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Procedural · at 1 min · 2 mentions in this passage
Your excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, heads of State and government. President of the General Assembly. Secretary general. Ladies and gentlemen, heads of delegations. Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the president of the Council, his Excellency for Essozimna Gnassingbé. Of the government and the Togolese people. I would like, Mr. President, to convey to you my sincere and warm congratulations on your election to the presidency of this session of the General Assembly. To you, Secretary General, Sir, and Mr. Antonio Guterres. I would like to convey Togo's sincere gratitude for your unfailing commitment to peace, to security, to solidarity, and to sustainable development. At a time when you are completing your term, Togo would like to pay a particular tribute to you for these years of commitment, of courage, of listening and of service, for the defense of the ideals of the United Nations and to reform our organization. We would like to express the desire that the legacy of your action will continue to inspire our organization, and to guide those people who will have the responsibility to continue your work. We wish you every success in the future for your future commitments. Mr. president, the topic of this section asks us to do two things to be clear in our diagnosis and to be strong in our commitment to be clear, because we can no longer have insufficient responses to those challenges that affect our international system commitment.
Too often, the United Nations has been more effective at responding to crises than anticipating them. This is true of pandemics, of climate shocks, of technological disruption, and it is nowhere more costly than in conflict. Eastern DRC is a clear example of that. For more than three decades, the FDLR has spread genocidal ideology, committed grave abuses in Eastern DRC, and directly threatened Rwanda's security, including through cross-border attacks. It now operates alongside Burundian troops and DRC-sponsored militias and mercenaries, in violation of the 1989 UN Convention and the 1977 OAU Convention against mercenaries. And this does not happen overnight. The roots of the conflict in Eastern DRC are political, and they lie in long-standing grievances, exclusion, and failures of governance. So the solution, too, must be political. Rwanda fully supports the diplomatic efforts underway to reach such a solution. We commend the Washington Accords between Rwanda and the DRC, and the Doha Process between the DRC and AFC M23, as steps in the right direction. We are grateful for the relentless efforts deployed by President Donald Trump, His Highness the Amir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and the African Union mediator, President Fore Nyasimbe of Togo, in advancing these processes. And we remain committed to a region where all countries can coexist peacefully, where they can trade and develop together. Rwanda calls on all actors, including the Security Council, to support this same peace effort fairly and to encourage all parties to honor their commitments. There is no lasting peace without confronting the root causes of the conflict and addressing the legitimate concerns of all those affected. Excellencies, the value of prevention extends beyond conflict. It also means addressing the conditions that leave countries vulnerable to poverty, economic shocks, and exclusion from opportunity.
We need to embark on reforms that strengthen delivery, protects universal character of the organisation, and enable developing countries to participate meaningfully in decisions that shape their future. Mr. president, the General Assembly's decision to move towards a convention on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity is an important contribution to addressing a long standing gap in the international legal framework. The government is proud of its leading role alongside Mexico, in advancing this process through more than three years of patient negotiations. Our conviction is simple the gravest crimes cannot be met with silence. Victims cannot be forgotten. Impunity cannot become an accepted feature of international relations. Prevention, accountability and justice are indispensable to reconciliation, healing and sustainable peace. The rule of law is one of the foundations upon which trust is built. The continued development of multilateral treaties, and the entry into force of the agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction also demonstrate what is possible when states negotiate in good faith and persevere. The Gambia comments Ghana for its historic resolution on declaration of trafficking of enslaved Africans and racialized chattel enslavement of Africans as the gravest crime against humanity. And Togo for the resolution on correcting the map at the General Assembly. Mr. president our credibility is ultimately tested by how we respond to conflicts and crises that remain unresolved for years.
