The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed inequalities that pose a serious threat to the human rights of those living in the development world, China has warned.

Addressing the UN Human Rights Council on behalf of a group of countries, China's ambassador Chen Xu said not enough focus had been placed on under-investment in economic, social, cultural rights and the right to development.

He called on the High Commissioner for Human Rights "to attach greater importance and channel more resources to these rights [and] put the elimination of inequality at the core of its work."

In a statement of his comments shared by his office, Chen also urged the Office of the High Commissioner to "respect the authoritative information provided by government of each state."