Berna Namata and Agencies
24 September 2008
Kigali — President Paul Kagame will this week chair the United Nations assembly proceedings of heads of state on Africa's development needs.
Kagame will co-chair the forum alongside Finland President Tarja Halonen, the UN website indicates.
The forum on Africa's development needs will be held under the theme: "Africa's development needs: State of implementation of various commitments, challenges and the way forward."
Among other things, the forum will provide an opportunity for world leaders to renew their commitments to Africa's development and focus attention on how to address the challenges," a UN press statement said.
The UN General Assembly opened on Tuesday its 63rd session at the UN Headquarters in New York.
During this session, the 192-member body will examine the immediate and root causes of the world food crisis, and its impact on world hunger and poverty.
"Various crises of great scale -- economic, financial, environmental, humanitarian and legal -- are converging in the present world food crisis," said Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann, who is newly elected assembly president.
Brockmann also noted that at the root of the problem of world hunger is the unequal distribution of purchasing power within and between countries.
"Rather than concentrate on increasing food production as the single solution, the central focus of our efforts should be on the reduction of the inequalities in our world's food production system." he added.
More than 30 African Heads of State and other world leaders will attend.
Heads of State and Ministers attending the Assembly are also expected to hold a general debate from September 23 to October 1 under the theme: "The impact of the global food crisis on poverty and hunger in the world, as well as the need to democratise the United Nations."
Established in 1945 under the Charter of the United Nations, the General Assembly occupies a central position as the chief deliberative, policy-making and representative organ of the United Nations.
Highlights
On Monday, President Kagame attended the UN High Level Meeting on Africa's Development Needs and together with Finish President Tarja Halonen, co-chaired a roundtable discussion on the state of implementation of commitments.
On Monday evening, President Kagame attended a reception at Macy's (one of the world's largest department store chain) to mark the third anniversary of the company's relationship with Rwanda based on the 'agaseke' peace basket , and President Bush's last reception for heads of State.
On Tuesday following the opening of the General Assembly, President Kagame held private talks with President Nicolas Sarkozy where they discussed progress in the process of normalization of relations between Rwanda and France. This afternoon, President Kagame is expected to deliver a key note address to the United Nations General Assembly.
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