BALI, Indonesia, 24 May — A United Nations forum on decolonization opening here today has cautioned that top priority must be given to overcoming the many challenges facing the world’s 17 remaining Non-Self-Governing Territories to avoid undoing much of the progress achieved towards sustainable development and self-determination.
Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ message for the opening of the 2023 Pacific Regional Seminar on Decolonization, in Bali, Indonesia, today:
The Special Committee on Decolonization will hold the 2023 Pacific Regional Seminar in Bali, Indonesia, from 24 to 26 May within the framework of the fourth International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism (2021-2030).
With only seven years left to implement a landmark 2015 agreement to reduce damage, losses and death from natural and man-made disasters by the 2030 target date, the General Assembly today reaffirmed its commitment to address disaster risk reduction and resilience-building with a renewed sense of urgency in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication.
Following its consideration of the zone of peace, trust and cooperation of Central Asia, the General Assembly today adopted four consensus resolutions — one calling for scaled-up efforts on the United Nations Decade of Action on Nutrition (2016-2025), one declaring 26 November as World Sustainable Transport Day, one recognizing the importance of community-based health services and one requesting continued cooperation on the legacy of the Chernobyl disaster.
Voicing solidarity and support to the Palestinian people, speakers today reiterated their calls for intensified efforts towards a just and lasting solution, as the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People held a high-level special meeting to commemorate the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Nakba.
For the United Nations to deliver on its mandate, Member States must pay on time, in full and without conditions, speakers stressed today, as the Fifth Committee (Administrative Budgetary) addressed the Organization’s financial situation before considering the Secretary-General’s request to allocate $391.2 million to the support account and $1.16 billion and $1.28 billion for two peacekeeping missions in Africa for the 2023/24 fiscal year.
The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today considered the Secretary-General’s request to allot nearly $294 million, $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion for three United Nations peacekeeping operations in Africa as the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) recommended respective reductions of nearly $1.7 million, $5.1 million and $3 million.
Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, to the Multi-stakeholder Hearing on Tuberculosis in preparation for the United Nations General Assembly high-level meeting on Tuberculosis, in New York today:
While the Secretariat has effectively used improved management tools to avert a liquidity crisis and avoid spending restrictions this year, a senior United Nations financial official warned delegates in the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today that the lagging monthly collection rates for the Organization’s 2023 regular budget require careful monitoring.
