A/70/PV.34 General Assembly

Let me start with a few remarks. The year 2015 has been a momentous year for the African continent and for the international community. We have witnessed the adoption of the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and its first 10-year Implementation Plan, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on financing for development, and the universal and global 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1), with the new Sustainable Development Goals. A new upcoming climate change regime is expected to add even more significance, ambition and feasibility to all these agreements. Together, those agendas bring global, continental, regional and national plans into a single holistic and coherent framework for advancing and following up on *1531804* 15-31804 (E) Africa’s development. It is important to underscore the nexus of those agendas and the need for synergy and complementarity in their implementation. Today’s joint debate is an opportunity to reflect on our collective efforts to partner with Africa and support the continent in its efforts to tackle challenges and maximize opportunities in the areas of peace and security, human rights and sustainable development. The debate is also a clear demonstration of the special place accorded to Africa in the work of the General Assembly. Over recent years, the African continent has made significant strides in human development, political governance, and peace and security. And today it offers the world’s most promising growth potential. But more than 42 per cent of sub-Saharan Africans still live below the poverty line, and with a number of African countries continuing to experience conflict and instability, significant challenges remain on the African continent. In relation to malaria, commendable efforts, in particular by the African Leaders Malaria Alliance, have helped to reduce malaria incidence in Africa by more than 34 per cent between 2000 and 2013. On the other hand, in 2015 alone it is estimated that more than 340,000 Africans will die needlessly from that preventable disease. I therefore encourage the General Assembly, the United Nations system and other stakeholders to continue to work together to combat that disease. Many of the challenges relating to malaria are, of course, linked to broader development challenges on the continent. In that sense it is appropriate that today we also consider progress in implementing the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). NEPAD represents a framework for pan-African socioeconomic development and is an essential blueprint for ensuring a positive socioeconomic transformation in Africa, including by combating poverty in all its forms. Its importance in supporting the implementation of both the 2030 Agenda and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda has been recognized in both documents. The latest report of the Secretary-General on NEPAD (A/70/175) highlights various actions being taken by African countries towards the achievement of the objectives of the Partnership. From institutional development projects to agriculture and food security, commitment to health and primary education, and human capital development, African States are demonstrating their resolve to fully implement this whole development blueprint. The support of international partners for NEPAD and its flagship programmes such as the African Peer Review Mechanism cannot be overstated and is integral to the success of the Partnership. The United Nations plays a particularly crucial role, and I should like to commend the ongoing efforts of the United Nations system, especially the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa under the leadership of Mr. Maged Abdelaziz, to support the full implementation of NEPAD, Agenda 2063, and other continental programmes. The Secretary-General’s recent report also reaffirms the important linkages between socioeconomic development and peace and security in Africa, and it outlines a number of recommendations on which we should all reflect in order to maintain political momentum around NEPAD. As we begin a new chapter in international cooperation, let us work together to fight malaria and complete the Millennium Development Goals aimed at protecting human rights and to lay the foundations for peace, prosperity and sustainable development across the African continent. I hope that today’s debate will provide a positive contribution to those efforts.

I have the honour to take part in this debate on behalf of the States of the Group of 77 and China. The Group of 77 and China wishes to thank the Secretary-General for his reports on the items that we are discussing today. Despite all the actions and commitments by African countries, the main constraint on African development remains the lack of adequate resources. It is, however, highly commendable that African leaders have been taking ownership and leadership of the continent’s socioeconomic renewal agenda in order to transform its development agenda through the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). We believe that the challenges that the continent continues to contend with, such as the fight against poverty, high youth unemployment and rising inequality, among others, need global cooperation and partnership. The Group of 77 and China also believes that Africa requires more support on its development path, including through its development framework known as the African Union Agenda 2063, which is its strategic agenda for ensuring a positive socioeconomic transformation in Africa within the next 50 years. The Group of 77 and China is encouraged by the importance attached by Member States to supporting the African Union Agenda 2063, and we are certain that the support given will translate into firm commitments towards promoting Africa’s development. The Group of 77 and China further believes that the recently adopted 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1) and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on financing for development present tangible prospects for foreign direct investment flows into Africa, serving as an important source of financing for development in the continent without upsetting official development assistance (ODA), which remains the main source of international financing for development. The Group reiterates the importance of the need for developed countries to fulfil their commitments to the developing countries regarding ODA and also to provide genuine debt relief to African countries, especially the least developed countries. The Group would like to reiterate that North-South cooperation still lies at the core of the global partnership for development. South- South cooperation, triangular cooperation and the private sector are complements rather than substitutes. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda are transformative in nature and will play a critical role in achieving development objectives and inclusive sustainable growth and development in Africa. The Group of 77 and China is of the firm belief that they will undoubtedly contribute to greater active participation of the African economies in the global economy and will also promote regional economic cooperation and integration. The Group of 77 and China would like to express its appreciation to all the delegations for their constructive contributions earlier this year, which led to the adoption of resolution 69/291, on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa. That provided continued affirmation of the support that the United Nations membership has expressed for the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa. We believe that that resolution continues to provide an important platform for stressing Africa’s responsibility for and role in promoting peace and security in the continent and entails the need for Africa to strengthen its capacity to address the root causes of conflict and to resolve conflicts in a peaceful manner. The Group of 77 and China acknowledges the positive trends and advances in obtaining durable peace in Africa and also emphasizes the need to create the conditions required for durable peace as a necessary condition for sustainable development. In that regard, there is an urgent need to continue developing African human and institutional capacities, particularly in countries emerging from conflict. Furthermore, besides traditional threats to peace and security in Africa, we must also find solutions to address other emerging challenges, particularly terrorism. We therefore reaffirm the need for the United Nations system to support African regional and subregional organizations in the implementation of counter-terrorism action plans. In that regard we are encouraged by the commitment of Member States to supporting the efforts of the African countries to achieve the goal of a conflict-free Africa and to end all wars in Africa by 2020. Over the past 15 years, the world has seen tremendous progress on malaria control and prevention. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that nine countries — Algeria, Botswana, Cape Verde, Namibia, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, South Africa, Swaziland and Eritrea — are on track to reduce the incidence of malaria by 77 per cent, and three additional countries are projected to achieve reductions of between 50 per cent and 75 per cent by the end of 2015. Those tremendous results mean that 3.9 million child deaths have been averted in Africa. Lastly, despite the success of the unprecedented scaling-up of anti-malaria interventions, much work remains to be done, and many countries in Africa continue to experience challenges in rolling back malaria, as a result of which they fall short of national and international development targets. As we move towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and work in pursuit of malaria elimination, there is a persistent need for the United Nations system, specifically the WHO, to assist in addressing weak health systems and the inequitable access to health services, to increase domestic and international financing and to deal with insecticide resistance in Africa.

