Staff Reporter : The 76th session of the UN General Assembly will focus on six issues, including the elimination of global ‘vaccine inequality’. The general debate will continue from September 21 to September 28 in the session which started on September 14. A Bangladesh delegation led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will arrive in New York on Sunday (September 19) to attend the session. The Foreign Minister and the State Minister for Foreign Affairs are accompanying the Prime Minister.
In the context of Covid, the theme of this year’s general debate is “Building resilience through hope-to recover from COVID-19, rebuild sustainably, respond to the needs of the planet, respect the rights of people, and revitalize the United Nations”.Various high level meetings have been organized in this session.
First, a large part of this session will cover Covid-19 and subsequent sustainable recovery and reconstruction.
To get rid of Covid-19.
Second: Climate Change Response and Recovery One of the conditions for sustainable recovery after Covid is that climate change will be a priority in the forthcoming General Assembly. The world leaders are also expected to discuss in this year’s General Assembly session so that the world can get a definite action plan from COP-26. Meanwhile, a joint initiative of the UN Secretary General and the British Prime Minister is holding a meeting with the countries playing a role in climate change.
Third, the progress made in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals has largely been hampered by the Covid-19. World leaders will discuss how to overcome this loss and work together for sustainable construction. Based on each of the goals and objectives of the SDGs, the issue of Kovid’s subsequent recovery will therefore be a priority in this session.
Fourth: A meeting titled UN Food Systems Summit will be held in this year’s general session. The main goal of this meeting is to accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals by exploiting the interrelationships of the global food system with global challenges such as hunger, climate change, poverty and inequality.
Fifth: In the time of Kovid, we have noticed that intolerance, inequality, etc. have increased alarmingly in different parts of the world. Sustainable recovery is never possible with such divisions. So this issue will also be discussed in this session. As you know, in 2001, world leaders adopted the Durban Declaration on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the adoption of that declaration. In this context, the United Nations is organizing a high-level meeting. Sustainable recovery on the basis of equality, forgetting caste discrimination and racial segregation, is expected to be a priority at this high-level meeting.
Sixth, the issue of disarmament will be seriously discussed, and the President of the General Assembly is convening a high-level meeting on September 28, the International Day for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons, with the aim of taking international initiatives on nuclear disarmament and raising global awareness.
Importance for Bangladesh:
Each of the UN’s priority issues this time is equally important for Bangladesh. Bangladesh is expected to actively participate in all the events on these issues.
A) The Prime Minister will attend the High Level Meeting on Climate Change on 20 September 2021 at the invitation of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Secretary-General of the United Nations. As a CVF chair and a country facing the risk of climate change, it is of particular importance to Bangladesh. In this meeting, the Hon’ble Prime Minister will highlight the various initiatives taken by the Government of Bangladesh to address the challenges of climate change and call for concerted global initiatives to address the risks of climate change.
B) On the same day, on the occasion of the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Prime Minister is expected to plant trees on the premises of the UN Headquarters.
C) On 22 September 2021, the Prime Minister will address a high level meeting on ‘White House Global Covid-19 Summit: End the Epidemic and Build It Better’ organized by the United States.
D) On the same day, the Prime Minister is scheduled to participate in a high-level side event titled ‘Rohingya Crisis: Obligation for a Sustainable Solution’ organized by Bangladesh. The OIC, Asian and European countries have already responded to the event. In addition to Bangladesh, Gambia, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the European Union and the OIC are co-hosts of the event. We have entered the fifth year of the Rohingya problem but in five years not a single person has been sent to Myanmar. But the return of Rohingyas to Myanmar is the number one priority issue for us. This is the message we want to convey to the world through this side event. Bangladesh will call on the world to stand by us in resolving the Rohingya issue with sincerity and in the true sense of the word.
E) The Prime Minister will attend the high-level meeting of the UN Food Systems Summit on 23 September. This conference will be a unique occasion to highlight the significant achievements of Bangladesh in the food sector. By attending the meeting, the Prime Minister is expected to call on the world leadership to build strong partnerships between the various stakeholders in the areas of technical cooperation, agricultural research and development, sustainable production, food distribution and storage.
F) On the same day, the Prime Minister will address a high-level side-event entitled UN General Program: Work for Equality and Inclusion.
G) On 24th September, the Prime Minister will address the General Debate of the UN General Assembly on behalf of Bangladesh. As always, the Prime Minister will give a speech in Bengali. He will highlight Bangladesh’s unprecedented development progress, socio-economic achievements and success in the health sector. He will also discuss world peace, safe migration, the fair distribution of the coronavirus vaccine, patent liberalization for large-scale corona vaccine production, the Palestinian and forcibly displaced Myanmar civil crisis, and the establishment of climate justice.
H) Like every year, Bangladeshis living in the United States will host a reception in honor of the Prime Minister. The meeting will be held using a virtual platform in the wake of the Kovid epidemic. Besides, the Prime Minister is expected to attend a number of bilateral meetings as usual. He is expected to hold bilateral meetings with Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Salih, Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Barbados Prime Minister Mira Amr Motley, European Council President Charles Michael and other heads of state / government to discuss issues of mutual interest. He will also hold bilateral meetings with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
I) In addition, as always, the Prime Minister will attend a round table meeting hosted by the US business community. In this meeting, Bangladeshi businessmen will raise issues related to investment environment and opportunities in Bangladesh and US businessmen and investors will present their investment proposals to Bangladesh. This will create a connection between the businessmen of the two countries.
J) A number of ministerial level meetings will be held on the sidelines of this year’s general session. These include a high-level meeting on the Day for the Total
Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, a high-level meeting on the occasion of the Durban Declaration and the 20th anniversary of the program, and a ministerial meeting with the US Deputy Secretary of State. Besides, luncheon meeting of D-8 and SAARC will be held. The Minister of State for External Affairs and the Minister of State for External Affairs will participate in all these multilateral and bilateral meetings.
K) Bangladesh’s efforts in establishing a peaceful and humane world, leading a wide range of issues including migration, climate change, food security, ensuring quality education, peacekeeping operations, and Bangladesh’s success as an emerging economy are well known today. In continuation of this, the participation of a high level delegation led by the Hon’ble Prime Minister in this session of the UN General Assembly will further enhance Bangladesh’s resilience in the Multilateral Forum.
BP/SM
