Zimbabwe, 2014

Allow me to congratulate

Mr. Kutesa on assuming the presidency of the General

Assembly at its sixty-ninth session. We are indeed

proud of the honour that has been bestowed upon the

African continent as a result of his election. The theme

he has chosen for this session, that is, “Delivering

on and implementing a transformative post-2015

development agenda”, is pertinent, appropriate and

timely. It is relevant in our efforts to achieve a seamless

transition from the Millennium Development Goals to

the sustainable development goals and the broader post-

2015 development agenda. We look forward to having a

candid and comprehensive debate on the challenges we

continue to face at the domestic and international levels

in our efforts to eradicate poverty.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

helped to focus and mobilize global development

efforts in order to achieve progress in the social sectors.

However, despite the significant achievements within

the framework of the MDGs, progress was uneven

between goals, among regions and within countries.

Consequently, we cannot remain complacent when some

sections of the global community are marginalized or

even left behind. We are therefore gratified that the

proposed sustainable development goals have taken

on board the unfinished business of the Millennium

Development Goals. Part of that unfinished business

concerns the critical issue of poverty eradication, which

remains the greatest global challenge. That issue should

therefore be the top priority and overarching objective

of the development agenda for the future.

We in the Southern African Development

Community share the view that the post-MDG agenda

must be informed by national development priorities and

that the new targets must better reflect local conditions.

In that regard, Zimbabwe adopted its own economic

blueprint, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-

Economic Transformation. It is a bold and achievable

development programme that has the objective of

ensuring inclusive economic growth, decent jobs

for all, affordable and reliable energy, food security,

sustainable agriculture and the development of reliable

modern infrastructure. Through the programme, we

also aim to expand the industrial base, which is key to

the sustained overall economic development and human

development of our country. We continue to push for

the leveraging of our diverse and abundant resources

through beneficiation and value addition. We therefore

expect that the proposals in the sustainable development

goals, which complement those elements of our national

aspirations, will be endorsed and integrated into the

post-2015 development agenda framework.

Social justice, political stability and sustainable

development in African countries can best be achieved

through genuine and committed support for the

ownership of means of production that favour the poor,

who are in the majority. In Zimbabwe, my Government

has gone a long way in laying the foundation for

sustained food production through our land reform

programme. The majority of the rural people have been

empowered to contribute to household and national

food security. The possession and exploitation of land

has also turned them into masters of their own destiny,

thus giving true meaning to our national independence

and unquestioned sovereignty.

Because Zimbabwe has thus been preoccupied with

the empowerment of its people economically, it has

become a victim of the evil machinations of Western

countries, namely, the United States and States members

of the European Union, which continue to apply

unilateral and illegal sanctions as a foreign-policy tool

to achieve short-term political objectives, particularly

regime change. Regime change is a diabolical and

illegal policy of interference in the domestic affairs of

my country, and no good can come from undermining

our economy or depriving our citizens of the necessities

of life. Why, I ask, should Zimbabweans continue to

suffer under the American and European yoke of

unjustified and unwarranted illegal sanctions? Those

evil sanctions violate the fundamental principles of the

Charter of the United Nations and should be condemned

by the international community. We once again call for

their immediate and unconditional removal.

We are a peaceful and peace-loving nation, ready to

engage in constructive dialogue for mutually beneficial

relations. We call on those who continue to harbour

ill will against us to cast away their hegemony-driven

hostility, as we appeal to them to review their hard-

line and cruel positions and open a new chapter in their

relations with us based on mutual respect and friendly

cooperation.

To support the implementation of the post-2015

development agenda, we call for an expeditious reform

of the Bretton Woods institutions, particularly their

governance structures. It is high time that we addressed

the democratic deficit in those institutions and improved

their legitimacy. Those reforms must reflect current

realities and ensure the full voice and participation of

developing countries in the decision-making and norm-

setting activities.

Zimbabwe firmly believes that the United Nations

should promote dialogue to achieve peace, the rule of

law and common understanding among States. The

peace, security, stability and welfare of Africa and our

subregion is vital for us. In Africa, the African Union is

working tirelessly to push for peace in the Democratic

Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, the Central African

Republic and Somalia. The international community

must remain intensively engaged and support Africa

in the maintenance of peace and stability, thereby

enhancing its peacekeeping-capacity needs through

training and logistical and financial support. Africa also

remains seized of the issue of Western Sahara, the last

colonial vestige in Africa. The United Nations should

not shake off its responsibility to ensure the realization

of self-determination by the people of Western Sahara.

We continue to witness the suffering and persecution

of the people of Palestine at the hands of Israel. We have

witnessed the callous murder of women and children in

shelters, where they seek refuge from Israel’s bombs.

We have witnessed the brutal and random destruction

of infrastructure in the Gaza Strip. While those heinous

acts were being perpetrated by Israel, the so-called

civilized world maintained a deafening silence. And we

ask, why?

Lasting peace in the Middle East can be achieved

only through a two-State solution based on the 1967

borders. Any other manoeuvres to change demographic

realities through settlements or the use of force will

only prolong the suffering of the Palestinians.

In conclusion, as we move forward, it is important

to muster the necessary political will to create a

development-oriented international environment that

facilitates the eradication of poverty and enhances

the sound management of our natural resources for

economic and social development, under a renewed and

real global partnership.