It is my singular honour and pleasure to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of African States. I wish to align myself with the statement just made by the representative of South Africa on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. This debate marks the successful culmination of Africa Week 2015, which has truly raised the profile of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) here at the United Nations at a very critical juncture when Member States are preparing to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1). The African Group would like to thank the Secretary-General for the effort he has put into compiling his reports under the agenda items under discussion today, and for his continued leadership and commitment to placing Africa’s agenda at the heart of the United Nations system. This year, 2015, is truly special for the world in general and for Africa in particular in terms of its relevance to the NEPAD agenda. The United Nations has been celebrating its seventieth anniversary. The post-2015 development agenda was recently adopted as the 2030 Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda was adopted as the way forward in financing for development, and there are high hopes for a far-reaching agreement on climate change in Paris in December. In addition, 2015 is also a pivotal year for Africa’s development with the adoption of the African Union Agenda 2063, the long-term vision for the continent’s transformative development in this century, and its First Ten-Year Implementation Plan, and ultimately the implementation of those Agendas. In the same vein, monitoring and accountability remain crucial cornerstones of the successful implementation of both Agendas. The African Group underlines the valuable contribution of the United Nations monitoring mechanism to review the implementation of the commitments made towards Africa’s development, established under General Assembly resolution 66/293, and believes that the mechanism should continue to provide its valuable inputs to the Economic and Social Council’s high-level political forum as part of the global monitoring and accountability framework for Agenda 2030, as well as to the efforts to support the implementation of the African Union’s Agenda 2063. Moreover, in June 2015 the African Union Summit adopted the Framework for a Renewed United Nations/ African Union Partnership on Africa’s Integration and Development Agendas (PAIDA) 2017-2027, which will succeed the Ten-Year Capacity-Building Programme for the African Union. That adoption will constitute an important milestone in promoting closer partnership between the two organizations. An enhanced partnership is crucial for advancing the implementation of the African Union Agenda 2063 and the United Nations 2030 Agenda. In that vein, the African Group underscores the need for an adequate, regular, and dedicated allocation of resources from the regular budget of the United Nations to be approved by the General Assembly to support the effective implementation of PAIDA. The African Group attaches great importance to that matter and will continue to pursue it in the coming months. In that regard the African Group fully endorses and applauds the choice of the theme for the seventieth session of the General Assembly. NEPAD remains committed to facilitating and implementing Africa’s priority programmes and to consolidating the positive steps already taken towards continental transformation. The African Group notes with great satisfaction that agriculture remains at the centre of Africa’s development agenda. Agriculture forms a significant portion of the economies of all African countries and has the potential to contribute towards meeting the major continental priorities, including the eradication of poverty and hunger, boosting intra-Africa trade and investments, supporting rapid industrialization and economic diversification, sustainable resource and environment management, and creating jobs for the thousands of youth, as well as to improve livelihoods. During the sixty-eighth session of the General Assembly, we welcomed and celebrated the tenth anniversary of the implementation of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP). In 2014, at the peak of the commemoration of the Africa Year of Agriculture, we also celebrated the rekindling of CAADP through the adoption of the Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihoods. The main thrust of the Malabo Declaration is the undertaking by the African Governments to sustain the momentum of CAADP for the next decade. That includes increasing financial investment in agriculture through domestic resource mobilization and the allocation of 10 per cent of public expenditure to the sector; ending hunger and halving poverty by the year 2025 through inclusive agricultural growth; ensuring a growth of the sector of 6 per cent per annum; boosting intra-Africa trade; enhancing resilience and reducing climate vulnerability; as well as fostering mutual accountability. We therefore wish to underscore the importance of partnerships and international cooperation in attaining the CAADP objectives. Infrastructure development continues to be a key priority for Africa, and NEPAD is playing a pivotal role through the implementation of the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA). We duly note the efforts undertaken since October 2013, including efforts to secure funds to implement 16 infrastructure pilot projects identified as quick wins for financing and implementation. We welcome the Dakar Summit, held in June 2014, which adopted the Dakar Agenda for Action, for financing those infrastructure pilot projects. We note the major hurdles in financing the implementation of PIDA projects. We therefore call for the mobilization of resources from all sources, both public and private. More than a decade ago the African Heads of State and Government established the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), NEPAD’s flagship governance programme, which aims at promoting good governance across the continent. Through this scheme, African countries have resolved to adopt additional measures to fight corruption and to promote good governance, transparency and accountability, especially in the field of natural resources. The African Union is working hard to encourage all African member States to join the growing number of African countries that have voluntarily acceded to the APRM, currently 36, of which 18 have been peer-reviewed. As member States, we encourage the APRM to seek ways to have more countries graduate, as in the cases of Chad and Senegal. The African Group thanks the Secretary-General for his report entitled “Causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa” (A/70/176). We note the growing linkages between political, social and economic exclusion and violent conflict. As a continent we believe that arresting this trend will require inclusive, people-centred approaches in the promotion of peace, security and socioeconomic development, as emphasized in the African Union Agenda 2063 and its First Ten-Year Implementation Plan. Africa is committed to addressing the root causes of conflicts and preventing the outbreak of armed conflicts, including through the African Peace and Security Architecture. As has been stated, Africa strongly believes that there can be no lasting security without inclusive development. By the same token, peace and security are indispensable factors and drivers of development. It is imperative, in this regard, to encourage all partners, including the United Nations system, to support the efforts of African countries in carrying out the African Union’s Silencing the Guns by 2020 initiative, as envisioned by the leaders of the African Union in the African Union’s fiftieth anniversary solemn declaration. Moreover, the inclusion of peace and security as mandates of the African Union in the 2030 Agenda is also a source of satisfaction for the African Group. The African Group underscores the importance of the long-standing and exemplary partnership extended by the United Nations to Africa, notably through support for the establishment and operationalization of the African Union Peace and Security Architecture, including cooperation between the African Union Peace and Security Council and the United Nations Security Council, as well as for the African Standby Force, which is about to become operational, and the continued support to the APRM. In this regard, the African Group welcomes the emphasis that the report places on the strengthening of institutional cooperation with the African Union and its regional economic communities and on conflict prevention, peacekeeping and conflict management, post-conflict peacebuilding and recovery, sustainable economic growth and sustainable development, human rights and humanitarian affairs, rule of law and administration of justice, and disarmament, demobilization and reintegration. The African Group supports the recommendations in the report. Malaria remains a serious health concern for Africa. It is undoubtedly among the issues that will require continued attention even beyond the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. It is of great concern that this disease, which is entirely preventable and treatable, should continue to kill thousands of people, especially children, on the African continent. We welcome the continued commitment of the international community to eradicating malaria and other diseases, as outlined in Goal 3 of the Sustainable Development Goals. We also welcome the declaration adopted by the 2013 special summit meeting of the African Union on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, which reaffirmed the commitment of African Governments to accelerate the implementation of existing frameworks, including the Abuja Declaration and Plan of Action on Roll Back Malaria in Africa. We note with great concern that the funding to fight malaria is far below that required to reach the universal coverage of interventions. We therefore call upon developed countries and other partners to fulfil all the commitments made with a view to eradicating this scourge. With the support of the international community, the Ebola virus disease in West Africa is now largely under control. I should like to acknowledge at this juncture the role of the Secretary-General in leading the fight and to thank him for his efforts. However, there is an urgent need to help African countries, especially those most affected by the virus, improve their health systems and build core capacity to enhance access to water, sanitation and health services in order to avoid a similar situation in the future. The African Group considers that the Ebola outbreak is another wake-up call and that business as usual should not prevail going forward, as we implement the post-2015 development agenda. The needs of the most vulnerable must get due attention, and adequate means of implementation must be provided in the post-2015 development agenda in a manner that is commensurate with the huge challenges. Let me conclude by underscoring further the importance of fulfilling the commitments made to Africa, including those relating to official development assistance (ODA). In Addis Ababa in July this year, ODA providers reaffirmed commitments to achieving the target of 0.7 per cent of gross national income as ODA for developing countries and the target of 0.15 to 0.20 per cent of gross national income as ODA for least developed countries. We therefore call on development partners to fulfil their promises and commitments in the spirit of the Monterrey Consensus, the Group of Eight Gleneagles Summit and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda. Their doing so will go a long way, not only in terms of restoring trust and building confidence, but also of fostering mutual respect in global partnerships.

I have the honour to address the General Assembly on behalf of the 10 States members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), namely, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam. At the outset I should like to express my heartfelt congratulations to you, Mr. President, on your election to the presidency of the Assembly at the seventieth session. I look forward to your leadership during this important session as we address a wide range of global challenges. I should also like to thank the Secretary- General for his comprehensive reports on the agenda items we are discussing today. ASEAN aligns itself with the statement made earlier by the representative of South Africa on behalf of the Group of 77 and China on these agenda items. Africa is a continent of opportunities and challenges, of triumphs and tribulations, whose commitment to development despite those challenges is an inspiration to us all. ASEAN attaches great importance to its friendship and cooperation with Africa. We see potential in our collaboration and we strive to make it a success for the benefit of both regions. ASEAN and Africa share the same aspiration for the development of our respective regions. We therefore reaffirm our commitment to continuing to strengthen our cooperation with Africa through the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the New Asian-African Strategic Partnership (NAASP). The challenges that the African countries have been facing are numerous. Despite economic crises, political upheavals, and natural disasters, to name but a few of the setbacks, Africa has proved to be resilient. ASEAN sees this strength and continues to engage Africa through NEPAD to address areas of mutual concern and interest, such as poverty eradication, gender equality, infrastructure, agriculture, health and education. ASEAN welcomes the valuable contributions made by the African Peer Review Mechanism in enhancing the performance of African Governments in the areas of political, economic and corporate governance and development. ASEAN believes that the implementation of the agreed programmes of action and recommendations contained in the Peer Review will significantly contribute to the development process in Africa. ASEAN welcomes the United Nations constructive role and assistance through a monitoring mechanism that reviews the implementation of commitments to Africa’s development. Individually, ASEAN countries have also strengthened their relations with African Member States. Each country in its own way has offered capacity-building programmes and educational scholarships to African countries. In April, Indonesia hosted the sixtieth anniversary commemoration of the 1955 Asian-African Conference, which was aimed at revitalizing the partnership between Asian and African countries for the purpose of promoting peace and prosperity. The Commemoration Conference reflected the general aspirations of Asian and African countries with respect to political, economic and sociocultural cooperation under the theme “Strengthening South-South Cooperation to Promote World Peace and Prosperity”. The participants also committed their countries to creating a stronger, more inclusive and sustainable NAASP. In a follow-up to the encouraging progress made under the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1) will help guide and support African countries in the pursuit of their respective development priorities. Africa has seen its economic growth accelerate, but much more work lies ahead. Overall poverty rates are still around 48 per cent, according to the 2015 Africa MDG report. ASEAN shares the same view as Africa regarding the importance of poverty eradication, as underscored in the 2030 Agenda. ASEAN is encouraged that the African Union adopted the transformative Agenda 2063 in January this year. We are confident that implementing Agenda 2063 in tandem with the far-reaching and ambitious 2030 Agenda will improve the well-being of the continent’s population through sustained and balanced economic growth. Thus, a closer economic engagement between ASEAN and Africa will not only help to solidify relations between the continents but also has the potential to boost trade. In this regard ASEAN endorses the Secretary-General’s call to the global community to contribute to Africa’s development. ASEAN will play its part in sharing and exchanging information and experiences on development-related issues. We note that pandemic disease is one of the challenges that can affect collective progress in the African continent. A stark example is the Ebola disease outbreak that afflicted some African countries. Hence, we commend the valuable role of the United Nations and the World Health Organization (WHO) in establishing the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response to address the Ebola outbreak. Some countries in sub-Saharan Africa are still afflicted by malaria. Globally, 80 per cent of the cases of malaria and 80 per cent of deaths from malaria in 2015 are found there. Both ASEAN and African countries have been affected by this disease. ASEAN has been successful in combating malaria and has supported Africa’s efforts to address this disease and HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. Relations between ASEAN and Africa continue to be enhanced through solidarity, cooperation and mutual respect. ASEAN strongly supports the continued implementation of NEPAD as the African Union’s programme for poverty eradication, socioeconomic development and growth, and the framework for engagement with Africa.

I now give the floor to the observer of the European Union.

