Angola, 2012

On behalf

of the Government of the Republic of Angola, I avail

myself of this opportunity to congratulate Mr. Vuk

Jeremić on his election to preside over the General

Assembly at its sixty-seventh session and to assure him

of the support of my country in the fulfilment of his

mission. It is our belief that under his leadership this

session will confirm the importance and role of the General Assembly in finding solutions to the burning

issues affecting humankind, thereby helping to make

the world safer and fairer. I would also like to express

our gratitude to Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser for

the exemplary and wise manner in which he conducted

the work of the Assembly at its previous session. I

further salute Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for

the dynamism he has invested in the work of our

Organization. In this connection, I would like to thank

him for his visit to my country in February of this

year, during the celebration of the tenth anniversary

of the advent of peace in Angola. During that visit,

he had the opportunity to familiarize himself with the

progress made in the reconstruction of the country and

consolidation of democratic institutions.

This session of the General Assembly is taking place

at a time of profound international political, economic

and social transformations, which reaffirm the relevance

of the central theme of our discussion: maintaining

international peace and security, eradicating poverty,

promoting development, protecting the environment

and ensuring a better future for generations to come,

guaranteeing the rule of law in international relations,

and promoting and ensuring the protection of human

rights. These are indeed the main challenges facing us

today.

In addition to these, there are further challenges

requiring priority attention from our Organization,

including disarmament, the fight against organized

crime, the implementation of the Global Counter-

Terrorism Strategy, and the persistence of armed

conflicts and their impact on people’s lives. Having

had the painful experience of war, which still has

major consequences for the lives of our people, Angola

reiterates that dialogue and negotiation are the way to

a peaceful resolution of conflict. Angola will continue

to meet its obligations and fulfil its responsibilities

at the international level, in particular with regard

to Africa as a whole, as well as in the context of the

regional economic and political groups to which it

belongs, including the Southern African Development

Community, the Community of Portuguese-speaking

Countries, the Economic Community of Central

African States and the International Conference of the

Great Lakes Region.

The international economic and financial crisis

that is affecting all countries in the world continues

to demand solutions, including the reform of the

economic, financial and international trade system in order to serve the interests of all countries in a global

perspective. In this regard, my Government reiterates

its support for initiatives aimed at liberalizing

international trade in line with the Doha Round. The

reform of the international economic and financial

system’s regulatory institutions is of crucial importance

to ensure greater flexibility and transparency in

allocating capital to the least developed countries — a

category that includes the majority of African nations.

It is also essential to take appropriate measures

towards strengthened support for international action

on sustainable development and increased financial

contributions to the United Nations to enable our

Organization to fulfil its mandate efficiently. It must

do so by renewing its commitments to the sustainable

development issues contained in Agenda 21, adopted

at the United Nations Conference on Environment and

Development in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. The United

Nations Conference on Sustainable Development

provided a solid framework for creating national and

international policies to ensure the social, economic

and environmental welfare of our peoples.

We note that despite the progress made, there is

a continued need for the international community to

translate commitments into action in order to achieve

sustainable development. Africa in general, and my

country in particular, believe that intensive efforts on

the part of the international community are needed to

tackle the phenomena that threaten to reverse progress

made with respect to development. Drought and

desertification, climate change, natural disasters, loss

of biodiversity and rapid urbanization are just some of

the factors that adversely affect development efforts

worldwide.

The Security Council plays a key role in preventing

and resolving conflicts, and in peacekeeping efforts, in

accordance with the powers conferred upon it by the

Charter of the United Nations. The central theme at

the heart of our debate calls for reform of the Security

Council, as well as ensuring the fair representation

of all regions and the broadening of its permanent

membership in order to adapt it to contemporary reality.

Allow me to refer to a set of conflicts that are of

critical concern to my country. In the Great Lakes

region, the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the

Congo continues to worry the international community.

My country reaffirms its support for the decisions of

the third extraordinary summit of the International

Conference on the Great Lakes Region, held in Kampala, as well as the efforts of the African Union

and the Southern African Development Community.

Angola welcomes the normalization of the legal

and constitutional order in Somalia as a result of the

completion of the transition process, including the

inauguration of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

Given that the situation remains unstable, Angola urges

the international community to continue to support the

stabilization process in that country.

The situation in the Sudan has seen positive

developments. Angola welcomes the recent agreements

between the sisterly Republics of South Sudan and the

Sudan, with a view to the settling of their disputes.

