STATEMENT BY
HIS EXCELLENCY MR. COLLEN V. KELAPILE
AMBASSADOR AND PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF
BOTSWANA TO THE UNITED NATIONS,
CHAIR OF AFRICA GROUP FOR MONTH OF JUNE, 2020
ON
THE COMMEMORATION OF THE
75th ANNIVERSARY
OF THE
SIGNING OF THE CHARTER OF THE UNITED NATIONS
26 JUNE, 2020
NEW YORK
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
1. I have the honour to speak on behalf of the African Group as its Chair for the month of June.
2. I thank the President of the General Assembly His Excellency Tijjani Muhammad-Bande and his team for organising this important event.
3. Certainly, this anniversary is a cause for celebration of Member States’ success in implementing the Charter and also a moment of reflection on where we have fallen short.
4. Indeed, the United Nations, a formation of the Charter, has over the past 75 years provided a platform through which differences are addressed around the table rather than in the battlefield.
5. In addition to conflict prevention and peacekeeping, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is another milestone in Member States’ pursuit of the values of the Charter, in particular, the Charter’s ideal of promoting “social progress and better standards of life.”
6. Regrettably, the existence of the Charter has not stopped outbreaks of armed conflicts in different parts of the world in the past 75 years. The period has also been marked by the prevalence of poverty and disease. As a result, we still have a lot of work to do in upholding the letter and spirit of the Charter.
7. In this connection, I wish to give assurance that the 54 Member States from Africa are fully committed to the Charter and are striving to uphold its ideals through pursuing SDGs and working towards “Silencing the Guns.”
8. We encourage Member States and the entire UN family to continue to protect, preserve and promote the sanctity of the Charter. In this regard, this anniversary should re-energise us in our on-going intergovernmental efforts that are aimed at enhancing responsiveness, accountability, efficiency and inclusiveness of the principal organs of the U.N.
9. The anniversary should also renew our commitment to multilateralism as an indispensable tool for addressing threats to international peace and security, promoting human rights, combating poverty and disease.
10. I thank you for your audience and wish everyone well as we combat Covid 19 and respond to its devastating social and economic implications. We will emerge stronger and more resilient.