Statement by H.E. Archbishop Gabriele Caccia

Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations

62nd Session of the Commission for Social Development

New York, 12 February 2024

Theme: Fostering social development and social justice through social policies to accelerate progress on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and to achieve the overarching goal of poverty eradication

Madam Chair,

As we work to promote social development and social justice, it is important to keep in mind that we have a special obligation to those who are poor and in vulnerablesituations. Pope Francis has described this as an “ethical imperative essential for attaining the common good.”[1] For far too many people, meeting basic needs remains a daily struggle. For this reason, we must work to alleviate the effects of poverty by addressing first of all its root causes. Strong social protection systems, including pension systems that value and take account of family and caregiving responsibilities, are an important tool in combating poverty and ensuring that everyone’s basic needs are met.

As such, the social dimension of development seeks to ensure integral human development, that is the flourishing of each person in the context of the familial, social, spiritual, cultural, economic and political spheres.

Education plays an important role, and, as Pope Francis has noted, it is the “primary vehicle of integral human development, for it makes individuals free and responsible,”[2]leading to greater opportunities and better outcomes. It is therefore troubling both that poor families struggle to afford the cost of sending their children to school, and that there is a shortage of qualified teachers, particularly in developing countries. These challenges must be addressed to ensure that every child, including the poorest, is nurtured and that children can fulfil their potential in accordance with their inherent dignity. In addition, adults should be provided with opportunities for continuing their education, including retraining for those who lose their jobs.

Furthermore, access to decent work with fair remuneration for all is also an essential condition for development. Work is a means by which men and women can use their unique talents for their personal fulfilment and contribute to their societies and the realisation of social development. Work must be accessible to all, performed under decent and safe conditions, and remunerated at a level that allows workers to both maintain and enjoy family life and leisure. Unfortunately, many young people face unemployment or underemployment, while older people sometimes face discrimination at work or are unable to retire due to financial insecurity. Labour policies must promote conditions of justice in the workplace and the economy, while reflecting that work is an expression of the human person, not the ends for which people are made.

Madam Chair,

As we mark the thirtieth anniversary of the International Year of the Family, my delegation is deeply concerned that the family is increasingly downplayed or even denigrated in international fora. As the Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognizes, the “family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.”[3] It is the first society any of us know and is therefore central to social development - not ancillary or tangential, let alone harmful.

The family is a “school of deeper humanity”[4] and, as Pope Francis underlines, “the first place where the values of love and fraternity, togetherness and sharing, concern and care for others are lived out and handed on.”[5] For many around the world, the family is not only the first but also the only form of social protection, a community of reciprocity and care. Parents are the primary educators of their children. Families are often the strongest advocates for their members who might otherwise be ignored or considered a burden by society. Each member of a family gives and receives irreplaceable love, care, and support. For this reason, social policies must support the family in its essential role in achievingsocial justice and social development.

The Holy See remains firmly committed to the eradication of poverty, the promotion of social development and social justice, and achieving the integral human development of every human person.

Thank you.

[1] Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti no. 158 (2020).

[2] Pope Francis, Message for the 2022 World Day of Peace, 3.

[3] Universal Declaration of Human Rights, art. 16.3.

[4] Gaudium et Spes no. 52 (1965).

[5] Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti no. 114 (2020).