UN / PGA MUHAMMAD-BANDE OUTGOING PRESSER

General Assembly (GA) President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande confirmed that the 75th General Debate will be a “hybrid meeting," as “most delegations will be led by heads of state and government from afar, and statements can be read by permanent representatives.” UNIFEED

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:02:11
• Production Date: 8 September 2020
• Asset Language: English
• Personal Subject: TIJJANI MUHAMMAD BANDE
• Corporate Name: GENERAL ASSEMBLY
• Subject Topical: GENERAL DEBATE
• MAMS Id: 2556009
• Parent Id: 2556009
• Alternate Title: unifeed200908f

Description

STORY: UN / PGA MUHAMMAD-BANDE OUTGOING PRESSER
TRT: 02:11
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 08 SEPTEMBER 2020, NEW YORK CITY / FILE

Shotlist

FILE - NEW YORK CITY

1. Wide shot, United Nations Headquarters

08 SEPTEMBER 2020, NEW YORK CITY

2. Med shot, dais
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, President, General Assembly:
“Coming to New York each year by the heads of state and government is important to send a message of the possibility or promise and the importance of world leaders coming together as important partners, as equals, to discuss problems of the world and to thereby begin to address them. And this year, this will happen in that most delegations will be led by heads of state and government from afar, and statements can be read by permanent representatives because it is not fully virtual meeting, because it is a hybrid meeting.”
4. Med shot, GA President at the dais
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, President, General Assembly:
“75th session will start through hybrid mode, both virtually and also in person. We have been able to, during the period, have very interesting and important elections for the President of the General Assembly, for the Security Council and for the ECOSOC. Both of them were socially distant elections, and this has allowed for continuity of decision making for the 75th session.”
6. Wide shot, journalists
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, President, General Assembly:
“I do not know of a concerted effort to defund the UN, frankly, but I do know a lot of people have phrased a valid question, which has been addressed, which is to get the United Nations to focus on value for money and to be more transparent.”
8. Med shot, GA President at the dais

Storyline

General Assembly (GA) President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande today (8 Sep) confirmed that the 75th General Debate will be a “hybrid meeting," as “most delegations will be led by heads of state and government from afar, and statements can be read by permanent representatives.”

In his final press encounter as President of the GA, Muhammad-Bande said, “coming to New York each year by the heads of state and government is important to send a message of the possibility or promise and the importance of world leaders coming together as important partners, as equals, to discuss problems of the world and to thereby begin to address them.”

During the 74th Session, he said, “we have been able to, during the period, have very interesting and important elections for the President of the General Assembly, for the Security Council and for the ECOSOC. Both of them were socially distant elections, and this has allowed for continuity of decision making for the 75th session.”

Although the GA did not convene in the GA Hall from March till August, New York-based delegations have continued to work and meet remotely in the past months.

Responding to a question from a journalist, Muhammad-Bande said, “I do not know of a concerted effort to defund the UN, frankly, but I do know a lot of people have phrased a valid question, which has been addressed, which is to get the United Nations to focus on value for money and to be more transparent.”

The 75th General Assembly General Debate will begin on Tuesday 22 September.