On 10 September 2024, the UN General Assembly (UNGA) closed its 78th session. Addressing the Assembly for the last time as its President, Dennis Francis (Trinidad and Tobago) underscored the important role of the multilateral system in overcoming complex challenges. Philemon Yang (Cameroon), President-elect of the 79th session of the UNGA, subsequently took an oath of office, pledging to perform his duties “in all loyalty, discretion and conscience.” This was followed by the opening of the Assembly’s 79th session.
Among the early achievements of the Assembly’s 78th session, Francis highlighted the adoption of the outcomes of the SDG Summit and the High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development (FfD) as well as political declarations on: universal health coverage (UHC); pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response; and the fight against tuberculosis. He called attention to the first-ever UNGA Sustainability Week, which he described as “a flagship initiative of [his] Presidency” that sought to galvanize momentum ahead of the Summit of the Future (SoF), “to inject fresh energy into our multilateral system.”
Offering remarks at the closing of the UNGA’s 78th session, UN Secretary-General António Guterres invited Member States to celebrate the achievements of the 78th session and to “look to the 79th as a moment in which the world can deliver the trust, solutions and peace that the world needs.” “The United Nations, and the multilateral system itself, is only as effective as Member States’ commitment to it,” he said.
Opening the Assembly’s 79th session, UNGA President Yang warned that the numerous challenges facing the world today are “sowing doubt about our collective capacity to come together for the common good.” He urged Member States to “meet these doubts with a clarion call to action, drawing inspiration from the Charter of the United Nations, and the principles of international cooperation,” which, he said, “remains the most effective tool at our disposal for addressing the profound and borderless issues we confront” and for realizing peace, justice, and sustainable development.
Yang reiterated the vision for his Presidency, “built on the principles of unity in diversity, fostering an environment where every voice is not only heard but valued.” He pledged to deliver solutions on:
- Sustainable economic growth, by exploring strategies that foster growth while ensuring sustainability and equity;
- Peace and security, by prioritizing conflict prevention;
- Human rights, by continuing to advocate for their protection and promotion, enhancing the coordination of humanitarian efforts, and strengthening international law and justice frameworks;
- and Countering international terrorism, drug and human trafficking, and modern slavery.
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