STATEMENT BY AMBASSADOR BURHAN GAFOOR, PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE TO THE UNITED NATIONS ON AGENDA ITEM 124: “REVITALISATION OF THE WORK OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY”, 7 NOVEMBER 2022

Thank you Mr President.

1 Let me start by thanking you for your excellent leadership on this critical issue of revitalising the work of the General Assembly. At the outset, my delegation aligns itself with the statements delivered by Malaysia on behalf of ASEAN as well as by Algeria on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement.

Mr President,

2 These are troubled times.  It is clear that the Security Council is not always able to discharge its primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. The global economy is facing headwinds and we are falling behind on addressing climate change and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Yet a rules-based multilateral system where all Member States have an equal voice remains critical to the maintenance of international peace, security, and prosperity.  The role played by the General Assembly has therefore become even more critical in defending the principles of the UN Charter and in strengthening rules-based multilateral system.

3 To achieve actual outcomes, the General Assembly must continue to be nimble, effective, and inclusive. Most importantly, we must ensure that the revitalisation exercise does not become in itself an exercise in routine and rhetoric. Ultimately, the test of the revitalisation process lies in whether we can deliver real action through concrete steps and not just by talk on revitalisation.

Mr President,

4 In this regard, I would like to congratulate Ambassador Mitch Fifield of Australia and Ambassador Egriselda Lopez of El Salvador on their reappointments as Co-Chairs of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Revitalisation of the Work of the General Assembly during the 77^th session. They have done an excellent job in steering the process thus far and we have every confidence that they will lead us to greater heights. We are pleased that they have agreed to continue steering the work of the group and strongly support their proposal for us to focus on the list of issues identified in their letter of 25 August 2022.  I call on the Co-Chairs to be bold and ambitious in their work this session, to push the boundaries of possible reforms, and to raise the level of ambition far beyond ‘business-as-usual’. You will have the support of my delegation in pursuing ambitious outcomes from this very important process.

Mr President,

5 My delegation is encouraged by the tangible progress that has been made so far to revitalise the work of the General Assembly in recent years. There are many concrete examples of the results we’ve achieved, include the decisions to (a) biennalise the revitalisation resolution; (b) elect its President, Vice Presidents, and Chairs of the Main Committees at least three months in advance of a new session; and (c) enhance dialogue between Member States and the Secretariat.  Still, we think we can do more. In this regard, please allow me to make three suggestions.

6 First, we should strive to achieve a greater degree of coherence and coordination across the multiplicity of processes and workstreams. With the launch of many mandated processes, there is a real risk of fragmentation and also a risk of a lack of coherence in how the different processes are carried out. We therefore welcome your commitment, Mr President, to leverage the General Committee and use it as an inclusive platform for all Member States to undertake regular stock-take sessions and engage in what I have called “big-picture” conversations. We believe this will help to improve synergies and tighten coordination across the Main Committees and mandated processes.

7 We also believe that we can use the General Committee for joint briefings by the Secretary-General, Deputy Secretary-General, heads of specialised UN agencies, and other relevant stakeholders and experts. It is time to make  greater use of the General Committee as a platform to share information among delegations and to try to have an overview of what we do here in the General Assembly rather than let the multiplicity of processes we launch go full steam ahead on their own such that they end up working in silos.

8 One specific area where greater coordination through the General Committee could yield better benefits is in the area of scheduling.  There is merit in better coordinating the schedule to allow us to minimise overlapping meetings, particularly during times when voting and other election procedures are scheduled to take place. This is especially salient for delegations from small states which inevitably have very few diplomats and delegates and they have to run from meeting room to meeting room. We should not disadvantage smaller delegations, or any delegation for that matter. We should make sure that they are not excluded from participating in the different mandated processes just because we have many meetings at the same time.

9 The second suggestion we would like to make is related to rationalising and streamlining the General Assembly’s agenda. My delegation would like to reiterate its strong support to (a) cluster items and resolutions; and (b) introduce sunset clauses where possible. We are really concerned that if left unchecked, the proliferation of agenda items as well as lengthy and repetitive resolutions will only serve to undermine swift action by the General Assembly. It is time to get serious about rationalising the agenda of the General Assembly. At the 76^th session, we, as the General Assembly, adopted 307 resolutions and 140 decisions. This is an increase from 297 resolutions and 108 decisions at the 66^th session. The work of General Assembly has expanded, if not exploded exponentially, over the last ten years.

10 We believe that the time is right to seriously consider bolder ideas to streamline the agenda.  One idea we would like to suggest is to biennialise any resolution adopted annually with only technical updates, unless there is a consensus to do otherwise for a specific resolution, in which case let us focus on the reasons to accord such a resolution an exception. We can go even further to automatically triennialise every biennial resolution unless there is consensus otherwise for a particular resolution. Delegations are welcome to present their reasons as to why their biennial resolutions should be given an exemption. We are ready for this move. If any delegation is willing to work with us on this idea, please let us know. We are ready for ambitious reforms and welcome colleagues to work with us and the co-facilitators. Whatever we do, it is time to get serious about streamlining the agenda of the General Assembly.

11 The third point I wish to address is with regard to strengthening the Office of the President of the General Assembly (OPGA). An active and hands-on President can make a real difference to shaping our collective agenda for the better, as we are seeing in the OPGA and the leadership and initiatives of our current President Csaba Kőrösi, and we thank him for his leadership. We strongly welcome efforts by past and present Presidents to (a) participate in retreats to strengthen the General Assembly comprising incoming and outgoing presidencies of each session; (b) provide a comprehensive handover report; and (c) introduce ‘morning dialogues’ on relevant topics of the day.  These dialogues allow for a safe space to have informal conversations on very important issues confronting the international community.

12 We would support the longstanding calls for OPGA to be given adequate human and financial resources, as indicated in A/RES/73/325, rather than making the OPGA rely mainly on voluntary contributions and secondments. We think it is time to address this issue seriously. The OPGA is important and its running and resourcing should be properly institutionalised. The issue of providing sufficient financial and human resources for the OPGA is particularly important for small countries. Many small countries have provided candidates who have gone on to serve as PGAs and they have done so with great distinction and leadership. It is important that we allow small states to continue to provide candidates to serve in this important position,  as small states by their very nature have limited resources and would not be able to bring their own resources to fund the OPGA. We should not disadvantage smaller countries from aspiring to hold the highest office, which is why the issue of adequate financial and human resources for the OPGA is vitally important.

Mr President,

13 The world is looking to the United Nations and the General Assembly for leadership and initiatives at a time of great geopolitical and economic uncertainties.  If  the General Assembly is to remain relevant and respected, we must redouble its efforts to modernise and revitalise its working methods and deliver concrete results.  My delegation stands ready to work with all Member States to deliver ambitious outcomes at this session’s meetings on the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Revitalisation of the General Assembly.

Thank you.

.    .    .    .    .