1. The Minister of External Affairs of the Republic of India, Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federative Republic of Brazil, H.E. Amb. Mauro Vieira, and the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of the Republic of South Africa, H.E. Mr. Ronald Lamola, (hereinafter referred to as "the Ministers") held a meeting on the sidelines of the 79th Session of the United National General Assembly on 26 September, in New York.
2. The Ministers recalled that IBSA was created more than 20 years ago to promote coordination on global issues between three large pluralistic, multi-cultural and multi-ethnic democracies of Asia, South America and Africa, and to enhance trilateral cooperation in sectoral areas, providing a new and broader framework of South-South Cooperation. They underscored the importance of IBSA´s principles, norms, and values, including reformed multilateralism, participatory democracy, respect for and the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, and international humanitarian law, sovereign equality, territorial integrity, peaceful negotiation, diplomacy, freedom, the primacy of international law and sustainable development.
3. The Ministers reiterated their intention to further energize and leverage the IBSA Forum, this Meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs constituting a further step in that direction.
4. The Ministers agreed that the fight against poverty and hunger is a priority and a long-standing area for cooperation among IBSA countries. They agreed to leverage international cooperation to ensure food security and nutrition at the global level. The Ministers pledged to keep promoting the importance of this topic, as stated in the IBSA Standalone meeting of Minister of Foreign Affairs held in February 2024. They encouraged further progress on the IBSA Fund for the Alleviation of Poverty and Hunger (IBSA Fund), which improves financial support for South owned, South-led, demand-driven projects under national ownership across the developing world. The Ministers welcomed the pre-launching of the Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty as one of the principal initiatives of the Brazilian presidency of the G20 and look forward to its continuity.
5. The Ministers agreed to strengthen, expand and promote the IBSA Fund, an internationally recognized initiative of South-South cooperation, with 45 projects in 38 countries.
6. The Ministers recalled that India, Brazil and South Africa are focused on pursuing sustainable development, overcoming development challenges, reforming the global governance and upholding independent foreign policies. They believe that the values and principles of IBSA serve as a bridge between developing and developed countries. The Ministers affirmed the strategic significance of IBSA in safeguarding and advancing the interests of the Global South on the global stage, including at the multilateral and plurilateral bodies.
7. The Ministers noted with concern the escalation of geopolitical tensions and the eruption of conflicts in various parts of the world and emphasized the urgency of re-engaging in the pursuit of peace, in contrast to divisive narratives that only serve to reinforce the current scenario of fragmentation and geopolitical polarization. They stressed the need for valuing dialogue and diplomacy as a primary instrument for the peaceful resolution of conflicts and the need for strengthening tools for conflict prevention, such as mediation and negotiation. They reiterated their commitment to multilateralism and to the principles of the United Nations Charter and called for upholding international law.
8. They affirmed the need for reformed, revitalized and reinvigorated multilateralism aimed at implementing the 2030 Agenda, at adequately addressing contemporary global challenges of the 21st century and at making global governance more representative, legitimate, democratic, effective, transparent and accountable.
9. The Ministers underscored the importance of the Peacebuilding Commission in bringing a strategic approach and coherence to international peacebuilding efforts. They recognized the Commission’s role in advising and acting as a bridge to United Nations bodies and facilitating the inclusion of perspectives of relevant stakeholders, including international financial institutions, on peacebuilding. They also encouraged the mobilization of financial resources for the implementation of peacebuilding activities. In this regard, they welcomed the adoption of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 78/257 on investing in prevention and peacebuilding noting the significant progress made in the financing of peacebuilding activities by the United Nations, including from assessed contributions. The Ministers acknowledged that the role of the Peacebuilding Commission can be further enhanced to effectively support national, regional and international peacebuilding efforts, including on conflict prevention and expressed their intent to work together towards the 2025 review of the peacebuilding architecture, as mandated by UNGA resolution 75/201 and UNSC resolution 2558 (2020).
10. Recalling the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, the Ministers expressed grave concern about the serious humanitarian consequences of the more than 100 ongoing armed conflicts around the world and emphasized that a universal culture of compliance with international humanitarian law is essential to preventing and mitigating the human cost of war.
