PH Elected Vice President of UN Industrial Development Board, Highlights Conference on Middle-Income Countries in Manila Next Year
Philippine Ambassador Permanent Representative Evangelina A. Bernas emphasized the role of middle-income countries and highlighting the Philippines' hosting of the 2025 High-Level Conference on Middle-Income Countries at the 52nd session of UNIDO’s Industrial Development Board
VIENNA 03 December 2024 – The Philippines was elected as one of the Vice Presidents of the Bureau of the Industrial Development Board (IDB) of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) during its 52nd session on 25-27 November 2024.
Delivering the Philippine statement at the plenary, Ambassador and Permanent Representative Evangelina A. Bernas called on UNIDO to expand its engagement with middle-income countries (MICs) and promote sustainable industrial and economic development tailored to the MICs’ specific needs. “MICs are major engines of growth, contributing a third of global GDP, but are also home to 62% of the world’s poor,” she said. The Philippines will host the next High-Level Conference on MICs in Manila on 28-29 April 2025.
The Philippines urged UNIDO to submit its second Country Programming Framework (CPF) with the Philippines which aims to deliver development projects that align with the country’s national development plans such as the Philippine Development Plan 2023–2028 and AmBisyon Natin 2040. It also called for reforms within UNIDO to address critical governance issues that were reported through independent internal and external audits, and encouraged UNIDO to revisit its strategic priorities and strengthen its technical cooperation mechanisms to ensure the achievement of its mandate for inclusive and sustainable industrial development.
The Philippines reiterated its commitment to collaborate with UNIDO and its Member States to address global challenges and drive progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 9 (to build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization, foster innovation). END
Ambassador and Permanent Representative Evangelina A. Bernas emphasized the role of middle-income countries and highlighted the Philippines' hosting of the 2025 High-Level Conference on Middle Income Countries at the 52nd session of UNIDO’s Industrial Development Board
Deputy Permanent Representative Zoilo A. Velasco commended UNIDO’s achievements in 2023 and the successful implementation of the Philippines-UNIDO Country Programming Framework (CPF) 2019–2023 at the 52nd session of the Industrial Development Board
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