Nearly 200 world leaders, diplomats and international representatives will descend upon New York City this week for the UN General Assembly. Here they’ll discuss a range of world issues including Syria, climate change, nuclear disarmament and more, all set to the theme of “The Post-2015 Development Agenda: Setting the Stage.”
The General Assembly is the UN’s largest committee in which all 193 member states have equal representation. It is defined on the official website as the “main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the United Nations.”
It meets annually to address a set number of issues and current crises and is notable for the two-week speech session in which world leaders are given the podium to talk with no time constraints.
President of the 68th session – UN ambassador of Antigua and Barbuda John Ashe – opened the assembly with a speech that introduced the themes of the year and the issues to be focused on, including human rights, the rule of law and “how to work towards and ensure stable and peaceful societies … ensuring accessible institutions of justice [and] reducing violence.”
The Assembly is set to the backdrop of the eight Millennium Development Goals (covering poverty, women’s rights, the environment, child mortality, primary education, HIV/AIDS, development and maternal health) which were set in 2000 with the goal to achieve them by the end of 2015. Ashe called this year’s Assembly “pivotal” as member states work in the face of the looming deadline. The goals will be discussed in three “high-level” talks and three thematic debates in order for leaders to offer ideas on how to achieve them and define them post-2015.
“The intent is not to have a debate for debate’s sake … but to look at how these elements can contribute to a post-2015 agenda,” Ambassador Ashe said in a press conference prior to the Assembly’s opening.
Watch out for the speeches set to begin next Tuesday: the world will definitely be watching Iran’s new president, Hasan Rouhani, as he makes his international debut just hours after Obama is set to address the Assembly.
You can find the full schedule of meetings and talks here.
Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
