Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera was on his best when he took to the United Nations rostrum for the general debate during the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly. President Chakwera observed that there was the need to build real trust and global solidarity if the sustainable development goals are to be met betterment of the future generations.
“So when we stand at this podium and speak of the future, we speak of a future that does not belong to us. When we speak of a future with sustainable development, we speak of a better world not for us, but for our grandchildren and their children. And the decisions we make today, the actions we take each day, are what determine what kind of future we are creating for them.”
The Malawi leader then take a dig at the self-appointed global leaders including the United Nations that they are failing to lead the world rebuild trust and show global solidarity.
“It is therefore not good enough to say that we must rebuild trust in the world, when we continue making decisions that undermine trust.
“It is not good enough to say that we want to reignite global solidarity, when we continue to pick and choose whom we show solidarity with.
“It is not good enough to say we want to move towards peace, when our actions in other nations promote war and create the conditions for conflict.
“It is not good enough to say we want prosperity for all, when our rules for trade and our financial systems are a recipe for deepening the poverty of other nations.” Chakwera thundered.
The President further asserted that there is need to change the decisions, the positions, and actions if the sustainable development dream to be achieved by 20230 is to become a reality.
The Malawi leader narrated the gains that Malawi has made to achieve SDGs and said there was more to be done and to that effect, Malawi needs urgent support in building resilience to inoculate her economy against the adverse effects of shocks.
He additionally pointed out that the disasters and droughts that Malawi was hit by have led to her economy suffocating.
“In the twelve months since the last time I stood here, Malawi has had the worst cholera outbreak in its history, killing more people than Covid, a consequence of the contamination our water bodies and systems suffered when Cyclones Ana and Gombe hit us six months before.
“In that time, Malawi has also had a drought in its northern region, resulting in the loss of half of our maize and eighty percent of our rice in one of the most productive districts in our country.
“In that time, Malawi has also come under assault by the worst Cyclone on record, as Freddy made landfall twice and left a trail of death and destruction like you wouldn’t believe, killing over a thousand, displacing over half a million, and washing away homes, roads, bridges, businesses, and fields of crops that are a source of livelihood for over two million people.
“So when I say that our SDGs are under threat, the threat is real and is already here. What Malawi needs, therefore, is decision and action. We need decision and action on the climate financing that has thus far been nothing more than a promissory note from the developed countries responsible for resourcing our efforts for mitigation, adaptation, and most urgently, loss and damage. We need decision and action on debt, for like most Least Developed Countries, Malawi is in distress because its debt is unsustainable, and so our call to action on behalf of all LDCs on this matter remains the same: Cancel the Debts! Cancel the Debts! Cancel the Debts!
President Chakwera also took a swipe at the United Nations for not being inclusive.
Said Chakwera.
“This is why Malawi strongly advocates for radical reform in the United Nations Security Council itself, whose very structure undermines the values of democracy, inclusivity, accountability, and trust.
“As such, I believe President Biden said it so well here, and Malawi joins the United States in insisting that Africa must have permanent seats on the UN Security Council with veto power, because without that level of inclusivity, rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity will be a challenge.”
This years UNGA theme is ‘Rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity: Accelerating action on the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals towards peace, prosperity, progress, and sustainability for all’.
