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The world is counting on the G7 bloc of industrialized democracies to demonstrate global leadership and solidarity, said the UN chief on Sunday, speaking to journalists in Hiroshima, Japan, which he described as a “global symbol of the tragic consequences when nations fail to work together”, and abandon multilateralism.

The G7, which consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, together with the European Union, is meeting in the city where the first atomic bomb was dropped in 1945, a place which Secretary-General António Guterres described, as a “testament to the human spirit”.

“Whenever I visit, I am inspired by the courage and resilience of the Hibakusha”, he said, referring to the survivors of that dreadful act of war. “The United Nations stands with them. We will never stop pushing for a world free of nuclear weapons.”

Haves and have-nots

Mr. Guterres said his message to the G7 leaders was clear and simple: “while the economic picture is uncertain everywhere, rich countries cannot ignore the fact that more than half the world – the vast majority of countries – are suffering through a deep financial crisis.”

He reiterated his view first expressed in an official visit to Jamaica last week, that the problems facing developing countries had three dimensions; moral, power-related, and practical.

Elaborating on the “systemic and unjust bias” in the global economic and financial system; the outdatedness of the global financial architecture; and the fact that even within the current rules, developing economies had been let down and sold short; the UN chief said the G7 had a duty now to act.

Redistribution of power

He said the financial system created by the Breton Woods realignment post World War Two, had simply “failed to fulfil its core function as a global safety net”, in the face of the economic shocks from COVID, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

He said the time had come to fix the Breton Woods system, and reform the UN Security Council.

“This is essentially a question of redistributing power in line with the realities of today’s world.”

He said the G7 can no longer be a bystander: “In our multipolar world, as geopolitical divisions grow, no country or group of countries, can stand by as billions of people struggle with the basics of food, water, education, healthcare and jobs.”

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres meets with Fumio Kishida, the Prime Minister of Japan, at the G7 Hiroshima Summit 2023.

UN Photo/Ichiro Mae United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres meets with Fumio Kishida, the Prime Minister of Japan, at the G7 Hiroshima Summit 2023.

'Clearly off track’

Highlighting the perils of overlooking the pace of climate change, he outlined the specific areas where the world’s richest were central to the success of climate action.

The current projections show humankind heading for a temperature rise of 2.8°C by the end of this century, he told journalists, and the next five years are likely to be the hottest ever, according to latest figures from the UN weather agency, WMO.

He said the G7, with it’s huge economic and financial clout, was “central to climate action”, which is working, “but not enough and we are clearly off track".

“Our Acceleration Agenda aims to make up for lost time. It calls for all G7 countries to reach net zero as close as possible to 2040, and for emerging economies to do so as close as possible to 2050.”

A Climate Solidarity Pact calls for the G7 to mobilize resources to support less well-off economies in accelerating decarbonization, to stay within the 1.5° limit on heating, compared with pre-industrial levels.

UN Photo/Ichiro Mae Secretary-General António Guterres joins world leaders paying respects at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.

Phase out coal

“This requires faster timelines to phase out fossil fuels and ramp up renewables. It means putting a price on carbon and ending fossil fuel subsidies. I call on the G7 to phase out coal completely by 2030”, the UN chief said.

But he also made a call for climate justice, on behalf of the countries who have done the least to cause the crisis, but are suffering the most.

“We must ramp up adaptation and early warning systems to help communities on the front lines…It’s high time for developed countries to provide the promised $100 billion per year”, he added.

And he also reiterated that the Loss and Damage Fund agreed in Sharm el-Sheikh, during COP27 last year, “must be operationalized.”

Planting awareness

Ziad Sa’ad has a degree in media and communications, but has always been a farmer and beekeeper in Al Qurnah, Iraq.

“Our community has a relationship with our land that is hard to describe; our fathers and grandfathers were also farmers,” he said. “Our work and life cycle on these farms are interdependent.”

Ziad Sa’ad, a beekeeper from Basra, Iraq, is raising awareness among his community on the importance of safety at work.

Planting awareness on the importance of farms in the predominantly poor area was his goal. So, he set up Facebook and WhatsApp groups on beekeeping and farming, and with occupational safety and health training from the International Labour Organization (ILO), he is spreading the word on social media and transferring the knowledge to local farmers.

“Our work in agriculture promotes economic opportunities, security and self-reliance,” he said. “It allows us to be independent.”

Supporting beekeepers

Gulhayo Khaydarova, from Durmon, Uzbekistan, has been in beekeeping for 14 years, and the honey her bees produce, is famous throughout the village. She said the traditions and secrets of beekeeping are passed down from generation to generation.

