The Pact for the Future (Pact) and its two annexes, the Global Digital Compact (GDC) and the Declaration on Future Generations (DOFG), (A/RES/79/1) were adopted by consensus during the opening session of the Summit of the Future on 22 September 2024.
The adoption of the Pact followed several days of hectic negotiations under the leadership of the Namibian and German Co-facilitators, almost right up to the opening session itself. A full account of the final stages leading up to the adoption can be found in the Global Policy UN Watch, Special Edition: Summit of the Future, No 8, 2024. We do, however, have some additional comments and reflections.
(a) Russian Federation Draft Amendment
The action by the Russian Federation in introducing its draft amendment (A/79/L.3), which would have required a vote at the beginning of the Summit could have de-railed the whole process, insofar as the enabling resolution (A/RES/76/307) clearly states that the Pact should be “agreed in advance by consensus through intergovernmental negotiations.” When the President of the General Assembly circulated, on 20 September, the final version of the draft Pact, together with the GDC and DOFG, he did so in the belief that they represented the broadest support of Member States and urged them to join the consensus. (Add link to this, attached) The motion of the African Group, introduced by Republic of the Congo, that no decision be taken on the amendment, averted the problem and the Russian Federation did not pursue it further, thereby allowing the Pact and annexes to be adopted by consensus.
(b) Civil society participation in the preparatory processes and at the Summit itself
The enabling resolution also set out the procedures for civil society participation in the Summit and during the preparatory processes. (paras 10, 11 and 17)
Procedures for civil society participation in the Summit
Representatives of organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council were automatically invited to participate in the Summit itself. For those wishing to attend from organizations not in consultative status the process required the organizations submitting a request to participate. A list was then drawn up for consideration by Member States on a ‘non-objection basis’. The list was subsequently approved by the General Assembly. While the process could be considered somewhat cumbersome, it was the one that has been used on previous occasions for similar meetings at the General Assembly level. Organizations were also invited in the enabling resolution to participate in the Interactive Dialogues. However, due to the number of Member States wishing to participate, the opportunities were somewhat limited. Young people, furthermore, were invited to take part in the Opening Session, but not other organizations.
Civil society participation in the preparatory process
Presumably, given the more contentious issues that were included in the Pact, for example those related to Security and Development and Climate Financing, the Co-facilitators took the decision to hold the negotiations behind closed doors. The implementation of para 17 which says that “…major Groups and other stakeholders [are encouraged] to participate and engage in the preparatory process of the Summit” was carried out through a series of consultations with both the major Groups and other civil society organizations. From the perspective of civil society organizations, this process had some serious limitations. It was difficult to assess the impact of any contributions made, insofar as it was impossible to see how many Member States were listening in to the consultations, other than those who actually spoke which was few in number. It is to be hoped that such a process will not be used in the future. Those Member States who provided information directly are thanked for helping organizations in this way.