I want to start by congratulating
you, Sir, on your election as President of the General
Assembly.
We are living through a period of unprecedented
progress in human development. The success of
the Millennium Development Goals framework
demonstrates that international cooperation remains
strong, though we wish the expected results would
come faster. Even on climate change, if the public and
private sectors work together to increase investment
in scientific research, we can look forward to a future
where countries no longer have to choose between
green energy and economic growth.
While we work on building peace and well-being
in Africa, crises elsewhere in the world have aroused
grave concern. Efforts to address them seem to have
little effect, and in some cases they may even make
things worse.
Two critically important public goods have been
consistently undervalued by the international system in
its approach to conflict resolution and peacebuilding.
They are physical security and national identity. When
security breaks down, the human costs are enormous.
Extremists and opportunists are empowered. Citizens
lose faith in public institutions, as grievances are
settled in the street. As a result, sustainable gains in
good governance cannot be made. It takes time and
patience to build a better political system. There are
no shortcuts. We are dealing with real people who want
change, but with continuity and safety. They must be
fully included in the process of consensus-building.
That is because structures of governance that are not
developed from within will not take root. We should
encourage full ownership and partnership, and the
approach of international institutions and Member
States should take those realities into account. In
countries that have known only peace, such arguments
may sound self-serving. But they are not, because lives
are at stake.
The second neglected element is national identity.
That is just as important. To manage the diversity in our
societies, politics must be national in scope. Whatever
differences we may have, our common citizenship
is a bond that unites us. The negative experiences
of nationalism have created doubt about affirming
patriotism and national identity. However, what we see
around the world today is that national identities are too
weak, not that they are too strong. As a result, ethnicity,
region and religion become the dominant currency
of politics, and nations are torn apart. International
systems should encourage efforts by Governments and
civil society to strengthen national unity.
In Rwanda, we have focused on building
accountable governance institutions and renewing our
dignity as a nation. As a result, Rwandans today are
among the most optimistic and civic-minded people
in the world. For us, stability is not an abstraction, it
is a reality that abides in the minds and hearts of the
people and the institutions they build to sustain it. Once
achieved, the horizon expands from poverty reduction
to wealth creation and the attainment of ever higher
measures of human development.
Therefore, our task in the international community
is not to manage conflicts, but to help prevent and end
those conflicts. If we focus on keeping people safe and
bringing them together to solve their problems, we will
be able to do so.