Resident Coordinator's Message on UN Day

• Your Royal Highness Prince Faisal bin Bandar Al Saud
• Your Excellency Minister/Deputy Minister
• Your Excellency Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Protocol Affairs 
• Honorable Ms. Lina Al Maeena, Shura Council Member
• Excellencies,
• Distinguished Guests,

أهلاً وسهلاً بكم في بيت الأمم المتحدة

On behalf of the United Nations – I sincerely thank you for joining us tonight to celebrate the 74th anniversary of the United Nations.

United Nations Day is an occasion for us to reflect on this unique organization, that brings together 193 member states to preserve peace and promote prosperity for all, to celebrate its achievements and contributions to development, peace, and security around the world. Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjold once remarked that “the United Nations was not created to bring us to heaven, but to save us from hell”.

As you heard from the Secretary-General, today’s challenges are immense. From anxieties linked to globalization to the climate crisis, to aspirations for human rights and gender equality, and to recurring threats to peace and stability across the globe, it may feel as if hell is not far away. And it may therefore be tempting to doubt the efficacy of multilateralism and its values, as embodied by the UN.

But UN day is also an occasion to remind ourselves of what we can achieve for peace and development, as government representatives, development partners, and individuals, when we come together, inspired by our shared humanity and driven by a common agenda.

Our common agenda is the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. They may not constitute heaven, but reaching them, here and across the world, will certainly move us further from hell.

And Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 aligns to the Decade of Action to achieve the SDGs; The changes already underway have been historic. The ones to come can be transformational.

The G20 Presidency is an opportunity to accelerate Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and to promote global collaboration on the world’s most pressing challenges and to deliver sustainable outcomes for the benefit of the world’s population, the Arab region, and the Saudi people.

In closing, I would like to acknowledge with great appreciation the contributions that the Saudi government has made and continues to make to the United Nations.

I would also like to take a moment to recognize and thank our UN staff for their commitment and tireless work, and a special thanks to our calligraphy artist Mazin Andijani and Oud player Mohammed bin Khonain.

Thank you all again for joining us in celebrating UN Day. I wish you all an enjoyable evening.

شكراً لكم