– As delivered –
Statement by H.E. Tijjani Muhammad Bande, President of the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly
23 September 2019
Your Majesty,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Such a great evening to discuss a really important subject. I am honoured to have been invited to be a part of this very important conversation, to join leaders and activists including activist leaders to push a very important agenda.
Reforms have been made today to include really important things:
First, the discussion on climate action. The Climate Summit is really important.
Second, Universal Health Coverage.
That they happened in one day must mean that something is happening to our world.
People are coming together to deal with really important things and leaving unimportant things where they belong.
Mental heath is a subset of health, and today the idea is no longer a debate. Without health, nothing happens.
Delegations have made repeatedly today the connections between health and economic growth, peace, and even mental health. There is no question that even with the way in which health systems are crumbling in certain parts of the world, in certain societies, efforts have been made by civil society organisations and others to see that this does not continue to be so.
The UN has done greatly in joining with others to make this a very important matter. In short, we can do nothing without health. We are worried that in countries even where health is good and better than the average, mental health is a challenge. It is a taboo to talk about it. We know that every day, it affects for the record that up to 25% of individuals suffer from it to various degrees.
But we seek to ignore it because it has been made a taboo, this is really important that today in practical terms emphasizing that it is a right that must be fought for and defended for all of us. And going forward, I want to say that the Assembly will join all efforts and we will work with all organisations, whoever is available to guarantee not only health in general but in particular to join in the fight to improve mental health for all. Health for all must be defended by all.
Thank you all. I am glad to have been invited here.
