All Must Come Together for Unity of Purpose for Peace and Prosperity, Says Deputy PM at UN General Assembly

Addis Ababa, September 23/2023 (ENA) Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonen, in his statement to the UN General Assembly today, has called on the international community to realize that humanity is at a critical juncture where all must come together for a unity of purpose for peace and prosperity.

The deputy premier  stressed the need to ask for having the necessary political will to choose the global partnership over geopolitical competition at a time when the world is faced with a multitude of challenges in such times.

He further emphasized the need for cooperation in mitigating climate change, de-escalating nuclear weapons-related tensions, and working on reforms in the UN and international financial institutions for the sake of the wellbeing of humanity.

Speaking on the Sustainable Development Goals, Demeke said the progress towards achieving them is off track, pushing the objective of eliminating extreme poverty by 2030 even further behind.

The deputy premier, who recounted Ethiopia’s measures to align its 10-year Development Plan with the SDGs, has called for a renewed global partnership and firm political commitment to realize the objectives.

In his remarks about climate adaptation and mitigation efforts, Demeke noted the need for support for Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative.

He also emphasized the need for institutional reform in the United Nations in general and the Security Council in particular. 

Reforming the Security Council is not a choice, but an absolute necessity which requires the politically and morally justified allocation of permanent seats to Africa.

 

Emphasizing Ethiopia’s commitment to peace, the deputy prime minister mentioned the Pretoria Peace Agreement. 

According to him, the agreement is a practical embodiment of “African Solutions to African Problems.”

In connection with  regional peace and integration, Demeke called for coordinated efforts for peace initiatives in Sudan. 

As part of the demonstration to Ethiopia's commitment to expedite regional integration, he mentioned the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam as a demonstration of the legitimate development aspirations of Ethiopians and the region at large.

Furthermore, Demeke pointed out the crucial role international financial institutions are expected to play in augmenting the efforts of developing countries to take debt relief measures and provide development finance. 

The international financial architecture should be reformed with special considerations for Africa’s needs and priorities, he underlined.

The general debate of the seventy-eighth session of the General Assembly will continue up to  Tuesday, 26 September 2023.