Allow me to congratulate
Mr. Kutesa on assuming the presidency of the General
Assembly at its sixty-ninth session. We are indeed
proud of the honour that has been bestowed upon the
African continent as a result of his election. The theme
he has chosen for this session, that is, “Delivering
on and implementing a transformative post-2015
development agenda”, is pertinent, appropriate and
timely. It is relevant in our efforts to achieve a seamless
transition from the Millennium Development Goals to
the sustainable development goals and the broader post-
2015 development agenda. We look forward to having a
candid and comprehensive debate on the challenges we
continue to face at the domestic and international levels
in our efforts to eradicate poverty.
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
helped to focus and mobilize global development
efforts in order to achieve progress in the social sectors.
However, despite the significant achievements within
the framework of the MDGs, progress was uneven
between goals, among regions and within countries.
Consequently, we cannot remain complacent when some
sections of the global community are marginalized or
even left behind. We are therefore gratified that the
proposed sustainable development goals have taken
on board the unfinished business of the Millennium
Development Goals. Part of that unfinished business
concerns the critical issue of poverty eradication, which
remains the greatest global challenge. That issue should
therefore be the top priority and overarching objective
of the development agenda for the future.
We in the Southern African Development
Community share the view that the post-MDG agenda
must be informed by national development priorities and
that the new targets must better reflect local conditions.
In that regard, Zimbabwe adopted its own economic
blueprint, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-
Economic Transformation. It is a bold and achievable
development programme that has the objective of
ensuring inclusive economic growth, decent jobs
for all, affordable and reliable energy, food security,
sustainable agriculture and the development of reliable
modern infrastructure. Through the programme, we
also aim to expand the industrial base, which is key to
the sustained overall economic development and human
development of our country. We continue to push for
the leveraging of our diverse and abundant resources
through beneficiation and value addition. We therefore
expect that the proposals in the sustainable development
goals, which complement those elements of our national
aspirations, will be endorsed and integrated into the
post-2015 development agenda framework.
Social justice, political stability and sustainable
development in African countries can best be achieved
through genuine and committed support for the
ownership of means of production that favour the poor,
who are in the majority. In Zimbabwe, my Government
has gone a long way in laying the foundation for
sustained food production through our land reform
programme. The majority of the rural people have been
empowered to contribute to household and national
food security. The possession and exploitation of land
has also turned them into masters of their own destiny,
thus giving true meaning to our national independence
and unquestioned sovereignty.
Because Zimbabwe has thus been preoccupied with
the empowerment of its people economically, it has
become a victim of the evil machinations of Western
countries, namely, the United States and States members
of the European Union, which continue to apply
unilateral and illegal sanctions as a foreign-policy tool
to achieve short-term political objectives, particularly
regime change. Regime change is a diabolical and
illegal policy of interference in the domestic affairs of
my country, and no good can come from undermining
our economy or depriving our citizens of the necessities
of life. Why, I ask, should Zimbabweans continue to
suffer under the American and European yoke of
unjustified and unwarranted illegal sanctions? Those
evil sanctions violate the fundamental principles of the
Charter of the United Nations and should be condemned
by the international community. We once again call for
their immediate and unconditional removal.
We are a peaceful and peace-loving nation, ready to
engage in constructive dialogue for mutually beneficial
relations. We call on those who continue to harbour
ill will against us to cast away their hegemony-driven
hostility, as we appeal to them to review their hard-
line and cruel positions and open a new chapter in their
relations with us based on mutual respect and friendly
cooperation.
To support the implementation of the post-2015
development agenda, we call for an expeditious reform
of the Bretton Woods institutions, particularly their
governance structures. It is high time that we addressed
the democratic deficit in those institutions and improved
their legitimacy. Those reforms must reflect current
realities and ensure the full voice and participation of
developing countries in the decision-making and norm-
setting activities.
Zimbabwe firmly believes that the United Nations
should promote dialogue to achieve peace, the rule of
law and common understanding among States. The
peace, security, stability and welfare of Africa and our
subregion is vital for us. In Africa, the African Union is
working tirelessly to push for peace in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, the Central African
Republic and Somalia. The international community
must remain intensively engaged and support Africa
in the maintenance of peace and stability, thereby
enhancing its peacekeeping-capacity needs through
training and logistical and financial support. Africa also
remains seized of the issue of Western Sahara, the last
colonial vestige in Africa. The United Nations should
not shake off its responsibility to ensure the realization
of self-determination by the people of Western Sahara.
We continue to witness the suffering and persecution
of the people of Palestine at the hands of Israel. We have
witnessed the callous murder of women and children in
shelters, where they seek refuge from Israel’s bombs.
We have witnessed the brutal and random destruction
of infrastructure in the Gaza Strip. While those heinous
acts were being perpetrated by Israel, the so-called
civilized world maintained a deafening silence. And we
ask, why?
Lasting peace in the Middle East can be achieved
only through a two-State solution based on the 1967
borders. Any other manoeuvres to change demographic
realities through settlements or the use of force will
only prolong the suffering of the Palestinians.
In conclusion, as we move forward, it is important
to muster the necessary political will to create a
development-oriented international environment that
facilitates the eradication of poverty and enhances
the sound management of our natural resources for
economic and social development, under a renewed and
real global partnership.