UN: Many economic challenges require international efforts to overcome at minimal cost

The day after tomorrow, Tuesday, the world’s eyes will turn to New York, the United States, where the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly is expected to be held. The meeting will be full of many hot economic issues. These challenges and ways to overcome them will be submitted to global decision makers for discussion in order to find sustainable solutions to meet these challenges and get rid of them at the lowest cost.
Inflation and its accompanying sharp rise in the prices of basic goods and food, combined with the monetary tightening policy represented by the gradual increase in interest rates by the world’s major central banks, imposes an additional burden on the economic sectors, especially the private sector, in addition to geopolitical and economic conflicts, especially the war in Ukraine, the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as debt and international trade issues, which pose many challenges, and everyone, country, government and individual, fears its unintended consequences, especially since, according to almost daily forecasts and analyses, its owners expect a decline and sharp drop in the overall growth rate of the global economy.
The leaders of the Member States plan to meet directly in New York to discuss a package of cross-cutting and cross-cutting issues that affect the achievement of the goals of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, in particular challenges such as eradicating poverty and hunger, health, education for all, access to clean water and providing decent work in cities and local communities.
In this context, economic analyst Mubarak Tamimi said that world leaders face many challenges, the most obvious of which is the increase in the levels of debt owed, especially by developing countries, and the huge fiscal burden they create, which limits their ability to grow and develop, noting that continued interest rate increases have affected the repayment capacity of these countries, and that their efforts to attract investment have been weakened by currency depreciation, in addition to the increased cost of borrowing, which has affected investment, expansion and growth, and increased unemployment.
Tamimi added to the Qatar News Agency (QNA) that global challenges are complex and intertwined, and no country can successfully address them alone, which requires joint efforts from countries around the world and international organizations on financial and economic affairs, and the need to restructure debt to reduce the fiscal burden and enhance countries’ reinvestment in other development sectors.
He explained that the economic challenges that are expected to be discussed at the 78th UN Conference require enhanced international cooperation and exchange of experiences between countries, as well as the importance of establishing national and international partnerships to find common solutions and develop applicable economic strategies.
Tamimi’s statement is consistent with the warning issued by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on July 12 that the debt crisis in developing countries could trigger a development disaster because governments spend more on debt repayment than on debt payments. “About 3.3 billion people, or almost half of humanity, live in countries where debt repayments are more important than education or health,” he stressed while presenting a report on the global debt situation to the international organization.
The same report also shows that the world’s public debt will reach $92 trillion in 2022, a record high and five times that of 2000. Developing countries account for about 30% of the total debt, and their debt is growing faster than other countries. Due to the higher interest rates paid, it needs to repay more debt. The report said that 52 countries, equivalent to 40% of developing countries, suffer from “serious debt problems.”
Economic expert Ahmed Akil stressed that the world is facing a series of challenges, the most notable of which are high asset costs, high inflation rates, the impact of the Russo-Ukrainian war and the resulting sharp rise in food prices. In addition, geopolitical transformation has led to a significant slowdown in international economic growth.
Akel told the Qatar News Agency (QNA) that international conflicts, unfair trade, climate change and the negative impact of development issues are all challenges that affect global economic stability and increase the difficulty of achieving sustainable development and its 17 goals that the United Nations seeks to achieve.
Relatedly, the International Monetary Fund recently projected in its World Economic Prospects report that the global economy will grow by 3% this year, while it will grow by 3.5% in 2022 and 3% in 2024, while global inflation is expected to fall from 8.7% in 2022 to 6.8% in 2023 and to 5.2% next year.
Economic expert Ahmed Akle stressed that the role of the United Nations in addressing economic challenges is to provide financial and technical assistance to Member States through its programs, agencies and development funds to support countries in developing economic sectors and implementing sustainable development policies, pointing out that financial assistance techniques include providing low-interest loans and helping to improve infrastructure and develop major industries, as well as providing training and modern technology to countries to help them develop job skills and improve their competitiveness in the global market.
The world is awaiting the results of these conferences, which could contribute to a comprehensive response to the challenges of the global economic system, and the international community is expected to focus on sustainable development and the issues of developing and strengthening important economic sectors such as agriculture, industry, tourism and technology in order to achieve sustainable economic growth and create jobs for the people, the ability of these sectors to compete at the international level and increase export capacity, which requires strengthening international cooperation and exchanging experiences.
It is noteworthy that in 2015, the United Nations member states unanimously adopted the 2030 Sustainable Development Plan (2030 Agenda), which includes 17 goals, 169 targets and 231 unique indicators. The plan aims to determine the direction of global and national development policies and provide new options and opportunities for narrowing the gap between human rights and development. It also constitutes the overall framework guiding global and national development work.
Specific SDGs include ending poverty and hunger, improving health and education, ensuring access to clean water, promoting decent work opportunities, achieving sustainable economic growth, building sustainable communities, promoting peace and justice and building strong institutions, as well as many core economic, social and cultural rights targets, and some basic aspects of civil and political rights, including personal security, access to justice and fundamental freedoms.
These goals and rights are achieved through multisectoral efforts involving governments, international organizations and civil society to improve the quality of life and promote justice and equality for all.