It is indeed a pleasure for me today to sincerely thank, first of all. the American authorities for the warm welcome extended to us every time we are here in New York to participate in this major annual gathering of the international community. Next. I would like to warmly congratulate Mr. Dennis Francis on being elected to preside over the General Assembly at its seventy-eighth session. I am even happier to do so as it is a representative of the group of small island developing States — my country is one of them — who has assumed that important responsibility. There is no doubt that his professional qualities and experience, together with his special understanding of the development challenges that are part and parcel of insularity, will ensure the success of the work of the current session. I also take this opportunity to pay a much-deserved tribute to his predecessor. Mr. Csaba Korosi. for the effective manner in which he discharged his duty on behalf of us all. Lastly, on behalf of my country and the African Union. I would like to sincerely thank Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for his ongoing commitment and that of all of his teams in the service of our common institution for the benefit of us all.
As Chairperson of the African Union. I would like to convey today before the Assembly the voice of all African States, which continue to believe in fairer and more effective multilateralism, because it is more inclusive and therefore can help bring about the profound changes that are so sought after to ensure a better life on the continent and throughout the world. We firmly believe that wish will be realized via the in-depth reform of the United Nations system. Africa, where 3.8 billion people will live by the end of the century, intends to play a crucial role in attaining the Sustainable Development Goals, and therefore has the right to participate in global decision-making bodies and. among other things, to be a permanent member of the Security Council, enjoying its rights, in line with the Ezulwini Consensus.
It is a matter of equity. The reform of the United Nations, for which Africa has been clamouring, is also a question of effectiveness. It is a matter of legitimacy, and therefore the effectiveness of multilateralism. I also take this opportunity, on behalf of Africa, to reiterate our sincere gratitude to the members of the Group of 20 (G20). which just welcomed the African Union, over which I have the honour to preside, into that Group in 2023. That diplomatic victory for Africa and for the G20. through India, where that historic decision was enacted, gives us hope, in particular at a time when coordinated action is needed to extricate our countries from their socioeconomic crisis.
The theme of the seventy-eighth session of the General Assembly. “Rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity: accelerating action on the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals towards peace, prosperity, progress and sustainability for all”, is very timely. The African continent faces several challenges, and there is a danger that those challenges could jeopardize its future. And I believe that the trust and the solidarity highlighted this year will provide us with the right solutions for our concerns.
Africa faces challenges related to food security, which are becoming increasingly common on the continent despite the fact that the continent has vast stocks of arable land and an abundance of skilled and competent workers. Yet food insecurity continues to affect millions of people. The effects of climate change and the numerous conflicts on the continent compound the situation, as does the Russian-Ukrainian war. which led to the disruption of supplies of grain and fertilizer and unprecedented inflation. Members will agree that it is inconceivable that, with all its arable land, the continent remains a major importer of agricultural products, contributing to a significant deficit in its trade balance. Therefore, as we speak of solidarity, it is high time for the partnerships among African Governments, development organizations and foreign and local private sectors to be strengthened in order to address those challenges effectively and sustainably. It is also high time for our partners to support us in the implementation of ambitious reforms, including the transfer of expertise and technologies, in order to help those countries most affected promote agricultural development and. more specifically, to produce, transform and store their products locally in order to give them added value and thereby combat shortages and famine.
We must also step up the fight against the effects of climate change. We are all experiencing it — our planet is constantly facing various climatic hazards, in particular cyclones, floods, rising sea levels and drought, to name but a few. Such increasingly frequent disasters of course have devastating impacts on economies, social infrastructure, agriculture and populations, particularly the most vulnerable, and lead to health crises that accentuate the vulnerability of our continent.
I also take this opportunity to renew our heartfelt condolences and our solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Morocco and Libya, whose countries just suffered enormous human and material losses as a result of natural disasters. I also have in mind the many countries in Europe. Asia and America that are suffering head-on the devastating consequences of forest fires, floods and storms. In addition to the numerous human losses, let us emphasize that the damage caused by natural disasters is enormous and entail reconstruction and recovery costs that are not always within the reach of the States affected. I therefore call on the international community to favour common, structured and better adapted approaches — especially in the context of financing — to respond to those large-scale disasters so that we can provide our populations with the necessary support to alleviate their hardships.
Above all. I call for the effective implementation of the recommendations linked to the protection and preservation of the environment, as well as the concretization of the commitments made in favour of adaptation and mitigation. The reduction in greenhouse-gas emissions and the funding promised to combat climate change must be translated into concrete actions if we indeed wish to live in a safer and more prosperous world. I therefore call for support for the Moroni Declaration for Ocean and Climate Action in Africa, signed in June, and the African leaders’ Nairobi Declaration on Green Growth and Climate Finance Solutions, of last September, so that our countries can defend, with one voice, their common interests in favour of sustainable development, particularly at the twenty-eighth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, to be held in Dubai. We wish the Conference every success. Finally. I would like to launch an appeal for strengthening the capacities of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme through more substantial support for the implementation of the New Urban Agenda. That will enable the agency to better support our African cities, which are brimming with potential but have become very vulnerable to climate change.
