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STORY: UN / GA 79 CHANGING FLAGS
TRT: 05:43
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 10 SEPTEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, UN Headquarters
10 SEPTEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, General Assembly Hall
3. Wide shot, Secretary-General António Guterres and General Assembly President Dennis Francis at GA dais
4. Wide shot, Guterres at the rostrum
5. SOUNDBITE (English) António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations:
“We close this 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly after a tumultuous year. A year of continued poverty, inequality, and injustice. A year of division, violence, and conflict. A year that was the hottest on record — again. But this session also closes at a time of growing hope and inspiration in what we can achieve if we work as one.”
6. Wide shot, Guterres at the rostrum
7. SOUNDBITE (English) António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations:
“The United Nations, and the multilateral system itself, is only as effective as Member States’ commitment to it. The challenges facing humanity are not insurmountable if we work together. As we celebrate the achievements of the 78th General Assembly, let’s also look to the 79th as a moment in which the world can deliver the trust, solutions, and peace that the world needs.”
8. Wide shot, Francis at the rostrum
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Dennis Francis, President, 78th General Assembly, United Nations:
“This organization was forged in the fires of two cataclysmic wars, with the solemn vow of sparing future generations from the scourge of war. The United Nations must rise to meet this highest calling and fulfil its mandate to maintain international peace and security – as conflicts proliferate from Ukraine to Haiti to the Middle East and to Africa. It is no understatement to say that the magnitude of man-made human suffering we are witnessing around the world is simply staggering. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the Gaza Strip.”
10. Med shot, Francis at the rostrum
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Dennis Francis, President, 78th General Assembly, United Nations:
“The world is undergoing unprecedented transformations, driven by revolutions in artificial intelligence, digital technology, and scientific innovation. These transformational breakthroughs hold the promise of a better tomorrow, offering enhanced standards of living and welfare – for everyone, everywhere, but only if progress along this path is inclusive.”
12. Wide shot, delegates
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Dennis Francis, President, 78th General Assembly, United Nations:
“Sustainability is the thread that connects all aspects of our work. It ensures that the foundation we lay today will support a stable, just, and thriving world for generations to come. Let us all, therefore, individually, and collectively choose sustainability and recommit ourselves to this most critical endeavour, for it is only through sustainability that we can secure the future of our shared planet.”
14. Wide shot, delegates applauding
15. Wide shot, President of the 79th General Assembly Philemon Yang walks up to rostrum
16. SOUNDBITE (English) Philemon Yang, President, 79th General Assembly, United Nations:
“I Philemon Yang solemnly declare that I shall truthfully perform my duties and exercise the functions entrusted to me as president of the General Assembly of the United Nations in all loyalty, discretion and conscience, and that I should discharge these functions and regulate my conduct with the interest of the United Nations only in view and in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the code of ethics. for the President of the General Assembly with us seeking, who, accepting any instruction. In regard to the performance of my duties from any government, or other source external to the organization.”
17. Various shots, gavel handover
18. Various shots, changing flags ceremony
The 78th session of the UN General Assembly closed today (10 Sep), concluding a tumultuous year in international diplomacy, and underscoring the need for a collective resolve among nations to confront pressing challenges.
Secretary-General António Guterres said the past year had been marked by “continued poverty, inequality and conflict,” emphasizing that it was also the hottest year on record.
Addressing the session’s final plenary meeting, he highlighted the “hope and inspiration” in what can be achieved if the global community “work as one.” He also applauded the leadership of Assembly President Dennis Francis.
“The challenges facing humanity are not insurmountable if we work together,” he said.
Guterres reiterated that the UN, and the multilateral system itself, can only be as effective as Member States’ commitment allows.
Addressing the Assembly for the final time in that capacity, President Dennis Francis, the veteran diplomat from Trinidad and Tobago, underscored the importance of unity, urging nations to confront global challenges with all available resources to build a more secure future.
Francis said, “this organization was forged in the fires of two cataclysmic wars, with the solemn vow of sparing future generations from the scourge of war. The United Nations must rise to meet this highest calling and fulfil its mandate to maintain international peace and security – as conflicts proliferate from Ukraine to Haiti to the Middle East and to Africa.”
He said, “it is no understatement to say that the magnitude of man-made human suffering we are witnessing around the world is simply staggering. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the Gaza Strip.”
The outgoing GA President said, “the world is undergoing unprecedented transformations, driven by revolutions in artificial intelligence, digital technology, and scientific innovation. These transformational breakthroughs hold the promise of a better tomorrow, offering enhanced standards of living and welfare – for everyone, everywhere, but only if progress along this path is inclusive.”
He said, “sustainability is the thread that connects all aspects of our work. It ensures that the foundation we lay today will support a stable, just, and thriving world for generations to come. Let us all, therefore, individually, and collectively choose sustainability and recommit ourselves to this most critical endeavour, for it is only through sustainability that we can secure the future of our shared planet.”
The meeting also saw Philemon Yang, President-elect of the 79th session of the General Assembly, take the oath of the office of the President of the General Assembly.
Yang declared he would perform his duties truthfully as Assembly President, acting “in all loyalty, discretion and conscience.”
He committed to always exercising his authority as president in the best interests of the United Nations and in accordance with the UN Charter and code of ethics.
President Dennis Francis then declared the 78th session closed and handed over the iconic gavel to President Yang.
