On behalf of the Government and the people of Nigeria, I congratulate the President on his well-deserved election to lead the General Assembly at its seventy-seventh session and assure him of the full support and cooperation of the Nigerian delegation during his tenure. I commend his predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Abdulla Shahid, for the Assembly’s many remarkable achievements under his leadership during these challenging times. I would also like to congratulate the Secretary-General, Mr. Antonio Guterres, on his ceaseless and untiring efforts to promote peace, security and development, which are very much in line with his exalted role.
The first time I might have been able to address the Assembly was in 1984, when I was the Military Head of State of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Some 31 years later, in 2016, I had the great privilege to personally address the Assembly as the democratically elected President of my country (see A/71/PV.4 A). As I approach the end of my second and final four- year term, I am reminded of how much has changed in Nigeria, Africa and the world, and yet how some challenges remain. We are now more severely tested by our enduring and our new global challenges, paramount among which are conflicts that are increasingly being driven by non-State actors, the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, terrorism, violent extremism, the malignant use of technology, climate change, irregular migration and disparities in opportunities for improved standards of living.
Despite the challenging international environment, the United Nations has proved that it can be strong when the will of its members is harnessed for positive, collective action. The guiding principle of this extraordinary institution is the promotion of peace and security, development and human rights. The latest in a chain of events challenging those principles is the conflict in Ukraine, which has already created strains that may be unprecedented for an entire generation. Such a conflict will have adverse consequences for us all, hindering our capacity to work together to resolve conflicts elsewhere, especially in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Indeed, the ongoing war in Ukraine is making it more difficult to tackle the perennial issues that feature each year in the deliberations of the Assembly, such as nuclear disarmament, the right of Rohingya refugees to return to their homes in Myanmar, Palestinians’ legitimate aspirations for statehood and the reduction of inequalities within and among nations.
The danger that the war in Ukraine will escalate further justifies Nigeria’s resolute calls for a nuclear- free world and a universal Arms Trade Treaty, which are also necessary measures for preventing global human disasters. In that regard, we must find a way to reach a rapid consensus on the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, with related commitments by the nuclear-weapon States. I remain firmly convinced that the challenges that have come so sharply into focus in recent years and months emphasize the call by Nigeria and many other Member States for reform of the Security Council and other United Nations agencies. We need a more effective and representative structure to meet today’s demands, which have outgrown a system designed for the very different world that prevailed at its foundation in 1945. Change is long overdue.
This is the first meeting that we are having here in New York without the restrictions that characterized the past three years. The coronavirus disease pandemic ripped across national borders like a toxic whirlwind, leaving in its wake a legacy of pain and loss. Happily, we also witnessed an incredible level of innovation and creativity from those who devised treatments and vaccines. Those laudable achievements were underpinned by partnerships and international cooperation. We also saw the bravery, care and endurance of health professionals in every corner of the globe. With the coronavirus, we saw very clearly how States tried to meet the challenge of a threat that could not be contained within national borders. The results were mixed, but at its best, the cooperation among stakeholders was outstanding. It facilitated solutions that saved countless lives and eased a huge burden of human suffering. That same theme of multilateralism, as the promotion of national interests competes with the common cause in the face of an existential threat, has been our recurring experience in recent times.
In every address that I have delivered to the Assembly, I have dwelt on the issue of climate change, especially as it fuels conflicts and complicates food security. Climate change reduces opportunity and prosperity, which in Africa, Latin America and some parts of Asia also contributes to transnational organized crime. Last year, as part of Nigeria’s effort to achieve our global net-zero aspirations, my Administration adopted
a national climate-change strategy that aims to deliver climate-change mitigation in a sustainable manner. The measures we took at the national level also require climate justice. Compared to industrialized economies, Africa and other developing nations produce only a small proportion of greenhouse-gas emissions. Yet we are the hardest hit by the consequences of climate change, as we are seeing in the sustained drought in Somalia and the unprecedentedly severe floods in Pakistan. Those and other climate-related occurrences are now suddenly becoming commonplace in the developing world. In effect, we are literally paying the price for policies that others pursue. That must change.