I cannot talk about the challenges faced by the African continent without focusing on the complex and worrisome political and security situation that prevails there, particularly in the Sahel. As we all know, the Sahel region of Africa has been severely affected by insecurity and terrorism since 2010. with terrorist groups intensifying their attacks against security forces, civilians and infrastructure. It is therefore urgent that the international community strengthen its efforts to support us in stabilizing the region, given the knowledge that, in the global village in which we live, crises are easily imported and spread, with consequences for economies and inter- and intra-State investments in particular. Certainly, it is primarily up to Africans to implement economic and social development plans in the framework of Agenda 2063 of the African Union in order to fight against poverty and youth unemployment, and above all to prevent our young people from falling hostage to extremism in all its forms. However, it is also the duty of the international community to support
Africa in that process, because our actions must be pooled to have a chance of being effective.
In addition to terrorism. Africa also faces the resurgence of unconstitutional changes that undermine democracy, peace and security, stability and socioeconomic development. In that connection, the African Union has taken sanctions measures against those who commit terrorist acts and demands the rapid return to constitutional order in the countries concerned. I solemnly recall that there can be no political life worthy of that name without respect for electoral deadlines and the legitimate institutional mechanisms that underpin the democratic life of our countries.
Africa, although under pressure, is fighting for regional integration in order to emerge from its economic crisis. The economic shocks suffered by our countries, in particular due to inflation and logistical and food crises, have seriously affected our growth potential, as well as the daily lives of our populations and the stability of our States. Against that backdrop, the African Continental Free Trade Area — our large continental common market — has been implemented since 2021 in the hope of revitalizing Africa’s growth and gross domestic product. With that essential tool, the acceleration of which is my mission during my mandate as President of the African Union, the continent gives itself the means to create leverage effects that will allow it to release the wealth necessary to better cope with its population growth. The African Continental Free Trade Area will in fact contribute to the realization of our common ambition to move towards the industrialization of the continent, because Africa must stop being a simple supplier of raw materials. While making it possible to strengthen our secondary and tertiary sectors and to create employment, the African Continental Free Trade Area will also stimulate the transfer of technologies and promote foreign investment, as it will give other continents immediate access to a market of more than 1 billion people.
Allow me to reiterate our request for support in strengthening the strategic partnership between Africa and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) — or indeed its institutionalization — and the establishment of a joint African Union-CELAC commission. That partnership will not only strengthen South-South cooperation in the mutual interests of our States, but it will also better capitalize on the partnership with our friends in the North.
Like the rest of the world. African countries need peace and security now more than ever in order to be able to enjoy better living conditions. Peace and development will also require the settlement of political and territorial issues linked to the sovereignty of States and the dignity of nations. It was those concerns that prompted some of my African counterparts and myself to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Vladimir Putin as part of an African peace mission last June to Kyiv and Saint Petersburg, respectively. We are therefore ready to support all other initiatives aimed at helping to put an end to the war. which is having a negative impact on our ambitions to promote the well-being of our people.
I also reiterate — again, with a view to preserving peace and stability and on behalf of the African Union — the urgent need to reach a just and equitable solution to the question of Palestine, a solution that enshrines the right of the Palestinian people to a sovereign State, living in perfect harmony and security alongside the State of Israel.
As Chairperson of the African Union and President of the Union of the Comoros. I would also like to solemnly reiterate the Comorian nature of the island of Mayotte and to recall that, in order to make progress on handling the issue, we have chosen to engage in a dialogue with the French side with a view to resolving that unpleasant dispute in the interest of both our countries.
I would like to emphasize my deep desire, which is also that of the Comorian Government, to honour the institutions and democratic life of the Comoros by organizing the next presidential and gubernatorial elections in 2024 in a free, transparent and democratic manner.
I would also like to point out that, as a result of the national reconciliation policy that I have been pursuing since 2000. the Union of the Comoros has been able to put an end to the cycle of political instability that had characterized Comorian political life since independence in 1975. That policy of reconciliation, supported by the African Union, the United Nations and all our partners, has brought stability to the country, and it is our duty to consolidate and entrench it.
Since 2002. the date of 26 May has become a symbolic reference point for the transition of power in the Comoros, as it marks the transfer of power following free and transparent presidential elections.
It is out of that constant concern to preserve peace, stability and democracy in the Union of the Comoros that I am once again asking for members’ support and assistance in ensuring that the forthcoming presidential and gubernatorial elections, scheduled for December and January, will be held in very favourable conditions.
In conclusion. I remain confident that 26 May 2024 will once again commemorate the political maturity of the Comorian people, and that the inauguration ceremony of the next President of the Union of the Comoros will symbolize the anchoring and strength of Comorian democracy.