Pandor highlights great global challenges at the UN General Assembly

Pandor argued that the great global challenges remained poverty, inequality, joblessness and under-development suggesting that addressing these would be the real inflection point in human history. Pandor is leading the country’s delegation in the absence of President Cyril Ramaphosa who returned to South Africa from London, earlier this week.

The Minister of International Relations Dr Naledi Pandor delivered South Africa’s country statement to the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Wednesday.

She says instead of working collectively to address the pressing challenges of our time, we have grown further apart as geopolitical tensions and mistrust permeates our relations.

Pandor echoed the UN Secretary General’s sentiments that global solidarity was in short supply in a world in desperate need of more of it.

“Global solidarity is also required to meet other pressing challenges such as energy and food insecurity, climate change and the devastation caused by conflicts, including the existential threat of nuclear weapons. Up to now, Instead of working collectively to address these challenges, we have grown further apart as geopolitical tensions and mistrust permeate our relations. We should, however, move forward in solidarity, united in efforts to address our common global challenges to ensure sustainable peace and development,” explain Pandor.

Greater investments

She called for greater investments to strengthen public health systems in Africa that must produce thousands more professional health workers and for the increased mobilization of resources and capabilities to strengthen pandemic response and preparedness , warning that it would be a terrible indictment on all leaders if future pandemic found the poorest as unprepared as many were for COVID-19.

Furthermore, she also argued for fairer trade policies that provide greater opportunities for developing countries and then touched on the massive challenge of energy security in her own country.

“South Africa like many other developing countries faces huge developmental challenges, including in our energy sector. We need to collectively address global energy shortages, including by deploying innovative solutions that are cheaper, cleaner and more accessible. Working with international partners, we are developing our Just Energy Transition Plan to significantly reduce harmful emissions in South Africa. Work on an expanded green economy intervention that is gaining significant momentum,” says Pandor.

Making the case for greater dialogue in the resolution of disputes, including conflicts that exist only to undermine development.

“Building a better world requires peace and stability. South Africa continues to believe that conflict resolution must not come through fuelling conflicts, but through investing in efforts aimed at political dialogue. We should aspire to peace as a global public good. There have been no winners of the wars of the past seven decades. Instead, they engendered strife, distrust among nations, divisions, a perpetual misallocation of resources to weapons, increased poverty and underdevelopment,” explain Pandor.

Pandor also called for long-standing issues to be resolved- Security Council reform, for sanctions against Cuba and Zimbabwe to be lifted, on the Palestinian question for Israel to be held accountable for what she called its destructive actions that significantly impair the two-state solution and for an international rules based system predicated on international law and strict adherence to the charter of the UN.

Dr Naledi Pandor delivers South Africa’s statement in the UN General Assembly