Malawi

I am delighted to address the sixty-fifth session of the General Assembly as Chairman of the African Union. I offer my personal congratulations and those of the African Union to you, Sir, on your election as President of the United Nations General Assembly at its sixty-fifth session. I assure you, Sir, of Africa’s support in your work. I pay tribute to His Excellency Mr. Ali Abdussalam Treki, President of the General Assembly at its sixty-fourth session for his leadership during his tenure of office. I also commend our Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-moon, for his exemplary leadership of our Organization and the excellent manner in which he continues to discharge his responsibilities. Africa is particularly grateful for his continued support of Africa’s development agenda. I am happy to say that Africa welcomes the theme for the sixty-fifth session of the General Assembly that reaffirms the role of the United Nations in global governance. African leaders believe that the United Nations, with its universal membership, is well placed to build political consensus for global governance. They hold the view that the United Nations has the potential to bring about solutions to common governance problems that our global village continues to encounter, such as managing diversity and combating terrorism and conflict. I believe that now, more than ever before, the United Nations needs to strengthen its institutions to enable it to promote peace and stability and facilitate balanced growth and prosperity between developed and developing countries. Africa also wishes to remind the United Nations not to lose sight of its commitment to fight poverty. Poverty reduction must remain the central focus of the United Nations. 10-54827 16 As we reflect on this year’s theme, the central role of the United Nations in global governance, I am fully aware that the Africa the world hears about is that of incessant calamities and natural disasters. International media report on the Africa of extreme poverty, widespread endemic diseases and human suffering. They constantly portray the Africa of civil wars, genocide, terrorism and piracy. They glorify the Africa of underdevelopment and hopelessness. But in their reports we do not hear about the success stories of a number of African Governments. We do not hear about the successes in participatory democracy and good governance. We do not hear about the peaceful multiparty general elections. We do not hear about the high rates of macroeconomic growth in some African countries. We do not hear about the successes in food security in some of them. That is why I now want to present another Africa to the General Assembly. It is the Africa of new hopes and new possibilities, the Africa of industrial, mineral, and agro-processing opportunities, the Africa with new job creation prospects, and the Africa that can produce enough food for all. Yes, this is the Africa I want the Assembly to know. This is the Africa of the new beginning. I want the world to know that we African leaders have a clear vision of a new Africa free of hunger, disease and poverty. We have the vision of a new Africa that is prosperous and full of hope. We have the vision of African nations determined to contribute more to global economic prosperity, peace and stability. I want to inform the world that the leaders of the African Union have decided to unlock Africa’s combined huge natural resources and human capital to establish new industries to create new wealth for our people. That is why this year I have chosen to address the Assembly on the subject of “Africa of the new beginning”. I want the United Nations to share our belief that Africa is not a poor continent; rather, it is its people that are poor. This year, I have come to inform this world body that Africa has decided to shift from Afro-pessimism to Afro-optimism. We are going to make Africa better. Now, turning to global issues, I want to say that the world today faces the challenge of producing enough food to feed the over nine billion people living on this earth, and it must do this against the backdrop of rising food prices, global warming, climate change and environmental degradation. I am pleased to inform this world body that African leaders fully recognize these problems and have unanimously agreed to institute new measures to ensure that five years from now, Africa will be able to produce enough food to feed its people. They have also decided that, five years from now, no child in Africa will die of hunger or malnutrition. In order to meet these targets, the African Union decided to turn the continent into an African food basket whose main aim is to encourage allocation of increased budgetary resources and private sector investment to agriculture and food production. For that to happen, African leaders have agreed to redesign their policy efforts to focus on three priority areas, namely, agriculture and food security, transport and energy development, and climate change. It is envisaged that effective transport structures and adequate energy supply will enhance agricultural production and food processing as well as improve human mobility and the marketing of food and agricultural products from surplus countries to deficit countries across the African continent. The African food basket concept envisages full cooperation between Africa and Governments of the Group of Eight. The United Nations, the Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Bank, the European Union and other multilateral institutions will also cooperate in this effort. I now want to briefly raise some issues of major concern to Africa: the adverse effects of climate change, fragile peace and security, terrorism and piracy, maternal, infant and child mortality, and slow reform of the United Nations. African leaders recognize that climate change and environmental degradation are among the most serious global challenges that affect Africa negatively. All countries in the world share the adverse effects of climate change. All countries in the world are, to varying degrees, experiencing the adverse impacts of climate change such as severe cyclones, hurricanes, rising sea levels and water salinization, prolonged severe droughts and overall global warming. There is enough evidence to show that most countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America are the least able and equipped to cope with those challenges. 