Human rights
Children and youth at UNGA 81
Raised by 102 of 223 speakers. Read verbatim UN transcript quotes and select a time to hear the speech.
Speeches that raised children and youth
Timor-Leste · Day 2José Ramos-HortaHow is it a child pulling pieces of his family from the rubble has become a headline so we quickly skip a notification with silence?
A Tuesday.
Behind each of the dead is not a statistic.
10passages
Burundi · Day 2Évariste NdayishimiyeAs the African Union champion for the Youth Peace and Security Agenda, I have this year once again convened a continental youth dialogue coupled with the Women, Peace and Security Agenda.
During this dialogue, I sensed the enthusiasm of young people and women to build a community with a shared future in the spirit of Ubuntu.
In these young people, I sense the desire to connect with one another and to live together side by side.
6passages
Palau · Day 2Surangel WhippsResilience is also about safeguarding public health.
And I commend Palau's First Lady for advancing efforts to combat tobacco and nicotine use with a focus on our youth.
Her efforts led to the formal request to the UN Secretary General to initiate a WHO review of nicotine as a psychotropic substance.
4passages
Kenya · Day 2William Samoei RutoIt is measured in children driven from their classrooms, children who go to sleep hungry, children who learn the sound of gunfire before they know the safety of peace.
When collective security breaks down, schools close, hospitals collapse, families flee, and economies are consumed by war.
Peace is not separate from development.
4passages
Andorra · Day 2Xavier Espot ZamoraBehind every child killed, a future that disappears.
Behind every school or hospital destroyed, a part of our shared humanity that has failed.
For this reason, we are particularly concerned by the increase in attacks against civilians, humanitarian personnel, and United Nations staff who are carrying out their mission, often under extreme conditions and at extraordinary personal risk.
4passages
Democratic Republic of the Congo · Day 2Judith Suminwa TulukaThe DRC is pursuing the modernization of mining governance through the transparency of contracts, extractive revenue, and effective beneficiaries, improving mining registries, deployment of traceability mechanisms, and the fight against fraud.
We're also accelerating the formalization of small-scale mining, the regulation of traders, organization of cooperatives, and by securing exploitation zones.
The battle against child labor in mines, in this regard, is a moral and national obligation.
4passages
Estonia · Day 2Alar KarisMaternal survival is a question of justice and human rights, not only health care.
Estonia stands firmly for ending all forms of violence against children.
One of the gravest aspects of Russia's war against Ukraine is a mass deportation and forced transfer of Ukrainian children, which is a systematic and deliberate attempt to erase their Ukrainian identity.
3passages
Montenegro · Day 2Jakov MilatovićWe celebrate 20 years of our UN membership as a sovereign nation.
A child born in Montenegro that year is now 20 years old.
A generation has come of age.
3passages
Uzbekistan · Day 2Saida MirziyoyevaUzbekistan's response is clear.
Our choice is human dignity.
we choose young people who are determined to pursue education, acquire a profession, and define their own future, because we do not measure the true strength of a statehood by its military or economic capacity.
3passages
Latvia · Day 2Edgars RinkēvičsThat reflects who Latvia is, and that reflects what Latvia believes in.
At the core are real people.
That is why Latvia will continue to do everything possible to help return Ukrainian children deported to Russia.
2passages
Iran (Islamic Republic of) · Day 2Masoud PezeshkianI come from an Iran where in truth They bombed a school.
You see these children?
These children perished under bombs with weapons used by the United States and Israel.
2passages
Dominican Republic · Day 2Luis Rodolfo Abinader CoronaOne month ago, in the Haitian community of Kenscoff, in just one night, gangs murdered no less than 47 people, including five children.
close to a million and a half of Haitians have been displaced from their homes.
Half of them are children.
2passages
Ukraine · Day 2Volodymyr Zelenskyyof again against us against Ukraine our people and our children more than 950 of them were ballistic missiles in eight months of this year Russia used 63,000 attack drones of different types against Ukraine our people and more than 7,700 of them were jet powered Shahids truly destructive and very dangerous weapons just think about it.
The Russians launch jet power series every hour, every hour against our cities, our economy, our infrastructure, our combat aircraft are fighting them 24/7.
