PRESS BRIEFING
BY MONICA GRAYLEY,
SPOKESPERSON FOR GENERAL ASSEMBLY
PRESIDENT DENNIS FRANCIS
United Nations Headquarters, New York
30 May 2024
Good afternoon, everyone!
GENERAL ASSEMBLY PAYS TRIBUTE TO FORMER PRESIDENT OF IRAN
This morning, the General Assembly held a plenary meeting to pay tribute to the memory of the late President of Iran, H.E. Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, who died on 19 May in a helicopter crash, in the East Azerbaijan province in Iran.
In his opening remarks, the President of the General Assembly, Mr. Dennis Francis, expressed his deepest condolences to the Government and the people of Iran.
The PGA also recalled the late Foreign Minister of Iran, H.E. Hossein Amirabdollahian, who died in the crash with other members of the President’s delegation.
The speech by President Francis was followed by remarks delivered by the Secretary-General, Mr. António Guterres.
Regional groups also took the floor to deliver statements.
As per a General Assembly practice, the plenary meeting to pay tribute to the memory of the deceased President of Iran is the third such meeting in the current session.
The first was a tribute to the late Emir of Kuwait, H.E. Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who passed away on 16 December 2023.
In February, this year, the GA held a tribute to the memory of the former President of Namibia, H.E. Hage Gottfried Geingob, who died on 4 February.
More information on the PGA’s website: www.un.org/pga/78
HIGH-LEVEL POLICY DIALOGUE: “EDUCATION THROUGH SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION TOWARD THE AFRICA WE WANT”
This afternoon, PGA Dennis Francis will speak at the High-Level Policy Dialogue entitled “Education through Science, Technology and Innovation toward the Africa We Want,” as part of the 2024 Africa Dialogue Series.
The meeting is organized by the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa (OSAA), Under-Secretary-General, Ms. Cristina Duarte.
The Africa Dialogue Series culminates with a High-level Policy Dialogue that contributes towards policymaking and serves as a platform for in-depth exchanges to produce forward-looking and implementable ideas and recommendations toward accelerating Africa’s development.
The event gathers decision-makers, academics, young people and representatives of the UN and of civil society.
According to the UN, by 2050, one in every four people – and more than a third of the world’s young people aged 15-24 – are expected to be African.
PGA HONOURS SACRIFICE AND COMMITMENT OF PEACEKEEPERS
The PGA issued a post on his X social media account marking this International Day of UN Peacekeepers, which took place yesterday, stating that Peacekeepers “are the embodiment of the promise of the UN Charter: to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.”
PGA Francis invited all to recognize the commitment and bravery of the 76,000 peacekeepers from 120 countries, deployed in 11 global operations, and to honour their sacrifice and recommit to our collective commitment to peace around the world.
On the PGA’s agenda this afternoon, he will receive students from Johns Hopkins University, which is the PGA’s alma mater.
Thank you. This is everything for today. Do you have anything else?
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YouTube:
www.youtube.com/@UNPGA78
Twitter (X):
@UN_PGA
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/unpga
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