UN Summit of the Future

The UN Summit of the Future is quickly approaching. UN member states will soon commit to a shared vision on how to revitalize multilateralism, increase trust in the UN system, and accelerate the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The Summit will be held on the 22th and 23rd of September at the UN Headquarters in New York City and mostly consist of ceremonial programming. 

The commitments will be based on three outcome documents, some of which have been in the works for three years. These documents are the Pact of the Future, the Declaration on Future Generations, and the Global Digital Compact (GDC). 

C-Fam followed the negotiation process for each and identified several problematic provisions that could impact national sovereignty and freedom of speech, among other things. Giving a brief snapshot of the Pact of the Future and GDC, Stefano Gennarini said, “The ‘Pact for the Future’ would expand the powers and reach of the United Nations system, while the ‘Global Digital Compact’ would govern digital technology, including emerging artificial intelligence for the whole world.” 

In his critique of the UN Pact of the Future, Brett Schaefer from Heritage Foundation said that “The Pact for the Future is an unwise effort to bestow additional responsibilities on an organization that is unable to manage its current responsibilities.” 

Speaking more about the Pact of the Future, Gennarini continued,

“The changes to the UN system would grant the Secretary General greater powers, including the creation of an emergency platform to provide his office with power and resources to coordinate the UN response to shocks and emergencies related to the economy, conflict, climate, health, and other emergencies.”

During consultations with civil society, C-Fam flagged that the Global Digital Compact should ensure that AI is not used as a political weapon to silence or remove content deemed politically incorrect, “The reach and power of AI technology is astonishing. The biggest danger is that it becomes a political weapon. Those who wield the power of AI cannot be allowed to silence and repress their opponents or to cancel and re-write history. Ensuring transparency and accountability in this space is a special challenge because of the complex interplay of public-private interests.”

When it comes to the Declaration on Future Generations, C-Fam reported on a heated debate among member states on whether to include a provision on “the family.” 

Apart from the ceremonial adoption of these documents, the UN will also be hosting two “Action Days” on 21st and 22nd of September where it is convening “representatives from Member States, civil society, private sector, academia, local and regional authorities, youth, and many more…[to] provide an opportunity for broad engagement and inclusion.”