11. The Ministers recalled that all parties to armed conflicts must respect and protect civilians and take constant care to spare civilian objects, in compliance with the humanitarian principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution. They condemned any unlawful denial of humanitarian access and depriving civilians of objects indispensable to their survival in situations of armed conflict. They recalled the obligation of all parties to armed conflict to allow and facilitate safe, predictable and unhindered access of humanitarian assistance to all those in need, taking into account the particular needs of vulnerable populations based on UNSC Resolution 2573/2021.
12. The Ministers called for strengthening of global arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation, including efforts within the framework of the Conference on Disarmament.
13. Recalling the IBSA Joint Statement on the Reform of the Multilateral System made in New York on 26 September 2019 and the IBSA Joint Ministerial Statement on Reform of the UN Security Council of 16 September 2020, the Ministers reaffirmed their commitments to safeguarding the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, such as equal sovereignty and non-interference in other countries’ internal affairs, greater democracy and the rule of law in international relations, as well as to building a representative, legitimate, effective, responsive and participatory international governance architecture through mutually beneficial cooperation.
14. The Ministers welcomed the adoption of the Pact for the Future and its annexes and the commitments to make global institutions more representative of and responsive to today’s world. The Ministers looked forward to cooperating towards the reform of the Security Council, the WTO, and the international financial architecture, among others, to urgently make progress towards a just, democratic, and equitable multilateral system, and to ensure that all Member States, especially countries from the Global South, can meaningfully participate in global decision-making in multilateral institutions and better integrating the voice of developing countries in global decision-making. They emphasized the need to enhance the voice and representation of developing countries in global economic decision-making, norm-setting and global economic governance at international economic and financial institutions.
15. The Ministers emphasized that while a comprehensive reform of the United Nations system remains a crucial international undertaking, the advancing of the reform of the Security Council should remain an urgent and top priority. The Ministers expressed once again frustration with the paralysis observed at the Inter-Governmental Negotiations on UN Security Council reform which have failed to produce a contribution to the pact for the future that adequately reflects the support expressed by a significant majority of UN member states for an expansion in both categories of security council membership. Encouraged by the pact for the future, they stressed that the time has come to move towards a result-oriented process and urged the redoubling of efforts to achieve concrete outcomes within a fixed time frame on this issue through the commencement of text-based negotiations, based on a consolidated model, in a formal setting, during the 79th UNGA, with a view to an early comprehensive reform of the Security Council.
16. The Ministers emphasized the importance of the UN 80th anniversary in 2025 as an opportunity to follow up on the commitments enshrined in the pact for the future, striving] for decisive progress and tangible results on UN Security Council reform. In this regard, the Ministers of India and South Africa endorsed the call to action on global governance reform launched by the Brazilian presidency of the G20.
17. The Ministers renewed their commitment to work for the expansion of Security Council membership to include representation from developing countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America, in both the permanent and non-permanent membership categories for achieving a reformed, representative, equitable, responsive and effective UN Security Council, which is reflective of the contemporary global realities. They supported the legitimate aspiration of African countries to have a permanent presence in the UNSC and supported Brazil’s and India’s endeavours to occupy permanent seats in the Security Council.
18. The Ministers stated their concern regarding the conflict in Ukraine. The Ministers called on all actors involved to promote de-escalation and to foster direct dialogue, so as to create conditions for effective peace. They assessed relevant proposals of mediation and good offices, including by countries not directly involved, aimed at the peaceful resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy. They emphasized that all states must act consistently with the purposes and principles of the UN charter.
19. The Ministers expressed their deep concern about the dramatic humanitarian situation in Gaza and reiterated their call for an immediate ceasefire and the release of all remaining hostages. They stressed that all actors must comply with their obligations under international law, including relevant UNSC resolutions and ICJ decisions. They reaffirmed the urgent need for a lasting solution to the conflict through the political settlement of the situation based on a two-state solution, with an independent and viable state of Palestine living side by side with Israel, in peace and security, within the 1967 borders, which include the Gaza Strip and the west bank, with East Jerusalem as its capital. The Ministers called states that have not yet recognized the state of Palestine to do so, and expressed their support for the admission of Palestine as a member of the UN. The Ministers shared their concern about the risk of escalating conflicts in the Middle East, with unpredictable consequences for the whole region and the world.