It has never brought war and it will not bring war against another country. It is determined to defend itself and to control its natural resources. It is very important for us to say this. We have chosen transformation that is based on national responsibility, making use of our resources, strengthening our institutions and tangibly improving the living conditions of our citizens. Since the 26th of July 2023, Niger has been continuing its inexorable march towards the total reconquest of its sovereignty under the leadership of the National Council for the safeguarding of the homeland, led by the president, His Excellency the General of the Army, Abdourahamane Tiani, president of the Republic Head of State. This change is a radical break with the policies imposed from outside, which were disconnected from the real needs of the population. It is rooted in the social values of the people of Niger, aware of the challenges that it faces, the government, which I coordinate, has chosen to mobilize the necessary resources to finance agriculture and basic social sectors through funds from voluntary contributions of Nigeriens themselves. In addition to revenues drawn from the exploitation of our mineral and oil resources revenue, which previously the state did not have control over. Mr. president, ladies and gentlemen a few days ago in the night, from the 28th to the 29th of August 2026, after two previous fruitless attempts to attack Diori Hamani International Airport in Niamey, a third attempt which General Tiani said a third attempt at destabilization, led by obscurantist and colonialist forces, targeted our institutions. As in the previous cases, it failed. It failed thanks to the loyalty of our forces, of our defence and security forces and the loyalty of our armed forces. It failed. Thanks to the solidarity of our allies and to the categorical refusal of the Nigerien people to go backwards. Niger emerges from this united and determined. Investigations are underway. The necessary investigations are underway in order to establish the circumstances, who is responsible and the internal and external support linked to this attempt. Following that procedure, Niger reserves the right, in accordance with the United Nations Charter and international law to turn to and have recourse to the competent mechanisms to defend its sovereignty. In this regard, we ask that any concern a Member State may have about their security be examined with haste and impartiality without differentiated treatment. The credibility of our organization Mr. President, also depends on its ability to ensure that the voices of all of its member states are heard. You have a lot of work to do, Mr. President. Niger is not pursuing confrontation with any country. It opens its arms to all partners that wish to build a new relationship based on equality, reciprocity and mutual interest, and shared interest. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, for more than half a century, uranium, this miraculous substance, Niger's uranium, has lit the cities of Europe, while our cities have remained in darkness. That injustice is now over. It is at an end. In June 2025, the state of Niger recovered control of SOMAÏR, the Société des mines de l'Aïr. Our resources will now be managed by us and for us and Niger intends to sell its uranium on the international market in full transparency and in strict compliance with its nuclear non-proliferation obligations. You will have heard at some point in the past, Air France say that Niger was intending to use this uranium. When they left our country, they sabotaged all of the material. And Niger has invested some 30 billion of our francs to continue that production. Totally making use of Nigerien workers and experts. Not a single foreigner was involved in that. The current stock belongs to our country. It does not belong to anyone and we will sell it to all those who wish to buy in total transparency, as I have just said. Similarly, in 2024, our country became an exporter of crude oil thanks to the oil pipeline linking Agadem to the Atlantic coast along the African continent, the longest one in the African continent, making Niger one of the continent's fastest growing economies in 2025. That revenue is going into our own security to agriculture, electrification, water and sanitation, education, health, the health of our fellow citizens. And the Solidarity Fund for the safeguarding of the homeland, which is made up of the voluntary contributions of millions of Nigeriens, tells you everything you need to know about a people that has understood that sovereignty has a price and that it is willing to pay it. Ladies and gentlemen, three years after breaking with the old order, progress on the ground is remarkable. Our economy has seen 7% growth in 2026. In 2025, excuse me. Driven above all by oil and agriculture. Inflation, which reached 9.1% in 2024, has fallen to -4.7% thanks to exceptional agricultural production and a targeted reduction of fuel and cement prices. All of the country's riches will be redistributed to benefit our population. The large scale irrigation program initiated by the president of the Republic, has 527 billion CFA francs and aims to ensure that around 22,000 hectares of new irrigated land can be established. The results achieved in this regard are very satisfactory because for the first time in decades, our country has not faced food shortages or had to call upon foreign assistance. Through this program, we intend to halve our grain imports by the end of 2027. Inshallah. On health. We have reduced by 50% the cost of services in public health facilities. Some services are free, for example, childbirth, care for children aged 0 to 5, and dialysis. The assisted birth rate went from 36% in 2022 to 42.5% in 2025, and the rate of prenatal consultations went from 32% to 38.2%. Education is free and mandatory for all children in public schools. What's more, a 20% reduction in school fees in private schools was decided upon in July 2025. These instructions that are contained in the programme for the Refoundation of the Republic 2025 to 2029 make up the reference framework for all of the state's actions in pursuit of the structural transformation of our economy. These results are very encouraging despite the scale of the challenges, because they are our results that we have achieved through our own means and resources. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen. Three years ago, some people predicted that Niger would collapse under the weight of sanctions and isolation. Today, Niger is standing tall. It is standing tall because its people has refused to bow down. It is standing tall because within the Confederation of Sahel states, it has found a family, solidarity and a family in the full African meaning of the term. It is standing tall because the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, a kindred and neighboring country, chose to support us with a substantial investment in the exploitation of our natural resources and through constant support for our defense system. With Algeria, we are also engaging in dynamic cooperation in the areas of health, education, energy, water and agriculture. On top of that, there are significant structural projects such as the tripartite gas pipeline and the trans-Saharan Road. Niger is above all standing tall because it has regained possession of its land, what lies beneath the land and of its voice. Mr. president, our country is also standing tall because it is speaking within our shared organisation, the UN and because among its members we count countries with which we have fruitful cooperation based on mutual respect. In this regard, allow me to say that Togo, Turkey, the Kingdom of Morocco, the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China are among our friends, true friends. On behalf of the president of the Republic, the Head of State I would like to express our gratitude to them. Mr. President. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, Niger remains faithful to the values included in its motto fraternity, work and progress, and to the values in the motto of our Confederation one space, one people, one destiny. The security, development and dignity of our peoples cannot be envisaged separately.
