[The Guardian] ECOSOC Does Not Understand The Assignment

The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is set to conclude a four-day summit tomorrow aimed at implementing Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reporting standards for private businesses – but present delegations are still far from reaching an agreement.

The ECOSOC room is visibly divided. A Guardian journalist on-site reports clear coalitions forming, with developing nations such as Mexico, Brazil, Pakistan, and Qatar drafting a separate proposal than a bloc of European countries including France, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. At the end of the day, as a United Nations body, member states will have to merge their proposals into a unified text.

There are ongoing attempts to promote inter-continental discourse. The delegate of Brazil reportedly exclaimed “We need some Europeans in here,” before entering into private talks with the French representation. Sweden, too, has been observed in closed discussions with Saudi Arabia and Nigeria, lobbying to include ‘green bonds’ in the final ECOSOC policy proposal. This, however, is just as much off-topic as ongoing attempts to include not yet sufficiently-developed AI models into the policy text, and persistent mentions of fishing rights and EU law.

With time running out, it is questionable whether the Council will reach consensus to agree on an effective resolution by tomorrow. The Guardian will report on the final decision soon.