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union (EU) and its member States. The Africa-European Union partnership is guided by the fundamental principles of the unity of Africa, the interdependence between Africa and Europe, and shared values and interests, as well as joint ownership and responsibilities. At the Africa-European Union Summit held in April 2014 in Brussels, EU and African leaders committed to consulting and working in partnership to define the post-2015 development agenda, sharing the same level of ambition and broadly similar priorities for the agenda — an integrated and balanced approach to the three dimensions of sustainable development, inclusion of governance, peace and security aspects, a global partnership mobilizing all means of implementation, and credible monitoring, follow-up and review mechanisms. I believe that this is well reflected in the final outcome. We welcome the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1) and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, which will enable us to tackle the interlinked challenges of our world today. We very much welcome the fact that Africa played an important role in shaping the 2030 Agenda, both through the Common African Position on the post-2015 Development Agenda, which fed into the negotiations and played an influential role, and through key African actors. These included, to mention a few, Amina Mohammed, the Special Adviser on Post-2015 Development Planning; Ambassador Kamau, the Co-Chair of the Open Working Group; and Mr. Sam Kutesa, then President of the General Assembly, as well as the African Union, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, the African Development Bank, South Africa representing the Group of 77, and others. Looking ahead, we recognize that the true challenge lies in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The EU and its member States will do their part and are committed to the Africa-EU partnership and to cooperating, as agreed in the road map of the 2014 Africa-EU Summit, with a view to ensuring that the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and of Agenda 2063 will be complementary, consistent and mutually supportive. The EU recognizes the essential role played by the African Union and its New Partnership for Africa’s Development in the definition of continental policy frameworks and programmes that respect in full the notions of subsidiarity and ownership. In particular, Agenda 2063 and its 10-year implementation plan provide a comprehensive, long-term strategic vision for Africa’s development. Our aim is to support Africa’s political and economic integration through enhanced trade, a strengthened political partnership and increased cooperation, and to support institutional capacity- building at the national, regional and continental levels. The European Union and its member States remain the biggest trading and development partners of Africa, and we stand ready to continue supporting key pan-African programmes such as the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa and the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme, in addition to our wide range of activities at the national and regional levels. Cooperation on migration is another area. The upcoming Valetta Summit is expected to deal comprehensively with the issue of migration, including its development aspects. The Summit is expected to agree on a trust fund amounting to €1.8 billion from the EU budget and the EU Development Fund to address the root causes of irregular migration and displaced persons in Africa. The promotion of democratic and transparent systems of government, rule of law, good governance, including the fight against corruption, and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms are commitments enshrined in the Joint Africa-EU Strategy. We pledge to ensure that human rights are fully enjoyed by all through the elimination of all forms of discrimination against and exclusion of vulnerable segments of society. We welcome African efforts to eliminate obstacles that women face in their quest for equal rights and opportunities. As long as women are treated as inferior to men and are not given a proper voice in politics, peace and security discussions or economic affairs, Africa is losing out on the potential contribution of half its population and work force. In the same vein, children must have the critical tool of perspective that education provides. It is therefore indispensable to ensure that no children suffer from armed conflict and that all child soldiers are not only released but also reintegrated. The European Union stands ready to support reintegration efforts. We welcome the efforts by the African Union to build a strong and credible African human rights system and African governance architecture as ways of guaranteeing respect for human rights and governance commitments by all African States. We also praise the progress made by the African Union in addressing the security challenges on the continent, both through Africa-led peace support operations and through the establishment of its peace and security architecture. The European Union has significantly supported these processes since 2004 with more than €1.6 billion, and we are committed to pursuing our cooperation in these and other areas of common interest, as stated in the ambitious road map of the 2014 Africa-EU summit. We welcome the Secretary-General’s report on causes of conflict (A/70/176), which underscores that in the light of the critical linkages between democratic governance, human rights, durable peace and sustainable development, the United Nations should continue to increase synergies between the African peace and security architecture and the African governance architecture in preventive diplomacy, peacemaking, peacebuilding and post-conflict resolution within the framework of the Joint United Nations-African Union Framework for an Enhanced Partnership in Peace and Security. As underlined in the Secretary-General’s report, notwithstanding the progress made, Africa continues to wrestle with potentially preventable or treatable diseases that cause death and untold suffering while simultaneously undermining economic development. Malaria, alongside other deadly viruses such as Ebola and HIV, inflicts a tremendous burden on Africa, particularly on women, children and the most vulnerable. Africa should be congratulated on what it has achieved in the fight against Ebola and on the significant progress that has been made in the global fight against malaria in recent years. Experience has shown that prevention can achieve impressive results when actions are underpinned by strong and effective health systems. Combating diseases such as malaria through strengthened national health systems is, in our view, one of the most effective ways to alleviate poverty and promote equitable and sustainable development. As the world’s largest donor to the health sector, the European Union and its member States will continue to invest in the health work force and build capacity, so as to ensure equitable access to prevention, treatment and care through the implementation of universal health coverage. Let me conclude by emphasizing that the European Union and its member States remain fully committed to working as partners with Africa and Africans in their quest for peace, democratic governance, human rights and sustainable development.

China supports the statement made earlier by the representative of South Africa on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. This year marks the seventieth anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, and it is also International Development Year. Last month, leaders of countries gathered at the United Nations development summit and unanimously adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1), which serves as a grand blueprint for international development in the coming 15 years and is of milestone significance. This year has witnessed important progress in the cause of peace and development in Africa. The African Union Summit adopted its Agenda 2063 and its First Ten-Year Implementation Plan, which sets new targets for peace and development in Africa. African development is entering a new stage. Peace and development in Africa will be of critical importance to the lasting peace and common prosperity of the world. The international community should attach great importance to cooperation with Africa from a strategic perspective, pay close attention to Africa and increase input in African countries in accordance with the provisions of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Agenda 2063 and with a view to making greater progress in implementing the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). First, we should support Africa’s development, as that is the key to implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The international community should give full consideration to Africa’s development needs and unique challenges and attach major importance to eliminating poverty and hunger, promoting public health and resolving other issues affecting people’s livelihood in Africa. In conjunction with Africa’s development in priority areas such as modernizing agriculture, industrializing and infrastructure-building, efforts should be made to vigorously strengthen production capabilities, cooperation and means of communication between regions. We should work in concert to respond to challenges such as climate change, energy security and sluggish economic growth so as to promote coordinated economic, social and environmental development in Africa. We should abide by the principle of diversity in following development models and give Africa sufficient policy space in following up and implementing the development agenda. We should respect the principle of ownership by African countries. Secondly, to optimize its development partnership, the international community should honour its commitment to Africa, implement the outcome of the third International Conference on Financing for Development and increase assistance to Africa. The developed countries should provide timely and sufficient official development assistance and provide Africa with more financial and technological resources and support for capacity-building without attaching any political conditions. While fully utilizing North-South cooperation as the main type of partnership, developing countries are encouraged to deepen South-South cooperation with due respect for the principles of equality, mutual trust, mutual benefit, win-win cooperation, unity and mutual help, to strengthen exchanges of experience and to create a flagship cooperation platform that will advance the development of African and other developing countries through higher-level, larger-scope activities covering a broader range of areas. Thirdly, to improve Africa’s development environment, countries should strengthen macroeconomic policy coordination and adopt active financial, trade, investment and debt measures to promote Africa’s development. To that end, it is necessary to strengthen global economic governance, maintain a free, open and non-discriminatory multilateral trading system, accelerate the reform of international financial institutions and increase the representation of developing countries and give them a stronger voice in those institutions. It is also necessary to fully explore the United Nations integrated planning and coordinating role and to harness the respective strengths of agencies in the United Nations system so as to increase support for Africa. Fourthly, as peace is the precondition for development and as stability provides a safeguard for development, the international community should uphold the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and work actively to promote peace and negotiation in African countries, including the resolution of differences through peaceful means, on the basis of full respect for sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. The will of African countries must be fully respected and the resolution of African problems by Africans in the African way must be supported. At the same time, there is a need to reinforce coordination and cooperation with the African Union and African regional organizations and to effectively help Africa strengthen the building of collective security mechanisms. China and Africa have consistently faced difficulties together and have formed a community of interests united by a common platform. Strengthening unity and cooperation with African countries has consistently been an important pillar of China’s foreign policy. In 2013, on his first visit to Africa, President Xi Jinping suggested the following as underlying principles of our cooperation: sincerity, real results, affinity, good faith and the right approach to justice and interests. The central aim is to help Africa achieve independent and sustainable economic development and to achieve China’s own development in what amounts to win-win cooperation and common development. During his visit to Africa in May 2014, Premier Li Keqiang put forward the 4-6-1 framework for Sino-African cooperation and emphasized the following four principles: treating each other as equals, strengthening unity and mutual trust, seeking inclusive development, and promoting innovative cooperation. The aim is to advance cooperation in six areas: industry, finance, poverty reduction, protection of the environment, people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and peace and security. Through the important platform of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, China and Africa will work to upgrade their pragmatic cooperation. While attending the summits at the United Nations last month, President Xi Jinping expounded China’s policy regarding the international order and a shared future for mankind. He announced a series of important measures, including establishing the China-United Nations fund for peace and development and a fund for assisting South-South cooperation, increasing investment in the least developed countries, cancelling the debt owed on intergovernmental interest-free loans for some countries in special circumstances before the end of 2015, and assisting developing countries with 100 projects in each of the areas of poverty reduction, agricultural cooperation, trade facilitation, environmental protection, response to climate change, medical facilities and education training. Those measures will serve to advance global peace and development and lead to strengthened bonds of unity and cooperation between China and developing countries, including those of Africa. This year marks the fifteenth anniversary of the founding of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. Over the past 15 years pragmatic cooperation between China and Africa has developed in leaps and bounds and has brought real benefits to the people of China and Africa. According to statistics, in 2014 China- Africa trade exceeded $220 billion and investment in Africa amounted to more than $30 billion, representing a 22-fold increase and a 60-fold increase respectively over the year 2000, when the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation was founded. We focus on enhancing capabilities in infrastructure-building and manufacturing in Africa and helping African countries to eliminate development bottlenecks and to pursue a self-determined development path. We focus on helping Africa build and improve public health systems. We provided the affected African countries with assistance totalling $120 million in connection with the Ebola epidemic and sent more than 1,200 medical personnel and experts to them in what was the longest, broadest and largest effort in the area of international public health in the history of the new China. We focus on building the China-Africa partnership for peace and security,. China is the permanent member of the Security Council that has sent the largest number of peacekeeping personnel to Africa. In December of this year, the summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation will be held in Johannesburg. This will be the first time that the Forum has been held on the African continent, a development which is of far- reaching significance. The summit will produce a new plan and blueprint for future China-Africa cooperation, injecting new impetus into and effectively advancing cooperation between China and Africa for win-win results and common development, and opening up new horizons and prospects for development.

