🇸🇳Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar FayeSenegal · UNGA 81 speech

Mr. President of the General Assembly, Heads of State and Government, Secretary-General, Ministers, distinguished delegates. President, on behalf of Senegal, I wish to thank your predecessor and convey to you my hearty congratulations. I also wish you every success as you steer the work of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly. Moreover, I wish to once again reiterate our unwavering support for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres's work in service of peace, development and human rights. We commend his conduct of the Organization, and we wish him every success in his future endeavors once his mandate concludes. Dear colleagues, As was the case last year, we are yet again meeting here against the backdrop of a worrying global juncture. The Organization is facing an unprecedented accumulation of complex global challenges. Against that backdrop, the theme of this session rightly expresses the fact that we are facing a major issue. Indeed, the major issue of our time is restoring trust, managing transformation in order to build a United Nations that delivers for all. The current crisis we face is undoubtedly a crisis of trust. More trust between states needs to come about, but there is a crisis in that trust. There's a crisis of confidence and trust in international institutions, and there's a crisis of confidence in international law's ability to enforce agreements reached on the basis of the United Nations Charter. Finally, there is a crisis of confidence in the original promise of the United Nations, namely preserving succeeding generations from the scourge of war and promoting economic, social progress for all. It is high time to once again place this promise at the heart of the UN's work. If we do not wish it to remain a dead ideal, It must become once more a reality for everyone. And yet, armed conflicts are increasing in number. War in Ukraine, the Middle East, Sudan, Haiti, Yemen, and Africa, including the expansion of terrorism in the Sahel, all of these bear witness to the continued worsening and deep cracks in international peace and security. in Gaza and indeed throughout the OPT. Human suffering is unconscionable. There are systemic violations of international law and these are unacceptable. It is high time to act to halt the horror of mass murder and destruction. No country No peace, no security can be viable, nor can it last without the two-state solution, Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital and Israel, the two living side by side within safe and internationally recognized borders. In a situation of ongoing conflict which favors an arms race, which erodes disarmament mechanisms and fuels risk linked to new technologies. And that the fact that there is an arms race in outer space in this context, we call for a collective stirring, peaking of our conscience. Peace is not a simple aspiration. It cannot be. It is a collective responsibility. It is for this reason that as interim president of ECOWAS, I will spare no effort to work to bring about peace and security in the sub-region. Of course, I will be doing this alongside the African Union and the United Nations, working closely with them. I am now thinking specifically here of the fight against terrorism. It must be a common struggle. Because the scourge of terrorism is cross-border by its very nature, the Sahel must not be abandoned to its desolate fate. Its stabilization must be pursued, it cannot be forgotten. Of course, there are worsening health crises. The Ebola epidemic is an example of just that. Global inequalities are increasing. The climate urgency has become an even more bitter reality. The human, economic, and social cost of these phenomenon continue to grow. There are many environmental perils facing our age. We need to act on all fronts. That is our ambition for the third United Nations Water Conference that Senegal will co-organize with the United Arab Emirates. It will be held this year. Ladies and gentlemen, a lasting peace cannot be decoupled from development. 40 years after the adoption of the Declaration on the Right to Development, we know what we need to do to achieve that goal. There needs to be a wholesale reform of international financial architecture. There needs to be sustainable debt. There needs to be equitable taxation and better access to concessional financing. There also needs to be the implementation of the severe commitment as well as of the Pact for the Future. Senegal also believes in the transformative potential of new technologies, including the development of AI that is based on robust morals and ethical code based on the principle of responsibility and inclusion. The launch of our first satellite illustrates our desire to make space, AI and digital tools instruments that serve and foster human development. President, dear colleagues, we are all well aware of the challenges linked to the very life of our organization. Ours is a concerning financial situation. It's affecting the UN's operational capacity, and that is prompting questions about how effective the UN really is. Indeed, these questions are being asked about peace operations, just as they are about the SDGs. The implementation of these is lagging behind, and significantly so. In view of this reality, It is true that some might be tempted to view multilateralism as a relic and might be tempted to move outside of multilateralism to take action in isolation. Senegal does not espouse that view. On the contrary, it is precisely because the world is beset by a whole host of unprecedented crises that we need a UN that is stronger, more representative and more effective. We will not settle crises by allowing the multilateral system to become ever more piecemeal. We will not achieve peace if we simply stage power struggles. We will not guarantee a just international order if we see right being replaced by might. Doing all of that will imperil the very raison d'etre of our organization, that is dialogue, conflict prevention, the peaceful resolution of disputes, cooperation and respect for international law. In this vein, and with this in mind, the UN80 initiative provides us with a historic opportunity to usher in the structural and normative transformations that we need to see. However, reforming the United Nations must not stymie its ambitions. On the contrary, it must make it less bureaucratic in how it functions. It must remove red tape, make it more agile, and make it more effective in its expenditure. And there must be better synergies between headquarters and the field so we can better serve the people we represent. Senegal supports that very dynamic. That was the rationale behind our contribution to efforts to strengthen the UN system. We've used our own resources to build a UN house some 30 kilometers away from Dakar. This is a cutting edge institution and the site will house all UN system entities in the region and that will foster greater coherence and effectiveness in the UN's work. However, a stronger organization and ensuring it is stronger also involves Member States upholding their financial pledges and making good on their assessed contributions. President, the years are ticking by, but our efforts to reform governance have yet to produce a significant impact. The status quo when it comes to reforming the Security Council bears witness to that fact. We all agree that the composition of the Security Council is out of step with the realities of our time. We agree that the expansion of the Council should not lead to further inertia. But given the fact the Council is lacking legitimacy, and that is indeed the hallmark of the Council's current structure, we cannot simply issue observations. We are in at a juncture where there is an urgent need for action. It's a matter of justice, credibility and balance across the international system. And this is indeed the rationale which underpins the Ezulwini Consensus, which outlines the African position in connection with the so necessary reform of the UN Security Council. In that vein, Senegal is presenting its candidacy to a non-permanent seat on the Security Council for 2032-2033. However, beyond reform, the organization also needs experienced leadership. to steer its work in these times of crisis and uncertainty. The UN needs a Secretary-General able to speak to one and all, able to listen and to build bridges between member states. That is the vision embraced and espoused by Macky Sall, former President of the Republic of Senegal. Here, I wish once again to express my support for his candidacy. I wish to reiterate Senegal's request That you, as member states, support his candidacy, ladies and gentlemen, at a time when our... organization is seeking to rebuild trust. Senegal continues to believe in the vision of a world based on peace, justice, the dignity of each and every human being, and human brotherhood. The world does not need unilateral posturing. It needs a fairer, more inclusive, and more effective multilateralism. Addressing our challenges requires bridges and not walls, dialogue and not confrontation, cooperation and not isolation, law and not might. That is the very spirit in which Sen Senegal will host the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar 2026. This is the first Olympic event in history to be held in Africa. It will be held from the 31st of October to the 13th of November. It will welcome athletes from 206 National Olympic communities. It will welcome young people from across the world. And in doing just that, Senegal will do much more than host a sporting competition. It will host a promise. It will host a generation that wish to come together rather than stand apart, one that wishes to build together rather than pit themselves against each other. That is our promise to those young people, and it is the Olympic promise. And ultimately, that is the promise of the United Nations, that is making strength out of our differences, making wealth out of our diversity, and making our human community the very bedrock of peace. In that Olympic spirit, I invite all Member States to attend the opening ceremony of the Youth Games on the 31st of October 2026 in Dakar, and I thank you for your kind attention.