PRESS BRIEFING
BY MONICA GRAYLEY,
SPOKESPERSON FOR GENERAL ASSEMBLY
PRESIDENT DENNIS FRANCIS
United Nations Headquarters, New York
11 July 2024
Good afternoon, everyone!
RHETORIC ROOTED IN HATE LEADS TO UNSPEAKABLE EVIL, PGA SAYS
The President of the General Assembly, Mr. Dennis Francis, spoke this morning at the High-level Commemorative Event on the first International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica.
The PGA paid tribute to over eight thousand three hundred people killed 29 years ago in this “horrific chapter of History”.
President Francis warned against rhetoric “always rooted in hate” that, if left unchecked, will “always lead to unspeakable evil.”
He highlighted the need for “remaining vigilant and guarding” against narratives that dehumanize, degrade, and discriminate against a particular group of people.
In May, the General Assembly adopted Resolution 78/282 designating 11 July as the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica.
The event in the General Assembly Hall was organized by the Permanent Mission of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the United Nations.
GA PRESIDENT TAKES PART IN EVENT ON TRANSFORMING EDUCATION
This morning, President Francis joined the Secretary-General, Mr. Antonio Guterres, and the President of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), H.E. Ms. Paula Narvaez, at the High-level opening of the Special Event on Transforming Education.
The event focused on the Sustainable Development Goal 4 on ensuring inclusive, equitable and quality education for all.
In his remarks, the PGA said that “by mobilizing real action, ambition and innovative solutions, we can transform education to meet the demands of our rapidly changing world – for everyone, everywhere”.
He highlighted the need for urgent action as 250 million children and youth are out of school and basic reading skills are lacking in 40 per cent of primary school children in the world. Some 25 per cent of young people are not in education, employment, or training.
President Francis spoke about the relation between education investments and debt increase in developing countries, where those investments are most needed to change the future of millions of children.
The Special Event on Transforming Education was convened by the Secretary-General with the Presidents of the General Assembly and of ECOSOC.
GA HOLDS PLENARY MEETING ON UKRAINE, UN SYSTEM AND OTHER TOPICS
This afternoon, at 3 p.m., the General Assembly will hold its 99th plenary meeting on several agenda times including a report by the Secretary-General on the responsibility to protect and the prevention of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity (Item 129: (A/78/901). This will be followed by the situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine – Item 62: draft resolution (A/78/L.90) on “Safety and security of nuclear facilities of Ukraine, including the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant”, which will be acted upon by Member States. The last topic on the agenda is Item 122 entitled “Strengthening of the United Nations system – “Participation of non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations, academic institutions and the private sector in the high-level Summit of the Future”.
PGA CONVENES MEETING ON UNRWA PLEDGING CONFERENCE ON 12 JULY
Tomorrow at 10 a.m., the PGA will convene a meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee of the General Assembly for the Announcement of Voluntary Contributions to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
The event is in the Trusteeship Council Chamber.
So far, there are 61 speakers inscribed on the list. The first remarks will be delivered by the European Union and the last will be the Holy See.
After this briefing, you will receive the list of speakers in the transcript via your mailbox.
The PGA is looking forward to a strong event and encouraging Member States, philanthropic organizations, the private sector, and the public to donate to the work of UNRWA. Today, the PGA published an opinion article for the newspaper The National from the United Arab Emirates on UNRWA funding being needed now more than ever.
The event will be opened by Mr. Dennis Francis. The Secretary-General, Mr. Ant髇io Guterres, and the Commissioner-General Mr. Philippe Lazzarini will also address the Conference with opening remarks.
We have a dedicated website produced by the Office of the PGA with more information.
Access the live webcast here.
Access the list of speakers here.
This is everything we have for today. Do you have anything else?
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