I thank the President for convening this debate on a theme that is very dear to us. I also wish to welcome Mr. Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, Chief Executive Officer of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Planning and Coordinating Agency. Algeria welcomes the report of the Secretary- General on NEPAD (A/70/175) and the insights it provides. We also wish to thank the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa for its dedication and extremely valuable work in enhancing international support for Africa’s development. My delegation associates itself with the statements made earlier by the representatives of South Africa and Sierra Leone on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and the Group of African States, respectively. As indicated in the Secretary-General’s report, this year’s debate coincides with several global milestones that are of fundamental relevance to NEPAD. Algeria welcomes the recognition in both the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1) and the African Union Agenda 2063 of the challenges facing African countries. Agenda 2063 and the relevant programmes of NEPAD, such as the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa and the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), give Africa the right tools to lift itself out of poverty and to put an end to its marginalization from the globalization process. For more than a decade now, NEPAD has placed the questions of peace, security, development, democracy, good governance, human rights and women’s empowerment at the heart of sustainable development. While recognizing the political, economic and social difficulties that have beset Africa’s development for decades, NEPAD is also the expression of Africa’s willingness to establish a new partnership anchored in the principles of African leadership and, above all, of ownership. In spite of the advances made in implementing the Millennium Development Goals — notably in promoting gender equality and empowering women, improving maternal health, reducing child mortality and halving extreme poverty — such progress remains uneven between regions of the world. Progress in Africa is hampered by a variety of factors. For example, Africa’s collective actions to fight poverty continue to suffer from the backlash of a multitude of crises, including the recent Ebola outbreak, the effects of natural disasters, climate change — to which, incidently,Africa contributes the least — and volatile commodity prices. Africa’s resilience can and must be strengthened. The international community can contribute greatly to this process, and we seize this opportunity to call on our partners to fully support the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the continent-wide programmes embedded in NEPAD. After a decade of implementation, NEPAD, a programme of the African Union, has produced a number of encouraging results. The promotion of infrastructure development as a driving force for Africa’s integration and development led to the adoption in 2010 of the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa by the African Union Heads of State. With respect to the implementation of the project championed by Algeria to complete the trans-Sahara highway and gas pipeline, which would link Algeria and Nigeria, we are pleased to confirm that the Algeria section of the project, which covers more than 4,500 kilometres, will be completed in 2016. We announce with equal satisfaction that, under the project to install fibre-optic cable linking Algeria, the Niger and Nigeria, the Algerian section of the network has been completed and is now operational. There has also been significant progress within the framework of the CAADP. This programme aims at achieving a 6 per cent growth rate in the agricultural sector by allocating 10 per cent of the national budget. Today 50 countries out of 54 have committed themselves to CAADP, of which 44 have already adopted a national agriculture investment plan. All stakeholders need to make a strong push in favour of Africa’s development. According to the Secretary-General’s report on the implementation of the Second United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (2008-2017) (A/70/281), income poverty in Africa dropped from 46 per cent in 1990 to 39 percent in 2011. While that can be considered an encouraging step towards poverty eradication, we believe that such a pace remains overly slow. In this context, an enabling international environment resting on a revitalized global partnership is required if Africa is to reach a sustained pace of economic growth, achieve financial stability, have full employment, strengthen its resilience and also play its part — we should not forget that — in the world economy. Of all the continents, Africa has the greatest potential for economic growth.

My delegation associates itself with the statements made earlier on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and the Group of African States. We commend the Secretary-General for his report on Africa’s development (A/70/175). Adopted in 2001 by the African leaders, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) has provided a vision and an overarching socioeconomic development framework. As an African-owned initiative, the NEPAD programmes in such areas as agriculture, infrastructure, health and education have registered encouraging results in reducing poverty, promoting sustainable agriculture and integrating the continent into the global economy. The African Peer Review Mechanism has also contributed to improving good governance. In addition, Africa has made substantial progress in building durable peace and democratic institutions. Since the adoption of NEPAD, Africa has recorded an impressive economic growth of 5 per cent on average, making it the second-fastest-growing region. In 2014 Africa’s growth was 3.9 per cent despite the weak global economy. Most African countries, including Ethiopia, are on track to meet the Millennium Development Goal target of halving poverty. To sustain economic growth and achieve structural transformation, the African leaders adopted the 2063 Agenda and the First Ten- Year Implementation Plan to build on the experience of NEPAD, integrating all its initiatives. NEPAD continues to be the strategic vehicle for the realization of an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa. Malaria is one of the major health challenges for many African countries, including Ethiopia. NEPAD has improved access to high-quality essential medicines and treatments for malaria. In Ethiopia, we have taken radical steps to reverse the toll of the disease and have registered a sharp decline in the number of cases and deaths. We have made this remarkable progress by prioritizing malaria in the national socieconomic development agenda and the strategic health plan. Ethiopia has also demonstrated strong leadership and political commitment as the Chair of the African Leaders Malaria Alliance. African leaders have agreed to monitor certain indicators in their respective countries to ensure accountability and take the necessary action to control the disease. Accordingly, progress in combating malaria is tracked every quarter using a standard scorecard. Furthermore, in January, during the African Union summit, a malaria elimination scorecard was launched. As leaders committed to eliminating malaria from the continent, we committed to redoubling our efforts to maintain universal access and reduce the toll. Despite the progress, Africa still has a long way to go before there is inclusive and sustainable development for all. Peace and stability must also be ensured in all regions of the continent. Therefore Africa, with the support of the international community, needs to accelerate its economic and structural transformation to realize its full development potential. In this regard, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda creates the right framework for enhanced global partnership that is aligned with continent-wide priorities. It recognizes the importance of addressing the diverse needs and challenges faced by countries in special situations, in particular African countries. The Addis Agenda also reaffirms the importance of supporting NEPAD and the 2063 Agenda. We call on our development partners, including the United Nations system, to further strengthen their financial and technical support to the programmes of NEPAD so that the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development can be implemented in Africa as a subset of the 2063 Agenda.

The Kingdom of Thailand aligns itself with the statements delivered earlier by the representative of South Africa on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and by the Permanent Representative of Brunei Darussalam on behalf of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. We thank the Secretary-General for his comprehensive report on progress in implementing the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (A/70/175) and other reports prepared for this meeting. Africa is rising, full of promise. That continent, full of hope, has become one of the fastest-growing regions in the world and is moving forward in the right direction, guided by strong leadership and assisted by regional and international organizations. We commend the constructive roles of the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States and other regional organizations, as well as the United Nations, in building on past gains and laying a solid foundation for the continent’s future. The Kingdom of Thailand welcomes the First Ten-Year Implementation Plan for the African Union Agenda 2063 as it charts Africa’s trajectory for the next 10 years on its path towards an integrated, prosperous and peaceful continent in 2063. Given the similarity of the development paths of the Kingdom of Thailand and our African friends, for many decades we have been fostering development cooperation with them in areas of common interest, areas such as sustainable agriculture, public health, education and human resources development. This partnership has brought added value to both our societies and peoples. It has convinced us that the common goals of sustainable development can be achieved together through South-South cooperation, and in particular through exchanging experiences and best practices, consultation, and the coordination of policies for mutual benefit. National ownership is pivotal for success and should therefore continue to be a principle that guides the work of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. In this light, our cooperation programme with African countries has been based on a demand-driven approach and tailored to ensure that our support meets the real needs of African peoples and is in line with Agenda 2063. Sustainable growth and development starts with a healthy population. The unprecedented outbreak of the Ebola virus was a huge challenge to the Governments in the affected area and to the international community, as they battled to bring the epidemic under control and to make sure that Africa’s development will not be interrupted. The lessons learned from the outbreak should be put to good use in other health crises, now and in the future. Regarding malaria and other pandemics, Thailand is proud to be one of the few countries that have continuously contributed to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. We have pledged $4.5 million to the Global Fund for the period 2014-2016. We strongly support and advocate a more sustainable, resilient, affordable and healthy public health-care system with special emphasis on equal access to treatment and medication without discrimination. For this reason, the Kingdom put in place a universal health- care scheme in 2001, which has functioned well since that date. We also are currently implementing a national strategic plan for malaria control and elimination for the period 2011-2016, which has an effective monitoring and evaluation system for early malaria detection. Our continued efforts have resulted in a significant downward trend in the number of malaria cases and the mortality rate. We stand ready to share our experiences and lessons learned in this respect. Recognizing the need for a strong and unified voice on the global common agenda, Asian and African countries celebrated the sixtieth anniversary of the Asia- Africa Conference in Indonesia in April this year. With this renewal of the spirit of Bandung, we look forward to strengthening and broadening our cooperation and to sharing more of our expertise and best practices with our African partners, so that our two continents, while geographically far apart, may become closer through cooperation. Despite the considerable development progress achieved over the years, there are still a number of persistent and emerging challenges for Africa, as there are for Thailand and much of Asia. Among the more urgent tasks are eradicating poverty and ensuring equal social and economic opportunities for all. We must act together lest the persistence of these challenges undo past achievements or thwart future prospects. As emphasized by our leaders in the general debate last month, sustainable development can never be achieved without durable peace and security. Therefore it is unfortunate that many countries in Africa still suffer from the predations of armed and terrorist groups. The Kingdom of Thailand supports a holistic approach to the prevention of conflicts and the promotion and implementation of peacekeeping, peacebuilding and post-conflict reconstruction activities. In that spirit, the Kingdom has contributed, alongside many nations, to collective efforts to promote peace and security through its active participation in the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur and the United Nations Mission in Liberia. At the same time, we believe that the United Nations and Member States must do more to ensure political and social inclusiveness and respect for human rights and for the rights to development, sovereign equality, tolerance, good governance and the rule of law through constructive engagement and dialogue based on mutual respect. Towards that end, the Kingdom of Thailand has presented its candidature for non-permanent membership of the Security Council for 2017-2018. In a world of such great political, economic, and social diversity, we pledge to be a bridge-builder among members with differing views and stances. To conclude, let me reiterate that the Kingdom of Thailand places sustainable development at the heart of its national agenda and its foreign policy, based on His Majesty King Bhumibol’s Sufficiency Economy philosophy. We are proud of our long track record of development cooperation with Africa. We stand as ready as ever to strengthen our partnership with our African sisters and brothers in the decades to come.

