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Bande: Special Session to strengthen UN GA as critical global partner in COVID-19 fight

3 September 2020 14:43 (UTC+04:00)
Bande: Special Session to strengthen UN GA as critical global partner in COVID-19 fight

By Trend

Tijjani Muhammad Bande, President of the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, expressed gratitude to Azerbaijan, as Chair of Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), for pushing for this very important session and the General Assembly for accepting to hold the special session, Trend reports with reference to UN General Assembly.

Bande made the statement during first informal consultation on the draft resolution on the modalities for the 31st Special Session of the General Assembly in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

He emphasized that the proposal to hold a special session on the pandemic by the General Assembly is a veritable platform to mobilise global commitment against the pandemic.

“I trust that the special session will ensure greater involvement of world leaders toward a result-oriented response to the pandemic. This will further strengthen the General Assembly as a critical global partner in the fight against the pandemic and its impact on lives and livelihood. Indeed, I trust that this special session will be a vehicle for a coordinated response from the international community,” he said.

He reminded that before the declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic by the World Health Organisation, the General Assembly had already started consultations on how to respond to the evolving situation in a sustainable manner.

“We recognised very early that the dire nature of the pandemic demanded the prompt reaction of the General Assembly. On 27th of March, we passed GA resolution 74/544 authorising silence procedure in response to the pandemic’s threat to in-person meetings. Since then, we have proceeded with our business and passed around 70 decisions and resolutions in continuation of the work of the General Assembly in these abnormal circumstances,” he said.

In Bande’s words through these initiatives, a lot of grounds amidst all the uncertainties were able to be covered.

“I believe that with more focus and commitment at the highest levels of governance, we would make significant progress in the race to defeat the pandemic. The co-facilitators with your cooperation and support, have produced a solid draft as a good basis for negotiation. And I trust that the special session will ensure greater involvement of world leaders toward a result-oriented response to the pandemic. This will further strengthen the General Assembly as a critical global partner in the fight against the pandemic and its impact on lives and livelihood,” Bande said.

He called on all Member States to work closely with the Co-facilitators in the spirit of cooperation during the process.

“I enjoin you to avail yourself of today’s deliberations as a platform to share experiences on modalities to address the pandemic. The current situation underscores the necessity to work together to defeat COVID-19, and to strengthen multilateral cooperation,” he said.

“Indeed as you strive to ensure a better world for all, the Office of the President of the General Assembly will remain your partner, enhancing global partnerships for sustainable development,” he said.

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