UN General Assembly High-level Meeting on Middle-income Countries
'Accelerating the achievement of the SDGs in middle-income countries, with a focus on the environmental dimension'
UNHQ | Trusteeship Council and online

Concept note and agenda | Event website

Live webcast (Part I) | Live webcast (Part II)

FAO Chief Economist, Máximo Torero Cullen, to participate in person as a panelist

BACKGROUND

Middle-income countries (MICs) are a large and heterogenous group that exhibits a broad range of development achievements and challenges. For MICs, the World Bank income classification ranges from the per capita income of about $1,000 to more than $12,000 per year, with 107 countries currently ranked as middle-income. Included in the group of middle-income countries are 20 least developed countries, 19 landlocked developing countries and 29 small island developing states. Together, MICs account for around three quarters of the world population and are home to over 60 per cent of world’s poor. They represent about one-third of world GDP and are major engines of global growth.

They currently contribute around 60 per cent of global CO2 emissions (mostly due to about ten rapidly growing economies). Recent external shocks have exacerbated the vulnerabilities of many middle-income countries. The multiple and overlapping current crises – including the global cost-of-living crisis, food insecurity, growing sovereign debt burdens, increased environmental degradation and pollution, and the worsening climate crisis – have amplified challenges and constrained countries’ resources to address them.

Many middle-income countries are also particularly vulnerable to natural hazards that are increasing in intensity and frequency due to the impacts of climate change. MICs face the challenge of designing and implementing coherent and consistent policy measures to address vulnerabilities in the short-term and strengthen sustainable development trajectories in the long term, considering and integrating the three dimensions of sustainable development.

There is a need for enhanced financial and technical support and partnerships to help middle-income countries overcome their challenges and unleash their potential to contribute to the provision of global public goods.

SCOPE AND RATIONALE

The High-level Meeting is being held under the theme “Accelerating the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in middle-income countries, with a focus on the environmental dimension” and organized to take stock of the gaps and challenges of middle-income countries in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, and promote implementation of the SDGs through practical, evidence- and science-based solutions.

Discussions will also address the current socio-economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and how it has underlined and exacerbated existing fragilities, with negative and severe consequences for achieving the SDGs, considering the interlinkages among the environmental, economic and social dimensions.

The high-level meeting aims to:

• Take stock of the gaps and bottlenecks in MICs in addressing environmental challenges which hinder sustainable development;
• Identify solutions for promoting the achievement of the environmental dimension of sustainable development as the catalyzers for the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development and propose action-oriented steps forward;
• Assess the effectiveness of the development support to MICs by the UN development system in the environmental dimension and identify measures that advance progress through a whole-of-system approach;
• Enhance partnership and synergy among Member States, all sectors of society, domestic and international partners to accelerate action to address environmental challenges and boost sustainable development in MICs; and
• Discuss measurements of sustainable development that go beyond GDP to better reflect the progress of sustainable development across all dimensions and guide national policymaking and development cooperation.

FAO PARTICIPATION AT THE HIGH-LEVEL MEETING

'Panel Session 2: Support of the United Nations system and others to advance international development cooperation with MICs, including in the environmental dimension'

* FAO Chief Economist, Máximo Torero Cullen, to participate in person as a panelist.

Live webcast | FAO Chief Economist presentation

Background for Panel Session 2

The United Nations development system aims to be a trusted, reliable, cohesive, accountable and effective partner to countries in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. Against the backdrop of the COVID19 pandemic and increasing global risks including climate change, water stresses, and food insecurity, improved support from the United Nations and other multilateral agencies should focus on addressing priority issues that prevent progress on sustainable development, including the environmental dimension. This requires improved coordination among UN entities, other international partners, donors and multi-stakeholder partners, to provide integrated high-quality policy advice, strengthen institutions, capacity development and support for the leveraging of partnerships and financing.

Guiding questions for Panel Session 2

How could the UN better assist MICs to implement transformative initiatives to address key environmental and development challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution and waste, and improve access to financing and capacity building?

How could the UN system and other multilateral partners further enhance inter-agency synergies and collaboration in assisting MICs to address environmental challenges and accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda?