Remarks by H.E. Annalena Baerbock
President of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly
at the SDG 16 Conference –
Driving transformation and coordinated action for sustainable development
17 June 2026
United Nations Headquarters
(As Delivered)
Good morning, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
Thank you to Italy, Ambassador, and Vice Minister, for this very important gathering this morning
SDG 16 sits at the heart of the 2030 Agenda because peace, justice and strong institutions determine whether development can take root and endure.
They shape whether people can live free from violence, claim their rights, access public services, participate in decisions and trust the institutions meant to serve them.
They also connect directly to the three pillars of the United Nations: peace and security, sustainable development and human rights.
The importance of institutions becomes more apparent when they begin to weaken.
Where institutions are weak, grievance grows.
Where justice is delayed, trust erodes.
Where corruption goes unchecked, public confidence suffers.
And where the rule of law is ignored, nationally or internationally, instability spreads, and development becomes harder to sustain.
This is the broader frame in which we must view today’s conflicts.
Armed conflict is one of the most visible signs that SDG 16 is under severe strain.
For behind conflicts there usually lie deeper challenges; exclusion, mistrust, impunity, weak institutions and disregard for international law.
Today, one quarter of humanity lives in conflict-affected countries again.
Conflict-related deaths rose by 40 per cent in 2024, with one life lost every 12 minutes.
These figures are a warning about the human cost of armed conflicts, and about the institutional failures that allow them to take hold.
If stronger institutions are part of the solution, then investing in them becomes essential.
Yet, the truth is many countries face shrinking resources to invest in governance, justice and public institutions again these days.
Official development assistance declined by 6 per cent in 2024 and is projected to fall even further.
This matters because SDG 16 depends on capacity as well as commitment – as we heard before from the Vice Minister.
Courts, parliaments, public administrations, human rights institutions, civil registries and oversight bodies all require sustained investment.
Without them, rights remain abstract, services remain uneven and accountability remains out of reach.
Yet as we all know as well progress is possible.
Around the world, there is evidence that investment in stronger institutions delivers results.
More countries now have human rights institutions aligned with international standards.
So in these times when the UN is being challenged everyday and some even question whether our work still makes sense, we have to uphold these successes from the past.
Global homicide rates are declining.
One hundred and forty countries have access-to-information laws, compared with just 14 in 1990 – once again the success of the United Nations.
Over 500 million children have recently gained legal identity through birth registration, opening doors to education, health care, protection and justice – again this is the result of our joint effort and work.
These gains show that stronger institutions make Sustainable Development possible, while also delivering on our principles.
SDG 16 advances when institutions protect rights, deliver justice, enable accountability and give people a meaningful voice in public life.
That is how trust is built, and how development becomes more durable.
But this work cannot stop at the national level.
In an interconnected world, national institutions are affected by the strength of the international system around them.
When the Charter is disregarded, when international law is weakened, when our courts are even attacked or sanctioned, cooperation gives way to mistrust, the foundations of SDG16 are weakened as well.
Therefore, the General Assembly has a vital role to play.
As the most representative deliberative body of the United Nations, the Assembly is where all Member States can reaffirm their commitment to the Charter, strengthen cooperation and help ensure that global institutions remain responsive to the challenges people face – we have shown that for example by an increase of the budget for the ICJ.
This is also central to the wider reform agenda, our UN80 initiative.
Here, we should be candid with ourselves.
Trust in the United Nations has suffered over recent decades because of too much duplication and inefficiency, the blockage of the Security Council, and because this institution has not always lived up to the high standards of equal representation it preaches, including the fact that, in more than 80 years, there has never been a woman at the helm of this institution – or that some continents are not even represented in the permanent membership of the Security Council.
Therefore, SDG16 is also about us and our reforms.
A more coherent, effective and representative United Nations is therefore essential both for rebuilding trust in this institution and for strengthening its credibility, and for delivering on peace and security, sustainable development, human rights and justice.
As we look towards 2030, SDG 16 must be treated as an accelerator of the entire Agenda. Strong institutions build trust. Justice reduces grievance. Inclusion strengthens legitimacy. Respect for law protects both people and States.
Let us therefore use this conference to renew our collective commitment to SDG 16 in the places where it matters most: in institutions people can trust, in justice people can reach, in decisions people can shape and in cooperation that holds our international system together in a strong reform of our United Nations because we know we are always better together.
Thank you.
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The SDG 16 Conference 2026 on “Driving transformation and coordinated action for sustainable development ” held on Wednesday, 17 June 2026 at United Nations Headquarters in New York. More Information: