Remarks by the President of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ General Assembly
H.E. Mr. Philemon Yang
at the Opening Ceremony of the Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries
Tuesday, 5 August 2025
Awaza, Turkeministan
Your Excellency, Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov, President of Turkmenistan,
United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Ant¨®nio Guterres,
Secretary-General of the Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries, Ms. Rabab Fatima,
Your Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am honoured to be here in Awaza, to address the Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries.
We appreciate the warm welcome of our hosts, the Government and people of Turkmenistan. BRAVO!
This is a milestone year. It is a year of years.
We mark the eightieth anniversary of the United Nations ¨C and celebrate the Charter¡¯s vision of peace, development and human dignity for all.
Those three pillars of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Charter are central to the mission of the United Nations.
We also have entered the final five years of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The deadline we set ourselves is fast-approaching. We are getting close to 2030.
This moment demands renewed commitment:
- to multilateralism and our foundational values.
- to bold action that benefits ¡°we the peoples ¡°of the United Nations.
- and robust partnerships committed to ensuring that indeed no one is left behind as we pursue a more safe, just, and equitable world.
Your Excellencies,
The 32 Landlocked Developing Countries have a population of 570 million people.
Each of those countries has unique challenges. However, the aspirations of those 32 countries are universal.
And the General Assembly has placed the needs of those countries high on its agenda.
Just weeks ago, the Assembly proclaimed the International Day for the Awareness of Landlocked Developing Countries¡¯ Special Development Needs and Challenges.
This Day will be observed annually on 6 August.
I am glad to confirm that the General Assembly will continue to serve as the global platform to support landlocked developing countries.
The General Assembly will do so through:
- The rigorous annual monitoring of the Awaza Programme of Action.
- The conduct of the high-level midterm review, scheduled for 2029.
- And the commitment to dialogue and cooperation, for which the Assembly is known.
Dear Friends,
?Partnerships are at the heart of all these efforts. International cooperation is of decisive significance in our ambition to encourage multilateralism.
Partnerships are a central feature of the Pact for the Future.
From the Pact¡¯s very first Action 1, leaders recognised that the 2030 Agenda is universal.
And that all developing countries, including those that are landlocked, require enhanced, tailored support to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
We must be reminded that the Sustainable Development Goals are here to stay.
Development is a process that may have a short term, medium term and long term. Development does not happen overnight.
In the last Action 55 of the Pact for the Future there is a pledge to strengthen partnerships to deliver on existing commitments and address new and emerging challenges.
The Awaza Programme of Action builds on this momentum, created by the Pact for the Future.
The Pact acknowledges the steep development hurdles landlocked developing countries face due to their structural and geographic constraints.
Guided by the principles of the United Nations Charter, it calls for greater international and multilateral cooperation to reach the furthest behind.
And the Pact demands decisive action to forge stronger partnerships:
1st. Among landlocked and transit countries,
2nd. Across the United Nations system,
3rd. And with all relevant stakeholders.
In the days ahead, let us move beyond words.
The achievements we seek such as, ¨C regional agricultural research hubs, and a dedicated infrastructure investment finance facility are attainable.
Such results must be pursued during the General Assembly¡¯s 80th session.
Likewise, recommendations for freedom of transit must lead to real improvements on the ground, in accordance with the applicable rules of international law.
Such recommendations are fundamental to the freedom of transit in all parts of the world.
The International Court of Justice advisory opinion in July 2025 adds strength to the goals set out in the Awaza Programme of Action.
The said advisory opinion is important, especially because landlocked developing countries are vulnerable to climate change.
Now is the time to translate the five priority areas of the Awaza Programme of Action into 193 national policies, driven by a unified global effort.
We all realize that for this process to succeed, it must be Members-State-driven.
This Conference must send a clear message: that geography does not determine destiny.
Landlocked developing countries lack direct access to the sea. It is not the fault of those landlocked countries that they do not have access to the sea.
But those countries must never lack access to opportunity, prosperity or hope.
The international Community must make sure that such countries have access to opportunities, prosperity, hope and dreams and unlimited imaginations.
The road to a brighter future does indeed run through partnership.
Let us walk that road together.
With urgency, unity, and determination.
Thank you.
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