YouSaid · the spoken record

Mahamadou Issoufou

lines on the record
28
first
2020-09-24
most recent
2021-01-06
sittings or episodes
3
sources
un-security-council

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  1. “Now more than ever, we need strong democratic institutions in the region, strengthened means of defence and security and greater development. In particular, we need a Chapter VII mandate for the Joint Force of the Group of Five for the Sahel, as well as the widest possible participation of the international community in the international coalition against terrorism in the Sahel. We renew our call to all our technical and financial partners to finance the Group of Five for the Sahel Priority Investment Programme adopted in Nouakchott in December 2018. We thank Secretary-General António Guterres for his constant advocacy in favour of the peoples of the Sahel. We hope that the Tunisian presidency of the Security Council will meet with great success.”

    2021-01-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/24 (2021) · source

  2. “This requires greater collaboration among humanitarian, development, peace and security actors. Institutions such as the World Bank and the African Development Bank, which have Fragile States Facilities, should be encouraged to do more. Africa is clearly the continent with the greatest number of fragile contexts. Helping Africa to implement Agenda 2063 as well as its plans and projects is the only way to lift the continent out of fragility. In particular, it is necessary to support the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area and plans for the development of infrastructure, agriculture and industry in Africa and to pay special attention to fragile regions such as the Sahel, where States are confronted with all the factors of fragility, including security, climate and demographic challenges.”

    2021-01-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/24 (2021) · source

  3. “We need to take into account its complexity and confront it in all its dimensions. We must never lose sight of the ultimate goal of bringing hope and a better life to all people living in fragile contexts. We will need to intensify our efforts aimed at prevention, peace and security with more resources, invest in more and smarter aid in fragile contexts, invest in data to better understand different states of fragility in order to foresee and strengthen the capacity of Governments to provide inclusive solutions to their own states of fragility in order to improve the resilience of communities. Strengthening the international and regional architectures for managing war and peace is of course necessary. In short, the causes of fragility must be addressed.”

    2021-01-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/24 (2021) · source

  4. “If nothing is done today, 80 per cent of the world’s poor could live in fragile contexts, which is incompatible with the vision of the better world enshrined in the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It is estimated that 65 per cent and 60 per cent of the world’s population live in fragile States without access to water and adequate food. The current coronavirus disease pandemic is exacerbating the situation, threatening to wipe out decades of progress made in poverty reduction and development. In 2020, between 18 million and 27 million more people fell into poverty. In addition, the flow of internally displaced persons and refugees continues to increase. We must acknowledge fragility and make addressing it a priority if we want a better world.”

    2021-01-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/24 (2021) · source

  5. “It can also be triggered by a failed or a flawed election, an attempt to modify the constitution for selfish political gains, a natural disaster and/or a [pandemic]”. There were 58 fragile contexts worldwide in 2018. Fragility appears to be one of the greatest challenges of the twenty-first century, especially as fragile contexts are increasingly the battleground of geopolitical rivalries. Conflict, terrorism, pandemics, forced displacement, disasters and famine are often rooted in fragility. These factors are both causes and consequences of fragility. Poverty is increasingly concentrated in fragile contexts.”

    2021-01-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/24 (2021) · source

  6. “A report by the African Development Bank, From Fragility to Resilience: Managing Natural Resources in Fragile Situations in Africa, shows that almost all States in situations of extreme fragility were, at the time the report was published, endowed with abundant natural resources, thereby proving that the poor management of natural resources is a conflict factor, and therefore a trigger of fragility, whereas, when such resources are well managed, they are the well-spring of resilience. One of the most emblematic examples is Sierra Leone, a country rich in diamonds. In its report, the African Development Bank states that fragility “spans a broad spectrum that is varied in geographic scope and frequency of conflict, ranging from declared hostilities between warring parties to established states that experience sporadic violence.”

