Important: Latest information from DESA and NGLS about registration for civil society for the Summit
DESA and NGLS have written to ask those who have registered to attend the Summit, but who are not travelling to New York for it, to inform them by close of business today, Thursday, 27 August, by completing a very short form.
1 They wish to remind all applicants for registration:
a) Funding is not available from the UN to support your travel.
b) The UN cannot assist with visa arrangements.
2 New information regarding access to the Summit:
The number of applications for registration to the Summit exceeds the capacity for the official proceedings of the Summit (the plenary and interactive dialogues). A limited number of the NGO and CSO applications for registration to the Summit will be approved for the official proceedings of the Summit. Further, in order to better accommodate the high interest in the event, each individual approved for registration will receive a single half-day special event pass for one day only. Some participants will receive a half-day day pass to an overflow room. (The Economic and Social Council Chamber will serve as the overflow room for the interactive dialogues.)
Notification of the decision on applications will take at least two weeks from now, due to factors including that the list must be submitted to UN Member States for their consideration on a non-objection basis.
The Summit plenary and interactive dialogues will be webcast live at http://webtv.un.org/ and will also available later at that link in the UN WebTV archive.
Arrangements for Summit including schedules of meetings and speakers
As set out in UN document A/INF/70/4 the Summit will be held from Friday, 25 to Sunday, 27 September 2015 and the general debate of the 70th session from Monday, 28 September to Tuesday, 6 October 2015. In addition a plenary meeting will hear an address by His Holiness Pope Francis on Friday, 25 September at 10 a.m.
The summit will be held according to the following schedule:
The Head of State of the country of the President of the General Assembly at its 69th session (Uganda) and the Head of State or Government of the country of the President of the Assembly at its 70th session (Denmark) will jointly preside over the summit as Co-Chairs.
Plenary meetings
At the opening plenary meeting, on Friday morning, 25 September, the initial speakers will include the two Co-Chairs, the Secretary-General and the head of the delegation of the host country of the Organization. A representative from civil society of appropriate stature and level will be included in the list of speakers as keynote speaker after the opening statements.
Plenary meetings will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 3 to 9 p.m. on 25 September, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 3 to 9 p.m. on 26 September, and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3 to 6 p.m. on 27 September.
A representative of each of the following may also be included in the list of speakers for the plenary meetings of the summit:
Representatives of the intergovernmental groupings, the President of the World Bank Group, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, the Director-General of the World Trade Organization and the heads of the United Nations system organizations may also be included, time permitting, on the list of speakers for the plenary meetings of the summit.
Furthermore, the President of the General Assembly will draw up a list of representatives of non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, civil society organizations, major groups and the private sector, one from each grouping, selected through a transparent and inclusive process during the informal interactive hearings, who may be included, time permitting, on the list of speakers for the plenary meetings of the summit.
Statements in the plenary will be limited to five minutes.
The closing plenary meeting, which will be held in the afternoon of Sunday, 27 September, will include the presentation of summaries by the chairs of the interactive dialogues.
Interactive dialogues
The interactive dialogues will be convened in parallel to the plenary meetings, with two dialogues held on each day of the summit from 12 to 3 p.m. and 3 to 6 p.m. on 25 September, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3 to 6 p.m. on 26 September, and from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 to 5 p.m. on 27 September.
The six interactive dialogues will be held under the overarching theme “Transforming the world: realizing the post-2015 development agenda” and the themes for each of the interactive dialogues will be: (1) Ending poverty and hunger; (2) Tackling inequalities, empowering women and girls and leaving no one behind; (3) Fostering sustainable economic growth, transformation and promoting sustainable consumption and production; (4) Protecting our planet and combating climate change, (5) Building effective, accountable and inclusive institutions to achieve sustainable development; (6) Delivering on a revitalized Global Partnership. Information on the co-chairs of the interactive dialogues will be communicated by the President of the General Assembly at a later date.
Participation in the interactive dialogues will be determined on a first-come, first-served basis, ensuring that equitable geographical distribution is maintained and allowing for some flexibility. The list of participants in each interactive dialogue will be made available prior to the meeting. Statements should not exceed three minutes when made in a national capacity and five minutes when made on behalf of groups.
Participation of other stakeholders
Representatives of non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, including those on the roster through the list of the Commission on Sustainable Development, representatives of non-governmental organizations and civil society organizations that have participated in previous United Nations summits and non-governmental organizations and other major groups that were accredited to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development and the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in 1992 and in 2002, respectively, will be invited to participate in the plenary meetings and interactive dialogues of the summit.
The President will draw up a list of representatives of other relevant nongovernmental organizations, civil society organizations, academic institutions and the private sector who may participate in the plenary meetings and interactive dialogues of the summit. The final list will be circulated by the President at a later date. The list will contain proposed as well as final names, and will note the general basis of any objections. (See above for latest details.)
General debate for 70th session
The general debate of the 70th session of the General Assembly will be held from Monday, 28 September to Tuesday, 6 October 2015, with meetings from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the General Assembly Hall. The proposed theme is “The United Nations at 70: the road ahead for peace, security and human rights.”
Information on closure of UN Headquarters to public
The Headquarters complex will be closed to the public from 5.30 p.m. on Tuesday, 22 September 2015 until the close of business on Tuesday 6 October 2015. Members of civil society who are invited to attend the high-level meetings will be required to be in possession of a meeting-specific pass at all times.