DOHA, NOV 5 /DNA/ – Ambassador Md. Golam Sarwar, Secretary General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), attends the Second World Summit for Social Development held from 4-6 November 2025 in Doha, Qatar. Over 8,000 participants are at the World Social Summit 2025, including Heads of State, UN representatives, civil society, academia, private sector leaders, and youth.

Secretary General delivered a statement at the high-level Round Table discussion titled “Assessing progress and addressing gaps and challenges in the implementation of the commitments of the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development and its Programme of Action and giving momentum towards the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.”

In his remarks, he highlighted SAARC’s Plan of Action on the 2030 Agenda, which aligns regional priorities with global goals. He underscored the role of SAARC’s specialized Centres and Working Groups in promoting data sharing, policy dialogue, and capacity building across Member States. He further emphasized SAARC’s close collaboration with UN agencies, including UNDP, FAO, WHO, UNFPA, and UNICEF to support evidence-based policymaking and strengthen regional cooperation mechanisms.

Secretary General stated “The people of South Asia one-fourth of humanity stand united in this vision. Through SAARC, we reaffirm our determination to build a region where every child is nourished, every adolescent is empowered, every woman is respected, and every individual can live with equality and hope.”

On the sidelines of the Summit, Secretary General will also hold bilateral meetings with the Heads of Delegation from UNICEF and Plan International Asia Pacific.