UN DAY COMMEMORATION

– As delivered –

Statement by H.E. Tijjani Muhammad Bande, President of the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly

24 October 2019

The President and the Principal Officers of ADA University,

Distinguished Professors and Academics,

Esteem Students,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am grateful for the opportunity to address you on this commemoration of the United Nations Day.

The United Nations which was established seventy-four years ago have no doubt made significant contribution to human development. As we celebrate this anniversary, it is critical to remind ourselves that the United Nations emerged in the context of a turbulent history, marked by the most ferocious war my in human history.

Through a set of universal values ​​and norms and a system of global governance – based on rules and principles, the UN Charter aimed at establishing a system of collective security, that “saves future generations from the scourge of war”.

Clearly, the United Nations has contributed significantly to ensuring that this principal aim of the Charter is achieved, as evident by, for example, the resolution of the Suez crises, the Cuban missile crises and resolution of other numerous crises around the world. However, we cannot deny that the United Nations has failed in preventing or reacting to some conflicts around the world.

Among others, it failed in preventing the genocide in Rwanda, and has unfortunately not been successful in addressing the ongoing conflicts in Yemen, Syria and the Israel-Palestine issue.

Despite this, the organization has been at the forefront of all emerging challenges and issues, in the realms of the preservation of peace and security, the promotion of sustainable development and the protection of human rights, including through:

Building required capacity to respond to conflicts and natural disasters;

Engaging in mediation, peacekeeping and peacebuilding. UN peacekeepers and humanitarian personnel assist civilians in dramatically precarious situations; in countries affected by conflicts and disasters. Through all its agencies, funds and programs, the United Nations strives to improve people’s lives;

Contributing substantively to the decolonization process and the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination. Many of our Nations emerged out of this process and the UN offered us all a space to make our contributions – regardless of our respective sizes and power.

Laying a solid foundation for international cooperation and championing the universal normative framework governing political, economic and social life;

Creation of global frameworks for human rights. Among others, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as all the conventions and other instruments governing all aspects related to human rights, have been elaborated by the United Nations;

Laying the foundation for needed cooperation on disarmament, including the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Biological and Chemical Weapons Conventions;

Last but not least, the UN delivered the most comprehensive framework for sustainable development: the 2030 Agenda and its 17 SDGs as well as the landmark Paris Climate Agreement. These frameworks give hope for a better future for humanity. They aim at achieving societies that are prosperous, inclusive and sustainable; a world where no one is left behind.

The United Nations has lived up to its reputation as the world’s most representative supranational body and we must ask ourselves these questions: what would be the alternative to the United Nations? A world governed by no rules, or by a set of rules imposed by the most powerful amongst us? A world governed by conflicting military alliances?

We all know what happened after the collapse of the collective security system under the League of Nations, and the Charter of the United Nations which was ratified in San Francisco in 1945 endeavored to among other things avoid the mistakes of that past.

Colleagues,

Today, we need the UN and multilateralism more than ever, due to the rise in global challenges. Some of those challenges include the proliferation of terrorism and conflicts, the resurgence of the nuclear and other armament threats, climate change and disasters, refugee flows, as well as poverty and inequality within and between nations. These challenges affect us all, and the only reasonable way to address them is through multilateral cooperation.

We all need to join efforts to face the growing attacks on the UN, and must continue to mobilize all around the ideals of multilateralism and the United Nations. We must respond to criticism of the UN, by achieving its various reform actions, addressing its inefficiencies and most importantly by addressing the growing trust deficit. We need to harness the United Nations potential and expertise on a variety of issues and themes, to build platforms for collaboration and partnerships. Also, we must communicate better, both through mass and social media, for people to understand the work of the United Nations.

The organization is currently engaged in the process of strengthening and revitalizing the work of the General Assembly, which remains the main deliberative and normative body, responsible for setting the direction of the Organization. The goal is to make the Assembly a true parliament of nations. The special working group on the revitalization of its work has achieved significant progress in the selection of the United Nations Secretary-General, the appointment of the President of the General Assembly and working methods. Yet, we could still make many progress in improving the way we do business.

The General Assembly has delivered on three reform processes related to the reform of the Peace Architecture, Management Reform, as well as the repositioning of the United Nations Development System.

Furthermore, the General Assembly will engage in the next few weeks in the important process of review of the Economic and Social Council as well as the High-Level Political Forum for Sustainable Development. These processes will contribute to strengthening UN’s role in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, as we are about to engage in the Decade for action and delivery of the SDGs.

The reform of the Security Council is important and it is the most difficult process in view of the issues it raises, particularly in the aspects related to the enlargement of its composition and prerogatives. The current composition, obviously does not reflect the realities of the 21^st century, and it is unfair that the African continent is not represented on the Permanent Category of its membership, despite the fact that the bulk of the agenda of the Council is on African. The Intergovernmental negotiations for the reform of the Security Council faces profound differences, stalling progress after more than 20 years of discussion.

Ladies and Gentlemen

In ensuring that the United Nations deliver for all, advancing sustainable development remains a top priority for the 74th session of the General Assembly. Mindful of the interconnectedness and indivisibility of this comprehensive framework, I will endeavor to provide the needed leadership on all goals, with focus on issues of poverty eradication, zero hunger, quality education, climate action and inclusion.

I will work to see increased partnerships and galvanize needed engagement for achieving my priorities. Meeting the objective of “leaving no one behind” would ultimately depend on how we address the needs of the most vulnerable people.

The 75th anniversary of the creation of the United Nations would be commemorated next year. This opportunity should be used to reduce the deficit of trust between nations and peoples; and restore confidence and trust in the UN.

It is my hope that as we depart here today, we would reflect on the United Nations’ accomplishments. And while dwelling on that, we should ask if the structure that has existed for the last seventy-four years is not due for review.

There are new and emerging challenges that are increasing in scale, and which we all have to cooperate and coordinate effectively to overcome. I therefore challenge you to begin to think of what we need to do to make the world a safer and more congenial place than it is at the moment.