Recto to G-24: Reclaim lost momentum, make powerful comeback in race to 2030 thru heightened cooperation and support from int’l partners

Finance Secretary and Chair of the Intergovernmental Group of Twenty-Four (G-24) Board of Governors Ralph G. Recto has urged member states to reclaim their lost momentum and make a powerful comeback in the race to 2030 through heightened cooperation and scaled-up support from international financial institutions to weather global challenges.

“We must keep in mind that 2030 marks a universal deadline for all nations to make substantial progress in eradicating poverty, ending hunger, and protecting the environment,” Secretary Recto said in his opening remarks for the G-24 Technical Group Meeting (TGM) on February 21, 2024.

“With over half a decade remaining until 2030, there is enough opportunity for developing economies to reclaim lost momentum and make a powerful comeback if we unite in concerted action and adhere to fiscal discipline,” he added.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a universal action plan that balances economic, social, and environmental goals.

Formed in 1971, the G-24 helps coordinate the positions of developing countries on international monetary and development finance issues, as well as to ensure that their interests are adequately represented in negotiations on international monetary matters.

This year, the Philippines is hosting a two-day G-24 Technical Group meeting with the theme, “Building Resilience to Meet Global Challenges” to discuss strategies to efficiently address ongoing economic challenges including climate financing, changes in global trade regime, resource mobilization, and sovereign debt resolution, among others.

Secretary Recto stressed that the COVID-19 pandemic inflicted a severe blow to the global economy, halting its growth momentum and leaving middle and low-income countries with constrained fiscal resources and mounting debt burdens.

As economies strive for sustainable recovery, he said the lingering effects of COVID-19 continue to loom over the post-pandemic world as developing nations find themselves in a post-COVID landscape with little to no fiscal buffer amid tighter credit conditions and higher costs of borrowing.

This is being exacerbated by the worsening impacts of climate change disproportionately