PRESS BRIEFING
BY MONICA GRAYLEY,?
SPOKESPERSON FOR?GENERAL ASSEMBLY?
PRESIDENT DENNIS FRANCIS
United Nations Headquarters, New York
24 May 2024
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PGA TO ATTEND FOURTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES IN ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA
The President of the General Assembly (PGA), Mr. Dennis Francis, will travel to St. Johns, Antigua and Barbuda, from 25 to 28 May to take part in the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS4).
The event is hosted by the Government of Antigua and Barbuda under the theme: Charting the Course Toward Resilient Prosperity.
The once-in-a-decade Conference aims to address the multiple challenges including the impacts of climate change, the debt crisis, and post-pandemic social and economic recovery affecting Small Island Developing States.
The PGA will speak at the opening segment of the Conference attended by Heads of State and Government, Ministers, and other high-level dignitaries.
The President of the General Assembly will also pay a courtesy call on the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, H.E., Mr. Gaston Browne, and hold bilateral meetings with the Prime Minister of Samoa, H.E. Ms. Fiam¨¥ Naomi Mata’afa, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Antigua and Barbuda, Mr. Everly Paul Chet Greene, among other interlocutors.
President Francis will also host a roundtable discussion on Gender Equality in SIDS; engage with a small group of children and young people before participating in the closing ceremony of the SIDS Children and Youth Action Summit; and meet with civil society organizations.
During the SIDS4 Conference, in Antigua and Barbuda, President Francis will continue to advocate for the inclusion of vulnerability in measuring prosperity and securing access to development finance whilst highlighting the impacts of climate change, including sea-level rise and the threats posed to Small Island Developing States.
The critical issue of sea-level rise, which is one of the PGA¡¯s main priorities, will be discussed by world leaders during the General Assembly High-Level Week in September.
The PGA¡¯s delegation includes his Chef de Cabinet, his Special Adviser on Gender Equality and Women¡¯s Empowerment, a Special Adviser, a Team Leader for Sustainable Development and Financing for Development, as well as a Communications Adviser.
Travel costs for the visit are covered by the OPGA¡¯s Trust Fund and the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Regular Budget.
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Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵGA NEXT WEEK
For your calendars next week. Member States will meet for informal consultations on the Summit of Future on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday.
As we announced yesterday, also on Thursday the 30th at 10 a.m. the General Assembly will hold a plenary meeting to pay tribute to the memory of the late President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, H.E. Mr. Ebrahim Raisi, who died on Sunday, 19 May.
As per the GA¡¯s practice ¡°to pay tribute to the memory of a deceased national leader who was the sitting Head of State at the time of death.¡±
And on Thursday and Friday, Member States will hold informal consultations on the high-level meeting on antimicrobial resistance.
This is all we have for today and for this week. We will back here on Wednesday. Do you have anything else?
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