At the twenty-sixth Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, held in Glasgow last year, I said that Nigeria was not asking for permission to make the same mistakes that others have made in creating the climate emergency. Fortunately, we now know what we can do to mitigate the effects of the climate crisis and the related energy challenges. As a first step, we must all commit to releasing the financing and the technology for creating a stable and affordable framework for energy transmission. Financial development institutions must prioritize de-risking energy projects to improve renewable projects’ access to credit facilities. No country should be left behind in that area. The skyrocketing energy costs worldwide are in part the product of conflict and supply disruptions to Europe and the Americas, yet we are all paying the price. It is therefore our expectation that the seventy- seventh session of the General Assembly and the upcoming COP 27 will help galvanize the political will required to drive action towards fulfilling the various existing climate change initiatives.
Another feature of the past decade has been the growing partnerships between States and increasingly influential non-State actors. There was a time when the most important events at the Assembly featured statements by the world’s most powerful leaders. Now, a tweet or Instagram post by an influencer on a social or environmental issue may have a greater impact. Technology offers us limitless opportunities and sometimes runs ahead of the imagination of regulators and legislators. At its best, social media helps strengthen the foundation of our society and our common values. At its worst, it is a corrosive digital version of the mob, bristling with intolerance and division. In confronting those challenges, we must also come together to defend freedom of speech while upholding other values that we cherish. We must continue to work for a common standard that balances rights with responsibilities to keep the most vulnerable from harm and help strengthen and enrich communities. Efforts to protect communities from the scourge of disinformation and misinformation must also be matched with efforts to reduce inequalities and restore hope to the poorer and most vulnerable members of our communities, as a means to curb the many socioeconomic conflict drivers that we face.
In spite of our efforts, humanitarian crises will continue to ravage some of our communities. Nigeria therefore implores its global partners to do more to complement its endeavours. Indeed, the multifaceted challenges facing most developing countries have left a debilitating chokehold on their fiscal space. That equally calls for addressing the burden of unsustainable external debt via a global commitment to the expansion and extension of the Debt Service Suspension Initiative to countries facing fiscal and liquidity challenges, as well as outright cancellation for countries facing the most severe issues.
Democracy is an idea that crosses time and borders. Sadly, it has its limitations. The wheels of democracy turn slowly. It can demand compromises that dilute decisions. Sometimes it bends too much to special interests that exercise influence, not always for the general good, in a manner disproportionate to their numbers. However, it has been my experience that a democratic culture provides a Government with the legitimacy it needs to deliver positive change. In Nigeria, not only have we worked to strengthen our democracy, but we have also supported it and promoted the rule of law in our subregion. In the Gambia, we helped guarantee the first democratic transition since independence. In Guinea-Bissau, we stood by the democratically elected Government when it faced mutiny. In Chad, following the tragic death on the battlefield of its President, the late Idriss Deby Itno, we joined forces with its other neighbours and international partners to stabilize the country and encourage a peaceful transition to democracy, a process that is ongoing. We believe in the sanctity of constitutional term limits, and we have steadfastly adhered to them in Nigeria. We have seen the corrosive impact on values when leaders elsewhere seek to change the rules to stay in power. Indeed, we are now preparing for general elections in Nigeria, scheduled for February. At the seventy-eighth session of the General Assembly, there will be a new face on this rostrum speaking for Nigeria.
Ours is a vast country, strengthened by its diversity and common values of hard work, enduring faith and a sense of community. We have invested heavily to strengthen our framework for free and fair elections, and I thank our partners for all the support that they have provided for our elections. As President, I have set the goal that one of the enduring legacies I would like to leave is to entrench a process of free, fair, transparent and credible elections by which Nigerians elect the leaders of their choice.
The multiple challenges that we face are truly interconnected and urgent, and the choice of this session’s theme, “A watershed moment: transformative solutions to interlocking challenges”, is apt. In keeping with our obligations as Member States of the Organization, we must all do our utmost to work with the President to resolve them. In that regard, I reiterate my delegation’s full and resolute cooperation.
Let me convey my final reflections from this famous rostrum. We live in extraordinary times, with interdependent challenges, but enormous opportunities. The pace of change can seem bewildering, with sometimes a palpable and unsettling sense of uncertainty about our future. But if my years in public service have taught me anything, it is that we must keep faith with those values that endure. They include, but are not limited to, such values as justice, honour, integrity, ceaseless endeavour and partnership within and between nations. Our strongest moments have always been those in which we remain true to the basic principles of tolerance, community and abiding commitment to peace and goodwill towards all.