Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Address at the ‘Summit of the Future’ in the United Nations

By R Anil Kumar

• Global action must align with ambition: PM Modi

• Speaking at the 79^th UN General Assembly session, PM Modi stressed over the sensible use of technology and appealed for a balanced regulation.

• Without naming any country, he said India sought such global digital governance wherein sovereignty and integrity remain unharmed.

• The theme of the Summit is ‘Multilateral Solutions for a Better Tomorrow’. The Summit witnessed the participation of a large number of world leaders

New York. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the “Summit of the Future” at the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Monday, September 23, 2024.

Speaking at the 79^th UN General Assembly session, PM Modi said, “Success of humanity lies in our collective strength, not in the battlefield. For global peace and development, reforms in global institutions are important. Reform is the key to relevance,” PM Modi stated.

In his five-minute speech at the UN, he urged countries to prioritise “humanity” and adopt a human-centric approach to ensure sustainable development.

In his address, Prime Minister Modi also highlighted India’s vision for shaping a sustainable world for future generations.

He noted that he was speaking at the Summit on behalf of one-sixth of humanity which seeks global peace, development and prosperity.

“Terrorism remains a serious threat to global peace; areas such as cyber, maritime & space are emerging as new theatres of conflict,” PM Modi noted.

Calling for the primacy of a human-centric approach in our collective quest for a bright global future, the Prime Minister highlighted India’s success at scaling sustainable development initiatives and, in this regard, noted that the country had lifted 250 million people out of poverty in the last decade.

Expressing solidarity with countries of the Global South, he emphasized that India was privileged to share its development experience with them.

PM Modi called for balanced regulations to promote safe and responsible use of technology, noting that India is open to sharing its digital public infrastructure for greater public good.

Prime Minister Modi underlined India’s commitment to “One Earth, One Family, One Future” as a guiding principle.

The Prime Minister noted that reform is key to relevance and called for urgent reform of the institutions of global governance, including the UN Security Council. He noted that global action must match global ambition.

Digital infrastructure must be used as “bridge” and not as a “barrier”: PM Modi at UN

Speaking at the 79^th UN General Assembly session, PM Modi stressed over the sensible use of technology and appealed for a balanced regulation. Without naming any country, he said India sought such global digital governance wherein sovereignty and integrity remain unharmed.

The Indian Prime Minister said Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) must be utilised as a “bridge” and not as a “barrier” and professed India’s readiness to share its strategy in order to make online platforms more accessible.

“For safe and responsible use of technology, balance regulation is needed. We want such global digital governance in which sovereignty and integrity remain intact. Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) should be a bridge and not a barrier.

For global good, India is ready to share its DPI. For India, One Earth One Family One Future is a commitment,” said PM Modi

He noted that the inclusion of the African Union as a permanent member of the G20 under India’s presidency of the grouping at the New Delhi Summit last year “was an important step in this direction.”

India has been at the forefront of years-long efforts to reform the 15-nation Security Council, saying the powerful UN body does not reflect current geopolitics realities and underscoring that it rightly deserves a permanent seat at the horse-shoe table. India last sat at the UN high table as a non-permanent member in 2021-22.

India is ready to share its experience: PM Modi at UN

The Prime Minister highlighted how India has progressed tremendously while maintaining sustainable development. “Today, I am here to bring here the voice of the one-sixth of the humanity… We have elevated 250 million people out of poverty in India and we have shown that sustainable development can be successful. We are ready to share this experience of success with Global South,” he said.

He assured the world community that India will continue to work in thought, words and deeds to protect the rights of all humanity and for global prosperity.

In his opening remarks to the summit, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said conflicts are raging and multiplying, from the Middle East to Ukraine and Sudan, with “no end in sight” and he called for the summit because “our world is heading off the rails – and we need tough decisions to get back on track.”

“Our collective security system is threatened by geopolitical divides, nuclear posturing, and the development of new weapons and theatres of war. Resources that could bring opportunities and hope are invested in death and destruction,” he said.

He further stressed that he had called for this meeting of world leaders to consider deep reforms to make global institutions more legitimate, fair and effective, based on the values of the UN Charter.

“I called for this Summit because 21st century challenges require 21st century solutions: frameworks that are networked and inclusive; and that draw on the expertise of all of humanity,” he said.

The Summit of the Future followed by the annual General Assembly high-level week comes in the midst of the Israel-Hamas conflict and the Ukraine war as well as challenges of climate change, inequality and deep geopolitical divides.

The Pact’s five broad focus areas include sustainable development; international peace and security; science and technology; youth and future generations and transforming global governance. It lays the groundwork for actions and commitment by member states towards a safer, more peaceful, sustainable and inclusive world for tomorrow’s generations.

With the UN turning 80 next year, the Pact underscores the need for reform of global institutions, a path forward for action on Sustainable Development Goals, climate action and the use of artificial intelligence among other areas. It, however, does not contain timelines for actions required to achieve these goals.

The Summit concluded with the adoption of an outcome document – A Pact for the Future, along with two annexes, Global Digital Compact and A Declaration on Future Generations.