Guinea, 2011

It is a great

honour for me to address the General Assembly as the

first democratically elected President in the history of

my country since its independence, following a free,

transparent and credible election whose result was

accepted by all. My country paid a high price for the

dawn of democracy, to which I have devoted almost

50 years of my life.

Today, Guinea has turned an important page in its

history. I would like to take this opportunity to express

the people of Guinea’s gratitude to the international

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community, in particular the International Contact

Group on Guinea, for their untiring efforts in the

context of my country’s return to constitutional

normality. To those thanks, I add my brother and friend

President Blaise Compaoré, President of Burkina Faso,

who, as mediator in the Guinean crisis, spared no effort

to restore constitutional order in Guinea.

My presence in this Hall, which says much about

the history of peoples and nations, represents Guinea’s

return to the international stage. This is the place for

me to assure the international community of my

Government’s commitment to respect and promote

human rights, strengthen unity and national harmony,

build a democratic society and ensure the progress and

prosperity of the Guinean people.

The challenges to be addressed are many and

complex. The socio-economic situation that we

inherited was hardly bright: an utterly failed economy

with the resulting inflation, corruption and a

completely dysfunctional State.

The outcome of the presidential election in

November 2010 therefore expressed the legitimate

aspiration of the people of Guinea to profound change

that would foster the economic and social development

of the country. That thirst for change is also justified

by the considerable backwardness evident in our

country despite its considerable human and natural

resources. That is why, the day after the presidential

election, we committed without delay to a series of

remedial measures in order to provide the way for

better governance in the country.

Strategies and dynamic policies were drawn up

and implemented to improve people’s living

conditions. Among the reforms pledged, the

Government grants agriculture priority in order to

achieve food self-sufficiency. Likewise, the mining

sector is being reorganized through the adoption of a

new more attractive policy that takes into account the

interests of Guinea and its partners.

As part of that momentum for change, actions

continue for the modernization and restructuring of the

judicial system in order to ensure the promotion and

protection of citizens’ rights and freedoms and to

establish an attractive investment climate.

On the financial level, reform will make it

possible to control inflation, prevent the

misappropriation of public funds and avoid having to

print money, as well as allow us to combat poor

governance, impunity and corruption. Strict

management measures, such as the State one-stop shop,

strengthening economic oversight and the overhaul of

the administration, as well as undertaking audits, will

stop financial losses and correct malfunctions.

Apart from the steps to improve macroeconomic

management and the structural reforms that I have just

described, the Government has drawn up poverty

reduction strategies to meet the population’s basic

needs for income and access to basic social services, in

particular drinking water and power supplies.

Sustainable development being a major goal of the

Government, it is clear that the health-care, education

and environment sectors are among our Government’s

priorities.

However, that ambitious programme to combat

underdevelopment and poverty cannot be fully

accomplished without the ongoing and effective

support of the international community. Moreover,

negotiations are under way with the Bretton Woods

institutions on the signing of an agreement, which is

almost complete, on the Heavily Indebted Poor

Countries Initiative to considerably reduce the Guinean

debt. That will enable us to free up considerable

financial resources and devote them to the sustainable

development of our country.

I wish to acknowledge our deep appreciation for,

and to renew our faith in, the World Bank, the

International Monetary Fund and the African

Development Bank for the efforts already agreed on

implementing our development strategy. I would also

like to take this opportunity to express the Guinean

people’s gratitude to all bilateral, regional and

multilateral development partners for their valuable

contribution to the national development effort.

National reconciliation remains the cornerstone

of our action. My approach in that process is to directly

involve the population at the grassroots. In that

context, I set up a provisional commission of

reflection, co-chaired by the Grand Imam and the

Archbishop of Conakry. That commission will work

with the wise men of the regions and prefectures on the

ways and means to bolster national unity for a genuine

reconciliation.

As a component of the nation, the army is among

our priorities. The reforms seek to make it a truly

11 11-51191

republican institution — guardian of peace, security

and development.