Let me thank the President for convening this open debate, which is the culmination of the Africa Week celebrations. We associate ourselves with the statement delivered earlier by the observer of the European Union. During the last couple of days, we have had the opportunity to discuss many aspects of Africa’s development, as well as its peace and security challenges. On this occasion, let me thank the Secretary-General and the Special Adviser on Africa for the two reports before us (A/70/175 and A/70/176), which constitute a very good basis for our debate today. Poland has contributed to the development of many African countries from the beginning of their existence. In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s we not only supported decolonization politically, but also assisted many African countries in building their State institutions, education systems, economies, and so on. Thousands of African students came to Poland, thanks to our scholarship programmes. Many of them assumed very important positions after returning to their countries, becoming political and economic leaders. The former President of Mali and former Chairman of the African Union Commission, Alpha Oumar Konaré, and the former Prime Minister and Minister of Health of Namibia, Libertina Amathila, are only a few examples. The world has changed significantly since then, but Poland remains committed to working in partnership with African countries in contributing to the continent’s development. We appreciate the efforts by African countries and regional economic organizations aimed at promoting integration and economic and human development in the continent. The inclusion of all of the priorities of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) in the African Union Agenda 2063, adopted at the African Union Summit this year, and the adoption of the 10-year strategic plan confirm a strong and unified political will on the part of the continent’s leaders to base the development of Africa on its economic integration. The NEPAD initiatives in the areas of infrastructure, energy, agriculture, education, health, science and technology and women’s empowerment are very ambitious. Africa has already achieved successes in some of those fields. Nevertheless, in order to secure the full implementation of the plan, more financial resources have to be mobilized, not only from international development partners, but also from local Governments. Poland is an active and responsible development partner, as it currently supports education, sustainable agriculture and environmental sectors in Africa. Those areas will remain the priorities of our cooperation with the African continent under the new Polish Multi-annual Development Cooperation Programme for 2016-2020. We also believe that in order to maintain a rapid pace of growth, Africa needs foreign direct investments. Poland actively contributes to that process, supporting the development of modern agriculture and fisheries through our technology transfers to several African countries. We are very glad that we can cooperate in those fields with our partners and friends from Angola, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Togo and some others. We also support the joint economic initiatives of Polish and African companies through the so-called Go Africa programme of the Polish Government, which helps to build business partnerships and encourages trade and people-to-people contacts. While Africa has made undeniable progress in recent years in the areas of core shared values, building democratic governance, encouraging pluralism and strengthening the roles of parliaments and civil society, some challenges still remain to be met. We support the vision expressed in the African Union’s shared- value agenda, which underscores the importance of democratic governance for stability and durable peace. We also believe that no lasting peace can be achieved without the rule of law and respect for basic human rights and the principles of transparency, accountability and popular participation. When those conditions are lacking, even relatively strong economic growth will not reduce tensions stemming from the frustrations of those who are not able to participate in the benefits of growth, owing to social, racial, ethnic or gender exclusions. Last, but not least, we believe in a strong role for women in reaching the objectives of the long-term African development strategies. That is why we strongly commend the decision of the African Union’s Assembly to declare 2015 the Year of Women’s Empowerment and Development towards Africa’s Agenda 2063.

This year is going to be, as Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon put it, “the seminal year” for development in Africa. Much was accomplished with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Today we look forward to the ambitious new Goals for truly sustainable development to be achieved by 2030. The thirteenth consolidated report of the Secretary- General (A/70/175) underlines the progress that African countries have made on all of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development priorities. That confirms the encouraging steps forward made by Africa towards the expansion of its capabilities. The adoption this year by the African Union of Agenda 2063 and its First Ten- Year Implementation Plan provides momentum for the pursuit of a more effective partnership with Africa and development partners. Since the age of the Roman Empire, Italy has had the historical privilege of being a bridge between Europe and Africa. My country has always been a traditional partner of Africa, thanks to geography and cultural vocation. The partnership that we have been forging now needs to maintain the momentum on development and reach the shared visions, going beyond mere aid and solidarity. Italy knows what solidarity is all about. Our solidarity is confirmed every day as we save the lives of thousands of migrants and refugees coming from the north shore of Africa. We ensure the provision of first aid, assist them and give them hope. But we need to do more by addressing the root causes that force migrants to leave their families and their homelands. Being aware of its moral responsibility, my country is willing to play its part. The Italian Government is committed to increasing its official development assistance by strengthening its international development cooperation and becoming a top donor among the Group of Seven nations. Furthermore, the Italian Government is devoting attention to a special category of developing countries. Last June, we hosted at the Expo in Milan a successful Ministerial Meeting of African Least Developed Countries, which adopted the Milan Charter for fostering sustainable agriculture, granting access to food for all and changing unsustainable consumption patterns by avoiding food waste. This very day at Expo we are hosting, in collaboration with the United Nations, a ministerial meeting for small island developing States with a view to assessing the role of finance and innovation in stimulating investment in agricultural production and the agrifood sector, with the overarching goal of achieving food security and inclusive growth. Today we had the high privilege of hosting Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to celebrate World Food Day at Expo Milano. That was very important for all of us. We will spare no effort to do our part in helping Africa to diversify its economy and transform its huge potential into reality as soon as possible. In a rapidly changing world, the challenge of achieving development takes on a new dimension. Developing countries need to share in and benefit more from the experience of developed countries, so that together they can build a lasting economic pathway and social resiliance. Let us consider industrial policies, the health system, education and access to food and water for all. We can offer our experience to stimulate investment and growth in the private sector. The Italian economic model and social structure, as is perhaps known, are based on small and medium- sized enterprises and cooperatives. An extensive system of credit institutions is closely interconnected with small and medium-sized enterprises and specific local businesses. Those enterprises seek benefits for their communities and not just a return for their shareholders. They therefore prove to be particularly suited to promoting sustainable development. Furthermore, we have been promoting the engagement of our larger companies in building partnerships with local authorities in communities in Africa. That model can be of great help in responding to infrastructure needs and technology-transfer demands. With regard to the energy sector, we have to fully take into account the crucial role of potential synergies between public and private finance. In order to tackle poverty and climate change, to roll back Ebola and malaria and the other major diseases, and to empower African countries to overcome trade shocks, one of the innovations we have been building up is the establishment of an Italian development bank. We are attempting to foster direct local investment by starting up new joint ventures, resulting in an increase in decent jobs, and to promote the emergence of responsible corporate governance practices. To achieve those goals, Italian and developing- country enterprises need to work together — especially the small and medium-sized enterprises — by sharing entrepreneurial know-how and productive technology. That would lead us to what we call small capital — risk- sharing instruments, credit enhancement and other forms of leveraging public concessional finance to attract private investors and contribute to strengthening the local private sector. Developing countries also need to access science and innovative technology on a gender-equal basis. We already provide some of the best international practices in that field. In Trieste, for instance, Italy is hosting an international research and educational system that deserves to be better known and, if possible, replicated. Finally, Africa today is a continent of opportunity in a multipolar world and legitimately aspires to be an actor in the dynamic global challenges of today. That reality needs to be acknowledged in the United Nations peace and security architecture as well. It is of the utmost importance for the development of Africa to achieve the goal set by the African Union in Agenda 2063 of a conflict-free continent by 2020. The international community must step up its efforts to help Africa succeed in preventing conflict, eradicating extremism and intolerance, and founding peaceful and stable societies. To do so, the United Nations and regional and subregional African organizations can play a critical role in enhancing the participation of all development actors — parliaments, civil societies, non-governmental organizations, universities, philanthropic foundations, each with its own specific relevance. Italy will continue to do its part to that end.

Let me begin by expressing my appreciation to the Secretary-General for issuing the two comprehensive reports (A/70/175 and A/70/176) before us today. I should also like to express my respect for the tireless efforts of the United Nations Office of the Special Adviser on Africa, especially Under-Secretary- General and Special Adviser Mr. Maged Abdelaziz; the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, especially Mr. Ibrahim Mayaki; and the African Union Commission (AUC). Their efforts have led to the holding of this series of events during Africa Week. As has already been said, 2015 is the year of development. That means that it is a most opportune year in which to rethink African development. Earlier this year, the African Union adopted Agenda 2063 and its First Ten-Year Implementation Plan. The Addis Ababa Action Agenda was adopted last July. Just weeks ago, the General Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1). Those three documents are key for African sustainable development. The topic of today’s discussion is development and peace and security in Africa. Those are issues that Japan has been promoting as the basis of African development. Since 1993 Japan has hosted the Tokyo International Conference for African Development (TICAD), and that ongoing process covers development and peace and security. The most recent of those summit meetings, TICAD V, was held in Yokohama in Japan in 2013. I was then Director-General for Africa in Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and therefore I was in charge of organizing the meeting. The TICAD process embodies several important characteristics that make it particularly valuable in the context of Africa’s development, on which I would like to elaborate. The first unique aspect is that TICAD is a partnership conference that focuses on preserving and enhancing African ownership. In other words, Africa is sitting in the driver’s seat. The AUC joined the United Nations Office of the Special Adviser on Africa, the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme as a conference co-organizer. It is very symbolic that our Prime Minister Abe and African Heads of State and Government sat together at the podium of TICAD V, leading the discussion. Most importantly, the agenda and programmes of the meeting were decided by listening to the voices of all of the African States. TICAD is now an African process. The second unique aspect of the TICAD process is its approaches to development. The first approach is economic growth. TICAD focuses on economic growth through the construction of infrastructure and the development of human resources. Africa is now registering quite a high rate of growth. TICAD insists on achieving development that is African-led, and that economic growth needs to be more robust, sustainable, resilient and inclusive. We call it quality growth. The second approach is the involvement of the private sector. Economic cooperation from the Japanese side should be made through an all-Japan approach. In other words, in addition to official development assistance (ODA), trade and investment is extremely important for economic growth and development. The Japanese private sector is being encouraged to go to Africa, including by using ODA as a catalyst for investment. The third approach is agriculture. We talk about agriculture from the point of view of food security and poverty reduction. TICAD considers that agriculture needs to be profitable, which is to say that Africa’s agricultural sector needs to be developed beyond basic subsistence towards economic self-reliance. In that process, poverty eradication will be accomplished in many rural areas. Members may learn more about the TICAD approach in the Yokohama Action Plan, the outcome document of TICAD V. The approaches mentioned are very much in line with Agenda 2063. Next year, 2016, will be a year full of opportunities, because for the first time in TICAD’s 20-year history, the next Summit, TICAD VI, will be held in Africa, in Nairobi. We have already commenced preparations at the Japan-African Regional Economic Communities Summit round table. Japan hosts the round table every year at the margins of the General Assembly’s high-level week. The chairs of the African regional economic communities are invited. At the round table held on 26 September, just several weeks ago, Prime Minister Abe stated that Japan will engage in all possible cooperation for the transformation of Africa’s social and industrial structures, so that “made in Africa” becomes an international brand. Representatives from the member nations of the regional economic communities said that agriculture, infrastructure development, trade and industrialization are the most important issues in which cooperative efforts should be strengthened. Economic prosperity rests on prolonged peace and stability. At TICAD V, Japan committed itself to peacebuilding over a broad swathe of Africa, spanning from Mali to Somalia and including the Sahel region. Since TICAD V in 2013, however, emerging threats such as the expansion of violent extremist groups, for example Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab, and the frequent occurrence of terrorism have become more serious. Those issues are threats to Africa’s peace and stability and therefore to its economic and social foundations. As Japan was elected, just yesterday, as a new member of the Security Council for the period of 2016-2017 — for which I extend my sincere gratitude to everyone here — we are determined to engage in efforts to resolve the root causes of conflicts. Furthermore, at TICAD VI next year, we hope to find a way forward to respond to violent extremism. The health and well-being of the people of Africa is another prerequisite for the region’s development. The recent outbreak of the Ebola virus disease reminds us of the vulnerability and fragility of the public-health systems in many African countries. Long-term health objectives, such as eradicating malaria, can be combined with short-term efforts at capacity-building so as to respond to emerging epidemics, such as Ebola, by strengthening health systems at all levels and achieving universal health coverage. Japan is determined to do its utmost to achieve the target of eradicating malaria and strengthening health systems in Africa. In conclusion, allow me to reiterate Japan’s determination to support African development, together with all African countries, in particular through the TICAD process.

