, in particular women, have access to the necessary resources, assets and markets and to cross-cutting agricultural technologies; 30. Recognizes the need to give priority to investing in and further contributing to sustainable development, including sustainable agricultural development, and to a financial infrastructure that provides access to a variety of sustainable products and services for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises and entrepreneurship cooperatives and other forms of social enterprises, and the participation and entrepreneurship of women as means to promote full and productive employment and decent work for all; 31. Also recognizes the responsibility of Governments to urgently and significantly scale up efforts to accelerate the transition towards universal access to affordable and quality health-care services; 32. Acknowledges that universal health coverage implies that all people have access, without discrimination, to nationally determined sets of needed promotive, preventive, curative and rehabilitative basic health services and essential, safe, affordable, effective and quality medicines, while ensuring that the use of these services does not expose the users to financial hardship; 33. Stresses that international trade and stable financial systems can be effective tools to create favourable conditions for the development of all countries and that trade barriers and some trading practices continue to have negative effects on employment growth, particularly in developing countries; 34. Acknowledges that good governance and the rule of law at the national and international levels are essential for sustained economic growth, sustainable development and the eradication of poverty, hunger and malnutrition; 35. Recognizes the need to promote respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms in order to address the most pressing social needs of people living in poverty, including through the design and development of appropriate mechanisms to strengthen and consolidate democratic institutions and governance; 36. Stresses the importance of economic, social and cultural rights and the importance of the principles of non-discrimination, inclusivity and meaningful Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly A/RES/72/141 9/14 17-22927 participation for the implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development; 37. Also stresses the importance of promoting corporate social responsibility and accountability, encourages responsible business practices, such as those promoted by the Global Compact and the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: Implementing the United Nations “Protect, Respect and Remedy” Framework,20 invites the private sector to take into account not only the economic and financial implications but also the development, social, human rights, gender and environmental implications of its undertakings, and underlines the importance of the International Labour Organization Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy; Inequality 38. Stresses that the benefits of economic growth should be inclusive and distributed more equitably and that, in order to close the gap of inequality and avoid any further deepening of inequality, comprehensive social policies and programmes, including appropriate social transfer and job creation programmes and social protection systems, are needed; 39. Reaffirms that social integration policies should seek to reduce inequalities, promote access to basic social services, education for all and health care, eliminate discrimination, increase the participation and integration of social groups, particularly young people, older persons and persons with disabilities, noting the role of sports in this regard, and address the challenges posed to social development by globalization and market-driven reforms in order for all people in all countries to benefit from globalization; 40. Stresses that an enabling environment is a critical precondition for achieving equity and social development and that, while economic growth is essential, entrenched inequality and marginalization are an obstacle to the broad-based and sustained growth required for sustainable, inclusive and people-centred development, and recognizes the need to balance and ensure complementarity between measures to achieve growth and measures to achieve economic and social equity and inclusion in order for there to be an impact on overall poverty levels; 41. Supports the development of vertical and horizontal models of distribution of financial resources to decrease inequalities across subnational territories, within urban centres and between urban and rural areas, as well as to promote integrated and balanced territorial development, and reaffirms the importance of improving the transparency of data on spending and resource allocation as a tool for assessing progress towards equity and spatial integration; 42. Acknowledges that investment in human capital and social protection has been proven to be effective in reducing poverty and inequality, and invites Member States to mobilize innovative sources of financing, including through public-private partnerships, to secure adequate levels of social expenditure necessary for expanding coverage towards universal access to health, education, innovation, new technologies and basic social protection and to address the issues of illicit financial flows and corruption; 43. Invites Member States to develop comprehensive, integrated and coherent strategies that effectively address the structural causes of poverty and inequality by pursuing equity and growth objectives simultaneously in their national contexts, __________________ 20 A/HRC/17/31, annex. A/RES/72/141 Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly 17-22927 10/14 making sure that such strategies promote inclusion and equity to sustain income growth for all, with an emphasis on job-rich growth; Social development actors 44. Reaffirms that social development requires the active involvement of all actors in the development process, including civil society organizations, corporations and small businesses, and that partnerships among all relevant actors are increasingly becoming part of national and international cooperation for social development, also reaffirms that, within countries, partnerships among the Government, civil society and the private sector can contribute effectively to the achievement of social development goals, and acknowledges the importance of efforts to promote the exchange of information and knowledge on decent work for all and job creation, including green jobs initiatives and related skills, and to facilitate the integration of relevant data into national economic and employment policies; 45. Stresses the importance of the policy space and leadership of national Governments for implementing policies for poverty eradication and sustainable development, while remaining consistent with relevant international rules and commitments, in particular in the areas of human rights, social expenditure and social protection programmes, and calls upon international financial institutions and donors to support developing countries in achieving their social development, in line with their national priorities and strategies, by, among other things, providing debt relief