Transcript of the Press Briefing by the Spokesperson of the President of the General Assembly
79th Session
10 October 2024
Good afternoon, everyone.
Human Rights Council
First on the Human Rights Council, the Election of the members of the Human Rights Council, the Uhe UN General Assembly elected 18 new members for three-year terms on the Human Rights Council beginning on 1 January 2025.
We shared yesterday a breakdown of the votes.
PGA has extended his congratulations to the newly elected members on his social media channels.
18th Plenary Meeting
On Monday, at the 18th plenary meeting, Member states emphasized that the Pact, along with the Declaration and the Compact, provides a crucial foundation for collaborative actions needed to build a better world. They stressed that the UN must remain a central platform for finding common ground and addressing the most urgent global challenges through a revitalized, reformed multilateralism.
There was also the adoption of the political declaration of the High-Level Meeting on antimicrobial resistance. This sets clear targets and actions to reduce the estimated 4.95 million human deaths associated with bacterial resistance annually by 10% by 2030.
Middle East Conflict
The President of the General Assembly met on Tuesday with family members of hostages of the Hamas attack.
Earlier in the week, he also made a call for an immediate ceasefire, an immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and a return to dialogue with a view to finding diplomatic solutions to the conflicts in the region.
Appointments
The PGA appointed H.E. Mr. Tareq M. A. M. Albanai, Permanent Representative of the State of Kuwait and H.E. Mr. Alexander Marschik, Permanent Representative of Austria, as Co-Chairs of the Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) on the question of equitable representation on and increase in the membership of the Security Council and other matters related to the Council during the 79th session.
In terms of the Second World Summit for Social Development, for that summit, the PGA has appointed H.E. Mr. Philippe Kridelka, Permanent Representative of Belgium to the United Nations and H.E. Mr. Omar Hilale, Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Morocco.
The Second World Social Summit, which takes place from 4 to 6 November in Qatar, will adopt an action-oriented political declaration, agreed in advance by consensus through intergovernmental negotiations in New York.
Main Committees
In terms of Main committees, you may be aware, that Main Committees have already kicked off deliberations.
The PGA continues to address the Committees as they undertake critical work around global issues.
Hurricane Milton
The President of the General Assembly is dismayed by the destruction that Hurricane Milton has wreaked in Florida.
As we confront more extreme weather due to climate change, the PGA insists on investing in disaster preparedness and response and building disaster resilience.
Looking Ahead
The PGA is convening a plenary meeting titled “From the New Partnership for Africa’s Development to Agenda 2063″. The full title is on the website.
This joint debate on Africa’s development is critical for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Pact for the Future, and the African Union Agenda 2063 across the African region.
Media Contacts
Sharon Birch, Spokesperson for the President of the General Assembly, Tel: + 212 963 0564, M: +1 646 342 5873, Email: birchs@un.org
Dr. Mariam Shaikh
Adviser/ Social and Digital Media/Media Relations M: +1 917 361 4990, Email:
