This statement was made in New York by Boris Titov, the Special Representative of the President of Russia for Relations with International Organizations to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as he presented the national position during the UN High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. Normally, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, takes on this role, but this time the floor was given to Titov.
“The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) program is clearly in crisis,” said Titov. “A $4 trillion funding gap is a serious issue. That is why, to avoid future problems, we must start developing a realistic post-2030 development agenda today.”
According to Titov, work in this direction is already underway. The United Arab Emirates is actively advancing an initiative. Preparations for SDG-2050 are taking place within the EAEU, SCO, and BRICS. “We count on the support of the G20 and the UN and invite all interested parties to join this effort,” he emphasized.
“For its part, Russia is accelerating progress on current goals,” the President’s envoy continued. “On July 24, during the Forum, an independent report on Russia’s achievements will be presented. The key takeaway is that we are confidently moving forward: Russia is showing progress on 61% of the SDG indicators, while the global average is just 20%. Poverty has decreased by 1.5 times, and women now hold 48.8% of managerial positions. The share of low-carbon energy generation (including gas and nuclear) has reached 87%.”
“I especially want to highlight the achievements under SDG №8. During 2023–2024, the economy grew by more than 4% annually, and unemployment fell to 2.3% by the end of 2024. A particularly important contribution came from the SME sector: tax revenues nearly doubled to $119 billion. This was made possible by digital superservices — platforms that integrate registration, banking, and fiscal services, enabling small businesses to emerge from the shadow economy.”
“These platforms can work not only in Russia; they can make a meaningful contribution to mobilizing domestic resources in other countries as well. For example, in Kyrgyzstan, the use of such a platform helped double the SME tax base.”
“The solutions proposed by Russia are sustainable and inclusive, and they embody the principles of fair and mutually beneficial international cooperation based on the UN Charter,” Titov stressed. “We firmly believe that upholding these principles will reduce conflict and support sustainable development. Unfortunately, however, we are witnessing neo-colonial practices: restrictions on access to technologies, markets, and resources. This contradicts the spirit of cooperation.”
“In conclusion,” he noted, “Russia maintains its international development assistance at $1 billion per year and actively participates in both regional and global initiatives — EAEU, BRICS, G20, and the UN. This includes participation in China’s Global Development Initiative (GDI), which brings together more than 100 friendly countries. Russia is among them and strongly supports the initiative.”
