UN General Assembly: the issues in brief

Sunday, September 21, 2014

New York - After a period of international crises, it is that time of the year again when Heads of State and Government from across the globe gather at the UN headquarters in midtown Manhattan, New York, to debate issues facing the globe. This year promises to provide an interesting debate.

The United Nations General Assembly, which began here last week, is an opportunity for Presidents and Prime Ministers to use their 15 minutes allocated time to participate in a debate on several topics in front of the General Assembly.

When the debate starts this week, many will no doubt use the platform to promote their countries’ national interests, but it is what leaders will eventually agree on that will define the success of these talks.
President Jacob Zuma, who arrived in New York on Sunday, will address the General Assembly on Wednesday, 24 September - the same day US President Barack Obama is scheduled to speak.

Today, a relaxed looking President Zuma, who is accompanied by First Lady Bongi Ngema-Zuma, was greeted by four of his Ministers at an up-market hotel in New York, where he had a brief meeting with a South African delegation including International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana Mashabane.

Also there to welcome the President were Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, State Security Minister David Mahlobo, and Minister of Defence Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula as well as SA ambassador to the United States Ebrahim Rasool.

Ugandan Foreign Minister Sam Kutesa was chosen as the President for the 69th Session and chose “Delivering on and Implementing a Transformative Post-2015 Development Agenda” as the theme for the General Debate, which begins on Wednesday.

It’s a foregone conclusion that the threats posed by ISIS, the Islamic radical group in Iraq and Syria, and the crisis in Ukraine and Gaza will likely dominate this year’s talks in New York.

But South Africa said it’s participation at the summit will be informed by national interests and priorities, its regional and continental commitments, as well as its aspirations for a prosperous world at peace with itself.

“In this regard, the General Debate provides a platform for South Africa to advance its strategic priorities in the world’s pre-eminent multilateral forum,” the Department of International Relations and Cooperation said this week.

This year’s General Assembly is also crucial as it takes place against the rapidly approaching target date for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015, and the start of the intergovernmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda.

Observers say the UN is expected to use the General Assembly to rally governments and civil society behind its ambitious post-2015 development agenda. It also looks almost certain that the world body will use the momentum created by the MDGs to get countries behind the new development agenda.

MDGs

The UN says enormous progress has been made towards achieving the MDGs. Global poverty continues to decline, more children than ever are attending primary school, child deaths have dropped dramatically, access to safe drinking water has been greatly expanded, and targeted investments in fighting malaria, Aids and tuberculosis have saved millions.

The MDGs are a set of eight concrete, measurable objectives, adopted by world leaders in 2000 and set to be achieved by 2015. The eight MDGs -- which range from halving extreme poverty rates to halting the spread of HIV/Aids and providing universal primary education and healthcare -- have encouraged progress in some countries.

The MDGs have been seen as the most successful global anti-poverty push in history. The UN says the post-2015 agenda will reflect new development challenges and will focus on achieving a world of prosperity, equity, freedom and dignity.

Member states are reportedly currently discussing the possibility of a new set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to complement or replace the MDGs.

For its part, South Africa has made inroads in meeting some of the goals and this includes progress the country has made in the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger through its social security system in the form of grants and work opportunities linked to the Expanded Public Works Programme.

In education, South Africa introduced no-fee schools and universal primary education and compulsory schooling for the age group 7–15 years. Pretoria seems to have also met MDG 6 by recording major successes in the fight against HIV/Aids.

“We are happy that we have done a lot to move towards achieving the MDGs and our work continues to promote the key goals of education, health, women’s empowerment, improved quality education, including access for girl children and also in promoting public participation in governance,’’ President Zuma said in New York on Sunday.

 

He said South Africa has made significant progress in achieving the MDGs and will continue to work towards the 2015 deadline. Halving the share of the population earning less than $1.25 per person, per day has been achieved, while the share of those experiencing hunger has also been halved.

 

South Africa has attained MDG 2 of providing access to primary educational access for all.

 

On official international indicators, South Africa is doing well to promote and empower women (MDG3). On the improvement of health access, South Africa has recorded impressive progress through the expansion of health infrastructure and improved access to health services for all South Africans.

A statement issued by government this week said the post-2015 negotiations will be taking place in the context of the global rebalancing of economic power as a result of a loss of comparative advantage by developed countries (and made more pronounced by the global economic meltdown).

“This makes the negotiations of the post-2015 development agenda highly contested, with developed countries seeking to redefine development to support their economic recovery needs, while developing countries try to ensure that the outcome supports its own understanding of development.

“In this regard, the General Debate provides a platform for South Africa to advance its strategic priorities in the world’s pre-eminent multilateral forum,” said government. – SAnews.gov.za