High-level Week of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly

As world leaders gathered in New York City for the 78th session of the UN General Assembly, several events were organised in the session's High-level Week from 18-26 September 2023:

Pre-Summit Media Briefing | 15 September

A press briefing was held with Amina J. Mohammed, the UN Deputy Secretary-General, to preview the SDG Summit and High-Level Week of UNGA78. Joining Ms. Amina J. Mohammed was Achim Steiner, Administrator of UNDP, and Selwin Hart, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Climate Action. The press briefing was moderated by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

SDG Summit | 18-19 September

Convened by the President of the General Assembly, the Summit marked the half-way point to the deadline set for achieving the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, and responds to the impact of multiple and interlocking crises facing the world.

• High Impact Initiative: Nature Driving Economic Transformation | 17 September: This was one of twelve high impact initiatives, led by UN-system entities, that showcased select programmatic offerings and initiatives to support Member States' efforts towards just development transitions and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) achievement. This event was part of the SDG Action Weekend of the SDG Summit.

High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development | 20 September

This Dialogue was a critical moment to follow up on the implementation of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, which was adopted in 2015 to provide a new global framework for funding sustainable development by aligning all financing flows and policies with economic, social and environmental priorities.

Secretary-General's Climate Ambition Summit | 20 September

Convened by the UN Secretary-General, the Summit aimed to accelerate action by governments, business, finance, local authorities and civil society, and hear from “first movers and doers”. The Summit represents a critical political milestone for demonstrating that there is collective global will to accelerate the pace and scale of a just transition to a more equitable renewable-energy based, climate-resilient global economy. 

Climate Ambition Summit: Accelerating Decarbonization through Collaboration and Implementation | 20 September

Focused on collaboration and coordination to phase-out fossil fuels and scale-up renewables across the energy and high-emitting sectors is critical to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 and limiting global temperature rise to 1.5C.

SDG Media Zone: Redesigning fashion storytelling: a playbook for change | 20 September

This panel explored the power of fashion’s marketing engine and the opportunity ahead of it to redirect efforts towards sustainable consumption.

High-level Meeting on Pandemic prevention, preparedness and response | 20 September

The Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response (PPPR) presented an opportunity for Member States to further mobilize political momentum, including through the integration of a multisectoral approach towards pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, given the multifaceted consequences of pandemics.

Zero draft of the Political Declaration on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response

Ministerial Meeting for the Summit of the Future | 21 September

The Meeting was an opportunity for Ministers to set out their vision and priorities for the Summit of the Future, and to outline their expectations of the action-oriented outcomes that, based on the results of the SDG Summit, can be achieved in 2024 when Heads of State and Government meet.

Information note

High-level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage | 21 September

This Meeting presented an opportunity for countries and stakeholders to renew efforts and accelerate progress toward achieving health for all. This served as the foundation for executing policies and ensuring responsibility for strengthening health systems for the future, building on the 2019 Political Declaration.

Information on preparations for the High-level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage

Zero draft of the Political Declaration on Universal Health Coverage

High-level Meeting on Tuberculosis | 22 September

This Meeting aimed to undertake a comprehensive review on the achievement of agreed tuberculosis targets 2018 Political Declaration of the first General Assembly high level meeting on TB, and to identify gaps and solutions to accelerate progress towards ending the tuberculosis epidemic by 2030.

Information on preparations for the High-level Meeting on the Fight Against Tuberculosis (TB)