Guyana’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, said reform of the United Nations must remain a priority as the organisation confronts a changing global landscape and increasingly complex challenges.
Rodrigues-Birkett, Guyana’s nominee for Secretary-General of the United Nations, pointed to the proliferation of conflicts, growing humanitarian needs, setbacks in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the organisation’s liquidity challenges, climate change and the rapid advancement of technology, including artificial intelligence, as issues demanding a more responsive United Nations.
Ambassador Rodrigues-Birkett maintains that reform must strengthen the organisation’s ability to deliver on its mandate while responding to the realities facing Member States and people around the world.
“The UN must therefore be fit for purpose; hence advancing reform will be amongst my top priorities,” she added.
According to the ambassador, reform must also be understood within the respective responsibilities of the organisation’s 193 Member States and the UN Secretariat.
She explained that the Secretary-General is responsible for objective information to support the structural reform decisions and ensure approved mandates are implemented effectively.
The ambassador stated, “Ordinary citizens may not always know how the UN is involved in their daily life. For example, the UN sets the rules for aviation to keep our skies safe, rules on road safety, on food standards, on health regulations, on the world’s oceans and many more. We have to communicate the work of the UN better, and that is what I will do.”
Against this backdrop, Rodrigues-Birkett said the UN must also improve how it communicates its work and demonstrates its impact.