Women and young people are key stakeholders in

our socio-economic development. Those sectors of

society receive my Government’s constant attention. In

that regard, the empowerment of young people and

women is another important factor.

Following the presidential election, the people of

Guinea are now working to prepare legislative

elections, which will enshrine the return to

constitutional order. In that context, we decided to

establish a secure computerized electoral roll that will

make it possible to correct the anomalies noted during

the presidential election and to ensure the participation

of all Guineans of voting age in the election.

The Millennium Summit, held in New York in

2000, committed itself in an ambitious declaration to

reduce extreme poverty by 2015 (see resolution 55/2).

Despite several meetings, strategies drawn up at the

State level and the participation of the international

community, in particular through the Monterrey

Consensus, the Rome summit on food security, the

Johannesburg summit on sustainable development and

the Beijing summit on social development, many

challenges are still to be addressed.

We therefore need to periodically assess the

direction of the supporting measures to ensure that the

lofty goals that have been set are met. That approach is

shared by external partners, political parties, civil

society, unions and other actors.

Despite the international community’s repeated

calls for peace, areas of conflict and tension continue

in several regions of the world, in particular in Africa,

the Middle East and Asia. The occupation of

Palestinian land by the State of Israel is an ongoing

concern. The Palestinian people must exercise their

legitimate and inalienable rights, including the right of

return to their lands and the right to establish an

independent State, within the borders established

before June 1967, in peace and security alongside the

State of Israel. That principled path alone could lead to

a comprehensive and lasting peace, which is a

guarantee for all countries in the region, including

Israel.

The advent of a stable climate in Côte d’Ivoire, a

brother country and neighbour, is reassuring after years

of fratricidal clashes.

My delegation welcomes the entry of the

Republic of South Sudan into the body of free nations.

The tragic humanitarian situation prevailing in

the Horn of Africa is a source of serious concern. The

efforts of the United Nations, the African Union and

humanitarian organizations and institutions currently

under way to provide assistance and protection to

populations in distress must continue. The adoption of

a comprehensive regional plan for food security and

self-sufficiency would provide a lasting solution to the

current crisis. However, Guinea attaches great

importance to the positive settlement of the fratricidal

conflict in Somalia.

The Republic of Guinea has always participated

in the collective effort to promote international peace

and security, and it seeks to strengthen its role in that

area. Indeed, my delegation believes that mediation is

the most effective tool for the prevention and

settlement of conflicts and for the maintenance of

international peace and security. It is clear that States

must create the domestic conditions to prevent and

settle disputes with the support of the United Nations.

In addition, subregional, regional and

international organizations must adopt mediation

mechanisms, while working closely with other actors,

such as civil society and youth and women’s

organizations. In the particular case of Africa, my

delegation would hope that priority be given to African

mediation mechanisms, whose action has shown to be

effective on several occasions.

Given the relevance of the central theme of the

current session, the Guinean delegation hopes that our

debates will further strengthen the role and action of

our universal Organization. The United Nations is the

crucible of our aspirations and the mirror of our

collective vision and our joint fight for improved well-

being and peace. To that end, it must pursue in-depth

reforms of its structures, operation and decision-taking

mechanisms so as to be more effective and credible.

I wish to reaffirm the joint African position

agreed at Ezulwini for fairer representation on the

Security Council. In that regard, Guinea will continue

to support the action of the Secretary-General, whose

re-election fills us with great joy. We are convinced

that the new mandate will enable him to continue and

to strengthen his efforts towards achieving the noble

ideals enshrined in the Charter.

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I could not finish without conveying my

congratulations to His Excellency Mr. Nassir

Abdulaziz Al-Nasser on his election as President of the

General Assembly at the sixty-sixth ordinary session. I

wish him every success in carrying out his difficult

task. To his predecessor, Mr. Joseph Deiss, I would like

to express our gratitude for his excellent work during

his term.