within the context of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; 46. Acknowledges the role that the public sector can play as an employer and its importance in developing an environment that enables the effective generation of full and productive employment and decent work for all; 47. Also acknowledges the vital role that the private sector can play in generating new investments, employment and financing for development and in advancing efforts towards full employment and decent work for all, and encourages the private sector, including small and medium-sized enterprises and cooperatives, to contribute to decent work for all and job creation for both women and men, and particularly for young people, including through partnerships with Governments, the United Nations system, civil society and academia; 48. Underlines the responsibility of the private sector, at both the national and the international levels, including small and large companies and transnational corporations, regarding not only the economic and financial implications but also the development, social, gender and environmental implications of their activities, their obligations towards their workers and their contributions to achieving sustainable development, including social development, emphasizes that transnational corporations and other business enterprises have a responsibility to respect human rights, applicable laws and international principles and standards, to operate transparently, in a socially and environmentally responsible manner, and to refrain from affecting the well-being of peoples, and also emphasizes the need to take further concrete actions on corporate responsibility and accountability, including through the participation of all relevant stakeholders, inter alia, for the prevention or prosecution of corruption, and to prevent human rights abuses; 49. Stresses that stability in global financial systems and corporate social responsibility and accountability, as well as national economic policies that have an impact on other stakeholders, are essential in creating an enabling international environment to promote economic growth and social development; Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly A/RES/72/141 11/14 17-22927 50. Encourages Governments to promote effective participation of people in civic, social, economic and political activities, as well as in the planning and implementation of social integration policies and strategies, in order to better achieve the goals of poverty eradication, full employment and decent work and social integration; International cooperation 51. Reaffirms that international cooperation has an essential role in assisting developing countries, including the least developed countries, in strengthening their human, institutional and technological capacity; 52. Underlines that South-South cooperation is an important element of international cooperation for development as a complement to, not a substitute for, North-South cooperation, recognizes its increased importance, different history and particularities, and stresses that it should be seen as an expression of solidarity among peoples and countries of the South, based on their shared experiences and objectives, and that it should continue to be guided by the principles of respect for national sovereignty, national ownership and independence, equality, non-conditionality, non- interference in domestic affairs and mutual benefit; 53. Emphasizes that international public finance plays an important role in complementing the efforts of countries to mobilize public resources domestically, especially in the poorest and most vulnerable countries with limited domestic resources, and that an important use of international public finance, including official development assistance (ODA), is to catalyse the mobilization of additional resources from other public and private sources, and notes that ODA providers have reaffirmed their respective commitments, including the commitment by many developed countries to achieve the target of 0.7 per cent of gross national income for official development assistance (ODA/GNI) to developing countries and 0.15 to 0.2 per cent of ODA/GNI to the least developed countries; 54. Welcomes the increase in the volume of ODA since the adoption of the Monterrey Consensus, expresses its concern that many countries still fall short of their ODA commitments, reiterates that the fulfilment of all ODA commitments remains crucial, commends those few countries that have met or surpassed their commitment to 0.7 per cent of ODA/GNI and the target of 0.15 to 0.20 per cent of ODA/GNI to the least developed countries, urges all other countries to step up efforts to increase their ODA and to make additional concrete efforts towards the ODA targets, welcomes the decision by the European Union reaffirming its collective commitment to achieve the target of 0.7 per cent of ODA/GNI within the time frame of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and undertaking to meet collectively the target of 0.15 to 0.20 per cent of ODA/GNI to the least developed countries in the short term and to reach 0.20 per cent of ODA/GNI to the least developed countries within the time frame of the 2030 Agenda, and encourages ODA providers to consider setting a target to provide at least 0.20 per cent of ODA/GNI to the least developed countries; 55. Stresses the essential role that ODA plays in complementing, leveraging and sustaining financing for development efforts in developing countries and in facilitating the achievement of development objectives, including the internationally agreed development goals, in particular the Sustainable Development Goals, and welcomes steps to improve the effectiveness and quality of aid based on the fundamental principles of national ownership, alignment, harmonization, managing for results and mutual accountability; A/RES/72/141 Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly 17-22927 12/14 56. Welcomes the contribution to the mobilization of resources for social development by the initiatives taken on a voluntary basis by groups of Member States based on innovative financing mechanisms, including those that aim to provide further access to drugs at affordable prices to developing countries on a sustainable and predictable basis, such as the International Drug Purchase Facility, UNITAID, as well as other initiatives such as the International Finance Facility for Immunization and the Advance Market Commitment for Vaccines; 57. Stresses that the international community shall enhance its efforts to create an enabling environment for social development and poverty eradication through increasing market access for developing countries, technology transfer on mutually agreed terms, financial aid and a comprehensive solution to the external debt problem; 58. Reaffirms that each country has the primary responsibility for its own economic and social development and that the role of national policies and development strategies cannot be overemphasized, and underlines the importance of adopting effective measures, including new financial mechanisms, as appropriate, to support the efforts of developing countries to achieve sustained economic growth, sustainable development, poverty eradication and the strengthening of their democratic systems; 59. Stresses