United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation 2020: History and Significance of the day

International Day for South-South Cooperation is celebrated every year on 12 September as assigned by the United Nations to celebrate the economic, social, and political improvements made in recent years by regions and nations in the south and features the UN’s efforts to deal with technical cooperation among developing countries.

South-South cooperation is a wide system where the South Countries have teamed up in different domains including political, economic, cultural, social, environmental, and technical domains. The day praises the political, social, and economical developments made by regions and nations in the south in recent years.

Purpose of the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation

South-South Cooperation works towards accomplishing the internationally concurred development goals, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SDGs). It intends to help the advancement towards actualizing the SDGs. It raises the awareness of the efforts taken by the United Nation to work on technical cooperation among developing countries.

United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation

In 2020 the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation on 10 September denotes the 42nd anniversary of the 1978 adoption by agreement of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action for Promoting and Implementing Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries.

South-South Cooperation is an indication of solidarity among people groups and nations of the South that adds to their national well-being, their national and aggregate self-reliance and the achievement of globally concurred development goals, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. That cooperation is done through a broad framework of collaboration among nations of the South in the political, economic, cultural, social, ecological, and technical domains.

Including at least two developing countries, it can happen on a bilateral, regional, intraregional, or interregional premise. Developing countries share information, abilities, skill, and resources to meet their development goals through purposeful efforts.

To feature the significance of South-South Cooperation, the General Assembly in its resolution 58/220 decided to observe the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation. The United Nations Day recognizes the adoption in 1978 of the “Buenos Aires Plan of Action for Promoting and Implementing Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (BAPA)” by 138 Member States.

The 2020 significant level commemoration of the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation organized in front of the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the making of the United Nations, will give a chance to think about the essential role of international solidarity and collaboration to help the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), while successfully reacting to the global COVID-19 emergency and recouping better, particularly in the Global South.