But, last winter’s plummeting temperatures killed off most of her bees. Even the most experienced beekeepers can suffer this loss.

To compensate for her losses, the UN food agency (FAO) provided her family with modern beekeeping equipment and 20 new hives.

Today, she has increased honey production, providing a more sustainable livelihood for her household.

Nearly 75 per cent of the world’s crops producing fruits and seeds for human use depend, at least in part, on pollinators.

UNDP Guatemala/Carolina Trutmann Nearly 75 per cent of the world’s crops producing fruits and seeds for human use depend, at least in part, on pollinators.

Breaking gender barriers

“Bees are extremely intelligent insects,” said Ligia Elena Moreno Veliz, from La Fé, Venezuela. Once afraid of the pollinators, through an FAO scholarship, she now runs a thriving business specializing in queen bee breeding and is passing on knowledge to others.

She also broke a glass ceiling. Today, while only four of the community’s 30 beekeepers are women, the taboo is now gone, she said.

Meanwhile, climate change is worrisome, she added. Climate instability, inconsistency in tree blooms and pollution cause bees to have new patterns of behaviour, adapting to the changes in flowering times.

To address this challenge, Ligia Elena and her co-workers have planted new trees to attract bees again.

“Beekeeping is my way of life,” she said. “It is the livelihood of my family and an activity that I hope my daughters will continue to do in the future.”

Once afraid of bees, Ligia Elena now treasures these creatures that have given her a livelihood for the last 17 years, a livelihood that began with an FAO programme in her village.

© FAO/Pablo Varela Cuervas-Mons Once afraid of bees, Ligia Elena now treasures these creatures that have given her a livelihood for the last 17 years, a livelihood that began with an FAO programme in her village.

Honey proud

Betty Ayikoru, from Arua district in Uganda, is mother of four, a farmer, local councillor, and a beekeeper.

“That’s how I make a living,” she said.

She works with Honey Pride Arua, a social enterprise founded by Sam Aderubo and supported by the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF).

Like many others, her life has improved thanks to skills training, and the sustainable market provided by the business.

Now, more than 1,700 farmers keep their bees in apiaries and at harvest time, they sell to Honey Pride.

“By engaging farmers, we are giving them alternative employment,” Mr. Aderubo said. “If beekeeping is taken to a level where farmers understand it as a business, it’s going to improve their livelihoods.”

Bee biosecurity

Ensuring bee health is a goal of the UN food agency, especially in light of threats against them, including unsustainable agriculture, pesticide abuse, and intensive monoculture production.

Pollination is essential for the maintenance of plant biodiversity, the survival of the world’s ecosystems, with about 75 percent of crops – which produce fruits and other seeds for human consumption – depending, at least in part, on pollinators, including bees, FAO said.

Pollinator-friendly practices include crop rotation and diversity, reducing the use of pesticides, and restoring and protecting their habitat. Even the adoption of precision agriculture tools and innovation can protect bees, the agency said.

To help to better protect the pollinators, the agency hosted and co-organized on Thursday the second International Symposium on Biosecurity in Beekeeping, bringing participants up to date on the latest developments in bee biosecurity and the initiatives that the international organizations involved are applying in different areas of the world to ensure bee health.

A beekeeper in Madagascar tends to his beehive using techniques learned through climate adaptation training.

Celebrating bees worldwide

“World Bee Day has contributed significantly to raising awareness of the importance of bees and other pollinators and to promoting international cooperation to protect them,” said Nataša Pirc Musar, President of the Republic of Slovenia.

Her country initiated the establishment of a World Bee Day in 2016 at an FAO regional conference for Europe and co-created more than 300 pollinator projects with partners on all continents, she said.

For its part, the UN marked World Bee Day with an FAO-hosted global ceremony emphasizing the importance of these hard-working pollinators.

Under the theme of pollinator-friendly agricultural production, the event drew attention to the threats endangering these insects and the need to address them.

On Monday, an event at UN Headquarters will showcase best practices and innovative projects with a view to raising awareness of bees' contributions to environmental and social resilience.

“Protecting bees and other pollinators is essential to guarantee agricultural production, food security, ecosystems restoration, and plant health,” FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu said.

As beekeeper Ms. Moreno Veliz said, “bees are extremely intelligent insects. They are beautiful animals.”

The National University of Costa Rica estimates that 65 per cent of the plants on the planet require pollinators, and of these, the most important are bees.

UNDP/Priscilla Mora Flores The National University of Costa Rica estimates that 65 per cent of the plants on the planet require pollinators, and of these, the most important are bees.