20. The Ministers condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations wherever committed and by whomsoever. They concurred that terrorism is a global scourge that must be fought and that terrorist safe havens eliminated in every part of the world. They reaffirmed that the fight against terrorism must be carried out with full respect for international law, in particular the Charter of the United Nations and international human rights law. They called upon the international community to establish a genuinely broad international counter-terrorism framework in accordance with the principles of international law and support the United Nations' central coordinating role in international counter-terrorism cooperation. They recalled the responsibility of all States to prevent and counter-terrorism, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, the financing of terrorist networks and terrorist actions from their territories. The ministers called for concerted actions against all UN listed terrorists and terrorist entities including Al-Qaeda, ISIS/Daesh, Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), other proxy groups and their facilitators. The Ministers reiterated their resolve to step up joint efforts for the expeditious adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism in the UNGA.
21. The Ministers looked forward to further deepening counter-terrorism cooperation and reaffirmed the sole authority of the UN Security Council for imposing sanctions and called for urgent reform of the working methods of UN Security Council Sanctions Committees to ensure their effectiveness, responsiveness and transparency while avoiding politicization and double standards of any of their proceedings including listing proposals objectively on evidence-based criteria.
22. The Ministers recognise the close relationship between foreign policy and global health and that global health challenges, such as COVID-19 and Mpox, require concerted and sustained collaborative efforts. They look forward to working together to make the world more resilient to future public health emergencies, and highlighted the crucial role being played by the member states engaged in the ongoing negotiations under World Health Organization, guided by the principles of equity and solidarity to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.
23. The Ministers welcomed the adoption of amendments to the International Health Regulations, 2005, by the 77th World Health Assembly.
24. The Ministers emphasised the value of bilateral, particularly South-South cooperation, along with trilateral and multilateral cooperation among states in the field of health to promote the strengthening of health systems, including through local production and universal, timely and equitable access to safe, effective, quality and affordable medical supplies including vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics and other health technologies and products.
25. The Ministers congratulated the World Health Organization’s member states on the approval of Resolution WHA76.16, adopted during the 76th World Health Assembly, regarding the health of indigenous peoples. Noting that all the IBSA countries have systems of traditional medicine, the Ministers recognize that traditional medicine has a larger role to play in the prevention and control of Non-Communicable Diseases, nutritional deficiencies, infectious diseases and many other conditions. The Ministers welcomed the proposal for academia in IBSA countries to join hands to develop scientific evidence of the utility and effectiveness of traditional medicine. Further, recalling the IBSA MoU on cooperation in the field of health and medicine signed in Pretoria, South Africa, on 17 October 2007, which called for promoting and developing cooperation in the area of traditional medicine, the Ministers agreed to consider exploring a separate IBSA MoU for cooperation on Traditional Medicine and to develop and implement a road map for cooperation to improve the health of their people and facilitate trade in the area of traditional medicine inter alia.
26. The Ministers also welcomed the setting up of the first WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre in Gujarat, India, in 2022, in response to the increased global interest and demand for evidence-based traditional medicine.
27. The Ministers underscored the importance of the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in its three important dimensions – economic, social and environmental – in a balanced and integrated manner leaving no one behind. They highlighted the need to strengthen the means of implementation including capacity building, transfer of technology, grants and concessional finance from the developed countries and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development. They urged the developed countries to fully honour their Official Development Assistance (ODA) commitments, in particular that of dedicating 0.7% of their gross national income for ODA, and for providing new and additional financing and the means of implementation of the SDGs in the developing countries. They further urged developed countries to reserve the classification of ODA to initiatives strictly linked to development.
28. The Ministers underscored that the upcoming Fourth Financing for Development Conference (FfD4), to be held in Seville (Spain) in 2025, will be a key opportunity to advance the interests of developing countries in the reform of the International Financial Architecture, as well to ensure adequate financial resources to implement the 2030 Agenda and to accomplish every country´s right to development.