My delegation aligns itself with the statements made earlier by the representatives of South Africa on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and of Sierra Leone on behalf of the Group of African States. The international community has made tremendous efforts to assist Africa to get out of underdevelopment, which is characterized by poverty, disease, violent conflicts, hunger and unemployment, among other things. Working within the framework of the Millennium Development Goals, a number of countries in Africa made some progress towards the attainment of many of those Goals, in particular those on education, gender equality and the empowerment of women, and combating HIV/AIDS. In spite of the progress made, enormous challenges remain. The disease burden remains high, particularly epidemics such as Ebola, HIV/AIDS and malaria, among others, which put enormous strain on the meagre resources available. The urgent development of vaccines will go a long way to save not only lives but also resources, which can then be channelled to development projects. While the research on vaccines is still ongoing, I wish to remind the Assembly that it is possible to eradicate malaria from the African continent, just as was done on other continents, using proven methods that could be applied. But because of the pharmaceutical wars that are raging currently, that has not yet been possible. The international community has often not been effective in addressing African problems, particularly poverty, owing to a faulty diagnosis of its root causes, and that has always led to inappropriate solutions. That is why, in the implementation of 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1), every effort should be made to support priority development policies and projects as designated by national Governments. We need to pursue a global partnership with a common purpose in order to realize the Sustainable Development Goals. That will be critical, not only in proving coherence but also in avoiding duplication and competition, particularly among international partners. Persistent violent conflicts on the continent destroy lives, property and infrastructure, thus retarding development. Therefore, consolidating peace and security in Africa and strengthening democratic governance are crucial for Africa’s sustainable development. The Security Counci, whose mandate is to maintain international peace and security, has done commendable work in Africa. However, much remains to be done to make the Council more responsive and effective. We remain convinced that Security Council reform will unlock its potential to respond to all threats to international peace and security in a timely and effective manner. In the same vein, a review of the partnership between the United Nations and regional organizations should be given due consideration. At the continental level, the African Union Agenda 2063 and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development need all possible support, with resources, both human and financial, to give Africa a push to get out of the vicious cycle of poverty and conflict. Under Agenda 2063, African leaders aspire to attain continental connectivity through infrastructure development, industrialization, increased intra-African trade and investment, among other things. All these efforts will certainly need support through partnership, as envisaged in the 2030 Agenda, which in turn should lead to the realization of Agenda 2063. When one looks at the current influx of migrants and refugees from Africa and the Middle East into Europe, it becomes clear that investment of genuine and adequate resources where they are most needed benefits both recipients and donors. The sustainable solution to this influx is therefore not to build high walls and barbed-wire fences in Europe, but to address the problem at source. We have an opportunity today as an international community to work together and address the challenges of underdevelopment and insecurity wherever they exist, for the benefit of humanity.

I am honoured to speak on behalf of India at today’s debate on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). Let me begin by thanking the Secretary-General for his reports on the items under discussion, including the thirteenth consolidated progress report on the implementation of and international support for NEPAD (A/70/175). We endorse the statement made earlier by the representative of South Africa on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. As a template of an African-owned and African- led framework for the socioeconomic development of the continent, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development has played an important role in galvanizing the support of the international community for the efforts of African nations to bring sustainable development to their people. The report of the Secretary-General clearly notes that in the decade and a half of its implementation, the continent has, in overall terms, experienced unprecedented economic growth and improved social development, even though progress in some areas has been halting and persistent challenges have hampered the continent’s achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. While we have debated the implementation of NEPAD for several years, the unique context and timing of today’s debate are most propitious. Our leaders have just adopted the new 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1) to channel our collective efforts over the coming decade and a half. We also adopted this year a new template for financing development under the Addis Ababa Action Agenda. As the outcome of a conference that was held on African soil, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda will also, we hope, generate tangible results in generating financial and technological support to assist the efforts of African countries. Also this year African States adopted the African Union Agenda 2063, an ambitious 50-year transformative agenda that outlines a wide-ranging and comprehensive vision for the continent’s development, peace and security. With all these initiatives taken together, the year 2015 marks an important milestone for Africa’s development. The report of the Secretary-General on NEPAD paints a rather mixed picture of the state of global partnership to support Africa’s development. The most important reflection of this is of course the stagnating, if not declining, levels of development aid going to Africa. Even as overall levels of official development assistance (ODA) increased slightly in 2014 over the previous year, what is striking is that ODA to Africa suffered a decline. Moreover, the share of Africa in global ODA also fell. That cannot but be a cause of concern and a situation that must be remedied at the earliest. It is important not only that aid commitments be met at the earliest, but also that aid continues to flow to those most in need. It is equally important that aid not be diverted from social sectors like health and education into climate change mitigation, for which the support must be new and additional. India’s links with Africa go back a long way in history. Nurtured by people-to-people contact, these links are anchored in shared history and enduring friendship across the Indian Ocean. Our common bonds of anti-colonial struggle and post-colonial nation-building have further strengthened this friendship and cooperation. India and Africa today represent rapidly growing economies with demographic advantages and common development aspirations. The multifaceted development partnership between India and Africa is based on equality, friendship and solidarity and represents South- South cooperation in all its dimensions. It encompasses human resource development through scholarships, training and capacity-building; financial assistance through grants and soft loans to implement various public-goods projects in accordance with the requests of our African partners; and trade preferences, technology collaborations, humanitarian assistance, deployment of peacekeeping troops, and coordination of approaches on global issues of concern for developing countries. The focused priorities being pursued by the Government of India in its partnership with Africa are synergistic with Africa’s own Agenda 2063. The similarity of our priorities and shared purpose provide special strength and durability to our partnership. Just since 2011, India has provided more than 24,000 scholarships to African countries. These include more than 300 training programmes conducted at over 60 institutions and the scholarships for higher education at various institutions. India-Africa trade has multiplied 20 times in the past 15 years and doubled in the last five years to reach $72 billion in 2014-2015. India launched its Duty Free Tariff Preference Scheme for Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in 2008 and expanded it in 2014 to include 98 per cent of all tariff lines. The benefits of this unilateral scheme extend to all sub-Saharan African countries to increase their exports to India. Growing investment by Indian companies in Africa is now estimated to be in the range of $30 billion to $35 billion, spread across a range of sectors. In the last decade, the Government of India has approved a total of almost $9 billion in concessional credit for nearly 140 projects in more than 40 African countries, with special emphasis on LDCs, landlocked developing countries, and small island developing States partners in view of their special challenges and requirements. So far nearly 60 projects have been completed. India is organizing the third India-Africa Forum Summit from 26 to 29 October, for which we have planned the participation of all 54 African countries. This will be the first such Summit following the landmark adoption of Agenda 2063 by the African Union this year. This Summit will also be the first since the achievement of 50 years of pan-Africanism. India and Africa have long worked together to develop a common approach and joint endeavour to attain inclusive economic growth, eradicate poverty and achieve sustainable development. We have no doubt that this unique partnership will only strengthen in coming years.

