ANGOLA

The President of the General Assembly, Abdulla Shahid, continues his official visit to Angola.

Earlier today, he met with President Joao Lourenco. President Shahid commended Angola’s committed to multilateralism and contribution to the work of the UN. They also discussed efforts to fight the drought and efforts underway to assist the people of Angola.

President Shahid has also met with the Foreign Minister, Ambassador Tete Antonio. Among the topics they discussed today was Angola’s commitment to peace and stability, particularly in the Great Lakes region.

 

HOPE FELLOWS

 Turning to Europe, where the HOPE Fellows are continuing their visit in Brussels.

They met with officials from the European External Action Service, the EU’s diplomatic service.

They discussed public diplomacy, EU-Africa relations and electoral observations.

The Fellows also exchanged views with EU delegates in a UN Working Party (CONUN) meeting — focused on youth policies & engagement.

Among the people they met today is Emanuela Claudia Del Re, former Deputy Foreign Minister of Italy and EU Special Representative for the Sahel.

This visit is organized and funded by the European Union.

 

LACTATION ROOMS

Back here in New York…

Journalists are invited to a ribbon cutting ceremony next week to inaugurate refurbished lactation rooms.

There is a new room that was created in the UN General Assembly Hall… plus the eight existing lactation rooms have been redone.

This is an initiative from President Shahid, to expand and improve the facilities of the lactation rooms at the UN. This initiative received strong support from the First Lady of El Salvador Gabriela de Bukele and the Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern.

The refurbishment of the lactation facilities was undertaken together with the UN Department of Operational Support.

The ribbon cutting ceremony will be on Monday, 16 May, outside of the GA balcony on the second floor. That will be followed by remarks in the Visitors Lobby.

Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed will join, alongside President Shahid, the First lady of El Salvador Gabriela de Bukele, and Ambassador Carolyn Schwalger, Permanent Representative of New Zealand. There will also be a family with a baby at the event.

USG for Operational Support Atul Khare will deliver pre-recorded remarks.

You have a media advisory from yesterday.

 

IMRF

And this morning, I shared a media advisory for the International Migration Review Forum. That will take place from 17 to 20 May.

UN Member States and Observers, UN system representatives, as well as stakeholder groups, will attend the meeting to carry out the first review of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration adopted in 2018.

And there will be an informal interactive multi-stakeholder hearing on 16 May, ahead of the Forum.

 

QUESTIONS

 The Spokesperson was asked why President Abdulla Shahid did not condemn the killing of Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh, just days after World Press Freedom Day. The Spokesperson said that President Abdulla Shahid strongly condemns the killing of Ms. Abu Akleh. Media freedom is uncompromisable, as it’s the cornerstone of a robust democracy.