29. The Ministers also emphasized that it remains imperative to overcome extreme poverty, to reduce inequalities, and to promote sustainable development for all, including through international and South-South cooperation aimed at sharing best practices. They also acknowledged that the eradication of poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty, must be aligned with national efforts and international cooperation as it represents the greatest global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development.
30. The Ministers called for the implementation of multilateral environmental agreements guided by the principles of Rio Declaration, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the "Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework”. The Ministers emphasized the importance of ensuring adequate, accessible and predictable financial resources as well as transfer of appropriate and affordable technologies, especially from the developed countries to the developing countries for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and promoting the contributions of indigenous peoples, and local communities. In this sense, they called for reforming the governance and improving the efficiency of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) by ensuring the full and equal participation alongside developed countries in decision-making processes, as well as greater transparency and expedited project approvals by putting in place monitoring systems in a transparent manner following a consultative process. They also underlined the need to urgently accelerate actions to address development and climate challenges, promote lifestyle for sustainable development, and conserve biodiversity.
31. The Ministers reaffirmed the importance of the ongoing negotiation of an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment, and called for the integration of a new and dedicated fund suited to the challenges of implementation of the instrument, with a balanced governance structure and with developed countries taking the lead in providing resources.
32. The Ministers exchanged views on policies aimed at promoting the sustainable use of oceans, as well as strategic measures to achieve the SDG 14 within the IBSA. They expressed their support for the creation of the South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary (SAWS), to be established under the framework of the International Whaling Commission (IWC). The Ministers welcomed the adoption of the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ), as an important milestone to provide stronger protection of marine biodiversity in the High Seas. They acknowledged that the conservation and sustainable use of marine genetic resources of areas beyond national jurisdiction, considered as common heritage of humankind in the BBNJ Agreement, presents an opportunity for cooperation among IBSA countries.
33. They reaffirmed their commitment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), its Kyoto Protocol and its Paris Agreement. They welcomed the "UAE Consensus", adopted by COP28, which commits to accelerate climate action in this critical decade on the basis of the best available science, reflecting equity and the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities in the light of different national circumstances and in the context of sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty. The Ministers further reiterated their support to Azerbaijan’s Presidency of COP29, in 2024, set to adopt a new collective quantified goal (NCQG) from a floor of USD 100 billion per year, taking into account the needs and priorities of developing countries. They recalled that the COP28 decision on the global stock take recognized the growing gap between the needs of developing country Parties and the support provided and mobilized for their efforts to implement their nationally determined contributions (NDCs), highlighting that such needs are currently estimated at USD 5.8–5.9 trillion for the pre-2030 period.
34. They also reaffirmed their support to Brazil’s Presidency of COP30, in 2025, when Parties to the Paris Agreement will have presented their second round of NDCs. They recalled that COP28 encouraged Parties to come forward in their next NDCs with ambitious, economy-wide emission reduction targets, covering all greenhouse gases, sectors and categories in light of different national circumstances and they also welcomed India’s proposal to host COP33 in 2028.
35. The Ministers reiterated the importance of global goals set out in the UNFCCC’s Paris Agreement and welcomed the operationalisation of the UAE Work Programme on Just Transition, with its inclusive vision on just transition pathways, addressing both the national and international dimensions and all sectors of society. They also emphasized that the main bottleneck for transformative change in energy systems is access to affordable financing, technology and critical minerals, particularly for developing countries. In this regard, they called on developed countries to play a decisive role in filling this widening financing gap.
36. The Ministers affirmed their commitment to advancing just and inclusive energy transitions and to support actions to reduce emissions from the energy sector in line with NDC commitments and national priorities and contexts. They advocate the efficient utilisation of diverse energy sources and technologies — including biofuels, hydropower, fossil fuels, nuclear power, and low-emission hydrogen — to achieve more adaptable, resilient, and sustainable energy systems. They also emphasised that the main bottleneck for transformative change in energy systems is access to affordable financing in developing countries. In this regard, they welcomed the Brazilian G20 presidency’s emphasis on the need to catalyse and scale up investment, especially in developing countries, alongside discussions on just and inclusive energy transitions and the need for an integrated approach to the development, deployment and science-based certification] of sustainable low emission fuels. They furthermore recognised the importance of the immediate reduction of emissions from all transport sectors on a range of pathways, including through the development of infrastructure and rapid deployment of hybrid, flex-fuel and low emission vehicles.
