What: The President of the UN General Assembly, H.E. Mr. Volkan BOZKIR, will convene a High-level Meeting on Middle-Income Countries (MICs) on 17 June and 2 July 2021 under the theme “Finetuning the development system approach to address the needs of MICs”. The meeting will gather Heads of State and Government, as well as representatives of current and former MICs, multilateral banks, international financial institutions, the UN Development System and civil society organizations. 

Participants will discuss the gaps and challenges of MICs in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, take stock of progress attained since the first High-level Meeting on Middle-Income Countries in 2018 and share national experiences, best practices and priority actions in support of MICs.

 

Why: Having achieved a certain level of development, the concerns and needs of MICs are often considered less problematic or urgent than the ones of Least Developed Countries (LDCs). At the same time, MICs face significant challenges on their path to sustainable development and share some of the same vulnerabilities as low-income countries. Sixty-two per cent of the world’s poor live in MICs. Crippling debt, unequal wealth distribution, lack of economic competitiveness and vulnerability to the effects of climate change and natural disasters, stunt prospects for growth in the lower echelon of MICs. MICs with greater wealth often face structural bottlenecks in greening their economies, boosting job markets, modernizing government administrations and harnessing innovation. Despite being potential economic powerhouses, many MICs are at risk of stagnating in the “middle-income trap” due to institutional, social and technological obstacles. Addressing the needs of MICs and solving the challenges they face are critical to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and implementing the 2030 Agenda.

 

When: 17 June (10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3 to 6 p.m. ET), and 2 July 2021 (10 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET)

 

Where: General Assembly Hall and broadcast live and on-demand at http://webtv.un.org  

 

Speakers to include:

  • H.E. Mr. Volkan BOZKIR, President of the General Assembly
  • H.E. Mr. Munir Akram, President of the Economic and Social Council
  • H.E. Mr. António Guterres, UN Secretary-General
  • The Honorable Marsha Caddle, MP and Minister in the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Investment of Barbados
  • Julien Harneis, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Pakistan
  • Heads of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, United Nations Capital Development Fund, United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Industrial Development Organization, UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean and International Trade Centre
  • Senior officials from the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, World Trade Organization, Inter-American Development Bank, World Bank and International Monetary Fund
  • Anne Simpson, Managing Investment Director for Board Governance and Sustainability, CalPERS
  • Sonja Gibbs, Managing Director and Head of Sustainable Finance, Global Policy Initiatives, Institute of International Finance
  • Philippe Isler, Executive Director, Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation
  • Ana Patricia Munoz, Southern Voice Network, Executive Director, Grupo FARO

 

More information, including the programme and full list of speakers, is available at https://www.un.org/pga/75/mics/  

 

For further information, please contact:

Anna Fritzsche, Office of the President of the General Assembly, +1 (929)-488-6082, fritzsche@un.org