The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has arrived in New York, USA, to attend the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) currently underway.

He is leading Ghana’s delegation, which includes the First Lady, Mrs Rebecca Akufo-Addo; the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MP for Anyaa Sowutuom, Ms Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, and some officials from the Presidency and the Foreign Ministry, Ghana’s Embassy in the US and Ghana’s Permanent Mission at the UN.

UNGA

The 73rd session of the UNGA officially opened last Tuesday on the theme: “Making the United Nations relevant to all people: Global leadership and shared responsibility for peaceful, equitable and sustainable societies”.

While at the session, President Akufo-Addo, as co-Chair of the Advocacy Group of Eminent Persons for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), will participate in a series of SDGs events and also deliver a speech at the High-Level event on the United Nations Youth Strategy.

He will also receive the 2018 Outstanding Leaders Award from the US Chamber of Commerce in recognition of his leadership and commitment to champion trade and investment as the means of helping grow Ghana’s economy.

President Akufo-Addo will, in addition, hold bilateral talks with some colleague Heads of State, as well as some CEOs of some global enterprises.

First Lady

For her part, Mrs Akufo-Addo will today attend the Ordinary General Assembly of the Organisation of African First Ladies Against AIDS (OAFLA).

Tomorrow, she will also attend a resource mobilisation high-level breakfast meeting on the margins of the UNGA 73 dubbed: “Free to Shine Global Partnership Towards Eliminating Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV in Africa”, at the Rockefeller Centre in New York.

The First Lady will also join the President on several other programmes.

High-level meetings

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, today.

The plenary will adopt a political declaration negotiated by member states.

In May 2018, the Permanent Representatives of South Africa and Ireland, serving as co-facilitators, began consulting with governments on the content of the declaration.

On September 26, the UNGA will hold a high-level meeting on the fight against tuberculosis, as agreed by member states in February 2018 and hold a one-day comprehensive review of the progress achieved in the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), the following day, which will be the third high-level meeting of the UNGA on the issue.

A number of events will also take place in parallel to the opening of the 73rd Session of the UNGA under the banners of the Global Goals Week 2018 and Climate Week NYC 2018.

Security

Meanwhile, security has been beefed up at the precinct and environs of the assembly, as world leaders trickle into the city, slowing down traffic to the Headquarters of the UN.

Most pedestrian crossings around the conference venue have been barricaded.

The Hudson River, which overlooks the towering UN Headquarters, has visiblepresence of the security patrolling. Clearly, if you do not have any business doing there, you better stay off the precinct.

Meanwhile, Ms Maria Fernanda Espinosa Garcés has been sworn in to commence her official tasks as President of the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

The General Assembly elected María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés on June 5, 2018, as President of its 73rd session — making her the fourth woman to head the 193-member organisation in its more than seven-decade-long history.