37. The Ministers stressed that socially and environmentally sustainable mining is key for deployment of clean energy technologies. They further agreed that the countries where those strategic minerals are available should have the opportunity to be a part of the global value chains beyond extraction. In a context of growing protectionism and subsidies in developed countries, they underscored the need of prosperity sharing as well as investments in mineral processing and refining in resource-rich countries.
38. The Ministers of the Republic of India and of the Republic of South Africa expressed satisfaction with the launch of the G20 Initiative on Bioeconomy under Brazil’s Presidency of the group in 2024. The Brazilian Minister of Foreign Affairs thanked India and South Africa for their engagement in the Initiative. Both sides agreed that the bioeconomy has a crucial role to play in achieving sustainable development, given its potential to combine Indigenous and traditional knowledge with modern science to achieve inclusive growth, social well-being, environmental protection and regeneration, and climate change mitigation and adaptation. They recognized the potential for further cooperation in this area.
39. The Ministers expressed strong opposition to the growing trend of unilateral coercive measures, such as carbon border measures and deforestation regulations, which are being adopted by developed nations under the guise of environmental protection. Such actions undermine the economic progress of developing countries, disrupt global supply chains, and deepen the divide between the global North and South. The Ministers emphasized that these actions are in violation of the principles of international law, weaken the SDGs, and contradict the spirit and principles of the UNFCCC and its Paris Agreement. They called for a cooperative, multilateral approach that aligns with the provisions of UNFCCC and its Paris Agreement and with WTO rules, while fostering sustainable development in its three dimensions.
40. The Ministers further noted that such unilateral measures undermine core principles, provisions and goals of the environmental regimes and will exacerbate the current outflow of capital from the global South to the global North, negating climate financing commitments of developed countries and hampering climate action and sustainable development in developing countries. They undertook to work together and with like-minded countries to adopt appropriate responses or counter-measures.
41. The Ministers reinforced the need for a reformed and more representative governance structure in international financial institutions, such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, with increased participation of developing countries. The Ministers urged these institutions to improve access, simplify procedures, reduce loan conditionalities and promote greater space for domestic development policies. The Ministers urged these institutions to improve access, simplify procedures, reduce loan conditionalities and promote more space for domestic development policies. They urged these institutions not to steer away from their core mandate of financing development, with particular priority to the fight against hunger and poverty. The Ministers expressed support for greater representation and voice of developing countries in decision-making in Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) and other international economic and financial institutions to deliver more effective, credible, accountable, and legitimate institutions. The Ministers reiterated the call of G20 Leaders in New Delhi for the MDBs to comprehensively reform their vision, incentive structures, operational approaches and financial capacities, to be able to better assist developing countries in financing their development needs and address global challenges. The Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to promote the reform of the multilateral system through cooperation and coordination in all relevant multilateral fora and international organizations. They looked forward to the conclusion of the G20 Roadmap towards better, bigger and more effective MDBs as a key deliverable under Brazil’s G20 Presidency.
42. The Ministers underlined the pressing issue of debt vulnerability in developing countries, which affects both low and middle-income countries. They highlighted the priority and urgency of addressing this challenge. The Ministers reminded that the last round of accelerated increases in international interest rates worsened debt crises in the countries from the Global South and contributed to a lost decade in terms of economic growth and development. They recalled that industrialisation, economic diversification and the production of higher value-added goods are crucial for development. They reaffirmed that developing countries must continue to fight for greater access to international markets for their goods and services and combat the current wave of renewed protectionism.
43. The Ministers reaffirmed the centrality of the rules-based, transparent, non-discriminatory, fair, equitable, open and inclusive multilateral trading system, with the World Trade Organization (WTO) at its core, and its role in promoting predictability, stability, legal certainty and a level playing field for international trade while preserving special and differential treatment for developing countries including LDCs. The Ministers reaffirmed the centrality of the development dimension in the work of the WTO as well as their commitment to working constructively to reform and strengthen the multilateral trading system while emphasizing the need to restore a fully and well-functioning dispute settlement system by 2024.
