President Muhammadu Buhari, on Wednesday, delivered a speech at United Nations general assembly (UNGA77).
Speaking on climate change, the Russia-Ukraine war, and the
need for credible elections, Buhari called on world leaders to remain committed
towards ensuring sustainable development.
Below is the full speech.
Mr. President,
Heads of State and Government,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Distinguished delegates,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Mr. President,
On behalf of the Government and people of Nigeria, I
congratulate you on your well-deserved election as President of the 77th
Session of this August Assembly. I assure you of the full support and
cooperation of the Nigerian delegation during your tenure.
I commend your predecessor, H.E. Abdullah Shahid, for the
many remarkable achievements of the General Assembly under his leadership
during these challenging times.
May I also congratulate the Secretary-General, Mr.
Antonio Guterres on his ceaseless and untiring efforts to promote peace,
security and development, very much in line with his exalted role.
Mr. President, the first time I could have addressed
this August Assembly was in 1984, when I was the Military Head of State of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria. Thirty-one years later, I had the great privilege
to personally address the Assembly in 2015, as the democratically elected
President of my country. As I approach the end of my second and final four-year
term, I am reminded of how much has changed in Nigeria, in Africa, and in the
world, and yet, how some challenges remain.
We are now more severely tested by these enduring and new
global challenges, paramount among which are conflicts increasingly being
driven by non-state actors, proliferation of small arms and light weapons,
terrorism, violent extremism, malignant use of technology, climate change,
irregular migration, and disparities in opportunities for improved standards of
living.
Despite the challenging international environment, the United
Nations has proved that it can be strong when the will of its members is
harnessed for positive collective action. The guiding principles of this
extraordinary institution is the promotion of peace and security, development
and human rights. Latest in a chain of events challenging these principles is
the Ukraine conflict which has already created strains that are perhaps
unprecedented for a generation.
Such a conflict will have adverse consequences for us
all, hindering our capacity to work together to resolve conflicts elsewhere,
especially in Africa, the Middle-East and Asia. Indeed, the ongoing war in
Ukraine is making it more difficult to tackle the perennial issues that feature
each year in the deliberations of this Assembly, such as nuclear disarmament,
the right of the Rohingya refugees to return to their homes in Myanmar, and the
Palestinians’ legitimate aspirations for statehood and reduction of
inequalities within and amongst nations.
The danger of escalation of the war in Ukraine further
justifies Nigeria’s resolute calls for a nuclear-free world and a universal
Arms Trade Treaty, which are also necessary measures to prevent global human
disasters. In this regards we must find quick means to reach consensus on the
Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty with related commitments by nuclear weapon
states.
I remain firmly convinced that the challenges that have
come so sharply into focus in recent years and months emphasise the call by
Nigeria and many other Member-States for the reform of the Security Council and
other UN Agencies. We need more effective and representative structures to meet
today’s demands that have since outgrown a system designed for the very
different world that prevailed at its foundation in 1945. Change is long overdue.
Mr. President, this is the first meeting we are having
here in New York without the restrictions that characterised the last three
years. The COVID-19 pandemic ripped across national borders like a toxic
whirlwind, leaving in its wake a legacy of pain and loss.
Happily, we also witnessed an incredible level of
innovation and creativity from those who devised treatments and vaccines. These
laudable achievements were underpinned by partnerships and international
cooperation. We have also seen the bravery, care, and endurance of health
professionals at every corner of the globe.
I am happy to note that in Nigeria, our healthcare
agencies were able to form effective local management and engaged international
partnerships with multinational initiatives like COVAX and private groups like
the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. These efforts helped mitigate the impact
of the pandemic and we were mercifully spared the images of overwhelmed
hospitals, overworked healthcare personnel and high mortality which sadly we
saw elsewhere.
With COVID-19, we saw very clearly how states tried to
meet the challenge of a threat that could not be contained within national
borders. The results were mixed; but at its best, cooperation among
stakeholders was outstanding. It facilitated solutions that saved countless
lives and eased the huge burden of human suffering.
That same theme of unilateralism and the promotion of
national interest competing with the common cause in the face of an existential
threat has been our recurring experience in recent times. In every address I
have delivered to this august Assembly, I have dwelt on the issue of climate
change, especially as it fuels conflicts and complicates food security.
Climate change reduces opportunity and prosperity which,
in Africa, Latin America and some parts of Asia also contribute to
transnational organised crimes.
As part of Nigeria’s efforts at achieving our Global
Net-zero aspiration, the current Administration last year adopted a National
Climate Change Strategy that aims to deliver climate change mitigation in a
sustainable manner.
The measures we took at the national level also require
climate justice. Africa and other developing nations produce only a small
proportion of greenhouse gas emissions, compared to industrial economies. Yet,
we are the hardest hit by the consequences of climate change as we see in the
sustained droughts in Somalia and floods of unprecedented severity in Pakistan.
These and other climate-related occurrences are now sadly
becoming widely commonplace in the developing world. We are, in effect,
literally paying the price for policies that others pursue. This needs to
change.
