Plenary

Recalling that Member States committed to assisting the world’s 48 least developed countries with an overarching goal of enabling half of them to meet the criteria for graduation from that status by 2020, the General Assembly today adopted a consensus resolution reiterating that graduation not disrupt development progress already achieved.

With gaps in the world’s multilateral frameworks hindering the international community’s ability to comprehensively and equitably meet the most critical global challenges, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for improving the multilateral system’s coherence and efficiency today as the General Assembly convened a day-long informal thematic debate on the United Nations in global governance.

Amid calls for more unified development and conflict-prevention efforts, the General Assembly today adopted two resolutions focusing, respectively, on support for the African Union’s flagship development programme, and on the “untapped potential” of mediation in the peaceful settlement of disputes.

The General Assembly this afternoon elected Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations, as President of its sixty-sixth session.

Acting on the recommendation of the Security Council, the General Assembly this afternoon unanimously appointed Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for a second five-year term beginning 1 January 2012. In a draft resolution adopted by acclamation, the Assembly also expressed its appreciation for Mr. Ban’s effective and dedicated service during his first term. After taking the oath of office, Mr. Ban said the Assembly had given him a great honour that was “beyond expression”.

Five years after the creation of the Human Rights Council as the United Nations’ key forum for tackling entrenched human rights concerns around the world, the General Assembly today decided to maintain the 47-member body’s status as one of its subsidiary organs, concluding a year-long review of its work and functioning within the Organization, carried out in Geneva and New York.

Acting on the recommendation of its General Committee, the General Assembly today decided to include on the agenda of its current session an item on the “appointment of the Secretary-General of the United Nations”, paving the way for the 192-member body to take up that issue before the expiration of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s first term of office on 31 December.

Citing many examples of real progress around the world that testified to the soundness of the “people-first” approach embodied in the Millennium Development Goals, senior United Nations officials today said that, with the 2015 deadline for achieving those ambitious targets rapidly approaching, stakeholders must not be afraid to “think big” in shaping the final push, even as they planned strategies to alleviate the suffering of millions “who will need our attention come 2016 and beyond”.

Welcoming the progress made in the prevention, management and resolution of conflict and in post-conflict peacebuilding in a number of African countries, the General Assembly today called for intensified, better coordinated efforts between national Governments, the African Union, subregional organizations, the United Nations system and partners “with a view to achieving further progress towards the goal of a conflict-free Africa”.

Francoise Barré-Sinoussi, 2008 Nobel Laureate in Medicine for helping to discover the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), led strong calls at the United Nations today for integrating the global response to AIDS into broader health agendas, and for taking advantage of every opportunity to reach those living with HIV or at risk of infection whenever and wherever they interacted with local health-care delivery systems.