Delivered on behalf of:

Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Latvia, Luxemburg, the Kingdom of Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom.

Mr. President, Mme Executive Director,

We, that is 24 delegations, were reluctant, as to whether we should take the floor after your concluding remarks, Mr. President.

It has been said: this was a remarkable day in a remarkable session. This compels us to speak a further time.

At the outset, I would like to start by thanking you, Mr. President, for the skillful and able chairmanship during this unusual session.

I would also like to that take the opportunity to thank the UNICEF secretariat for the excellent preparation of this session.

Mr. President,

We live in an increasingly violent and fragmented world and we are experiencing turbulent times.

Children suffer due to conflict, climate change and economic challenges, just to name a few.

This makes UNICEF’s work not only more important, but also, more difficult.

Especially considering that the financing landscape has become increasingly challenging, for UNICEF, but also for the United Nations as a whole.

We collectively need to help UNICEF to ensure that the agency can continue to achieve results for children at this critical juncture.

UNICEF has a mandate to safeguard the rights of all children, everywhere,

a mandate which is deeply rooted in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (the CRC).

It is key, that the CRC and other core human rights documents remain a foundational guide for the UNICEF child rights mandate.

We call upon UNICEF to ensure that child rights provide a more explicit overall framing for the next Strategic Plan.

Child rights are a non-negotiable framework for decision-making during its design and implementation, as is rightly mentioned in the Strategic Plan Evaluation.

We further expect UNICEF to continue its work on the Sustainable Development Goals including to promote and work towards the achievement of gender equality on a daily basis.

As the Secretary-General has said, achieving gender equality and consistently delivering for women and girls is a collective responsibility shared by every entity within the UN System, it is a cornerstone of the Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review (QCPR) and of current reform efforts. It requires collaboration and emphasis at every level.

Mr. President,

It remains our firm expectation that UNICEF will continue, in accordance with previous Board decisions, to spare no effort to eliminate all forms of discrimination within the organization.

This includes combating and preventing racial discrimination and racism,

ensuring disability access and inclusion, as well as promoting and protecting diversity, equality and inclusion, in all its forms and at all levels.

We look forward to continuing to work in partnership with UNICEF on these issues.

Before handing back to you, Mr. President,

We want again thank the entire UNICEF staff, here in New York, at HQ,

and out in the field, for their personal commitment, and their untiring work on behalf of children, often under very challenging condition and at high personal risk.

We are convinced, that your work and commitment make a real difference for hundreds of millions of children around the globe.

We just wanted to let you know, that we are proud to be your partner in this noble endeavor.

Thank you.