At the COP26 in Glasgow last year, I did say that Nigeria
was not asking for permission to make the same mistakes that others have made
in creating the climate emergency.
Fortunately, we now know what we can do to mitigate the
effects of the climate crisis and the related energy challenge. As a first
step, we must all commit to releasing the financing and the technology to
create a stable and affordable framework for energy transition.
Development Financial Institutions must prioritise
de-risking energy projects to improve access of renewable projects to credit
facilities. There should be no countries “left behind” in this equation.
Rocketing energy costs worldwide are, in part, the
product of conflict and supply disruptions to Europe and the Americas. Yet, we
are all paying the price. It is, therefore, our expectation that this UNGA 77
and the upcoming COP27 will help galvanise the political will required to drive
action towards the fulfilment of the various existing climate change
initiatives.
Another feature of the last decade has been the growing
partnership between states and the increasingly influential non-state actors.
There was a time when the most important event at this Assembly was the speech
by the world’s most powerful leaders. Now a Tweet or Instagram post by an
influencer on social or environmental issues may have greater impact.
Technology offers us nearly limitless opportunities and
sometimes runs ahead of the imagination of regulators and legislators. At its
best, social media helps strengthen the foundations of our society and our
common values. At its worst, it is a corrosive digital version of the mob,
bristling with intolerance and division.
When I began my tenure as President in 2015, distinctions
were drawn between the experience of poorer countries and those apparently
better able to manage the avalanche of unfiltered information. Nigeria has had
many unsavoury experiences with hate speech and divisive disinformation. Increasingly,
we also see that many countries face the same challenge. Clearly, data also
know no borders.
In confronting these challenges, we must also come
together to defend freedom of speech, while upholding other values that we
cherish. We must continue to work for a common standard that balances rights
with responsibilities to keep the most vulnerable from harm and help strengthen
and enrich communities.
Efforts to protect communities from the scourge of
disinformation and misinformation must also be matched with efforts to reduce
inequalities and restore hope to our poorer and most vulnerable of our
communities as a means to stem the many socio-economic conflict drivers with
which we are faced.
In spite of our efforts, humanitarian crises will
continue to ravage some of our communities. Nigeria, therefore, implores our
global partners to do more to complement our endeavours.
Indeed, the multifaceted challenges facing most
developing countries have placed a debilitating chokehold on their fiscal
space. This equally calls for the need to address the burden of unsustainable
external debt by a global commitment to the expansion and extension of the Debt
Service Suspension Initiative to countries facing fiscal and liquidity
challenges as well as outright cancellation for countries facing the most
severe challenges.
Mr. President, Your Excellencies, Distinguished
Delegates,
Democracy is an idea that crosses time and borders.
Certainly, democracy does have its limitations. The wheels of democracy turn
slowly. It can demand compromises that dilute decisions. Sometimes, it bends
too much to special interests that exercise influence, not always for the
general good, in a manner disproportionate to their numbers. But it has been my
experience that a democratic culture provides a Government with the legitimacy
it needs to deliver positive change.
In Nigeria, not only have we worked to strengthen our
democracy, but we have supported it and promoted the Rule of Law in our
sub-region. In The Gambia, we helped guarantee the first democratic transition
since independence. In Guinea-Bissau we stood by the democratically elected
Government when it faced mutiny. And in the Republic of Chad, following the
tragic death of its President, the late Idris Deby Itno in the battle field, we
joined forces with its other neighbours and international partners to stabilise
the country and encourage the peaceful transition to democracy, a process which
is ongoing.
We believe in the sanctity of constitutional term limits
and we have steadfastly adhered to it in Nigeria. We have seen the corrosive
impact on values when leaders elsewhere seek to change the rules to stay on in
power. Indeed, we now are preparing for general elections in Nigeria next
February. At the 78th UNGA, there will be a new face at this podium speaking
for Nigeria.
Ours is a vast country strengthened by its diversity and
its common values of hard work, enduring faith and a sense of community. We
have invested heavily to strengthen our framework for free and fair elections.
I thank our partners for all the support that they have provided our election
institutions.
As President, I have set the goal that one of the
enduring legacies I would like to leave is to entrench a process of free, fair
and transparent and credible elections through which Nigerians elect leaders of
their choice.
Mr. President,
The multiple challenges that face us are truly
interconnected and urgent, and your choice of this Session’s theme, “A
watershed moment: Transformative solutions to interlocking challenges”, is apt.
In keeping with our obligations as Member States of this noble Organisation, we
all must do our utmost to work with you toward resolving them. In this regard,
I reiterate my Delegation’s full and resolute cooperation.
Let me convey my final reflection from this famous
podium. We live in extraordinary times with interdependent challenges but
enormous opportunities. The pace of change can seem bewildering, with sometimes
a palpable and unsettling sense of uncertainty about our future. But if my years
in public service have taught me anything, it is that we must keep faith with
those values that endure. These include, but are not limited to such values as
justice, honour, integrity, ceaseless endeavour, and partnership within and
between nations.
Our strongest moments have always been when we remain
true to the basic principles of tolerance, community, and abiding commitment to
peace and goodwill towards all.
I thank you all.
Watch full speech below
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