Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres' remarks at the handover ceremony of the chairmanship of the Group of 77 and China, in New York today:

It is an honour to be with you today. I commend Iraq for its stewardship of the Group of 77 and China over the past year. I wish also to thank Iraq for the warm welcome during my visit last month and for the very successful end of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) thanks to the commitment of the Government and the people of Iraq.

And I congratulate Uruguay for assuming the Chairmanship for 2026. I am a great admirer of Uruguay. Uruguay is the first welfare state in the world. Social justice was in the DNA of Uruguay since its very beginning and Uruguay has been a symbol of peace and a symbol of justice and so I would say in excellent conditions to preside over the Group of 77 in our struggle for peace, sustainable development and human rights in relation to all of which Uruguay has been a very positive symbol for us all.

This Group was born out of a profound demand that still echoes today: development with dignity; a fair share of opportunity; and seats at the tables where decisions are made. More than six decades on, this group is a strong pillar of multilateralism. And its mission is as urgent as ever.

We begin this year amid raging conflicts, widening inequalities, mounting debt burdens and an erosion of trust. We see climate chaos - record temperatures, devastating floods and droughts - battering lives and livelihoods, and reversing hard-won development gains. We see technologies racing ahead of our ability to ensure they serve all people and all countries rather than just a privileged few.

And we see international cooperation under strain - even as global challenges keep [proving] one truth: no country can solve them alone. That is why multilateralism matters. That is why we need a renewed commitment to cooperation - in a truly interconnected, multipolar world. And that is why the Group of 77 and China remains indispensable.

At a moment when some question the value of cooperation, you have kept showing what cooperation can achieve. Time and again, you have shown unity and strength. From the Ocean Conference in Nice, to the Financing for Development Conference in Sevilla; from the Awaza Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries to the Doha Social Summit - you helped rally the world around the promise of the 2030 Agenda.

Your unity is a force for fairness. A force for action. And a force for justice to reshape a system that too often still delivers developing countries a raw deal on finance, on climate, on technology and on representation.

First, we must commit to the Sustainable Development Goals. We are just four years from 2030 and the financing gap remains vast, while debt servicing suffocates investment in health, education, jobs, energy and resilience. We need a global financial system that reflects today's realities - not the world of 1945, before many of you gained independence from colonial rule.

This is the purpose of the Sevilla Commitment: to transform the international financial architecture - tripling the lending power of multilateral development banks, leveraging far more private capital, and scaling affordable, long-term finance where it is needed most.

We need earlier, smarter action on debt distress with new instruments that ease debt burdens and speed support before crises deepen. We need reforms to give developing countries greater participation and influence in international financial institutions, and to address credit ratings that are often arbitrary and outdated, and can cost countries billions through higher borrowing costs.

Second, we must meet the climate emergency with the speed and scale it demands - and with climate justice at its centre. The world is headed toward a temporary overshoot above 1.5°C. Our task is to make that overshoot as small, as short and as safe as possible. That requires deep, immediate emissions cuts this decade.

New national climate plans must be the floor for ambition, not the ceiling - backed by the means to exceed those commitments. The principle of common but differentiated responsibilities must apply, but every country must do more.

We must accelerate a just, orderly and equitable transition away from fossil fuels and build the clean energy future faster; we must tackle methane, one of the fastest, cheapest ways to cut near-term warming; and we must strengthen adaptation and resilience, because the impacts are already locked in, and because fairness demands it.

Early warning systems and resilient infrastructure save lives and pay for themselves many times over. Climate justice demands protecting those who did the least to cause this crisis and who face the gravest consequences.

It demands finance at scale. Developed countries must lead in delivering COP30's [thirtieth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change] call to triple adaptation finance by 2035 as a first step towards closing the adaptation gap.

We also need a surge of contributions to the Loss and Damage Fund. And we must chart a credible path to mobilizing $1.3 trillion a year by 2035 for developing countries with finance that is accessible, affordable, predictable and at scale.

Third, we must ensure the digital age becomes an engine of inclusion - not an accelerator of inequality. The Global Digital Compact created the first universal framework for cooperation on digital technologies, including artificial intelligence. Now we must move from agreements to action.

That's why we are swiftly operationalizing the Independent Scientific Panel on AI, so science can guide policy, and facts can outpace fear. And why we are convening the Global Dialogue on AI Governance, bringing all countries and stakeholders into the conversation, within the United Nations.

The selection of Panel members is nearing completion. It will be representative of all regions of the world, with expertise across disciplines. The Panel will begin its work soon and issue its first report ahead of the Global Dialogue in July.

We must also narrow the divide in computing power, data, research, skills, and safety standards. Over 80 countries lack basic capacity to design, build, or deploy AI systems.

That is why I have called for the establishment of a Global Fund for AI Capacity Development: to ensure every country can benefit from AI and help shape its guardrails; and invest in digital public infrastructure - building a more equitable digital economy for all.

I welcome the leadership shown by several G77 members in bringing their research centres into the Global Network for Exchange and Cooperation on AI Capacity Building. Technology should widen opportunity, not divides. It should advance human rights, not undermine them.

Fourth, we must strengthen the United Nations. At a time of rising expectations, our organization must rise to the moment.

This is the purpose of the UN80 Initiative: to build a UN system that delivers more effectively and more equitably, even as resources keep shrinking. A United Nations that is more agile where we must be and stronger where people need us most. This work will move forward with transparency and partnership - with you, the Member States and particularly developing countries.

In all these areas, the essential choice is clear. Fragmentation or solutions. Division or delivery. Narrow self-interest or a shared determination to build a fairer future.

The Group of 77 and China has long been a guardian of that determination. You can count on me to continue standing with you, to press for justice and equity, to defend international cooperation and solidarity, and to ensure that promises made to developing countries are promises kept.