President William Ruto has called on African countries to reposition technology as a driver of economic growth.
Speaking Tuesday High-Level Convening on the ‘Accra Reset’ on the sidelines of 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York, Ruto noted that technology is a prime enabler of sustainable competitiveness, with the power to elevate African countries to middle-income status.
“Our task is to organise Africa’s capabilities at scale, strengthen our technological agency and translate innovation into greater productivity, new enterprises and opportunity for our people,” he said.
The Head of State who was among world leaders who attended the opening of the General Debate on Tuesday affirmed Kenya’s leadership of the MasterKey Corridor, connecting African skills and credentials to opportunities across borders.
He stressed that Africa must be a builder of the technologies defining ‘this century, and a contributor to the rules that govern them pointing out that the Accra Reset provides a practical platform to advance this ambition and ensure that technological progress delivers shared prosperity.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres opened the General Assembly followed by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil and later United States President Donald Trump.
This marked the beginning of a week of speeches by heads of State, governments and delegations. A flurry of eight bilateral meetings and diplomatic engagements has been going on since Monday and will continue.
At the same time, President Ruto co-hosted the Partners for Multilateralism Summit with European Council President António Costa and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
The President noted that to restore trust in international cooperation, there is need to reform the rules and institutions that were established 80 years ago and have not kept pace with the world they are expected to govern today.
“This is why Kenya continues to advocate reform of the UN Security Council to make it more representative and inclusive, particularly for Africa,” he said.
He pointed out that Kenya seeks the reform of the international financial architecture so that it becomes fairer, prices risk more accurately and enables developing countries to mobilise more of their own capital for development.
“Trust will be restored when multilateralism works more fairly, rules are applied consistently, institutions reflect the world they govern, and cooperation delivers results that people can see and feel,” President Ruto explained.
President Ruto is scheduled to deliver Kenya’s main address to the General Assembly on Wednesday.
The General Debate will run through Saturday and conclude on Monday September 28. This year’s UN General Assembly theme is “Restoring Trust, Managing Transformation: A United Nations that delivers for all”.
Several high-level meetings will take place alongside the debate, including sessions on climate action, sea-level rise, development finance, industrialisation, child health and nutrition, among others