The United States welcomes this opportunity to share views with colleagues on the progress of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). Africa’s development is important not just for Africa; it is important for the entire world. As President Obama said in his speech in July at the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa: “We will not be able to meet the challenges of our time — from ensuring a strong global economy to facing down violent extremism, to combating climate change, to ending hunger and extreme poverty — without the voices and contributions of one billion Africans.” We see opportunity in Africa. The continent’s middle class is projected to grow to more than one billion consumers over the next decade. With hundreds of millions of mobile phones and surging access to the Internet, Africans are beginning to leapfrog old technologies into new prosperity. While Africa is one of the fastest-growing regions in the world, sustainable development remains a challenge. We agreed on our universal goals in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1), adopted last month. Now we must work together to achieve them. That is why the United States appreciates the kind of holistic, comprehensive, and integrated approach to sustainable development that the New Economic Partnership for Africa’s Development represents. NEPAD’s six key areas of focus articulate a clear and compelling plan of action that will help the people of Africa realize sustainable economic development. Many of the United States foreign assistance programmes and partnerships are aligned with NEPAD’s vision for helping Africans help themselves to achieve sustainable development. For example, the United States Government’s Feed the Future programme focuses on increasing crop yields, which leads to higher incomes, improved nutrition, enhanced food security and stronger economies. Through these and other efforts, the United States has helped more than two million African farmers use new techniques to boost their yields, feed more people and reduce hunger. Our Power Africa programme is mobilizing billions of dollars in investments from Governments and businesses to reduce the number of Africans living without electricity. The United States is also taking steps to help Africans trade more with themselves by modernizing customs and border crossings. This work started with the East African Community, but we are now expanding our efforts across the continent. We are working together with Africa to take on the spectre of climate change. The United States pledged $3 billion to the Green Climate Fund to help countries prepare for and adapt to climate change. We are working hard to get the global Climate Fund set up so that it can deliver new tools for mitigation and adaptation. The United States is also investing in better health treatments to prevent and treat diseases. As the United States continues to provide billions of dollars in the fight against HIV/AIDS through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, the Global Health Security Initiative and other programmes, we are also helping African nations take greater ownership of their own human development by building strong public- health systems that stop diseases from spreading in the first place. Good governance is a central tenet of United States foreign assistance programming. As President Obama has said: “Nothing will unlock Africa’s economic potential more than ending the cancer of corruption”. The United States leadership in forming .the Open Government Partnership has increased transparency, bolstered citizen engagement and harnessed new technologies to improve governance. South Africa is the Government lead for the Open Government Partnership this year, creating an opportunity for Africa to follow an African lead on promoting transparency in governance. In the same vein, our delegation commends the African-led African Peer Review Mechanism process, which shares experiences and reinforces best practices. We appreciate the enthusiasm of the African Peer Review Mechanism Secretariat and its dedication to pursuing good governance. My delegation also appreciates the opportunity to consider the Assembly’s agenda item on the Decade to Roll Back Malaria. The United States has been committed to the prevention and treatment of malaria for many years, and we remain determined to work with national Governments and other partners to help lead the effort to end deaths from malaria. As many here know, the President’s Malaria Initiative, launched in 2005, aims to halve the burden of malaria in 70 per cent of at-risk populations in sub-Saharan Africa. The President’s Malaria Initiative now supports 19 countries on the continent. It has also produced more than 48 million anti-malarial treatments and 51 million rapid diagnostic tests. With United States support, countries are also strengthening their own capacities to fight the disease. Investments in malaria prevention and control are positively impacting the lives of millions of children, pregnant women and families in Africa. It is a tremendous success story, yet it is still incomplete. The next United States President’s Malaria Initiative strategy, for 2015-2020, was launched at the White House in February. This strategy embraces the global malaria community’s vision of a world without malaria. It outlines the United States Government’s goal to work with its partners to further reduce malaria deaths towards the long-term goal of elimination. As a partner in Africa’s historic transformation, the United States is committed to promoting public health, food security and access to electricity — investments that will help fuel Africa’s rise for generations to come. We look forward to continuing our work with the African Union and with the people of Africa to realize the promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

First, allow me to thank the Secretary-General for the reports concerning these agenda items (A/70/175 and A/70/176). I wish to express appreciation to Ambassador Maged Abdelaziz, the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Africa, and Mr. Ibrahim Mayaki, Chief Executive Officer of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). I appreciate their efforts in the service of the African continent. My delegation supports the statement made earlier by the representative of South Africa on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. We also support the statement by the representative of Sierra Leone on behalf of the Group of African States. The General Assembly discussion concerning the role of NEPAD comes only three weeks after the Summit at which we adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1). We recall that the Agenda does not leave anyone out. It focuses on 17 Goals and 169 targets. This meeting is of particular importance because it is being held in the year when, at the international level, we adopted the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. At the African level, at its twenty-fourth session, in Addis Ababa in January, the African Union Summit adopted the African Union Agenda 2063, which is intended to catalyse peace, development and security in Africa over a fifty-year period. The African Union also adopted the First Ten-Year Implementation Plan for that Agenda during its twenty-fifth Summit, in South Africa in June. In the light of what has been said, it is now necessary to establish links between the First Ten-Year Implementation Plan for Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda and to coordinate these Agendas. NEPAD has a role to play in that regard. It will thus be able to help Africa to achieve ownership of the Sustainable Development Goals and endorse the targets that relate to the African countries and to regional and national plans, while respecting the cultural and other features of Africa. Despite the progress made in recent years in terms of socioeconomic growth and development, and despite the progress recorded in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), it should be remembered that the African continent is nevertheless coping with a number of crises that have undermined its capacity to achieve some of the MDGs fully. A major challenge for the future is to fulfil the ambitious objectives for the 2030 Agenda. To do so, it will be incumbent on developed countries to respect their commitments made during major United Nations conferences devoted to the African continent. It will also be important to support African States in their efforts to restore economic stability, facilitate investment and technology transfer, integrate the private sector, ensure food security and develop infrastructure and human resources. With respect to the questions relating to peace and security in Africa, many countries on the continent are still suffering a deteriorating security situation and armed conflict. Libya is one such country. We stress here the close relationship between development and security. There can be no development without security, and vice versa. There is an urgent need to strengthen institutional cooperation with African States, particularly with respect to conflict prevention, the maintenance of peace, post-conflict recovery, security reform, disarmament, the promotion of a democracy and the rule of law and good governance, in order to achieve political and economic stability in Africa. In conclusion, my delegation reiterates the commitment of Libya. Despite our ongoing security situation, instability and lack of economic growth and development, the Government of my country will seek, with African States, to promote the New Agenda for Africa’s Development — the partnership directed towards making progress and achieving growth and prosperity for African countries through common action and cooperation — and respect for the cooperation agreements signed with the African States. We will work together to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Africa is a rich continent, rich in human resources, young and dynamic people, and the huge natural resources that, if they are exploited properly, will enable Africa to achieve the ambitious vision of the Agenda 2063 and thus become an advanced continent, able to make a positive contribution to the prosperity of humankind, its stability, its progress and its happiness.

Resolutely overcoming many challenges, Africa has recently achieved significant successes in socioeconomic, scientific, technical and cultural development. It is playing an important part in building a just, democratic and multipolar world. Of course, most of the credit goes to the Africans themselves. Russia greatly appreciates these efforts made by the African community. The full participation of African countries in worldwide political, economic and humanitarian processes will help to ensure that we achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1), which harmoniously incorporates the priorities of Africa’s strategic new concept, Agenda 2063. We support coordinated measures to help achieve the sustainable development of Africa. We attach the utmost importance to the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). We are actively participating in concerted steps to provide comprehensive assistance bilaterally and through existing international mechanisms. Russia is playing a lead position in writing off the debts of African States. Today, under the standard Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Debt Initiative, much of the debt of Africa, more than $20 billion, has been written off, and we are taking steps to further lighten the debt burden on Africans, including through the debt-for-development swap. Russia’s cooperation with the Governments of the African continent and with regional and subregional entities is growing. In September last year Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Africa Union Commission signed a memorandum on a mechanism for political consultations. We are currently working on updating the 2003 memorandum of understanding between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Southern African Development Community on the foundations of mutual relations and cooperation. We are considering the possibility of signing a similar document with the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa. We are also working on trade and economic cooperation, including mutually beneficial investment projects. This includes a favourable customs and tariffs regime in our country that covers most of the imports from Africa. We are pleased to note a growing trend in Russian business in Africa. Successful examples include major projects such as developing platinum deposits in Darwendale in Zimbabwe and building an oil refinery in Uganda. We attach great importance to food security and humanitarian assistance to Africa. We provide significant health care assistance, including helping countries recover from the Ebola virus. We have increased Russian contributions through the World Food Programme, the World Health Organization, the International Civil Defence Organization, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the International Development Association. The most important prerequisite for stability and sustainable development in Africa is conflict prevention and conflict resolution. There has been a drop over the past decade in the number and intensity of the conflicts, but Africa is still vulnerable. So it is very important that the international community should respond in a timely and effective way to emerging threats to security, but it is inadmissible that any State should dictate to Africans how they must solve their problems, and those who try blatantly to intervene in internal affairs of African States are being destructive. A central role belongs to the United Nations, primarily the Security Council. At the same time, initiatives by Africans themselves have turned out rather well in a number of cases, and such efforts deserve support. Who better than Africans can have a full grasp of the situation or have access to tools that are better suited to the local conditions? We welcome progress in an African peace and security structure with assistance from the international community. We consistently advocate cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union and between the Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council. We call for intensified efforts to deal with the conflict situations in Darfur, Somalia, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, Mali, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea-Bissau and the inter-Sudanese area, and to combat international terrorism, extremism, transnational organized crime, piracy, trafficking in weapons and drugs, uncontrolled migration and other, related issues. We note the active participation of Africans in peacekeeping missions in Africa under the auspices of the United Nations and the African Union. We will step up our support for capacity-building in African countries to enhance their ability to deal with crises. We provide training to peacekeepers and law enforcement personnel in Russian academic institutions, and we are elaborating for the international community a strategy of practical measures to strengthen peace and security in Africa. We call for enhancing the initiatives of African members of the Security Council. Our country participates in many peacekeeping missions in Africa and is one of the biggest suppliers of goods and services, particularly for civil aviation. In conclusion, I confirm the Russian Federation’s willingness to continue its political dialogue and mutually beneficial multidimensional cooperation with Africa and its active participation in international programmes and projects to assist Africa.

