Plenary

Taking consensus action today, the General Assembly adopted an oral decision paving the way for Member States to continue discussions on reforming the Security Council during its seventy-first session.

Taking consensus action on a range of draft resolutions today, the General Assembly, decided to convene a high-level meeting on antimicrobial resistance, proclaimed the period 2016-2025 as the Third Industrial Development Decade for Africa, and approved an agreement institutionalizing the relationship between the United Nations and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

While creating institutions to promote and protect human rights and ratifying conventions were important, the true test lay in actions, the General Assembly heard today as it concluded its two-day high-level thematic debate, titled “UN@70 – Human rights at the centre of the global agenda”.

The General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution that welcomed progress in Africa in conflict prevention and peacebuilding while pointing to ways to address the root causes of conflict and promote durable peace and sustainable development.

The General Assembly continued its fifth review of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, adopting a resolution on ways in which to redouble efforts to work swiftly, collectively and effectively in rooting out the scourge.

The General Assembly today elected Italy to the Security Council for a two-year term from 1 January 2017, with that country’s representative saying it would cede its place to Netherlands after one year.

In multiple rounds of voting, the General Assembly elected four new non-permanent members to the Security Council today, but was unable to fill a fifth seat after a highly-contested campaign.

Approving the appropriation of $7.86 billion for 15 peacekeeping operations for the 2016/2017 fiscal period, the General Assembly today adopted 25 resolutions and one decision contained in reports from its Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary).

The General Assembly, in a secret ballot vote held this afternoon, elected 18 members of the Economic and Social Council to hold three-year terms beginning 1 January 2017. 

By secret ballot, the General Assembly today elected by a margin of four votes Peter Thomson of Fiji as President of its seventy-first session, also selecting, in consecutive meetings, Bureaux members of its six Main Committees.