Mr. Chair,

1. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China on Agenda Item 138: Revised Estimates: Addressing racism and promoting dignity for all in the United Nations Secretariat.

2. Our Group would like to thank members of the Secretariat and the Advisory Committee for introducing their relevant reports.

Mr. Chair,

3. At the outset, our Group would like to condemn racism in all its forms and manifestations. We would like to highlight that the prohibition of racial discrimination is enshrined in all core international human rights instruments and the denial or violation of the principle of equal rights runs contrary to the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Mr. Chair,

4. Our Group welcomes efforts of the Secretary General to root out racism, including systemic racism within the organization. We appreciate the Secretary General’s Town Halls and engagement with staff and his concern to address this problem. However, our Group notes with concern the findings of staff survey and regret to know that staff regulations and rules can be applied unfairly on the basis of race, nationality or ethnic background.

5. Our Group has a long standing position on Equitable Geographical Distribution which is also enshrined in article 101.3 of the UN Charter, and to achieve this, we stress upon the need to address systemic racial discrimination within the UN system. We see merit in the Secretary General’s proposals and look forward to its early implementation. However, our Group also stresses upon the urgency in addressing the issue as any delay would lead to continuation of discrimination during the process of recruitment and staff promotions.

6. Finally, address the issue of racism is not only important for mandate delivery but it also sets an example for public, private, NGOs and other entities to deal with the menace of this problem that we face.

I thank you Mr. Chair