    2021-01-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/24 (2021) · source

  7. “Fragile States are also defined as those “in which the poor lack essential services because the Government is unwilling or unable to provide them” or as States with “weak capacities to perform core governance functions and [that] lack the ability to develop constructive and mutually beneficial relationships with society”. Countries that have hosted a United Nations and/or regional peacekeeping or peacebuilding mission in the past three years are also considered fragile. It is noted that situations of fragility, conflict and violence affect both low-income countries, which are referred to as “low-income countries in difficulty”, and middle-income countries, which are referred to as “fragile or failed middle-income States”.”

    2021-01-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/24 (2021) · source

  8. “For example, the Fund for Peace calculates the Fragile States Index based on 12 criteria, including, inter alia, economic inequality, public services, demographic and migratory pressures, security issues, including terrorism, climate change, ethnic divisions, human rights, illegal financial flows, corruption, unfavourable business climates, new technologies. The World Bank has developed a Country Policy and Institutional Assessment tool that measures economic management, structural policies, social equity and inclusion policies and governance policies. When a country falls below a certain threshold, it is considered fragile.”

    2021-01-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/24 (2021) · source

  9. “Allow me to congratulate President Kaïs Saïed and the Tunisian presidency of the Security Council for the month of January 2021. I thank President Saïed for organizing today’s important debate on the challenges of maintaining peace and security in fragile contexts. The people of the Niger will never forget that it was Tunisia that sponsored our country’s entry into the United Nations on 20 September 1960, a little more than a month after gaining independence. This is one more reason to assure you, Mr. President, of the Niger’s readiness to provide Tunisia with all the support it will need throughout its presidency of the Council and beyond. As we all know, fragile contexts are very difficult to define. Fragility is more than a question of economic growth or an institutional issue or conflict.”

    2021-01-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/24 (2021) · source

  10. “To that end, I would like to propose four suggestions. The first concerns a new concept of peacekeeping and peace enforcement operations. The second is the establishment of a mechanism to ensure the sustainable financing of peacekeeping operations led by the African Union or subregional organizations, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity. The third concerns the strengthening of cooperation between the two Councils by emphasizing the coordination of their agendas and goals through an increase in the number of regularly scheduled meetings. The fourth, as I mentioned earlier, is to ensure that African countries play a central role in the discussions and decision-making process of the Security Council, as African issues constitute the majority of the subjects it deals with.”

    2020-12-04 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1179 (2020) · source

  11. “It is therefore essential to ensure operational collaboration between regional organizations and the United Nations, which would lead to the establishment of development agencies focused on the primary goal of tackling the root causes of security problems in crisis-affected areas. Our responsibility is not just to resolve such security issues but above all to prevent them too. The framework of our joint action should enable us to take into account new threats to peace and security such as pandemics, terrorism, the impact of climate change, cybercrime and organized crime, including through a new concept of United Nations operations. The same architecture should also enable the United Nations and the African Union to accord special attention to issues concerning young people, women and children.”

    2020-12-04 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1179 (2020) · source

  12. “The coronavirus disease pandemic has reminded us of the urgent importance of reforming the current system of global governance by enabling it to better mirror the fundamental principles of the Charter. The Niger therefore believes that the African continent must assume its rightful place within the organs of the United Nations, particularly the Security Council, in accordance with the Ezulwini Consensus and unquestionably in line with the aspirations of other regions of the world. The cooperation between our two organizations should also take into account all factors that might constitute a threat to international peace and security or undermine our efforts in achieving them.”

    2020-12-04 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1179 (2020) · source

  13. “While the negotiation of various agreements under the auspices of United Nations, the African Union and other partner organizations and institutions is laudable, it is clear that such cooperation has not always been effective. As a case in point, the Libyan crisis has exposed the differences in the roles and responsibilities of the Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council. The opposition of the Niger and other neighbours of our brother country Libya to any intervention there has unfortunately gone unheard. Today Libya is facing chaos, which has led to the spread of arms and mercenaries and to instability in the Sahel and the Lake Chad basin, as well as an unprecedented humanitarian and migration crisis.”