44. The Ministers reiterated the importance of a rules-based multilateral trading system governed by the principles of transparency and non-discrimination. They underscored the central role of the WTO in safeguarding predictability and legal certainty, levelling the playing field in international trade, and upholding special and differential treatment for developing countries and LDCs. The Ministers remained committed to working constructively to reform and strengthen the multilateral trading system, emphasizing the need to fully restore a functional dispute settlement system by the end of 2024, as reaffirmed during the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13). They recalled that IBSA countries contributed to the Abu Dhabi Ministerial Declaration, the Decision on Dispute Settlement Reform, and declarations on special and differential treatment in SPS and TBT agreements. The Ministers recalled the importance of continued collaboration among WTO members to secure comprehensive and forward-looking results at MC14. The Ministers highlighted the need for agricultural trade to be free from protectionist unilateral measures contrary to WTO rules, notably those justified under the guise of environmental protection. The members underscored that transparent, open, reliable, non-discriminatory and uninterrupted international trade in agriculture and its inputs is one of the important avenues to address the global food security crises. The Ministers also reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening even further agricultural cooperation among IBSA, including within multilateral organizations.
45. The Ministers reaffirmed G20’s role as the premier forum for international economic cooperation and highlighted that the three IBSA countries currently comprise the group's troika. They expressed their full support to the Brazilian G20 Presidency. The sequence of four developing countries in the presidency of the group (Indonesia, 2022; India, 2023; Brazil, 2024; South Africa, 2025) constitutes a valuable opportunity to further integrate a developmental perspective into the G20 agenda and further amplify the voice of the Global South. The Ministers agreed to cooperate on issues of common interest in the agenda of the group, particularly social inclusion and food security, accelerating progress on the SDGs, environment and climate change, and global governance reform. The Ministers commended the organization of a second G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting at the margins of the high-level week of the United Nations General Assembly, on 25th September 2024, and expressed their full support to the Call to Action on Global Governance Reform.
46. Concerned with rising income and wealth inequality within and across countries, the Ministers support initiatives to enhance international tax cooperation towards more progressive tax systems. They underscored that, in particular, high net-worth individuals must pay their fair share in taxes. They applaud ongoing tax reform in India and Brazil and continue to call for the exchange of best practices and tax cooperation among IBSA countries. The Ministers welcome the ambitious international taxation agenda proposed by the Brazilian G20 Presidency and celebrate the approval of the Rio de Janeiro G20 Ministerial Declaration on international taxation cooperation. The Ministers are encouraged by the approval of the Terms of Reference for a United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation and support the proposal for an early protocol on the effective taxation of high-net-worth individuals.
47. The Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to ensuring a trusted, accountable, open, safe, secure, stable, accessible and peaceful cyberspace. The Ministers highlighted that the United Nations General Assembly is the appropriate forum for a global dialogue on international security related to the ICTs, where broad, common understandings have and can continue to be achieved. This dialogue, with strong participation from nations from the Global South, is essential to allow countries to benefit from the digital transformation, including through Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), while preventing threats to peace and security stemming from the already ubiquitous and borderless digital realm. In this context, the Ministers expressed their strong support to the establishment, by consensus, within the framework of the ongoing Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on security of and in the use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) (2021-2025), of a single-track, intergovernmental, open, inclusive, permanent, flexible, transparent and action-oriented regular institutional dialogue mechanism, reporting to the First Committee of the UNGA. The Ministers emphasized international cooperation for bridging the digital divides and welcomed the establishment of IBSA cooperation on cyber-related issues, including DPI and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence.
48. The Ministers welcomed the successful finalization of the work of the UN Ad Hoc Committee in accordance with the UN General Assembly resolutions 74/247 and 75/282, which adopted, by consensus, the "United Nations Convention against Cybercrime; Strengthening International Cooperation for Combating Certain Crimes Committed by Means of Information and Communications Technology Systems and for the Sharing of Evidence in Electronic Form of Serious Crimes”. Given the urgency of this challenge, the Ministers expressed their support for the consensual adoption of the Convention by the UN General Assembly and for its early entry into force.
