Secretary-General's Message for Prince Mahidol Award Conference 2022

As the world faces a third year of the COVID-19 pandemic, new waves and variants are exacting a heavy toll, with no end in sight.

Health systems are stretched to the limit, and poverty and inequalities are growing. Against this backdrop, conflicts continue to worsen, and climate change continues to wreak irreversible damage across humanity’s only home.

As communities, countries and economies alike face an uncertain and uneven road to recovery, this year’s Prince Mahidol Award Conference is an opportunity to lay the foundations for a healthier, more equal, peaceful and sustainable future for all.

This year’s theme – The World We Want – reminds us that building tomorrow must start today.

We need to end the pandemic, with bolder action to vaccinate every person, everywhere.

We need to scale-up investments in all the systems that support human development – from health and education, to affordable housing and decent employment, to universal social protection – in every country and community.

We need to reform the global financial system – with wealthier countries supporting the developing world with financing, investment and debt relief.

We need to prevent and end the conflicts that scar our world, with a renewed spirit of dialogue, compromise and reconciliation.

And we need to end the planetary emergency of climate change through determined action and credible commitments that match the scale and urgency of the crisis.

The United Nations is counting on the ideas and solutions that emerge from this year’s Conference to help us recover from this trying moment in history and build a healthier, fairer and more sustainable future for every person, everywhere.