    2020-12-04 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1179 (2020) · source

  14. “Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, for his efforts to establish a peace and security architecture specific to the African Union in accordance with the Lusaka Master Roadmap 2016. I also want to praise the very positive role played by the Economic Community of West African States in the area of peace and mediation in the region. All this is to say that the conditions for applying the principle of subsidiarity in carrying out and coordinating peace and security operations on African soil exist, and only in this way will we meaningfully give form to the concept of African solutions to African problems, which we support.”

    2020-12-04 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1179 (2020) · source

  15. “We therefore welcomed the outcome of the fourteenth annual joint consultative meeting between the members of the Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council, presided over by the Niger in September 2020, as well as the latest report of the Secretary-General (S/2020/860) on cooperation between the two bodies through the Joint United Nations-African Union Framework for Enhanced Partnership in Peace and Security. Those reference instruments have led to a better understanding of the root causes of conflicts by highlighting the role and importance of the regional actors that already possess the mechanisms necessary for dealing with crisis situations. In that regard, I would like to commend Mr.”

    2020-12-04 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1179 (2020) · source

  16. “We are certain that our high- level discussion and exchange today will be highly valuable in terms of effectively addressing the challenges facing our continent. As everyone knows, Africa has been a priority item on the Security Council’s agenda in recent years. Current statistics indicate that more than 50 per cent of the Council’s agenda and 70 per cent of the peace and security situations addressed under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations concern African countries. That is a sad reality that calls for special attention and commensurate cooperation, as well as decisive and coordinated action, on the part of the African Union and the United Nations in the fulfilment of their mandates with regard to conflict prevention and resolution, peacebuilding and the development and capacity-building of African countries in all areas.”

    2020-12-04 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1179 (2020) · source

  17. “At the outset, I commend this important initiative taken by His Excellency Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa, President of the Republic of South Africa and current Chairperson of the African Union Commission. His leadership of the Security Council during the month of December will, I have no doubt, meet the expectations of Africa and the international community. I also congratulate Germany, Belgium, the Dominican Republic and Indonesia as their successful terms on the Security Council come to an end. This meeting is of major interest for the Niger, and undoubtedly for the other countries of the African continent and their partners as well, as it focuses on the current state of cooperation between the United Nations and regional and subregional organizations, in particular the African Union (AU).”

    2020-12-04 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1179 (2020) · source

