Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, permanent representative of Nigeria to the UN, addresses after he was elected as the President of the 74th session of UN General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York, June 4, 2019. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Tuesday picked Tijjani Muhammad-Bande to be its next president. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)
UNITED NATIONS, June 4 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Tuesday picked Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, permanent representative of Nigeria to the UN, to be its next president.
The 193-member General Assembly, one of UN's highest policy-making bodies, will have Muhammad-Bande presiding over its 74th session, which is scheduled to kick off in September.
Muhammad-Bande will be the second Nigerian UNGA president after Joseph Nanven Garba, who held the position between 1989 and 1990.
"The implementation of the existing mandates and the 2030 Agenda with particular focus on peace and security, poverty and education, zero hunger, quality education, climate action, and inclusion will constitute the major priorities of my presidency," said Muhammad-Bande after he was elected by acclamation to the top UNGA post.
"I am committed to promoting partnerships that are needed from all stakeholders to achieve our objectives and ultimately ensure that we do our best to ensure peace and prosperity, particularly for the most vulnerable," he added.
The office of the UNGA changes every year between the five geographic groups: African, Asian, Eastern European, Latin American and Caribbean, and Western European.
In full respect of the established principle of geographical rotation and General Assembly resolution 33/138 of Dec. 19, 1978, the president of the 74th session of the UNGA was to be elected from the African states.
In line with the new process, the president of the 73rd session of the UNGA convened an informal interactive dialogue with the candidate nominated by the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on May 13.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday dispatched a delegation to New York to drum up support for the country's candidate in the election.
