UN Special Coordinator Sigrid Kaag on World Day of Social Justice in UN-ESCWA

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,


Let me add a word of my own to underline the central importance of the Secretary General’s message. In a time of conflict across the region, more ordinary people are in need than ever before. Social Justice is about people: a Lebanese family struggling to make ends meet in difficult economic conditions; young women and men looking to find jobs that reflect their abilities; women facing restrictions imposed on them by others; workers looking for dignity in the workplace; refugees struggling to cope in the winter weather. Social justice means rights for everyone, freedoms and equal opportunities for all, and protection for the most vulnerable. Social justice comes through an agreed social contract between people and the state.


A country with good schools, affordable healthcare, access to justice for all and an efficient and transparent public sector empowers its citizens. Empowered individuals in turn can participate in building a stronger society – a more democratic society of rights, freedoms and social inclusion. I warmly welcome and encourage the efforts of those in the Government, in civil society and in other areas of public life who work to strengthen the foundations of social sustice and pledge the partnership of the United Nations to achieve that goal.


Thank you.