Welcome, everyone, to the Business Call to Action 11th Annual Forum - Inclusive Business at the Nexus of Recovery.

We are pleased to see so many of our partners and friends present here today, ready to engage, share their knowledge and experience, present innovative solutions to leave no one behind, and reinforce effective cooperation for deeper, stronger, and more equitable global prosperity.

A special thank you as well to BCtA’s donors, SIDA, SDC, Minbuza, Agfund and BCtA’s newest donor, BMZ/GIZ.

Today, as the world combats a global pandemic and a climate emergency that threatens long-term sustainable development, we also do not forget that 1.3 billion people are living in multidimensional poverty.[1]

In 2020 alone, over 114 million people are estimated to have fallen below the poverty line, of which nearly 58 million are women and girls.

Reversing this downward trend while recovering sustainably for people and planet is a huge, complex puzzle that requires a whole-of-society approach.

Only inclusive, innovative, and multi-stakeholder collaboration will enable us to safeguard the tremendous development progress made to date and ensure widespread and sustainable forward motion.

I invite all partners and friends gathered here today to engage in co-creation and systems transformation with UNDP, and to join us in a mission to enhance global capacity to build a more equitable and resilient world.

We see the crises of the pandemic and climate change as opportunities to re-imagine development, to stimulate structural transformation that produces green, inclusive, and digital transitions.

Today’s event reminds us of the critical role of the private sector in this transformation. The private sector is a key collaborator in innovating for forward progress, in preventing and mitigating social and environmental crises, and in building resilience.

In addition to supporting businesses through private sector platforms like Business Call to Action, UNDP is building strategic alliances with the private sector to empower local actors and low-income communities and give voice to the under-served.

One new engagement model is the COVID-19 Private Sector Global Facility, initiated last year with our partners at the UN Global Compact and the International Chamber of Commerce.

Strategic partners from the private sector, including DHL, Microsoft, and PwC have joined to co-create locally relevant solutions guided by the UN Global Compact’s Ten Principles and the Sustainable Development Goals.

In Colombia, for example, Global Facility partners are working together to reactivate 500 SMEs through digital transformation—another important priority for UNDP.

In our digital world, we need the private sector’s support in unlocking the power and value of digital tools for prosperous societies.

Together with the private sector, UNDP is building and rolling out digital solutions for human development and environmental security.

Through UNDP’s digital strategy and initiatives like the Accelerator Labs Network and the Innovation Facility, UNDP has already invested significantly in innovative digital approaches and infrastructure.

BCtA, for instance, together with UNDP Colombia and the Colombian Ministry of Health, and with support from UNDP Accelerator Labs and other partners, is assisting in the adaptation and replication of digitally enabled healthcare solutions to reach the most vulnerable—a theme we’ll explore further over the next two days.

Let us now exchange knowledge and perspectives. As we come together today to envision the future of development, I call on all of us here to reflect on our place in an inclusive, green recovery and to put forth our greatest strengths and resources toward this goal.

Let us remember that while the future is challenging, it is not set in stone. It is for us—the global community—to shape.

Thank you.