  18. “It underscores the urgent need to rethink our collective security system. It has shown the reality of our humankind and of all the countries of the world, which have all been equal in the face of suffering, be they big or small, rich or poor, weak or powerful. It is up to all of us to work together to draw the necessary lessons and reflect on the essential reforms of global governance. We must create a post-COVID-19 world of peace, solidarity and prosperity for all, a world of solidarity, dignity, equality, justice and freedom.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  19. “Our production model is generating ecological damage, with serious consequences for the planet. The World Wildlife Fund for Nature estimates that more than 50 per cent of vertebrates have disappeared in the past 40 years. The global population of wild animals has decreased by more than S/2020/953 68 per cent. The new post-COVID paradigm must take this into account and call for the full and urgent implementation of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. Therefore, it is clear that the instruments put in place in the aftermath of the Second World War are no longer sufficient to address the challenges of poverty, social inequality, climate change, terrorism, organized crime and cybercrime, the peaceful coexistence of peace and global security. The COVID-19 pandemic undoubtedly marks the end of an era.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  20. “It also demands that we put an end to this globalization that accepts the free circulation of capital, goods and services but refuses the free circulation of people. In fact, only 3 per cent of the world’s people lives outside their country of origin. The fifth challenge relates to climate change. Since the beginning of the industrial era, we have had development models that attack nature. Nature is taking revenge on us through extreme weather events. The many hurricanes and storms, floods, droughts, melting glaciers, rising sea and ocean levels, coastal erosion, the appearance of new diseases, damage to biodiversity and so forth are clear signs of this. Moreover, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has regularly drawn attention to global warming.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  21. “We produce enough wealth in the world to eradicate it. We can defeat the two horsemen of the apocalypse — hunger and disease. Nothing must stop us in this fight, because poverty destroys freedom and dignity. It is a breeding ground for terrorism and organized crime. That is why there must be an unbiased discussion of universal basic income for all individuals. Experiences have shown that this does not encourage laziness and idleness. We have evidence of this in the Niger with the unconditional money transfers that we provide for the benefit of the most vulnerable populations. The fight against poverty, in particular unemployment, requires a better sharing of working time. It also requires reform of global financial and economic institutions.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  22. “The fight against inequality requires an in-depth reform of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the World Trade Organization. The fourth challenge concerns the fight against poverty. The time has come to build a world free of poverty. “A world free of poverty” is the motto of the World Bank. Furthermore, let me recall article 25 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.” To guarantee this right, a total war must be declared on poverty.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  23. “I recall article 1 of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen of 1789: “Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be founded only upon the general good.” These inequalities are not always justified by merit, so they are not based on common good. They are incompatible with the principles of social justice that are the foundation of democratic societies. Experience shows that the invisible hand of the market cannot correct them. Reducing inequality requires not only massive investment in education and training, but also the design and implementation of expansionary economic policies and the introduction of a tax on financial transactions, or even a progressive global tax on capital, which would also put an end to the tax competition that States are engaged in today.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  24. “That is why the world always reforms after shocks. The current model dates from the aftermath of the two oil shocks of 1973 and 1979. Its complete supremacy has even made people believe in "the end of the history". But it has produced inequalities such that the world is, in that respect, in the same position as it was at the end of the nineteenth century. The gap between the richest and the poorest is widening and the middle class, one of the foundations of modern democracy, is weakening. The gap between the richest and the S/2020/953 poorest is greater today than it was in ancient Rome, where the economy was based on slavery. All specialists agree that this trend will increase in the current context of low economic growth and high returns on capital. Such escalating inequality is the greatest threat facing the global economy.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  25. “The demand for a return to the concept of collective peace cannot be met with a right of veto, as no State should have the right to block the decisions of the international community in the face of a common threat on the basis of its own interests or friendships. Moreover, the risk of a confrontation between States, particularly between major Powers, is not zero. The possibility that one or other of those Powers may fall into the Thucydides Trap cannot be ruled out. The international community must work to prevent such an outcome, including through the denuclearization of our planet. The third challenge concerns the deepening of inequalities — inequalities among and within countries. “The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping the old ones”, said a leading economist.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  26. “Moreover, Africa has a common position on this issue, which is expressed through the Ezulwini Consensus. As for the General Assembly, the ongoing demand of Member States is that of a rebalancing of power between it and the Security Council. The second challenge concerns the issues of peace and security. In view of the perceived shortcomings of the concept of peacekeeping, there is an urgent need to return to the concept of collective security and give more weight to United Nations peacekeeping operations under Chapter VII of the Charter of the Organization. As the nature of conflicts changes, the mandates of United Nations forces must also adapt. The greatest current threat to global peace and security comes from non-State criminal groups.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  27. “In that regard, at the seventy-fourth session of the United Nations General Assembly, I already reaffirmed the need to support the Secretary-General in his efforts to reform our Organization with a view to establishing a more democratic multilateral system (see A/74/PV.4). What was valid 75 years ago is no longer valid today. The functioning of the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council and the Security Council must reflect to the current world situation. With regard to particularly the Security Council, where we are proud to sit, all regions of the world, including Africa, must be fairly represented. The number of permanent seats must be increased and the right of veto must be abolished or expanded to the new permanent members in order to establish democracy and equality.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source

  28. “I would like to warmly thank all present for their constructive participation in this high-level meeting. As President of the Security Council, I am honoured to have this opportunity to discuss what post-coronavirus disease (COVID-19) global governance should look like. It is said that only a crisis that is, or is perceived to be, a crisis produces real change. We missed the opportunity for real change during the financial crisis of 2008. Are we going to miss the opportunity provided to us by COVID-19 to rebuild global governance? What are the challenges of our time and what governance is needed to respond to those challenges? The first challenge that I want to address is global political governance.”

    2020-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/953 (2020) · source