49. The Ministers stressed the critical role of science, technology, and innovation in driving sustainable development and addressing global challenges. They emphasized the necessity of enhancing research, development, and innovation to meet the targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Recognizing the importance of broad access to scientific and technological knowledge, the Ministers committed to strengthening cooperation in STI, ensuring that advancements benefit all segments of society. Furthermore, they highlighted the significance of effective and inclusive science communication, particularly in regional languages and dialects, to facilitate widespread understanding and engagement. The Ministers agreed to continue fostering collaboration among experts, researchers, academics, as well as technological parks, startup incubators and accelerators and entrepreneurs to ensure equitable distribution of technological benefits and promote competition, while also exploring avenues to expand the current framework for scientific and innovative cooperation.
50. The Ministers welcomed the adoption of the Global Digital Compact and underlined the need to promote strengthened international cooperation that closes all digital divides between and within countries to ensure an inclusive, open, sustainable, fair, safe and secure digital future for all. The Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to narrow all digital divides and accelerate progress across the Sustainable Development Goals; expand inclusion in and benefits from the digital economy for all; foster an inclusive, open, safe and secure digital space that respects, protects and promote human rights; advance responsible, equitable and interoperable data governance approaches; and enhance international governance of artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity.
51. The Ministers emphasized the goal of improving people's lives and bridging the digital divides, in line with the consensus reached during the World Summits of the Information Society (WSIS), the G20 New Delhi Leader’s Summit Declaration and the G20 Maceió Ministerial Declaration on Digital Inclusion for All, by achieving a human-centered, inclusive, and ethical approach to the responsible development, deployment and use of emerging technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Digital Public Infrastructures (DPI) . In that sense, they stressed the Global Digital Compact (GDC) provides a renewed opportunity to enhance international digital cooperation to foster development for the benefit of all, leaving no one behind, with a view to ensuring that all the countries can equally harness the benefits of the ongoing digital transformation, and of Artificial Intelligence, in particular, while minimizing the risks arising from emerging technologies, such as potential negative impacts on job markets and the proliferation of AI enhanced disinformation campaigns.
52. Regarding both the GDC and the WSIS+20 revision process as opportunities to consolidate and update the development perspective enshrined in Geneva and Tunis and to discuss innovative multilateral and multistakeholder arrangements, leading to collective action and effective global digital governance, the Ministers reaffirmed IBSA’s commitment to ensure, in different international forums, that emerging technology solutions, including for Artificial Intelligence, are to be developed, deployed and used in a human centric used in a responsible and ethical way, with a view to minimize the risks arising from these technologies, especially for developing countries, such as, but not limited to, potential negative impacts on the job market and the proliferation of AI enhanced disinformation campaigns.
53. Concerned with the fast-paced digitalization process of all aspects of human life in the 21st. century, Ministers emphasized the key role of data for development and the need to broaden the scope of global discussions with a view to overcome the digital and technological divides. The Ministers underscored the importance of fair, inclusive, responsible and effective data governance frameworks, that improve the capacity of developing countries to collect, access and process data, while respecting applicable legal frameworks related to privacy, personal data protection, security and intellectual property rights, as essential to harnessing the potential of the digital economy for sustainable development. Discussions under the United Nations on the fundamental principles of data governance are essential to ensure that no one is left behind. While the progress of the global digital economy opens opportunities for better integrating into the global value chains, the Ministers also recalled the asymmetries in the distribution of the benefits from the expansion of digital platform economy. In this context, they stressed the importance of advancing competition, tax and technology transfer rules that are capable to level the playing field for developing and least-developed countries to advance their digital industrialisation and transformation.
54. The Ministers recognize the outcome of the diplomatic conference on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge, organized by WIPO in May 2024. They expect the adoption by consensus of the WIPO treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge to lead to further efforts under the intellectual property system towards achieving a balanced protection for scientific and technological innovation on one hand and sustainable development, biodiversity conservation and the human rights of indigenous peoples and local communities on the other.
55. The Ministers expressed their commitment to working together to ensure the success of the VI IBSA Summit, to be held in Brazil.
56. The Ministers of India and South Africa thanked the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Brazil for hosting the IBSA Meeting on the sidelines of the 79th UNGA.
New York
September 26, 2024