74th U.N. General Debate saw only 16 women deliver national statements

Having concluded the High-level segment of the General Assembly, where heads of State or senior officials from 192 of the UN’s 193 Member States discussed the world’s pressing issues, President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande held his first press briefing on Tuesday.

Drawing attention to the fact that “only eight per cent of speakers on behalf of Member States were women”, he lamented that that was “not a good figure, especially in relation to our commitment to gender equality”.

Mr. Muhammad-Bande maintained that the only solution to this is to keep urging Governments to allow for the broadest participation, “especially to unlock obstacles to the participation of women in politics”.

Turning to other Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), he told reporters that we need to “push hard” to ensure some $2.5 trillion per year – the financing required over the next decade for implementation.

He also outlined the five major summits on global challenges, such as climate action and health care, which were convened on the sidelines of the General Debate.

When asked for his presidential priorities, the Assembly president had no hesitation in citing peace and security, poverty eradication, quality education, climate action and inclusion.