Mr. President of the Seventy-Ninth Session of the United Nations General Assembly,
Your Excellencies Heads of State and Government, and Heads of Delegations,
Mr. Secretary-General of the United Nations,
Distinguished Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen:
On behalf of and representing His Excellency Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, President of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, let my first words be to congratulate His Excellency Mr. Philemon Yang on his unanimous election as President of this Seventy-Ninth Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, as well as the members of the Bureau. We guarantee you the full support and cooperation of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea throughout the duration of your presidency.
We also congratulate His Excellency Mr. Dennis Francis, the outgoing President, whose tenure was marked by the adoption of very important resolutions reflecting his outstanding leadership and the dynamism he brought to his presidency.
Mr. President,
As the theme of this Seventy-Ninth Session of the General Assembly so aptly states: *"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."*—this theme reflects the current global context, which encompasses enormous challenges such as armed conflicts, the proliferation of armed groups, terrorism, crises caused by climate change, organised criminal gangs, the prospect of new health emergencies, discrimination, and food insecurity as a result of conflicts that either cause or risk causing famine in various countries.
Indeed, this global landscape compels us all to give greater priority to multilateralism and international cooperation, both essential to confronting the challenges currently facing humanity. It also calls for the promotion of sustained economic growth and sustainable development, in accordance with relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and recent United Nations conferences.
Equatorial Guinea remains unwavering in its position regarding the need to prioritise peacemaking and the preservation of global peace through preventive diplomacy, negotiation, and inclusive dialogue to end conflicts currently afflicting many countries and regions.
We call upon countries involved in these ongoing conflicts, and upon all governments directly or indirectly entangled in them—whether for geostrategic, economic, neocolonial, or other reasons—to prioritise dialogue and realistic, pragmatic negotiations to resolve them.
The proliferation of so many conflicts across all regions of the world is the clearest evidence of the obsolescence, ineffectiveness, and incapacity of the United Nations Security Council. What we currently witness in this body are struggles over geostrategic interests that increasingly hinder consensus, thereby preventing effective conflict resolution and failing to alleviate the suffering of affected populations and the loss of innocent lives.
This justifies the urgent need to reform the United Nations Security Council and end its obsolete structure, established in 1945 and still in place today, which has made Africa the principal victim of a grave historical injustice and a failure to uphold international law. Africa remains the only continent without permanent representation on the Security Council.
Africa, through the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration, has for over 20 years called for a correction to this injustice: namely, the allocation to Africa of two permanent seats with all the prerogatives and rights accorded to members in that category, and five additional non-permanent seats on the Security Council.
We hope that ongoing discussions between the permanent members and the Committee of Ten (C10) of the African Union will yield satisfactory outcomes for all stakeholders, enabling the Security Council to promote a more just, peaceful, equitable, and prosperous world for all.
**Mr. President,**
Equatorial Guinea is deeply concerned about the worsening situation in the Sahel, which has severe implications for the development of those countries and directly or indirectly affects the wider subregion.
This situation is the result of interference, pressure, and blockades imposed on countries of the Global South by certain states whose sole aim appears to be the destabilisation and obstruction of African nations’ efforts to achieve prosperity for their peoples.
No country is free from internal challenges. However, some countries insist on acting as judges and arbiters, intervening and lecturing others despite the principle of sovereign equality—interfering manifestly in the internal affairs of other states.
All nations of the world, as sovereign entities, have the right to determine with whom they establish relations and to sign bilateral agreements that benefit their governments and peoples.
**Mr. President,**
We fail to understand why the embargo against Cuba has still not been fully lifted, nor why the economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed on that country decades ago continues. Equatorial Guinea calls for the immediate lifting of the embargo against Cuba and the removal of Cuba from the so-called list of states allegedly sponsoring terrorism.
Lifting this embargo is more necessary than ever, particularly as we have just adopted by consensus the Pact for the Future, which promotes the idea of leaving no country behind.
It is abundantly clear that African economies have the potential to become significant players in global supply chains, leveraging their vast reserves of raw materials vital to high-tech sectors, as well as their growing consumer markets.
For this reason, Africa deserves priority consideration in development support and financing initiatives. A decisive implementation of sustainable development financing commitments is needed to realise the goals of the UN 2030 Agenda and the African Union’s Agenda 2063—leaving no one behind.
Equatorial Guinea is committed to the promotion and protection of human rights as a global concern. This includes the rights of children, the elimination of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related forms of intolerance, the rights of persons with disabilities, and the rights to food, housing, and to exploit and commercialise a country’s natural resources to meet the needs of its population.
In this context, humanitarian rights must also be highlighted. Their systematic violation in ongoing armed conflicts deprives affected populations of essential humanitarian aid, including food and medical care.
Equatorial Guinea expresses its deep concern over the crisis affecting Haiti and considers it necessary to carry out a thorough analysis of the chronic crisis that has plagued the country. We propose the convening of a United Nations International Conference on Haiti to identify a sustainable solution.
I conclude my address by reiterating our congratulations to our brother, His Excellency Mr. Philemon Yang, and expressing our wish for great success during his presidency of the 79th General Assembly. Equatorial Guinea assures him of its full support.
Thank you very much.