🇲🇿Daniel Francisco ChapoMozambique · UNGA 81 speech

Your Excellency, heads of states and the government, Your Excellency, Khalilur Rahman, President of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, Your Excellency, Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, Your Excellencies, dear ministers here present, representing the heads of states, Allow me to start by congratulating you, Mr. President, on your election to preside over the work of this Assembly and assure you the full support of the Republic of Mozambique. We also recognize the work carried out by your predecessor, Her Excellency, Annalena Baerbock. in the service of this organization, whose contribution we greatly value. Mr. President, the topic chosen for this session, Restoring Trust, Managing Transformation, a United Nation that Benefits All, invites us to return to the opening words of the United Nations Charter, simple words, yet perhaps amongst the most powerful ever inscribed in an international treaty. We, the people, together, has the most comprehensive expression of our collective responsibility towards the humanity. 81 years ago, In the face of devastation caused by war, the humanity chose cooperation over confrontation, the law over force, and hope over fear. That promise has shaped generations. It has protected millions of lives in the whole world. and it gave voice to those that during many time remained on the margin of international decisions. Today, however, the promise that we face is one of the toughest tests as we live in a world marked by protected wars, growing geopolitical rivalities, persistent humanitarian crisis, severe weather events, and other highly complex challenges at the world. At the same time, Your Excellency, the digital revolution, the demographic changes, and the organization of the value chains are transforming our economies every day and the society at an unprecedented pace. Never has the world been so interconnected and at the same time so fragmented like today. And it's precisely in this contest that the theme of this session takes an important significance. Restoring trust requires consistency between the principle we proclaim as leaders and the decisions we make. It requires the fair application of international law, and concrete results that translate into improvement in the lives of the people in the whole world. In short, restoring trust means renewing the promise made 81 years ago. I repeat, we the people. Mr. President, Mozambique knows from its own experience the value of multilateralism and the value of the United Nations, this organization. This organization has stood by our people at decisive moments of its history. on the path to our national independence as a people in the pursuit and building of peace in Mozambique and in the national reconstruction, in the responding to natural disasters and in the promotion of sustainable development. Today, in the process of the national dialogue. Thank you so much, UN. The trust of Mozambique is a result of a living memory of the Mozambican people. It is in this period that Mozambique would like to commend the leadership of the Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, whose tenure coincided with a period marked with enormous global challenges and in which the limits of multilateralism were put to test. He leaves behind a robust organization that is prepared to a better respond to the challenges of our time. His legacy is, in our point of view, unquestionable positive. and marked by transformative achievements of this organization. Thus, the best tribute we can pay to his legacy is to continue the work of strengthening this organization because no generation is going to inherit United Nations as a finished legacy. Your Excellencies, today, the three pillars amongst which the UN work peace and security, development and human rights are under unprecedented pressure. In the realm of peace, security, we witness proliferation of conflicts, worsening of civilian suffering, and the spread of terrorism and the expansion of transnational organized crime. These challenges, amongst others, must lead us to strengthen compliance with the promotion of the mechanism for prevention and peaceful resolution of conflict, as well as what we are going to do at the international law in the light of United Nations Charter, including respect for those sovereignty and territorial integrity of our states, the human rights and international cooperation factors that are, in fact, inseparable to be truthful. In this way, we will be able to address conflicts that persist around the world, including in some countries and regions of our continent, Africa. It is also this that underlies the support of our defense for solutions for two states for Palestine. living side by side with peace and security with Israel has a legitimate and lasting path forward. The principle of self-determination of the people enshrined in the United Nations Charter as far back as 1945 remains so valid as ever. It is in this context that we reaffirm our principled position in support the cause for the Sahrawi people. The value enshrined in the United Nations Charter elevate this organization to be the epicenter for global multilateralism. For this reason, we oppose to imposition of unilateral coercive measures, which continues to penalize entire people in clear violation of the formation charter of the UN. We thus reiterate our position in the support of ending of economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed against Cuba. Likewise, we wish to express our solidarity with the brotherly people of Zimbabwe and reiterate our position in favor of unconditional lifting of sanctions against Zimbabwe and the other countries in the world. We also advocate for mutual beneficial economic cooperation based on respect for sovereignty for each state, for the equality between the states and the freedom of choice for the people during the electoral process. In the area of development, we are still far from fulfilling the promise of the 2030 agenda. With less than four years until the deadline, millions of people remain deprived of basic opportunities, water, energy, infrastructure, and others. Thus, it's important to accelerate the implementation of the commitment made under the SDGs. which requires predictable, accessible, and sustainable financing. It also requires a fair international financial architecture, more fair, sustainable debt relief, greater transfer of technology, international trade that is more balanced, and investments that can transform the potential into prosperity. as well as adhere to the principle of common responsibility, but differentiated responsibilities. Similarly, in the field of human rights, it's also important to promote a balanced and impartial and coherent approach based on the principles of universality and equal treatment between the states. Promoting these rights should prioritize constructive dialogue, cooperation, and the strengthening of our institutions. Mr. President, in Mozambique, we are committed to consolidating peace, strengthening democratic institutions, and conducting an inclusive national dialogue led by the Mozambicans initiatives that are genuinely Mozambican to deepen reconciliation, national unity, the peace, and the reforms that are necessary with the support of our partners, international partners, while respecting the national ownership. In Cabo Delgado, we have made progress in fighting terrorism and strengthening security. thanks to the efforts of the defense and security and the support of SADC, the European Union, Rwanda, and Tanzania. However, the stabilization remains incomplete and requires a concentrated response and a greater international cooperation for the fight