President of UN General Assembly visits Namibia

The President of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Dennis Francis visited Namibia from 18 to 21 June 2024 in preparation for the upcoming UN Summit of the Future in September. 

Namibia and Germany have been tasked by the UN to be co-facilitators for the upcoming Summit of the Future (SOTF) which aims to accelerate progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

. These 17 goals are supposed to be reached by 2030, but many nations are lagging. Climate change among others is negatively impacting progress with SDGs in many developing countries, especially in Africa.   

“The Summit of the Future is part of a continuum of efforts to deliver faster and smarter on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on climate change, which remains our best answer to the myriad effects of the climate crisis, “said Francis in Windhoek.  

Every year in September, heads of state gather at the UN headquarters to open the new session of the general assembly and elect a president for the whole year. Francis, who hails from Trinidad, was elected to preside over the current 78th session and the daily sittings.  

Several years ago, Namibia's former minister of foreign affairs, Theo-Ben Gurirab was elected as UNGA president for one year for the 54th session. In remembrance of the now late Gurirab and his legacy regarding international relations, Francis was given the honour to speak at the annual Theo-Ben-Gurirab memorial lecture in Windhoek. 

Francis visited a housing project for low-income earners and paid a visit to an early childhood development centre managed by the City of Windhoek. He also paid a courtesy call on President Nangolo Mbumba and rendered a speech during a session in Namibia`s National Assembly. 

Brigitte Weidlich