On 30th April 2019, current President of the General Assembly Ms. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés led an “informal interactive dialogue” in the Trusteeship Council chamber between member states (MS) and the candidate for the next President of the General Assembly (PGA), H.E. Dr. Tijjani Muhammad-Bande of Nigeria. Professor Bande, as many colleagues call him, serves currently as the Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the UN and was chosen, in accordance with established common practice, by the African Group for the presidency during its turn to choose the PGA.

The dialogue is mandated by General Assembly resolution 71/323 (A/71/323) as a measure to increase transparency to the selection process.

The candidate gave a brief opening statement summarizing his provisional priorities for the session’s agenda and then answered questions taken from MSs. The candidate also answered three questions chosen from a pool sourced from civil societies, a practice new to the proceedings.

A brief biography and professional history of Dr. Tijjani Muhammad-Bande released by the Perminant Mission of Nigeria is available here, and his official vision statement can be read here.

The session can be found on the UN’s website here.