H.E. Mr. Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, President of the Republic of Tunisia

In an address to participants at the high level meeting held as part of the 63 rd session of the United Nations' General Assembly on the Millennium Development Goals, Foreign Minister, Mr Abdelwahab Abdallah, reiterated Tunisia's commitment to international peace, solidarity, tolerance, legality and equitable and sustainable development.

The Minister also highlighted Tunisia's major achievements under the wise leadership of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, which have helped bolster democracy and strengthen mechanisms for protecting Human Rights and expand the scope of consultation and participation of the components of civil society in major national decision.

He stressed Tunisia's efforts to promote the objectives of the Millennium Goal such as access of all citizens to drinking water, the fight against desertification, the increase of green areas, and the creation of a National Gene Bank with a stocking capacity of 200,000 animal and plant species.

Evoking the difficult world situation in reference to the soaring prices of oil and basic food commodities and the latest financial crisis, Mr Abdallah called for the revitalization of the World Solidarity Fund, established by the UN since 2002, following Tunisia's initial recommendation.

He also reiterated Tunisia's call in favour of the holding of an international conference under the aegis of the UN, for the establishment of an international code of conduct regarding the fight against terrorism, reminding the audience that in the early 1990's President Ben Ali had warned the world against the rising danger of terrorism.

In conclusion, the Foreign Minister stressed the importance of the role played by the UN in seeking to find collective solutions to world problems.