Dar es Salaam. President Samia Suluhu Hassan addressed the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly today, September 23, 2021, where, among other things, she described the responsibility to deliver gender equality in Tanzania as a “heavier burden on my shoulders.”
The session, which is taking place under the theme ‘Building resilience through hope – to recover from COVID-19, rebuild sustainably, respond to the needs of the planet, respect the rights of people and revitalize the United Nations,’ provides an opportunity for world leaders to deliver a statement on global issues.
In her maiden speech at the general debate, Tanzania’s first female Head of State spoke on the importance of multilateralism, the need for international financial institutions to fund States’ efforts to fund efforts against the global COVID-19 pandemic, the need to ensure equity in the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, the danger posed by climate change as well as the global movement to ensure gender equality.
“As the first female president in the history of my country, the burden of expectations to deliver gender equality [in Tanzania] is heavier on my shoulders,” President Samia said. “It is for this reason that I commend the initiative by UN Women, France and Mexico to organize the Generation Equality Forum that took place in Paris in June this year.”
Samia said she is aware of the relationship that exists between economic growth and governance, “[Tanzania] has managed to maintain peace and political stability with a vibrant democracy and institutionalized good governance practices, upholding rule of law and human rights.”
Samia called on the waiver of patents on COVID-19 vaccines for the developing countries so that they too can be able to produce the vaccines. She remarked: “This is not only a necessary move to end [the COVID-19] pandemic but also the right thing to do in order to save humanity.”
