New York – October 7, 2014

  1. The General Assembly has before it the Report of the Secretary-General on the Work of the Organization, contained in document A/69/1. The Report was presented by the Secretary-General to the Assembly on 24 September 2014, prior to the start of the General Debate.
  2. The Report covers many issues of interest to Member States, such as the post-2015 development agenda; climate change; peace and security; development of Africa; disarmament; and emerging threats like drugs, organised crime and terrorism. Many of these issues were emphasised by leaders during the General Debate, and will remain important throughout the 69th session.
  3. On sustainable development issues, substantive progress has been made towards preparing the ground for the Secretary-General’s Synthesis Report on the post-2015 development agenda. However, the imperative to accelerate progress on the MDGs, particularly in areas where the international community is noticeably lagging behind, such as nutrition, maternal health, education, and inequality is highlighted in the Report. At the same time, we must maintain our focus towards addressing climate change, with a view to adopting a universal climate agreement by 2015.
  4. In the area of peace and security, the Report strikes a sobering tone on the regrettable developments that have taken in the past year in many parts of the world. Most notably, these situations point to the daunting challenges the global community collectively faces in efforts to address these issues moving forward. Highlighting the inextricable nexus between development and peace and security, the Report points out that failure to address these challenges will inevitably stunt development aspirations, even as the world looks to elaborate a new agenda.
  5. As a community of nations, we must whole-heartedly embrace efforts towards conflict prevention, mediation, peace keeping and peacebuilding. The role of the United Nations, in coordination and collaboration with regional and sub-regional organisations, remains critical, including with regard to curbing activities of non-state actors.
  6. As the Ebola outbreak continues to inflict grave consequences on parts of West Africa, with potential regional and international dimensions, the epidemic serves as a reminder of the importance of continued commitment to countries with special needs; including those in Africa, Land Locked Developing Countries, Least Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States. While considerable progress is being made by countries in special circumstances, the Report highlights that huge deficits still exist with regard to health and educations systems, as well as energy and infrastructure.
  7. Finally, the Report notes we must also work towards developing measures to support countries most affected by emerging threats to international peace; particularly organised crime; drug and human trafficking; and international terrorism.

I thank you