Iran UN Envoy Raps Detrimental Effects of Sanctions on Social Development


Iran UN Envoy Raps Detrimental Effects of Sanctions on Social Development

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations denounced the unilateral sanctions as a major obstacle to social and economic progress in developing countries.

Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative of Iran to the United Nations, Zahra Ershadi, delivered a speech to the 6th annual Multi-Stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), held on Wednesday.

In her address to the forum, convened by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs Sustainable Development (ECOSOC), Ershadi slammed the unlawful and unjust unilateral sanctions against developing countries as an obstacle to the full achievement of economic and social development.

“The right to development, including the right to have access to new technologies for developing countries, would not be realized in an environment in which multilateralism is under severe pressure,” she added.

The Iranian envoy also emphasized that science and technology are among the most essential tools available in combating the current global COVID-19 health crisis.

She added that Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) are among the key means of implementation of sustainable development and are considered as an important strategic variable in national development planning.

Highlighting the importance of capacity-building for developing countries along with the promotion of regional and international cooperation, she said the transfer of knowledge and know-how without discrimination and politicization in the field of science is vastly important and should be made a priority, especially in consideration of new and emerging technologies without which the attempts aimed at fighting against COVID, moving towards development as well as the efforts towards filling the technology gaps and addressing digital divides would be doomed to failure, IRNA reported.

The Iranian diplomat also highlighted the role of the Commission on Science and Technology for Development as the UN’s focal point for STI related issues, and referred to the importance of supporting the policies and activities of developing countries in the fields of STI through North-South, South-South and triangular cooperation in the areas of financial and technical assistance, capacity-building and technology transfer. She also asked for an increase in Official Development Assistance (ODA) targeting the development of STI capacities in developing countries.

Ershadi also underlined that the right to development, including the right to have access to new technologies for developing countries, would not be realized in an environment in which multilateralism is under severe pressure.

She urged the international community to adopt urgent and effective measures to eliminate the use of unilateral coercive measures, including unlawful and unjust unilateral sanctions against developing countries that impede their full achievement of economic and social development and constitute a serious obstacle to combat the current pandemic, particularly by targeting ordinary citizens and their right to life and health.

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