UNGA begins its 76th session under new Prez Abdulla Shahid; UN chief sends wishes

As Abdulla Shahid begins his term as the President of the United Nations General Assembly, the Secretary-General of the UN António Guterres on Wednesday sent his best wishes to the Maldivian Foreign Minister. Maldivian foreign minister Abdullah Shahid was elected President United Nations General Assembly with an overwhelming majority in June 2021.

Taking to his official Twitter handle, António Guterres having congratulated Abdullah Shahid, wrote, "I look forward to working closely together during this extraordinary moment in time, so we can live up to the great promise and potential of the United Nations." The Secretary-General of the UN also shared a picture with the President of the UN  General Assembly. 

76th session of UN General Assembly 

The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, September 14 opened its 76th session under President Abdulla Shahid and in the presence of UN  Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Pointing out the challenges faced in the year in the form of the climate crisis, conflicts, and the COVID-19 pandemic,  Abdulla Shahid said, "It has been a tragic and challenging year, but this is a new session.”

"We can fall back on the comfort and predictability of systems and procedures, of the United Nations machinery that fills our days, or we can choose to push forward and turn the page. We can choose to write a new chapter," said the President of the General Assembly. He added, "Let us dare to dream and let us dare to hope, to embrace the presidency of hope."

The UNGA is the key deliberative and policy-making body of the UN and is entrusted with the job of addressing complex world issues such as international peace and security. It debates on matters of human rights, international law, and cooperation in economic, social, cultural, educational, and health fields. Moreover, it also takes us for discussing issues pertaining to individual member states. It is the only body of the organization where all members have representation.

The President of the UNGA has claimed that like the 75th session, COVID is going to be the main focus even in this session. Abdulla Shahid stressed that vaccinating the world against COVID-19 is the topmost priority of the 76th session.