STATEMENT
BY
H.E. AMB. WELLINGTON P. GODO
AMBASSADOR/PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE
OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA TO THE
UNITED NATIONS ENVIRONMENT
PROGRAMME (UNEP)
DURING
THE
GENERAL DEBATE
OF THE SECOND COMMITTEE
OF THE SIXTY-SECOND SESSION
OF THE UNITED NATIONS
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
NEW YORK
9TH OCTOBER 2007
Madam Chairperson,
I join other delegations in extending our warm congratulations to you and other Members of the Bureau on your election to lead the deliberations of the Second Committee during the 62nd Session. We are certain that under your leadership, we will satisfactorily conclude the work of the second committee and stand ready to support you in this regard.
Allow me to salute Dr. Asha Rose Migiro, the Deputy Secretary-General for her introductory remarks during the opening session of second committee work. I also salute Mr. Sha Zukang, Under-Secretary General for the Department of Economic and Social Affairs for his insightful remarks on the global economic trends and the issues on the agenda of this Committee.
The Kenya delegation associates itself with the statement made by the representative of Pakistan on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.
Madam Chairperson,
The Second Committee plays a very important role by addressing pertinent issues of the global development agenda. Among the main development issues that the committee has to tackle are the achievement of the Internationally Agreed Development Goals including the Millennium Development Goals, eradication of poverty, macro-economic stability, globalisation and the global economic system, sustainable development and the operational activities of the United Nations. In our view, in order for the United Nations to make remarkable contribution, due leadership combined with unreserved political will and commitment will be mandatory.
Pursuant to the foregoing, the main challenge before the Second Committee is to provide conducive fora for deliberations and action oriented decisions.
Kenya notes with appreciation the progress made during the 61st Session of the United Nations General Assembly with regard to the agreement to strengthen the Economic and Social Council through the adoption of resolution 16/61. The holding of the first session of the Annual Ministerial Review and the launch of the Development Cooperation Forum during the substantive session of ECOSOC this year is a welcome achievement. The way forward is to ensure that these new mandates add value to the work of ECOSOC and the Second Committee. Equally important is the need to ensure coherence, coordination and effective partnerships within the United Nations system and the rest of the International Community in addressing and resolving global development challenges.
Madam Chairperson,
There is concern over the inequitable development support provided by the international community on the basis and framework of some of the deliberations of this committee. Inspite of the concerted efforts by the international community, disparities between countries have continued to grow. This situation is fueled by the unfair global financial and trading regimes.
Over the past decade, sustainable development in almost all developing countries have come under serious challenge posed by rising levels of external debt and deteriorating terms of trade. In this regard, we note with concern the undesirable effects of the continued delay in concluding the Doha Round. We express further concern over the continuing reduction in Official Development Assistance and Foreign Direct Investment flows to developing countries particularly those in Africa.
My delegation is ready and willing to engage in this committee’s deliberations with a view to arriving at comprehensive, time-bound and coherent long-term solutions.
Madam Chairperson,
It is now five years since the historic International Conference on Financing for Development in Monterrey, Mexico. The Monterrey Conference addressed in a pragmatic and comprehensive manner key challenges relating to financing for development and for the first time, provided a forum where issues of external debt, trade, official development assistance, foreign direct investment, global partnerships, including innovative means of financing development were deliberated collectively. A number of the commitments made have yet to be achieved. We look forward to the review conference on Financing for Development scheduled to take place in Doha, Qatar in 2008.
Kenya supports the ongoing initiatives of improving the operational efficiency of the United Nations system. These initiatives have and continue to draw useful comparatives for institutional reform in a number of countries. In particular, the mandate review, United Nations system-wide coherence, strengthening of the ECOSOC, and the reform of the environmental activities within the United Nations are critical. Some of the reform exercises have been completed while others are on–going. Some of them directly or indirectly relate to the work of the Second Committee.
Issues of environment, development, gender have taken a centre stage in the reform discussions and it would be important that due diligence is given to these issues with the view to appropriately understanding their implication on the United Nations as well as global development agenda. For instance, on environment, we support the strengthening of United Nations normative and operational activities including through provision of adequate resources to UNEP, strengthening its scientific base and enhancing its capacity to effectively deliver its mandate. Regarding development, the strengthening of ECOSOC including through adoption of the two new mandates of Annual Ministerial Review and Development Cooperation Forum is a much welcome achievement.
Kenya supports the reform of the United Nations on one hand as a Member State and on the other as a host to Headquarter of two United Nations Programmes – the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT). In this respect, Kenya offers itself to continue supporting the work of the United Nations including ensuring a conducive environment and provision of counterpart support for the efficient working of the United Nations Office in Nairobi.
Madam Chairperson,
Climate Change has emerged as one of the key development challenges of this century. The projected impact of unmitigated Climate Change in Kenya and Africa as a whole are likely to have significant negative effects on human livelihoods, health, water resources, agricultural production and food security. All of these would undermine economic prospects across the continent. Ironically, developing countries, particularly Africa contribute least to global warming but are most vulnerable.
In view of the foregoing, it is imperative that addressing Climate Change and its adverse impacts should be a matter of priority by the International Community, based on the principal of common but differentiated responsibility. Specifically, developing countries should be supported in their adaptation efforts including through provision of adequate resources, technology and capacity building. In addition, Kenya, as the current President of the Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Meeting of Parties to the Kyoto Protocol looks forward to fruitful outcome from the Bali Meeting in December this year. We must all unite and work towards a long-term mechanism for addressing Climate Change.
Madam Chairperson,
The 62nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly is of particular importance owing to the fact that the Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review of the United Nations Operational activities will be discussed as part of our work. It is our expectation that Member States will discuss the Operational activities of the UN with a view to ensuring that UN programmes, funds and specialized agencies effectively contribute to poverty eradication and the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals including MDGs.
There is need for the committee to address the special needs of Africa as highlighted by the 2005 World Summit and various other reports. Africa is the only continent that has been identified as not likely to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. We therefore call for the international community’s support to Africa’s development endeavours through the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. We also take this opportunity to applaud the decision by the United Nations Secretary-General in establishing the MDG Steering Committee for Africa and further look forward to the High level Dialogue on Africa scheduled to take place next year. It is within the mandate of the second committee to reflect on these and other issues during their deliberations.
Finally, Madam Chairperson, let me once again assure you of the Kenyan delegation’s readiness to constructively participate in the work of the Second Committee.
I thank you.
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