Zambia, 2004

I am deeply honoured to

have this opportunity to address the General Assembly

on behalf of the people of Zambia.

I would like to begin by congratulating Mr. Ping

on his assumption of the presidency of the General

Assembly at its fifty-ninth session. As one of the 21

Vice-Presidents for the current session, Zambia pledges

him its support and cooperation. I would also like to

pay tribute to his predecessor, Mr. Julian Robert Hunte

of Saint Lucia, for the efficient manner with which he

presided over the proceedings of the fifty-eighth

session. I wish to extend our sincere appreciation to

Secretary-General Annan for his relentless dedication

to the cause of international peace, security and

economic development.

This session of the General Assembly convenes

at a time when vexing problems plague the world

community. Zambia believes that the key to addressing

a host of such difficult global issues as terrorism,

HIV/AIDS and the humanitarian tragedy in Darfur is to

find multilateral solutions, often within the context of

an effective United Nations. Indeed, that is what I

would call a multilateral imperative. With that in mind,

Zambia welcomes the report of the Secretary-General

on the work of the Organization.

It is also Zambiaís hope that this session will

build on past achievements to advance the global

agenda. Accordingly, Zambia supports the convening

of the high-level plenary meeting next year in New

York on the Millennium Development Goals, to which

20

we committed ourselves in 2000. We firmly believe

that all Member States have a collective responsibility

to implement the commitments set forth in the

Declaration.

My delegation supports the ongoing reforms of

the United Nations. Zambia shares the concerns of

other countries that this important process has not yet

been completed. Zambia believes that the reforms

should address the concerns of developing countries. In

that regard, we look forward to the progress reports on

the reforms. Zambia appreciates the recent initiatives

of the President of the General Assembly at its fifty-

eighth session on the revitalization, reform and

enhancement of the working methods of the General

Assembly. My delegation stands ready to continue

actively participating in the reform process during this

session. We commend the President and his

predecessor for the revitalization of the General

Assembly as the highest deliberative and decision-

making organ of the United Nations.

Regarding the reform of the Security Council,

Zambia remains concerned about the lack of progress. I

therefore appeal to this Assembly to support the efforts

of the Security Council to enhance its decision-making

and liaison methods during this session.

As I stated at the outset, Zambia believes in

multilateralism, which continues to be an indispensable

instrument for achieving global consensus on

important, life-saving issues. As a global community,

we face challenges that are transnational and

interconnected in nature. It is essential that we take

advantage of the immense problem-solving potential of

multilateralism. Unilateralism should have no place in

this global era. Zambia reaffirms its support for the

United Nations initiatives in the fight against global

terrorism and the proliferation of small arms and any

form of weapon of mass destruction. We call upon the

international community to take all necessary steps

within the purview of the United Nations to combat the

scourge of terrorism in all its manifestations. That

scourge needs to be fought relentlessly, with total

commitment and vigour. Zambia also pledges to

continue supporting the Counter-Terrorism Committee

of the Security Council.

My delegation would like the United Nations and

the world community at large to assist Member States

in building their capacity to fight international

terrorism. And we want to express our heartfelt

sympathy for the innocent victims of terrorism in

Russia, here in New York and elsewhere.

Zambia expresses its profound dismay at the

continued unrest in the Middle East and the impasse in

the Palestinian-Israeli peace process. We call on the

parties to that longstanding conflict to allow for full

implementation of the Quartetís road map. Zambia

reiterates that the road map offers a viable solution to

the Middle East question. We endorse and support the

initiatives for a peaceful settlement of the Middle East

crisis. In the same vein, Zambia welcomes the adoption

of Security Council Resolution 1546 (2004) on Iraq.

