UN Monitor: COVID-19 Round-Up on UN General Assembly High-level Meetings

The 75th session of the UN General Assembly (GA) will open on 15 September and its first weeks will see a number of high-level meetings: the first annual “SDG Moment” launching the Decade of Action, the High-level meeting to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the UN, the Biodiversity Summit, the High-level meeting on the 25th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing +25) and the High-level meeting to commemorate and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.

The timetable and modalities have been adapted in light of COVID-19 restrictions and are outlined below.

On 22 July, the GA agreed on several measures to adapt to the reality of COVID-19 at its September High-level meetings. The enabling resolution, A/74/L.75, was adopted under silence procedure in order to outline the new format of a mainly virtual GA as well as amend the dates of meetings in order to limit the number of individuals physically present in the UN Headquarters building in New York City.