FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 20, 2016

On July 20, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, gave an intervention during the UN High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development before the Economic and Social Council.

In his statement, Archbishop Auza commended the solidarity exhibited by governments who have committed to “leave no one behind” in their adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. He urged governments never to forget the human dimension of the policies being implemented, reminding them of the Holy Father’s words from his September address to the General Assembly to put the “real men and women who live, struggle and suffer, and are often forced to live in great poverty, deprived of all rights” before plans and programs. Archbishop Auza called on the international to ensure the needs of those in the most vulnerable situations and urged that “leaving no one behind” be the guiding vision of development policy and programs moving forward.

His statement can be found here.