Angola urges stakeholders to engage with one another

and to show the political will necessary to implement

the commitments undertaken.

With respect to Mali, Angola deplores the

worsening humanitarian situation resulting from

the crisis prevailing in that country. Angola calls

upon the international community to demonstrate its

determination to preserve the unity, sovereignty and

territorial integrity of Mali.

In the sisterly nation of Guinea-Bissau, we

advocate a comprehensive solution and the permanent

normalization of the constitutional order, in accordance

with the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, the

African Union, the Community of Portuguese-speaking

Countries and the Economic Community of West

African States, as well as the wishes of all the internal

actors, in order to stabilize the country and establish

peace.

We remain concerned about the lack of progress

in resolving the issue of Western Sahara. We call on

the parties involved to continue negotiations under

the auspices of the United Nations so that the people

of Western Sahara can exercise their right of self-

determination.

The prevailing situation in the Middle East in

general, and the Palestinian territories in particular,

is one of the most serious problems facing the

international community. Angola supports the creation

of an independent Palestinian State living side by side

with the State of Israel in peace and security and within

secure internationally recognized borders, in line with

the position of the international community.

The conflict in Syria poses a grave threat to

international peace and security and will seriously exacerbate the humanitarian situation in the region.

Angola urges the international community to support

the efforts of Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi, Joint Special

Representative of the United Nations and the League

of Arab States for Syria, to seek a negotiated solution

to the conflict.

The embargo imposed on Cuba violates international

law and for decades has been a major impediment to that

country’s development and improvements in the lives

of its citizens. Angola reiterates its principled position

affirming the need to end the embargo in accordance

with the relevant United Nations resolutions.

Angola’s foreign policy will continue to be based on

mutual respect, mutual benefit, good-neighbourliness

and the strengthening of regional economic integration.

Angola will continue to comply with all the international

commitments and international instruments to which it

is a party.

Ten years after achieving peace, Angola has

recorded significant progress in consolidating its

democratic process. General elections were held on

31 August in a civil and peaceful atmosphere, thus

demonstrating the maturity of its people. The results

expressed the sovereign will of the Angolan people,

as verified by international observers who closely

followed the election.

Currently, Angola is joyfully celebrating the

investiture of its organs of State sovereignty, including

the President of the Republic and the National Assembly,

as well as the assumption of office by members of the

Government. It is experiencing a dynamic reconstruction

and development process marked by the consolidation

of macroeconomic stability that has had positive

effects on the stabilization of the national currency.

In addition, the rehabilitation and modernization of

major productive and social infrastructure, namely

the reconstruction of roads, railways, electricity

supply and distribution systems, water supply systems

and sanitation and telecommunication networks, are

contributing to the progressive improvement of the

living conditions of Angolans.

Political stability and the strengthening of

institutional capacity have enabled the Angolan

economy to grow at an average rate of 9.2 per cent over

the past five years, while the non-oil sector has grown

at an average rate of 12 per cent. Those growth rates

were due to effective measures by the Government

aimed at stabilizing the fiscal, monetary and currency macroeconomic indicators and thereby facilitating the

revival of the economy.

The fi ght against hunger and the struggle to reduce

and eradicate poverty are two of the biggest challenges

being addressed by the Angolan State owing to their

impact on people’s lives. Indeed, their resolution is

crucial if we are to build a more prosperous society and

achieve social justice.

Despite Angola’s successes in the last decade,

it was not possible to achieve the Millennium

Development Goals as we had wished. However, the

country’s macroeconomic development indicators have

permitted the Committee for Development Policy of

the Economic and Social Council to consider Angola

eligible to graduate from its least developed country

status starting in 2015.

On behalf of the Angolan Government, we would

like to express our gratitude for the trust that investors have shown in us and for the assistance provided by

international partners which, added to investment from

national sources, has allowed us to achieve the level of

economic growth the country has been experiencing.

We are aware that there is still much to do to ensure

that the high growth rates the country has seen in the

recent past are reflected in an effective, systematic and

gradual increase in the standard of living of the Angolan

people, through a better distribution of national income

and higher employment levels, especially among youth,

and increased and better investment in the area of social

welfare.

In conclusion, I must reiterate Angola’s commitment

to the purposes and principles embodied in the Charter

of the United Nations and state that we will continue

to engage in the search for solutions to the challenges

facing the international community.