Mr. President of the General Assembly,
Distinguished Heads of State and Government,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Each year at this time, we come together - not to preserve the status quo, but to drive our world
forward.

This is an era of wondrous opportunity. Ours is the first generation that can wipe poverty from
the face of the earth.

Yet the pressures on people and the planet are building: Youth without jobs. A warming climate.
Unresolved conflicts.

Events are moving with 21st-century speed, often outpacing the institutions and systems
designed for another age.

In streets and squares across the world, people are pressing those in power.

They want you, the
world’s leaders, to listen. They want to lmow that we are doing all it takes to secure a life of
dignity for all.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

For more than a decade, the end of the year 2015 has been our long horizon. What once seemed
a distant moment is now just around the corner.
2015 is the year by which we have pledged to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

It is the year in which we will adopt a new development agenda.

And it is the year in which you have agreed to complete a global legal agreement on climate
change.
2015 is a historic opportunity.

The MDGs have captured the imagination, generated remarkable gains and beat back doubts
about development itself.

Yet on some goals, we lag badly. Inequality is growing. Too many people face exploitation -
from fields to factory floor.

A new development agenda must be as inspiring as the MDGs, while going further.

It must be universal, with ending poverty as its top priority, sustainable development at its core,
and governance as its glue. It must find expression in a single set of goals.

And there should be no hierarchy among the three dimensions of sustainable development - no
deferring the environment or social justice for later, once economic growth is assured.

The empowerment and rights of women must be at the heart of everything we do.

The equation is simple: When girls are healthy and in school; when legal frameworks and
financial access support women; when women’s lives are free of violence and discrimination,
nations thrive.

I add my voice to those of the leaders who will gather this afternoon to adopt a strong declaration
on sexual violence in conflict.

Let the 21 st century be the century of women.

Mesdames et Messieurs,

Le succès passe par des efforts accrus du secteur privé.

Les entreprises doivent avoir les coudées franches pour faire ce qu’elles font le mieux : crier des
emplois et innover.

Mais elles doivent mener leurs activités selon les règles de l’éthique et de façon responsable, en
faisant tout pour protéger l’environnement.

Au sommet sur le Pacte mondial qui s’est tenu la semaine dernière, des milliers de chefs
d’entreprise ont promis de prendre des mesures supplémentaires pour que leurs activités soient
mieux alignées sur les objectifs de l’ONU.

L’ONU doit se doter de plus de moyens encore pour travailler non seulement avec le monde
des affaires et de la finance, mais aussi avec la société civile et les organisations philanthropiques.

Les effets des changements climatiques menacent tous les acquis du développement.

Les retombées humaines et économiques, de plus en plus importantes, touchent tout le monde.

Les plus pauvres et les plus vulnérables, qui sont les premiers à souffrir et paient le prix le plus
fort, réclament une plus grande justice climatique.

Je lance un appel tout particulier au nom des Chambres extraordinaires des tribunaux
cambodgiens. Elles ont obtenu des résultats non négligeables, mais se heurtent constamment à de
sérieux problèmes de financement, au point que leur existence est à présent compromise.

La faillite des Chambres serait une tragédie pour les Cambodgiens, qui ont si longtemps attendu
la justice. Je demande à la communauté intenationale de dégager les ressources nécessaires pour
que toutes les affaires puissent être menées à terme.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The inability of Member States and the United Nations to prevent and put a stop to large-scale
human rights violations has had disastrous consequences.

An internal review of UN action at the end of the war in Sri Lanka identified a systemic failure:
Member States did not provide the UN system with support to meet the tasks they themselves
had set; and the system itself did not adapt properly or deliver fully.

In this 20th anniversary year of the Vienna World Conference on Human Rights, we should
renew our commitment to the UN’s founding principles. I intend to do more to help Member
States reach early consensus to prevent large-scale violations, and I am implementing
recommendations to ensure that the UN system upholds its responsibilities under the Charter.

There will be little peace or enjoyment of human rights unless we confront a world awash in
deadly weapons. The past year saw the promising adoption of the Arms Trade Treaty, finally
regulating the international transfer of conventional weapons.

But nuclear disarmament is languishing. Deadly weapons are proliferating. The Comprehensive
Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty is still not in force. And small arms continue to kill and maim.

Meanwhile, at a time of pressing human need, spending on weapons remains absurdly high. Let
us get our priorities right and invest in people instead of wasting billions on deadly weapons.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

You the leaders are here to serve we the peoples.

You can be the ones who preside over an end to poverty, give voice to the will of the people and
usher in an era of sustainable development and lasting peace.

You can tackle the toughest problems today - and make your foresight a gift to future
generations.

I urge you to embrace the global logic of our times. With our fates ever more entwined, our
future must be one of ever deeper cooperation.

In this transformed global landscape, let us find new ways of governing, partnering and problem-
solving.

Let us empower the United Nations to be more than a first responder or a last resolÿ.

Change is inevitable, but progress is not. Leadership makes the difference.

Let us take our cue from Nelson Mandela - frail today, but forever in our awareness as a
towering model of integrity and principled action in the pursuit of human dignity.

You in your home countries, and we here together, are at a privileged pinnacle.

We must prove ourselves fit for purpose. We must listen to the just demands of the world’s
peoples and hear the call of history.

We speak often of hope. Our duty is to turn hope into action, through hard work, commitment,
skill and integrity.

With passion but most of all with compassion, we can build the future your people want - and
that our world needs.

Thank you.

Ban Ki-moon