And this is part of Russia's strategy to create a near threat every hour.
2passages
Poland · Day 2Karol NawrockiAging societies, falling birth rates, and the erosion of social bonds are undermining the foundations of our nations.
The response cannot consist solely of economic measures.
We also need to rebuild our institutions and culture.
2passages
Slovakia · Day 2Peter PellegriniIt is already having a negative impact on society, especially in education.
An entire generation of young people is being affected.
Recent assessments show declining test scores across the vast majority of countries.
2passages
Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) · Day 2Delcy Eloína Rodríguez GómezThis is a process of political, economic and spiritual change and a time of structural reforms to ensure Venezuela's rebirth, the rebirth of our nation and our people.
We are seeking here to build a country in which no one has to win by riding roughshod over someone else or ignoring them because all of us, particularly young people that are entering that political life for the first time, are Venezuela.
We must aspire to a Venezuela whose political class is deeply committed to national interest, placing them above anything else.
2passages
Spain · Day 2Pedro Sánchez Pérez-CastejónAt the end of the day, the future of our children is more important than the pockets of these tech oligarchs.
Of course, doing all of these things will require compromise, time, strong leadership being able to build agreements, to listen, to look beyond our known reality and imagine a better alternative.
And what I'm advocating for, for this leadership, is very clear.
2passages
Romania · Day 2Nicuşor-Daniel DanLadies and gentlemen, allow me to conclude by welcoming the initiatives of the First Ladies and First Gentlemen concerning children and education, innovation, digital education and children's safety.
Romania has joined the initiatives launched by Melania Trump, Emin Erdogan and Olena Zelenska.
By building accessible education and creating a more innovative and safer environment for our children, we are building a better future for our societies.
1passages
Paraguay · Day 2Santiago Peña PalaciosThey want freedom, security, democracy, prosperity, and opportunities for their children.
And those of us who are entrusted with the responsibility of leading our countries must rise to those expectations.
Paraguay knows that the road ahead is difficult, but we also know that it is not impossible.
1passages
Botswana · Day 2Duma Gideon BokoBut what is a demographic dividend today can become a demographic crisis tomorrow if opportunity does not keep pace with aspiration.
Youth unemployment remains one of the most urgent challenges of our time.
Managing it is a shared responsibility.
1passages
Central African Republic · Day 2Faustin Archange Touaderasocial contract with our population.
At the heart of this ambition lies our youth.
Our youth is our greatest asset, our greatest responsibility.
1passages
Namibia · Day 2Netumbo Nandi-NdaitwahSubsequently, this year we have introduced 100% subsidised registration and tuition fees for Namibian students entering universities and vocational training centres and encourage them to take up appropriate courses.
The Government of Namibia has established the National Youth Development Fund last year.
As a result of this fund, young people have set up their own medical practice, law firms milling plants, pottery business, to mention a few, thus contributing to job creation and poverty eradication.
1passages
Guinea · Day 2Mamadi DoumbouyaThey reflect a conviction which I wish to share with this General Assembly.
Our most valuable asset remains our youth.
and we must provide them with high quality education with training opportunities reflected to meet the needs of the labor market through the Simandou Academy initiative, as well as meaningful opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship.
1passages
Honduras · Day 2Nasry Juan Asfura Zablaha population who demands, and quite rightly so, the opportunity to use their talent in their own country.
We want to see investment.
We want investment to arrive in the country and to stay.
1passages
Uganda · Day 2Jessica Rose Epel AlupoAmbassador Olara Otunu brings over four decades of distinguished service across the UN system, international diplomacy, and public administration.
As the inaugural Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, 1998-2005, he placed the protection of war-affected children firmly on the Security Council agenda and established the monitoring and reporting mechanism under Resolution 1612 in 2005.
His extensive experience Statesmanship and proven capacity for consensus building make him exceptionally qualified to lead the Secretariat at this critical time.
1passages
Italy · Day 2Antonio TajaniWe have welcomed and cared for wounded and vulnerable children.
We have opened our universities and research centers to young Palestinians because a future state also needs a future generation of leaders.
In Lebanon, the stakes affect the entire region.
1passages