against terrorism. We are grateful for the solidarity we have received, and we call for a more predictable and coordinated international support to consolidate security, stabilization, reconstruction, and development in the affected areas. where the local force is still doing the work in the fight against terrorism. Within the framework of the National Development Plan 2025 to 2044, Mozambique is committed to transforming its potential into shared prosperity for the people through the valorization of resources and investing in human capital. especially the youth and women, which are the majority. We also want to increase value to the natural resources. We also want to modernize our agriculture, promote industrialization, develop tourism, expand access to energy, invest in infrastructures, education, health, science, and technology, digitalization, and in the economy in general. Natural resources should contribute to the economic diversification of our economy, the mobilization of income and investment in our biggest asset, which is the talent of the Mozambican people and the talent of the African people. Our location in the Indian Ocean, Our logistic corridors and our agricultural potential, energy and mineral make Mozambique a strategic platform for the investment and regional integration. We therefore seek partnerships that build national capacity, promote local content, respect the environment, and generate employment, especially for the young people and women. Mozambique will continue to diversify its partnership in a sovereign way, transparent and mutual beneficial manner, working with all the parties in the light of the national priorities. This is also the Africa's ambition. to be the architect of their own destiny, to participate in setting the rules, and to fully benefit from the wealth it helps to create. Africa faces, however, a paradox. It is rich in resources, yet retains little of the value that it generates. Therefore, investment must involve and from simple extraction to the transformation, creation of value chain at the local level, moving from transactions to partnerships, from dependence to capacity building, and from exportation of resources to the construction of value chains, both national, regional, and international. In this context, The regional integration takes a strategic importance as it amplifies markets, creates economies, integrates productive challenges, attracts investment, and stimulate innovation, and also transforming the economic potential into concrete opportunity, especially for its people. and young people in particular. In Mozambique, this vision translates into progress on electricity interconnectors with neighboring countries, as well as in one-stop borders crossing points that we are building. The integration is built through roads that bring people closer. with energy that crosses borders, infrastructures that transform neighboring communities into single communities, a transformation that requires fair and sustainable financing conditions. Your Excellencies, with less than four years remaining for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda, developing countries continue to face high financing costs, rising debt, and limited access to resources to invest in their own development. We continue to advocate for a fair international architecture, more predictable and accessible financing, and sustainable solutions for the debt. It is also necessary that the access to concessional financing take into account the country's vulnerabilities, beyond just the income that we also want to make sure that developed countries can fully fulfill their commitment to development and financial action. For Mozambique, as one of the countries that is more vulnerable in the world, climate change, they translate into losses in life, displaced families, destroyed crops, and damaged infrastructures cyclically. The cyclones, the

that resilience is now an environmental, economic, and food security, social for development issue, and increasingly one of peace and security in all the world. We therefore reiterate the need to increase funding for adaptation, facilitate access to climate funds, operationalize the loss and damage mechanisms, and invest in early warning systems and resilient infrastructure. Mozambique remains highly vulnerable to extreme weather events, floods, inundations, cyclones, and we are concerned with the El Nino that might have potential severe impact in the central and southern parts of the country, especially when it comes to drought, food insecurity and livelihood. The preparedness and international cooperation will be essential to mitigate these impacts in a context where humanitarian needs are already facing a severe funding shortfall in the whole world. Mr. President, digital transformation remains or demands the same solidarity that we are talking about because Africa must not limit itself to supplying the minerals that fuels the world innovation hubs. We need to have investment in connectivity, computing capacity, scientific research, training of young people in Africa, technology transfer, governance, ethics for AI in the spirit of partnership that builds capacity and promotes autonomy of our sovereignty states. Thus, Mozambique reiterate its support for the objectives of the UN aid initiative to make this organization more effective, coherent, inclusive, representative and suited to the challenges of our time. Reform must be embraced as political commitment focused on concrete results. Reforms must also correct imbalances in representation of global governance. In this regard, Africa cannot continue to be in a center of the Security Council agenda while remaining absent from its rank of permanent members. Africa must be a permanent member of the Security Council of the UN. We therefore reaffirm the common African position related to the reform of the United Nations Security Council based on the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration, under which no fewer than two permanent seats with all prerogatives and privileges, including the veto, as long as it exists, and five non-permanent seats are allocated to Africa. The contribution that Mozambique wishes to make to the debate on this Assembly has the objective of restoring trust through peace, manage transformation through inclusion, and produce results through a coherent actions at the national, regional, and global levels. To this, It's important to strengthen international cooperation and equip the UN with greater capacity to address the challenges of the present and make sure that the future generations can have a stronger organization than the one we have received, an organization equal to the challenges of our time, capable of serving the people with dignity, protecting the planet, and promoting a shared prosperity at international level. Your Excellencies, 81 years ago, the founders of this organization entrusted humanity with a promise of peace, cooperation, and dignity, and most of all, hope. Today, that responsibility falls to us, and the path remains very clear. Dialogue, cooperation, partnership, innovation, solidarity, and continued strengthening to the role of the United Nations, and never the use of force in order to impose decisions. This organization is the most comprehensive expression of our collective responsibility and our commitment to multilateralism to the service of the humanity. Mr. President, Allow me to conclude by returning to the opening words of our Magna Carta or Charter, "We the people." Those words do not belong to the past, but their commitment to a future which the United Nations remain the expression of our shared responsibility towards unity in the humanity. Thank you so much for your kind attention.