His Eminence Cardinal Parolin Delivers Statement at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on the 40th Anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development

By His Eminence Cardinal Pietro ParolinSecretary of State of His Holiness

Wednesday, 23 September

Mr. President,

The Holy See welcomes today’s High-Level Meeting to commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development.

This Declaration identifies the individual person as the focus and beneficiary of the right to development, with the State as the primary duty bearer. It also explicitly connects this right to the obligation of international cooperation to support States in their duties as the primary promoters and protectors of the individual's right to development.

The right to development is rooted in the God-given dignity of each person, from conception to natural death, regardless of age, nationality, race, religion, ethnicity, sex or disability.

Pope Leo XIV emphasises that “For individuals as well as for nations, development is both a duty and a right. Minimum conditions are required for enabling every person and people to flourish in accord with their dignity, without being kept in a state of dependence or excluded from access to necessary goods.”[1]

Yet forty years after the adoption of the Declaration, these minimum conditions remain out of reach for too many. Poverty, food insecurity, conflict, climate change, and debt burdens are among the obstacles that hinder the exercize of the right to development. This right is realised through renewed and concrete action, and international cooperation guided by solidarity and the recognition of the shared responsibility. States, particularly those facing the greatest structural challenges, should have access to the financial, technological and human resources necessary to advance the development of their peoples. Such cooperation should empower women and men to become the true protagonists of their own development.

Mr. President,

Today’s commemoration provides a timely opportunity to reaffirm the commitment to a genuine human development, rooted in dignity, sustained by solidarity, and aimed at the flourishing of every person.

Thank you.

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[1] Pope Leo XIV, Encyclical Letter Magnifica Humanitas, 83.