UN chief calls for building fairer, greener, more resilient global economy

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday called on the international community to build a fairer, greener and more resilient global economy.

"We must build a fairer, greener and more resilient global economy that leaves no one behind," the UN chief said at the virtual extraordinary meeting of the Global Investors for Sustainable Development Alliance.

"With the world's fragilities and inequalities so painfully exposed, it is clear that we cannot simply rebuild the world as it was," Guterres said while talking about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global community and the vision of rebuilding the post-pandemic world.

"The diverse and severe impacts of the pandemic continue to unfold. Unemployment has skyrocketed. Temporary business closures are becoming permanent. Rebuilding to pre-crisis levels of employment and output may take years," said the secretary-general.

"This unparalleled economic shock places development gains at risk, and throws us even more off track in our efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. And as ever, the poorest and most vulnerable suffer most -- from job losses and illness, from overwhelmed and insufficient health systems and a lack of social safety nets," he added.

"While the immediate response is critical in limiting devastation from the disease and cushioning the socio-economic impacts, a long and difficult path lies before us, as communities determine how to reopen businesses, relax social distancing restrictions and enable free movement of people within and across borders, while keeping the public health crisis at bay," he said.

"Yet with crisis comes opportunity," the UN chief noted.

On a positive note, Guterres said that there are positive signs that this moment could provide the opening for transformations that have been long in the making but perhaps needed a push.

"COVID-19 is having dramatic impacts on the way the world works -- for example, by reducing energy usage and prompting the adoption of technologies that can decouple the economy from its reliance on fossil fuels. These changes can be the beginning of the process of shaping our world for the better," he said.

Talking about the challenges, the UN chief said that one key challenge is to better align economic value with social value. "This means businesses acting in the interest of stakeholders, not just shareholders, and integrating sustainability into their operations."

"With the pandemic, this message now has new poignancy," he said.

"We must use this opportunity to accelerate the shift of public international finance towards sustainable sectors, and to align private financial flows with the achievement of net zero emissions," said the UN chief.

"Both can bring major capital flows to developing and emerging economies, countering the forces of fragmentation that this crisis threatens to unleash," he noted.