Remarks by the President of the UN General Assembly

Mr. Philemon Yang

session of the Council of Presidents of the General Assembly meeting in Slovakia on PGA’s priorities

Tuesday, 09th April 2025

Bratislava, Slovakia

[As Prepared for Delivery]

 

Excellencies,

Esteemed colleagues,

 

It is my pleasure to see you again and participate in today’s discussion.

 

I commend Dr. Han Seung-soo and Dr. Jan Kavan on their able leadership of the Council of Presidents of the General Assembly.

 

I thank the Government of Slovakia for hosting this important gathering and extending its outstanding hospitality.

 

Excellencies,

 

I appreciate the opportunity to update you on the priorities of the 79th session, particularly relating to:

 

  • Implementation of the Pact for the Future,
  • The eightieth anniversary of the United Nations, and
  • The signature events of my Presidency.

 

 

First, on the Pact for the Future, I am determined to support implementation.

 

In January, I brought together the co-facilitators and co-chairs of the Assembly’s processes to discuss how to advance implementation of the Pact through relevant, mandated processes.

 

This is in line with the call in the Pact’s paragraph 17.

 

We must ensure that processes, such as the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, and the Second World Social Summit on Development, amongst others, build upon the commitments contained in the Pact.

 

To broaden support for these aims, in February, I convened a Civil Society Townhall on the priorities for the 79th session and implementation of the Pact for the Future in support of Member States.

 

And just two weeks ago, I launched the first of three informal dialogues to support Member States in advancing the Pact’s implementation.

 

The first dialogue focused on the means of implementation.

 

The Secretary-General’s participation throughout this dialogue signaled the central importance of this topic.

 

I was encouraged by the discussion – and convinced that these dialogues will be important avenues for maintaining momentum on the Pact’s implementation.

 

I will host the second dialogue in May on monitoring and evaluation, and a third in July on the road to the review of the Pact, in 2028.

 

In all my engagements with Member States, I emphasise the importance of national implementation.

 

Turning next to the eightieth anniversary of the United Nations:

 

My Office is organizing two high-level meetings to highlight the central importance of the United Nations to our multilateral system.

 

The first, on 26 June, will mark the eightieth anniversary of the signing of the Charter of the United Nations in San Francisco.

 

It will offer a key moment for Member States to rekindle the spirit of San Francisco – and with it, the determination for peace and cooperation that led to the founding of the United Nations in 1945.

 

The second event, to be presided over by my successor in September during High-Level Week, will showcase the historic achievements of the United Nations over the last eight decades.

 

In the interim period, from June to September, my Office will undertake a communications and outreach campaign, including an exhibition at United Nations Headquarters focused on these achievements.

      

Through these efforts, I intend to also support the Secretary-General and his “UN80” initiative.

 

Turning to three cross-cutting priorities of my Presidency:

 

I am pleased to report that I have continued the innovative practice of convening morning dialogues with Permanent Representatives.

 

As you know, this practice was launched by our dear colleague from Slovakia, His Excellency Mr. Miroslav Lajčák.

 

I chose the name “Palaver Tree Dialogues”, referring to the African tradition of gathering to solve community problems.

 

I held the first Palaver Tree dialogue in February, on the topic of multilingualism.

 

I have made multilingualism a cross-cutting priority of my Presidency, given its central role in the work of the United Nations.

 

I established a multilingualism task force within my Office and circulated an Action Plan in January, which we are implementing with the support of Member States.

 

Gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls is another of my priorities, particularly women’s economic empowerment.

 

Earlier this year, I re-established the Advisory Board on Gender Equality and in March convened the first meeting with members.

 

Finally, allow me highlight signature initiatives that I have held – and intend to hold – on issues that are aligned with the three main pillars of the United Nations.

 

On peace and security, last month I convened a joint meeting with the President of the Economic and Social Council on the issue of small arms and light weapons.

 

This will be followed in June by a high-level thematic debate on the future of peacekeeping in Africa.

 

On human rights, I convened in January an interactive dialogue to mobilise respect for international humanitarian law in armed conflict.

 

This will be followed, in May, by an interactive dialogue on child labour in all its forms, including forced recruitment and use of children in armed conflicts.

 

On sustainable development, in February I co-organised a hearing with the Inter-Parliamentary Union focused on scaling up financing for the Sustainable Development Goals.

 

This will be followed, in July, by an interactive multistakeholder dialogue on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in Africa focused on digitalisation and entrepreneurship.

 

 

As you know, a key responsibility for each President of the General Assembly is to set the stage for our successor.

 

As such, I remain focused on preparations for other High-Level Week meetings, covering:

 

  • Beijing+30,
  • Youth,
  • Noncommunicable diseases,
  • International financial institutions, and
  • Nuclear weapons.

 

Excellencies,

 

I look forward to hearing your views and insights on these priorities – and holding further discussions with you during the remainder of this session.

 

I thank you.

 

* ***** *


Media Contacts

Sharon Birch, Spokesperson for the President of the General Assembly, Tel: +1 212 963 0564, M: +1 646 342 5873, Email: birchs@un.org

Dr. Mariam Shaikh, Adviser/ Social and Digital Media/Media Relations, M: +1 917 3614990, Email: mariam.shaikh@un.org

 

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