CICA Secretary General's reflections - High-Level Round Table 1 “Strengthening the three pillars of social development: poverty eradication, full and productive employment and decent work for all, and social inclusion”

30 years ago, the international community took a decisive step by placing people at the heart of development agenda. I am glad that today, world leaders recommitted to the Copenhagen Declaration and Program of Action by adopting the historic Doha Declaration.

Specifically, the international community once again recognizes that social development is indispensable for peace and security.

This conviction lies at the heart of the philosophy of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) that I am honoured to represent. CICA has evolved from a dialogue platform into a mature organization, with broad mandate and diverse institutions, capable of bringing high-added value to its 28 Member States covering 90% of Asia, committed to the UN Charter.

The agenda of the CICA Chairmanship of Azerbaijan prioritizing connectivity, digitalization and sustainable growth, with a particular focus on transport, SMEs, women entrepreneurship and green economy, is pertinent to the topic of our roundtable.

Let me clarify these synergies with the three pillars of social development.

First. Realizing that SMEs are the backbone of national economies, our Member States collaborate and exchange best practices within the CICA Business Council. The agenda of the Council highlights the importance of digital transformation, with ongoing efforts to equip SMEs with tools and training in digital marketing, e-commerce, and data management.

Second. Unfortunately, young people still experience higher levels of unemployment, informal employment and working poverty. The CICA Youth Council provides a dynamic platform for collaboration and innovation among young leaders and policymakers. In particular, the upcoming “SDGs in Action” side event next week in Baku will be a showcase of successful youth-driven projects and will facilitate open dialogue on current challenges in SDG.

Amid rapidly evolving labor markets facing mounting pressure to adapt to swiftly changing realities and demands, the Partnership Network of Leading Universities can provide a valuable avenue for sharing innovative approaches to education, skills development, and employment resilience.

Third. CICA Member States contributed to

• global women empowerment efforts by establishing the Women Council, aligning with the 1995 Beijing Declaration;
• boosting economic cooperation and discussing international financial governance by establishing the CICA Finance Summit – both in September 2025.

The Azerbaijani Chairmanship prioritizes enhancing CICA’s existing partnerships and building new ones. As a UN observer, CICA has been engaged in some joint actions with the United Nations:

• a joint project with ESCAP on transport connectivity and digitalization and continue the good practice of joint CICA-ESCAP events;
• a side event with the UN Volunteers programme on best volunteerism practices in CICA Member States on the margins of the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development in July 2026.

Within the environmental agenda, CICA intends to contribute to:

• the UN Regional Environmental Summit, Kazakhstan, April 2026;
•  World Environment Day, Azerbaijan, June 2026;
• COP17 of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, Mongolia, August 2026
• UN Water Conference, UAE, co-hosted by Senegal, December 2026.

Thus, being a pan-Asian organization, CICA can serve as a bridge-builder between the global level and regional stakeholders in pursuing peace, security, and social development in a cooperative manner.