Ideas & Updates

Watch: Inspirational speeches at UN Global Goals Summit

The President of Tanzania, H.E. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, as well as Ministers and other high level figures from Peru, Belgium, Bangladesh, Colombia, the Philippines, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and South Africa, delivered powerful speeches on how digital payments and greater financial inclusion are accelerating progress towards key Sustainable Development Goals.

Around 400 people, including governments, UN agencies, other international organizations, companies, journalists, academics and students, took part in “Governments Leading the Way: Digitizing Payments and Advancing Inclusive Finance to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals” on Saturday, September 26th at the UN Global Goals Summit, in New York.

On behalf of the United Nations’ Secretary General Mr. Ban Ki-moon, Ms. Bettina Tucci Bartsiotas, UN Assistant Secretary-General and Controller, announced that the UN Secretariat has now joined the Better Than Cash Alliance (BTCA), committing to transitioning payments from cash to digital within the UN system.

Ms. Helen Clark, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, highlighted the role that international organizations play in supporting government leadership in using the power of new digital technologies to improve peoples’ lives.

The event was co-hosted by the Republic of Peru, the Republic of Indonesia, the United Republic of Tanzania, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), and the UN-based Better Than Cash Alliance.

Click here to check out our event Storify.
Click here to read our media briefing.
Watch Making Cash History: How Digital Payments can help drive the Global Goals