First, I would like to thank the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa and all of those involved in making this year’s Africa Week a success. Secondly, I wish to take this opportunity to pay special tribute to the leadership shown in recent years by the African Union and Africa’s regional economic communities in strengthening integration, peace and development in Africa. Building a more resilient and just global community cannot be achieved without an ever stronger partnership between the United Nations and regional organizations, not least in Africa. Thirdly, I would like to say a few words about Sweden’s long-standing partnership with Africa, both in the past and, more important perhaps, in the future. What started out many decades ago as support for African independence, freedom, democracy and human rights, including a vigorous stand against apartheid, has over the years evolved into a strong partnership for addressing regional and global challenges of common concern. Looking to the future, we will continue to support Africa’s commitment to building, as it is put in the African Union Agenda 2063, “an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in the global arena”. We will do this bilaterally as Sweden, we will do this as a member of the European Union, and we will do this in partnership with the international community, as a Member of the United Nations. We need longer-term, comprehensive approaches to security and development, in particular in conflict- affected States and situations of fragility. It is this integrated vision that guides Sweden’s development cooperation, as well as its work as the Chair of the Peacebuilding Commission here in New York and Co-Chair of the International Dialogue on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding. But again, this can only be done through an ongoing conversation and in full inclusivity and recognition of the strong legitimacy that comes from the regional organizations themselves. It is high time that Africa’s legitimate claim to be adequately represented on the Security Council is acted upon. Our commitment to both security and development has guided Sweden’s work at the United Nations. Ever since the days of Dag Hammarskjöld, Sweden has remained a steadfast supporter of a strong United Nations and effective multilateralism. Tens of thousands of Swedes have served in the Blue Helmets, and in Africa alone we have participated with large troop contributions in United Nations peace support operations, starting in the 1960s in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and following in Somalia, Liberia, Chad and now currently in Mali. We are the sixth largest provider of voluntary contributions to the United Nations, a strong advocate of core funding, and one of the largest contributors to the United Nations development funds and humanitarian aid, and we are proud to be so. The universality of the Sustainable Development Goals entails a shift away from traditional development assistance. That is why my Government this month announced a whole-of-Government approach to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This means that we pledge to look at how all policy areas contribute to equitable and sustainable global development, including with regard to trade and investment policies. All of this has to start at home. But that having been said, we still know that international development cooperation will be needed for the foreseeable future, particularly in the poorest and most vulnerable countries and regions, and in the context of the new SDGs we have reaffirmed the importance of the 0.7 per cent goal of official development assistance (ODA) to developing countries. All of us need to continue and step up these efforts. As for Sweden, I am happy to announce here today that we next year will continue to invest 1 per cent of our domestic income to ODA.

I now call on the observer of the African Union.

Allow me first to convey our warmest congratulations to Mr. Mogens Lykketoft on his election as President of the General Assembly at its seventieth session. I also seize this opportunity to thank his predecessor, Mr. Sam Kutesa, for his commendable achievements throughout the pivotal sixty-ninth session. The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) is central to the continent’s transformation efforts. The necessary political determination has been renewed by African leaders to help deliver the accelerated implementation of NEPAD under the aegis of the African Union and in close collaboration with the regional economic communities. Furthermore, the resounding commitment of African leaders to a sustainable development agreement for the next 15 years that is transformative and global is proof that the African continent is ready to eradicate all forms of marginalization and underdevelopment and engage in structural transformation. Over the past few years, Africa has consistently demonstrated that its countries are capable of transforming and even fast-tracking their economies, thereby boosting intra-African trade and consolidating inclusive growth for the entire continent. As the development agency of the African Union, NEPAD focuses on the strategic coordination of the implementation of the continent’s priority programmes and projects. That role is now more critical in the context of the African Union Agenda 2063, which is the matrix of Africa’s future transformation. We are now at the end of a very important year for gender equality and women’s empowerment. This year marks important milestones for Africa in terms of the global agendas on gender equality, namely, the twentieth anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the fifteenth anniversary of Security Council resolution 1325 (2000), on women and peace and security. In recognition of those milestones, the African Union declared 2015 the Year of Women’s Empowerment and Development under Africa’s Agenda 2063. Agenda 2063 envisages the effective participation of women in public and private life through a full and fair share of economic, social, cultural and political opportunities and decision-making. While agriculture has been and remains the backbone of many African economies and will be the basis of our industrialization, overall the informal sector continues to provide critical economic opportunities for Africa’s poor. It is the resilience and resourcefulness of this informal sector of self-employed and risk- taking individuals, predominantly women, that sustain many economies. In our drive for industrialization, this informal economy will need to transit to a formal economy. The African Union recognizes that promoting gender equality is one of the most effective ways to drive inclusive growth, and it supports countries, women’s organizations and civil society organizations in their efforts to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment. In order to ensure that there are additional resources to support development projects that address gender concerns in Africa, the NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency, in partnership with the Spanish Government, established the NEPAD- Spanish Fund for African Women’s Empowerment. This NEPAD Fund has achieved many outcomes since its inception in 2007. It has contributed to women’s economic empowerment through skills transfer, access to finance, the setting up of businesses and access to land. More than half a million women have benefited directly from the Fund. The NEPAD Agency continues to prioritize the empowerment of women through its gender support programme and is working very closely with member States and development partners to bring practical support, specifically in the areas of skill and career development, particularly for women in rural areas, networking, organizing women’s groups, and scaling up economic and business opportunities and start-ups. Furthermore, pursuant to the decision of the African Union Assembly, the NEPAD Agency is developing a policy framework on youth employment in Africa. The African continental framework on youth employment will be mainstreamed in Agenda 2063, and the NEPAD Agency is working on this endeavour in collaboration with the African Union Commission, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, the United Nations Development Programme and the International Labour Organization. Let me emphasize that infrastructure remains Africa’s top priority. With low levels of intraregional economic exchange and only a small share of global trade, Africa is determined to increase its competitiveness. Infrastructure inefficiencies are costing Africa billions of dollars annually and are stunting growth. Bridging the gap in infrastructure is thus vital for economic advancement and sustainable development. However, it is only through regional and continental cooperation and solution-finding that this can be achieved. Under the leadership of His Excellency President Macky Sall, President of Senegal and Chair of the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee, the Dakar Financing Summit in June 2014 brought together private sector executives and African project owners to address the challenges besetting the implementation of the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA). On that occasion, PIDA stakeholders prioritized 16 mega-projects in order to transform Africa, among which is the 4,500-km highway between Algiers and Lagos, which is almost completed. The NEPAD Agency is now actively involved in four facility instruments resulting from the Dakar Financing Summit. First, the NEPAD Agency established and financed the PIDA Service Delivery Mechanism, which is designed to endow project owners with the required capacity for early-stage project preparation. Secondly, the NEPAD Agency supported the Infrastructure Consortium for Africa in the establishment of a round table of project preparation funds in order to enhance cooperation among the funds, so that they can undertake continent-wide initiatives such as PIDA. Thirdly, the African Development Bank Africa 50 Fund was established to finance infrastructure projects, including PIDA projects. The fourth instrument, and the final milestone, is the Continental Business Network, which serves as a high-level platform for private-sector involvement in the PIDA projects. At the launch of this platform, more than 40 top global and African chief executive officers made a concrete commitment towards the development of Africa’s regional infrastructure and recognized the Continental Business Network as an African- led movement to fast-track high-level private-sector investment in the development of Africa’s regional infrastructure. The report of the High-level Panel on Illicit Financial Flows from Africa observed that Africa loses $50 billion through illicit financial flows. In order to commence the implementation of a recommendation in the report, and of the decision of the African Union Summit of June 2015, the NEPAD Agency organized the first-ever regional dialogue on capacity-building for tax and mining administration officers in the West and Central Africa region. It is envisaged that this dialogue, designed for senior government officials, will contribute to improved tax policy design and to better contract negotiation for the extractive industries. The year 2015 will be a landmark year for the global fight to eradicate poverty and achieve a sustainable future. We are pleased and thankful to see that African priorities in general and the NEPAD programmes in particular have been taken well into account in the two major agreements adopted so far. The third International Conference on Financing for Development, held in Addis Ababa in July, came at a critical time. A central issue is how to reform the global financing system in a way that will allow the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. We therefore welcome the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and are convinced that its recommendations will play an important role in ensuring that the SDGs are achieved by 2030 and will contribute to development financing even beyond that date. As the Sustainable Development Goals have been adopted, it is of great importance that the NEPAD Agency, the African Union system partners and the regional economic communities, through Agenda 2063 and with the United Nations agencies, promote good governance, quality education for all and women’s empowerment, and that they increase the application of science, technology and innovation to improve health and well-being, conserve and sustainably benefit from the blue economy, address climate change, eliminate hunger and attain food security, and develop quality infrastructure, including for energy. That is why significant support for PAIDA — the Partnership on Africa’s Integration and Development Agendas — from the Member States will be critical. The SDGs are a good foundation for long-term sustainable solutions that will enable Africa to realize its development aspirations as embodied in Agenda 2063 and the NEPAD programmes. However, it is important to maintain the coherence and alignment of the 2030 Agenda with the vision outlined in the African Union Agenda 2063 and its First Ten-Year Implementation Plan, which are to be operationalized by the NEPAD Agency. It is most essential to reiterate that the foundation for Africa’s renewal is premised on the reforms of national governance systems under the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), which was established in 2003. The Mechanism is the focal point for deepening democracy and the dissemination of best practices among African Union member States and reflects their commitment to improving governance at all levels. To date, 35 States members of the African Union have voluntarily joined the Mechanism, 17 countries have been peer-reviewed, and the second-cycle review process is in the pipeline. Going forward, APRM has the urgent task of ensuring the effective implementation of the national programmes of action arising from the peer review exercises. At the institutional level, the APRM is being strengthened through its integration into the African Union and through the development of stronger collaboration and closer synergy with the relevant regional organizations and programmes. In this regard, the APRM is being repositioned so that it can effectively serve as the monitoring tool for the African Union Agenda 2063. In the preparations for the twenty-first session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris, the NEPAD Agency, through our support to the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment, has provided technical support to the African group of negotiators. In our capacity as secretariat of the African Union Environment Initiative and the regional environment flagship programmes, we are currently undertaking programme development and implementation to promote sound environmental management for sustainable development and resource mobilization to support environmental programmes in Africa. The NEPAD Climate Fund has supported capacity-building activities for policy coherence at the national level and strengthening the resilience capabilities of communities affected by climate change. In 2015, two solid multilateral consensuses were reached, ahead of a third one coming at the end of the year. That shows the tremendous determination of the international community to tackle the global issues currently affecting the people and the planet. NEPAD is a partner of choice for the implementation of these ambitious agendas on our continent. As the technical agency of the African Union, we reaffirm our commitment to a better Africa and a better world by 2030. I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa and Ambassador Maged Abdelaziz, whose commitment to Africa’s priorities and programmes is extremely important. I should also like to express sincere thanks to the Permanent Observer Mission of the African Union to the United Nations and theGroup of African Staattes in New York for their continued support.