Monaco at the 74th session of the UN General Assembly

From 24 to 30 September 2019, the general debate of the 74th session of the UN General Assembly was held in New York. In His Address, H.S.H. the Sovereign Prince reaffirmed his Government's commitment to environmental protection and multilateralism (Full speech in PDF below).

On the sidelines of the traditional UN week, five high-level meetings were organized, during which three major declarations were adopted:

On 23 September, H.S.H. Prince Albert II took part in the Climate Action Summit, which aimed to actualize and accelerate actions to implement the Paris Agreement. Monaco was chosen among the 64 countries to participate, and H.S.H. the Sovereign Prince delivered a speech highlighting the commitments of the Principality and the work of the IPCC on the ocean and the cryosphere: "Is it possible to imagine the implementation of the SDGs without taking the full measure of the impact of climate change on the ocean?" 

The weekend before the Summit was dedicated to young people with the first Youth Climate Summit. Youth was invited to speak at the United Nations, where many High Representatives, including Mr. Gilles Tonelli, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, were listening.

The Youth Summit came following the global climate strike that brought together more than 250,000 young activists on the streets of New York, and 4 million around the world.

The declaration on universal health coverage was adopted, becoming the first global agreement on universal health, and providing strong support for SDG target 3.8. Access to quality health services, at an affordable cost and meeting the needs of everyone, is cited as universal  right. In addition, the declaration aims to stimulate progress in addressing communicable diseases, including HIV / AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, as well as noncommunicable diseases and antimicrobial resistance.

On 24 September, H.S.H. the Sovereign Prince attended the opening of the Summit for Sustainable Development, which tracked and reviewed progress made in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Development and its 17 goals.

Mr. Tonelli attended on 26 September, the dialogue on Financing for development which, following the adoption of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, brought together more than 20 Heads of State and Government, Ministers, Business and Philanthropy Leaders, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. All deplored the insufficient pace of efforts to achieve the SDGs. They reaffirmed their commitment to mobilize resources, and the action needed to eradicate poverty, promote prosperity and well-being while protecting the environment.

Five years after the agreement "The Samoa Pathway" to support sustainable development in small island developing States, a mid-term review on 27 September assessed progress in addressing the devastating effects climate change, strengthening economic and environmental resilience and other challenges.

During this UN week, H.S.H. the Sovereign Prince and the Minister-Counselor, accompanied by the Permanent Representative of the Principality of Monaco to the United Nations, held bilateral meetings with Crown Prince Haakon and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway, as well as Palau President Tommy Remengesau Jr., to discuss their shared vision and commitments to protecting the oceans and combating climate change. Mr. Tonelli also met with his counterpart from the Marshall Islands and the Secretary-General of the Union for the Mediterranean.

On the sidelines of the Climate Action Summit, the Minister presented a concrete example of a nature-based solution with the marine educational area created in the Principality. He also spoke at the event "the ocean in a changing climate: towards a platform of solutions" on the report of the IPCC and COP25, and during the event "Blue Leaders", accompanied by H.E. Mrs. Isabelle Picco, during which the urgency of ocean conservation was highlighted. Finally, Mr. Tonelli met the Executive Director of the Green Climate Fund, to announce a contribution of the Principality of Monaco of 3 million euros over 3 years.

Mr. Gilles Tonelli also took the opportunity of his presence at the United Nations to confirm the support of the Principality to several coalitions, including the Coalition for Climate and Clean Air and the Alliance for Multilateralism launched by France and Germany.