NEW DELHI, Sep 13: UN Secretary General António Guterres has called for sweeping reforms of global institutions, saying the world is moving towards a multipolar order that requires stronger and more representative multilateral cooperation.
Addressing the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, Guterres said the economic, demographic and geopolitical realities of the world have changed significantly since the establishment of the post-World War II international system.
“Today’s economic, demographic and geopolitical realities are not those of 1945,” he said, stressing that global institutions must evolve to reflect current realities.
Guterres called for reforms to the UN Security Council and the Bretton Woods institutions, arguing that developing countries need greater representation and influence in international decision-making.
He also urged a transformation of the international financial architecture to provide developing nations with improved access to funding. He called on Multilateral Development Banks to become “bigger, better and bolder” and advocated a development-oriented debt system along with effective mechanisms for debt relief.
The UN chief said stronger international support was essential for developing countries to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. He stressed that the emergence of a more multipolar international system should reinforce, rather than weaken, multilateralism.
“All countries must work to strengthen and safeguard a multilateral system that delivers for all with the United Nations at its centre,” he said.
Guterres outlined four key priorities during his address: financing development, narrowing the technology and artificial intelligence gap, achieving climate justice and promoting peace.
On artificial intelligence, he warned that rapid technological advances could accelerate economic and social development but could also deepen inequalities if access to advanced technologies remains concentrated among a limited number of countries and companies.
“Artificial intelligence could compress decades of development into years,” he said, while cautioning that an unchecked AI divide could widen existing disparities in income, opportunity, security and sovereignty.
He encouraged BRICS members to support UN-led initiatives aimed at strengthening AI capabilities in developing countries, including improved access to computing resources, data and technical skills.
Climate change was another major concern raised by the UN secretary-general. Pointing to extreme heat, melting glaciers, wildfires and floods, he warned that the world was approaching a critical threshold on global warming.
Guterres urged countries to keep any temporary breach of the 1.5-degree Celsius target as limited and brief as possible. He called for faster renewable-energy deployment, reductions in methane emissions and stronger efforts to protect ecosystems.
He also called on developed countries to honour their climate-finance commitments, including the mobilisation of USD 300 billion annually, increased adaptation funding and greater resources for addressing loss and damage.
On critical minerals, Guterres advocated responsible management that ensures producing countries and local communities benefit through greater value creation and employment.
Turning to international conflicts, he said the world urgently needs peace amid continuing crises in Gaza and the wider Middle East, Ukraine, Sudan and other regions.
“From Gaza, to the broader crisis in the Middle East, to Ukraine, Sudan and beyond, our world needs peace,” he said.
Guterres urged all countries to uphold their obligations under the UN Charter and international law, including respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence, as well as international humanitarian and human rights law.