that the international community should support national commitments to eradicate poverty in all its forms with the goal to ensure that no one is left behind, and recognizes the need for greater international cooperation to further reduce inequality between and within countries and increase capacity-building support to countries with the most constrained resources to ensure that social expenditures meet certain targets; 60. Reconfirms the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, and recognizes the need to take steps to significantly increase investment to close resource gaps, including through the mobilization of financial resources from all sources, including public, private, domestic and international resource mobilization and allocation; Follow-up 61. Reaffirms that the Commission for Social Development, as a functional commission of the Economic and Social Council, in promoting the integrated treatment of social development issues in the United Nations system, shall review, on a periodic basis, issues related to the follow-up to and implementation of the Copenhagen Declaration and the Programme of Action, in a manner consistent with the functions and contributions of the relevant organs, organizations and bodies of the United Nations system, and shall advise the Council thereon; 62. Also reaffirms that the Commission for Social Development continues to have the primary responsibility for the follow-up to and review of the World Summit for Social Development and the outcome of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly,2 and that it serves as the main United Nations forum for an intensified global dialogue on social development issues, and calls upon Member States, the relevant specialized agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations system and civil society to enhance their support for its work; 63. Further reaffirms that the Commission for Social Development will contribute to the follow-up to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, within its existing mandate, by supporting the thematic reviews of the high-level political forum on sustainable development on progress in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, including cross-cutting issues, which should reflect the integrated nature of the Goals as well as the interlinkages between them, while engaging all relevant stakeholders and, where possible, feeding into and being aligned Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly A/RES/72/141 13/14 17-22927 with the cycle of the high-level political forum, according to the organizational arrangements to be established by the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council; 64. Reaffirms the commitments made in respect of meeting the special needs of Africa at the 2005 World Summit,21 underlines the call of the Economic and Social Council for enhanced coordination within the United Nations system and the ongoing efforts to harmonize the current initiatives on Africa, in line with the African Union’s Agenda 2063, and requests the Commission for Social Development to continue to give due prominence in its work to the social dimensions of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development; 65. Recognizes that the implementation of the commitments made by Governments during the first United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997–2006) fell short of expectations, and recalls the proclamation of the Second United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (2008–2017) by the General Assembly in its resolution 62/205 of 19 December 2007 in order to support, in an efficient and coordinated manner, the internationally agreed development goals related to poverty eradication, which include the Sustainable Development Goals; 66. Requests the United Nations funds, programmes and agencies to mainstream the goal of full and productive employment and decent work for all into their policies, programmes and activities, as well as to support efforts of Member States aimed at achieving this objective, and invites financial institutions to support efforts in this regard; 67. Encourages States to design and implement policies and strategies for poverty eradication, full employment and decent work for all, including the creation of full and productive employment that is appropriately and adequately remunerated, as well as policies and strategies for social integration that promote gender equality and the empowerment of women and address the specific needs of social groups such as young people, persons with disabilities, older persons, migrants and indigenous peoples, taking into account the concerns of those groups in the planning, implementation and evaluation of development programmes and policies; 68. Requests the United Nations system to continue to support national efforts of Member States to achieve inclusive social development in a coherent and coordinated manner; 69. Invites the Secretary-General, the Economic and Social Council, the regional commissions, the relevant specialized agencies, the funds and programmes of the United Nations system and other intergovernmental forums, within their respective mandates, to continue to integrate into their work programmes and give priority attention to the Copenhagen commitments and the Declaration on the tenth anniversary of the World Summit for Social Development,22 to continue to be actively involved in their follow-up and to monitor the achievement of those commitments and undertakings; 70. Invites the Commission for Social Development to emphasize, in its review of the implementation of the Copenhagen Declaration and the Programme of Action, the increased exchange of national, regional and international experiences, the focused and interactive dialogues among experts and practitioners and the sharing of best practices and lessons learned and to remain actively engaged in supporting the __________________ 21 Resolution 60/1, para. 68. 22 See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 2005, Supplement No. 6 (E/2005/26), chap. I, sect. A; see also Economic and Social Council decision 2005/234. A/RES/72/141 Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly 17-22927 14/14 implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in its social dimension; 71. Invites the President of the General Assembly to convene a high-level thematic debate on the issue of inclusive development and inequality within and among countries, before the meeting of the high-level political forum in 2019, and encourages the Secretary-General to include best practices related to the reduction of inequalities within and among countries in the Report on the World Social Situation 2019; 72. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its seventy-third session, under the item entitled “Social development”, the sub-item entitled “Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and of the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly”, with a special focus on trends in inequality within and among countries, and requests the Secretary-General to submit a report on the question to the Assembly at that session. 73rd plenary meeting 19 December 2017

UN Project. “A/RES/72/141.” UN Project, https://un-project.org/votes/resolution/A-RES-72-141/. Accessed .

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