The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) elected Ambassador Philemon Yang, former Prime Minister (PM) of Cameroon(2009 to 2019) by acclamation, as President for its 79th session starting on 10 September 2024.
- He will succeed Ambassador Dennis Francis of Trinidad and Tobago (TT), the President of the 78th Session of the UNGA.
- The theme for the 79th session of the UNGA is “Unity in diversity, for the advancement of peace, sustainable development, and human dignity for everyone everywhere”.
Note: By the established regional rotation, the President of the 79th session of the UNGA was elected from the Group of African States.
About Philemon Yang:
i.Ambassador Philemon Yang has previously served in various pivotal government positions such as:
- Vice-Minister of Territorial Administration (1975-1979);
- Minister of Mines and Energy (1979-1984);
- Minister, Deputy Secretary General at the Presidency of the Republic (2004-2009); and
- Grand Chancellor of National Orders at the Presidency of the Republic (Since 2020).
ii.He also served as Cameroon’s High Commissioner to Canada (1984-2004), where he served 14 years as Dean of the Diplomatic Corps.
iii.He served as Chairperson of the Panel of Eminent Africans of the African Union (AU), since February 2020.
iv.He was also the Chairperson of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety.
Pakistan, Panama, Somalia, Denmark, and Greece Elected Non-Permanent Members of the UNSC
The UNGA elected Denmark, Greece, Pakistan, Panama, and Somalia as non-permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC) for 2-year terms starting on 1 January 2025 and serving till 31 December 2026.
- These countries will replace the outgoing non-permanent members Ecuador, Japan, Malta, Mozambique, and Switzerland, whose terms end on 31 December 2024.
Voting Process:
The election was conducted via secret ballot and the elected countries needed a two-thirds majority of Member States present and voting, typically 129 votes if all 193 member states are present
- Participation: 190 Member States participated, requiring only a single round of balloting.
UNSC and its Role:
i.The UNSC has 15 members, 5 of which are permanent ones, each with veto power: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States of America (USA).
ii.The 10 non-permanent seats of the council are distributed according to below 4 regional groupings, with 5 replaced each year.
- Africa and Asia; Eastern Europe; Latin America and the Caribbean; and the Western European and other States group.
iii.The existing non-permanent members are Algeria, Guyana, the Republic of Korea, Sierra Leone, and Slovenia, whose term began on 1 January 2024.
iv.The 15-member Security Council is primarily responsible for maintaining international peace and security, with all Member States obligated to comply with its decisions.
Note: Along with the 5 permanent Members, the 5 new members will join the existing 5 non-permanent members.
Vote Tally:
i.African and Asia-Pacific Group: Pakistan: 182 votes; Somalia: 179 votes, with 5 countries abstaining.
ii.Latin America and the Caribbean Group: Panama: 183 votes; Argentina: 1 vote, with 6 countries abstaining.
iii.Western European and Other States Group: Denmark: 184 votes; Greece: 182 votes, and Italy and Norway each received 1 vote; 2 countries abstained.
Note: The group of Eastern Europe is not contesting in 2024, as its one seat, currently held by Slovenia through 2025, comes up for election every other year.
Additional Info: India has been elected eight times as a non-permanent member of the UNSC. It was a member in 1950-1951, 1967-1968, 1972-1973, 1977-1978, 1984-1985, 1991-1992, 2011-2012, and 2021-2022.
About the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA):
Established in 1945 under the UN Charter, the UNGA is the main policy-making organ of the UN.
Headquarters– New York, the United States of America(USA)
