Gabon opens 81st UN General Assembly with new vice-presidency role

Gabon is taking part in the 81st United Nations General Assembly, which opened on 22 September in New York, United States, with a fresh responsibility inside the organisation. Elected in June as a vice-president of the General Assembly, Libreville is marking its entry onto the Bureau of the UN’s main deliberative body during this session.

That new position gives added weight to Gabon’s presence in New York. It comes as Libreville seeks to deepen its commitment to multilateralism and to advance its priorities on major international issues. It is in this context that Marie-Édith Tassyla-Ye-Doumbeneny is leading the Gabonese delegation.

Mandated by the President of the Republic, Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation, Integration and the Diaspora is representing the head of state at this high-level gathering. Her mission goes beyond simply attending the General Assembly’s work: she carries the voice and the directions of the Gabonese president at one of the key events on the global diplomatic calendar.

Ahead of the general debate, a coordination meeting was held at Gabon’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations to align the delegation’s positions. On the sidelines of the 81st UN General Assembly, she signed last Wednesday, on behalf of the Gabonese state, the Treaties on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) and on combating cybercrime. Several ministerial departments are mobilised around priorities related in particular to climate, the protection of forests and oceans, health, housing and digital transformation.

Beyond sectoral issues, this 81st session represents the first real test of the new responsibility entrusted to Gabon within the General Assembly Bureau. It offers Libreville an additional platform to defend its interests and strengthen its partnerships. One of the highlights of this participation is expected tomorrow, 26 September. At the UN podium, Marie-Édith Tassyla-Ye-Doumbeneny will deliver, on behalf of Gabon and representing the President of the Republic, the country’s official speech.