Let me begin, Sir, by
expressing the best wishes of the Government and the
people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on Mr. Kutesa’s
assumption of the presidency of the General Assembly
at its sixty-ninth session. His election is a fitting
tribute to his invaluable and inspiring contribution to
international diplomacy. I would also like to express
my warm appreciation to his predecessor, Ambassador
John Ashe, for the astute and steadfast manner in which
he steered the affairs of the sixty-eighth session of the
Assembly. I thank Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon not
only for his relentless commitment to the work of the
United Nations, but especially for his tireless efforts
to address the challenges of world peace and security.
We are meeting at a time when the world looks with
expectation towards 2015, which marks the end of the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the launch
of their successors, the sustainable development goals
(SDGs). We must ensure, at all levels, that the SDGs
reflect the goals and aspirations of all the regions of the
world. Indeed, if the SDGs are to drive development and
also meet the aspirations of developing countries for
poverty elimination and sustainable growth, collective
ownership of the emerging process must be our
priority. We in Africa expect that the new SDGs will be
people-centred. They must promote peace and security,
structural economic transformation, inclusive growth,
food security for all, environmental sustainability and
the shared benefits of science and technology. Indeed,
the gains of the MDGs must be incorporated into the
emerging mechanism.
We applaud the wide-ranging recommendations
of the report of the Intergovernmental Committee
of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing
on domestic resource mobilization, international
development assistance, private sector finance and a
supportive global enabling environment. My country is
honoured to have been accorded the privilege, jointly
with Finland, of leading that work as co-Chair of the
Intergovernmental Committee of Experts, as mandated
by the Heads of State and Government at the United
Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in
Rio. Along with the work of the Open Working Group
on sustainable development goals, the report provides
a solid basis for intergovernmental negotiations on the
post-2015 development agenda. Nigeria is aware of
the need to create an enabling environment for rapid
development. We are committed to strengthening
institutions and improving governance systems, in
order to ensure an efficient use of resources and the
process itself.
The year 2015 also marks the seventieth anniversary
of the establishment of the United Nations. Even
though the Charter of the United Nations underlines
the imperative to spare succeeding generations from
the scourge of war, the world continues to witness the
ravages of war and human suffering. Today’s terrorism,
manifested sometimes in insurgency, is vicious and
aimless. Its consequences are agonizing, marked
by a tendency to annihilate victims and completely
destroy infrastructure and properties. The involvement
of foreign fighters remains a common feature of
terrorist groups, whether Al-Qaida in the Maghreb,
Al-Shabaab in Somalia, Boko Haram in Nigeria or the
newly emerging Islamic State (IS). The new dimension
introduced by IS — namely, the goal of conquering
territory and establishing its destructive ideology — is
a major challenge that must be collectively halted before
it becomes the norm. That challenge focuses renewed
attention on the need to review the existing tools for
United Nations peacekeeping operations.
The violent and criminal activities of Boko
Haram have continued to pose a potent challenge to
the Government and people of Nigeria. Through a
wave of terror, assassinations, bombings and now
abductions and kidnappings, predominantly in the
north-east of the country, Boko Haram is attempting
to truncate development in those areas through murder
and mayhem. In April, our innocent daughters were
abducted from a secondary school in Chibok, in the
north-east. That callous and criminal act has attracted
empathy for Nigeria across the globe.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all
the countries and organizations that have expressed
solidarity with us and have continued to support our
determined efforts to free our daughters. Although it
has been over three months since they were abducted,
we have never relented in our efforts to see them safely
free. Together with our partners, we are working
assiduously to free our daughters and reunite them
with their families. To that end, I wish to thank the
Government of France for organizing and hosting the
special summit on security in Nigeria that was held in
Paris in May. I also wish to express my appreciation
to the Governments of Cameroon, Chad, the Niger and
Guinea for their committed efforts in support of the
fight against Boko Haram. The outcome of the French
process and the follow-up in London, Washington, D.C.,
and Abuja have helped to galvanize regional action and
are already yielding positive results. Let me underline
today that we shall not waver until we end this mindless
war on the innocent and bring all the perpetrators to
justice. We will triumph over terrorism.
The failure of the Security Council to agree on
unanimous action over pressing challenges to global
peace and security in Syria and Iraq and the conflict in
Ukraine, as well as with regard to the renewed aggression
between Israel and Palestine, has strengthened the case
for Security Council reform. Today’s challenges can
be resolved only by a Security Council whose working
methods engender transparency, inclusivity and
common ownership through equitable representation
of all regions in the decision-making process. It is
imperative that we take advantage of 2015, which also
marks the fiftieth anniversary of the 1965 reform, to
make concrete progress on reforming the Security
Council. We believe that there needs to be a fast-track
process in line with the initiative of Mr. John Ashe,
President of the General Assembly at its sixty-eighth
session, for establishing a working group on reform.
Indeed, the Security Council requires the collective
resolve of all Member States to ensure that 2015 brings
decisive progress.
Even as Africa, and in particular West Africa,
battles conflicts and terrorism, with progressive
results, the region is being devastated by the outbreak
of the deadly Ebola virus. While Nigeria was able to
respond effectively to control the spread of the disease,
the situation in Liberia and Sierra Leone requires
sustainable collective global action if it is to be
contained. Through the concerted efforts of our health-
care professionals, the World Health Organization and
our international partners, we have been able to contain
the virus, and we can confidently say that Nigeria today
is Ebola-free.
However, we have continued to support efforts
to contain the spread of the disease in Sierra Leone,
Liberia and Guinea. In addition to a direct donation
totalling $3.5 million, we have provided training and
capacity-building support to the three countries. It
is pertinent to stress the need for the international
community to properly appreciate the magnitude of
the Ebola challenge. Indulging in isolationist and
discriminatory tendencies, as some countries are doing,
will only worsen an already critical situation. To prevent
the disease from becoming a global catastrophe, the
United Nations must accord it the maximum priority
it deserves.
Certainly, there has been much discussion on
limiting ozone layer depletion since the commencement
of negotiations under the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change in 1994. However, the
extent of progress in key areas, particularly in limiting
the contribution of man-made activities to greenhouse
gas emission, has yet to be determined.
Nigeria appreciates the indispensable role of the
United Nations in its search for solutions to all those
challenges: terrorism, global peace and security,
the environment, and forging sustainable economic
development. We have been and will remain a reliable
and active partner, especially as we collectively work
to resolve the new and emerging threats to global peace
and security. The world must come together and win the
war against terror.
On 29 May 1999, Nigeria ended its military rule after
the inauguration of a democratically elected President.
Come February 2015, the country will conduct its fifth
post-military-rule general election. In keeping with
my election as President by the people of Nigeria, we
shall conduct elections based on global best practices to
further strengthen our democratic institutions.