17 10-54827 The global nature of climate change therefore calls for an effective, immediate and appropriate international response. We need to act, and act now. The international community has acknowledged that climate change is a real threat to humanity, and yet the performance of the major players at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen disappointed Africa and developing nations elsewhere by their intransigency. The leaders of Africa therefore would like to see the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol be urgently implemented as essential interventions to address climate change. Those conventions spell out in detail what is to be done to mitigate climate change. On behalf of Africa, I call for immediate implementation of those decisions in order to avert impending human catastrophe. I am glad to note that maternal, infant and child health and welfare are among the underlying issues of the theme of the General Assembly this year. That calls for concerted action for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. I am pleased to say that the African Union has reaffirmed its commitments to the reduction of maternal, infant and child mortality in Africa. African Governments have undertaken to launch the four-year Campaign for Accelerated Reduction of Maternal Mortality in Africa. We also agreed to call on the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria to create a new window to fund maternal, newborn and child health. Let me, therefore, take advantage of the General Assembly to appeal on behalf of Africa to our development partners and donors to replenish the Global Fund during next month’s meeting and to increase resources for maternal, newborn and child health. Another global governance issue of major concern to Africa is the lack of movement on international trade under the Doha Round multilateral trade negotiations. Members of the United Nations agree that trade is a conduit to development in every country. Therefore we in Africa appeal for an urgent conclusion of the Doha Round, for we believe that that is essential to revive global trade and to aid in global economic recovery. Any outcome of the Doha Round negotiations must lead to clear benefits for farmers, producers, exporters and consumers in developing countries, including in Africa. Nations of the world must redouble efforts to resolve all impediments to the successful outcome of the trade negotiations. The advancement of women and gender equality continues to be the cornerstone of the Africa of the new beginning. Women have played and continue to play a decisive role in the global, continental and national agendas for democracy, transition and development. I am happy to inform the General Assembly that African Governments have intensified the fight against gender- based violence, sexual abuse, discrimination and trafficking in women and girls. The ultimate objective is to have more coherent and meaningful interventions that will adequately increase the number of women in high decision-making positions in the advancement of growth and development. On peace and security, I wish to underscore that the African Union considers that democracy, good governance and development cannot be sustainable without peace and security. African countries have made significant progress in ensuring that peace and security prevail on the African continent. Several countries have conducted peaceful elections, and there is growing tolerance and accommodation between the ruling and opposition parties in many countries. That is encouraging. However, Africa has of late witnessed the re- emergence of coups d’état and other unconstitutional changes of government. The African Union has taken a strong collective decision that those negative trends will not be allowed to continue. The African Union is also gravely concerned that Somalia has had no stable or functioning Government for a long time. That continuing volatile situation is being compounded by increasing organized piracy in the Indian Ocean. That negatively affects not only Somalia and her immediate neighbours, but the entire African continent and the rest of the world. I believe the situation calls for a new approach and new intervention. More countries should be directly involved in seeking a lasting solution to the Somalia crisis. The situation in the Sudan presents a special challenge to the African Union and to the United Nations. Although some progress has been achieved towards the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, the African Union eagerly awaits the holding of the referendum in January 2011 and the post-referendum structure of relations in the Sudan. 10-54827 18 One of the most immediate options in the Sudan is to consolidate the prevailing peace and stability there. The African countries are concerned that while efforts to secure lasting peace in the Sudan are ongoing, the International Criminal Court seems to push for a pound of flesh by insisting on arresting President Omer Hassan Al-Bashir. There is general consensus in Africa that that would have a negative effect, polarizing the different positions of the stakeholders and thereby driving them away from a peaceful settlement. The African Union therefore strongly appeals to the General Assembly to amend Article 16 of the Rome Statute to enable it to assume the powers of the Security Council to defer the case against President Al-Bashir for one year to allow ongoing negotiations and dialogue to succeed. On behalf of the African Union, I wish to express appreciation for the contribution of the United Nations to the promotion of peace, security and stability in African countries. The United Nations has performed very well in many parts of Africa, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Sudan, Chad and West African countries. Those efforts in the search for solutions to the ongoing conflicts on the continent are highly commendable. The sanctions against some members of the African Union and the Non-Aligned Movement have caused great economic hardship, especially to the poor and more vulnerable people in those countries. The African Union feels that the ideological justifications, if there ever were any, have outlived their time. Sanctions are also inconsistent with the emerging dialogue for the reform of the United Nations. Sanctions are also inconsistent with the obligations of United Nations Member States to promote social progress and better standards of life, as promulgated in the Preamble to the Charter of the United Nations. The African Union therefore appeals for the immediate lifting of sanctions against the Republic of Zimbabwe and the Republic of Cuba. We believe that would enable ordinary poor Zimbabweans and Cubans to begin a life of new hope and new prospects. As to the development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, the African Union supports the position taken by the Non-Aligned Movement calling for justice and equal treatment for all nations concerned. With regard to the reforms of the United Nations and the Security Council, the African Union believes that for the Organization to be effective in fulfilling its mandate as an honest broker, the proposed reforms must be implemented in the spirit of equity and fairness. In this regard I would like to reiterate the African Union’s request for two permanent seats with full veto powers and five non-permanent seats. The African Union should also have the right to determine the selection of Africa’s representatives on the Council. Once implemented, that would enable Africa to effectively participate in the global governance that the United Nations is now propagating. In conclusion, I wish to reaffirm Africa’s strong belief that a reformed United Nations and specialized agencies are likely to play a more effective role in global governance and in a more equitable global trading and financial system. I believe that the United Nations in its new governance role should support the Africa of the new beginning. A strong Africa — industrially, economically and politically — is a better trading partner for the G8 countries and the rest of the world than a weaker one. I also believe that the Africa of the new beginning with its combined vast mineral, agricultural and human resources will provide the safety valve for a boiling international monetary and financial system. Think about these things.