UN General Assembly High-level Week: Lostisland to Attend in Informal Capacity

The Federal Republic of Lostisland will be attending the UN General Assembly High-level Week virtually in an informal capacity from the 18th to the 26th of September 2023. Lostisland is a global sovereignty and an independent social and cultural organization operating in the form of a nation-state, similar to the Order of Malta.

The UN General Assembly High-level Week is a series of high-level meetings and events that take place in New York City each year. The week includes the General Debate, the SDG Summit, the High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development, and the Climate Ambition Summit, among other events.

Lostisland is not a member of the United Nations. This means that the representative will not be able to speak at the General Debate and other high-level events. However, they will be able to attend and observe all of the meetings and events. Lostisland will be represented by Professor Aniebiet Inyang Ntui, the recently appointed  Honorary Consul of Lostisland to Nigeria. Professor Ntui will be meeting with other delegates, major groups, and officials to discuss priorities on sustainable development and climate action.

The General Assembly, also known as UNGA, is the main forum for all 193 Members of the UN to discuss international issues in line with the UN Charter. The Assembly meets in regular sessions from September to December each year. These meetings resume in January until all issues on the agenda are addressed, which is often just before the next session starts again in September.

Between 2023 and 2024, the Assembly meets for the 78^th time (UNGA 78), and this session officially opens on Tuesday, 5 September 2023.

As part of the Assembly’s annual session, a General Debate is held each September which is typically attended by Heads of State and Government. This year’s General Debate runs from Tuesday, 19 September 2023 until Tuesday, 26 September 2023. The General Debate is not actually a debate. Member States take turns delivering speeches and are given a right of reply when required. They use the opportunity to raise a topic which reflects an issue of importance to them.

For the 78^th session, the theme of the debate is: “Rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity: Accelerating action on the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals towards peace, prosperity, progress and sustainability for all”. Since the early years of the General Assembly, the first country to speak has been Brazil because, according to the UN Protocol and Liaison Services, no one seemed to want to be the first to speak, and Brazil went first on several occasions, which then became a tradition.

The United States is up next as the host country. The order of speakers then follows a complex algorithm reflecting level of representation, geographical balance, the order in which the request to speak was recorded, and other considerations.

In addition to the General Debate, the weeks of the General Assembly include a long list of meetings and side events. The 78^th Session includes an SDG Summit (18-19 September) which reviews the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

On 20 September, there will be a high-Level dialogue on Financing for Development, a Climate Ambition Summit and a high-level meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response.

On 21 September, there will be a preparatory meeting for the Summit of the Future as well as a high-level meeting on Universal Health Coverage.

On 22 September, there is a high-level meeting on the Fight against Tuberculosis.

The 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly marks a crucial milestone in the journey towards achieving the 2030 Agenda and the urgent need to put the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) back on track.