Minister of Foreign Affairs Carl Greenidge and a team will be attending the 73rd United Nations General Assembly- UNGA 73 later this month in New York.
However, he noted that President David Granger will not be attending this year’s General Assembly due to a hectic schedule including preparations for the upcoming Local Government Elections (LGE) slated for November 12.
Addressing the local media corps Monday at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Minister Greenidge said apart from the usual issues and presentations by the respective Heads of States, several bilateral meetings will be held on the sidelines of UNGA 73.
These meetings will involve discussions with the Commonwealth Secretariat and other international organisations. In preparation for the renewal of the Cotonou Accord, the negotiators representing the 79-member countries of the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states will be hosting a meeting.
The meeting with the ACP states, Minister Greenidge pointed out, is critical given the importance of the Cotonou Agreement, since it is the main source of concessionary funding for the Caribbean countries.
Importantly, the Foreign Affairs Minister said, the UNGA 73 will provide Guyana with the opportunity to engage the Secretary-General on developments relating to the Guyana/Venezuela controversy, following his decision to refer the matter to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on January 30.
Following the hosting of the UNGA 73, the minister said several other meetings are scheduled to address issues such as trade, Blue Oceans and to facilitate further discussions pertaining to the ACP states.
The minister and the team will be attending from September 24, when the UNGA will hold a high-level plenary meeting on global peace in honour of the centenary of the birth of Nelson Mandela, known as the Nelson Mandela Peace Summit.
The 73rd session of the UN General Assembly opens on September 18. The first day of the high-level General Debate will be Tuesday, September 25 is scheduled to last for nine working days.
The theme of the general debate is ‘Making the United Nations Relevant to All People: Global Leadership and Shared Responsibilities for Peaceful, Equitable and Sustainable Societies.’