We fully realize that economic, social and

political development is the primary responsibility of

each individual country. We are pleased that the Group

of Eight countries continue to support the New

Partnership for Africaís Development (NEPAD), the

primary objective of which is eradicating the

increasing poverty on our continent and putting

African countries on the path of sustainable economic

growth. We recognize that the new initiative is by

Africans and for Africans, but we cannot ignore the

vital importance of assistance from the international

community through increased official development

assistance.

External debt has continued to consume a large

proportion of the national incomes of developing

countries, especially the least developed countries

(LDCs). The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC)

Debt Initiative was established to assist highly

indebted poor countries to reduce external debt to

sustainable levels. Admittedly, the HIPC Initiative does

help reduce the effects of indebtedness. However, it

has some inherent problems which inhibit the full

realization of its benefits. The international community

must, therefore, continue exploring innovative

approaches toward debt elimination. In that

connection, we applaud the efforts of President Lula of

Brazil in his search for the appropriate financing

paradigm for the eradication of poverty and hunger.

As we endeavour to achieve the Millennium

Development Goals, we are very concerned with the

plight of the LDCs, which constitute 70 per cent of the

worldís population. These countries are likely to miss

the target we set of reducing by half the number of

people living in extreme poverty and hunger by 2015.

21

Let me briefly change direction and say a few

words about certain positive developments in my

country, a place where freedom truly is on the march.

As you know the Programme of Action for the

Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2001-2010

was adopted in Brussels in 2001. Since then, Zambia

has committed herself to serious economic reform,

including privatization, trade liberalization, the

adoption of poverty reduction strategies and the

creation of an environment conducive to both local and

foreign investment. While we are doing our part, we

expect corresponding action from the international

community, as agreed upon in the Programme of

Action. Without assistance, all of our efforts will be

rendered futile. Our aim is to graduate one day soon

from an LDC to a developing country.

In addition, I am proud to say that my

administration is based on the rule of law. For example,

we have embarked on an ambitious review of our

constitution in order to provide ourselves with a

document that will stand the test of time. We call on

our cooperating partners and well-wishers to support us

in this important endeavour.

This year and next - 2004 and 2005 - are

important years in the lives of our people. I call your

attention to four important events that are taking place

in our country during this period.

First, on 24 October 2004, we shall celebrate the

fortieth anniversary of our national independence.

Then, in February 2005, Zambia will be hosting the

Third African Conference on Peace Through Tourism,

the high point of which will be a ceremony honouring

the hundredth anniversary of the birth of former United

Nations Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjild, who

died tragically in a plane crash in Ndola, Zambia.

Also next year, my country will celebrate the

hundredth anniversary of the founding of the town of

Livingstone, the tourist capital of Zambia and home of

Victoria Falls, also popularly known as the adventure

centre of Africa.

In addition, next year we will commemorate the

one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of Dr. David

Livingstoneís first glimpse of Victoria Falls, the

worldís largest curtain of falling water, which we call

Mosi-O-Tunya, or the smoke that thunders.

It is my honour to invite your Excellencies, and

through you all, all your citizens to come to Zambia

and participate in these events.

Zambia also welcomes peace initiatives at

regional, continental and global levels aimed at ending

conflicts and wars in various parts of the world. It is

for this reason that Zambia has continued its active

participation in United Nations peacekeeping missions.

With peace prevailing in Angola, that country is

now faced with the challenge of post-conflict

reconstruction. Zambia calls on the international

community to double its assistance to Angola to help

tackle the humanitarian situations such as the removal

of landmines and the settlement and reintegration of

former combatants and refugees. I am pleased to report

that on 15 June 2004, Zambia and Angola witnessed

the repatriation of some 363 Angolan refugees in

north-western Zambia, under the auspices of the Office

of the United Nations High Commissioner for

Refugeesí voluntary repatriation programme. This was

a good start to the programme, but more international

support is needed.

In conclusion, I want to reiterate the imperative

of finding multilateral solutions to the problems that

confront us. In our interdependent world, all of the

problems and challenges that we face can only be

addressed through the concerted multilateral efforts of

the international community.