H.E. Peter Thomson is the newly-elected President of the 71st Session of the  UN General Assembly.

According to the UN public release , “The UN General Assembly will host a high-level summit to address large movements of refugees and migrants, with the aim of bringing countries together behind a more humane and coordinated approach.”

“This is the first time the General Assembly has called for a summit at the Heads of State and Government level on large movements of refugees and migrants and it is a historic opportunity to come up with a blueprint for a better international response. It is a watershed moment to strengthen governance of international migration and a unique opportunity for creating a more responsible, predictable system for responding to large movements of refugees and migrants.” This Summit will be held on Monday September 19.”

High-level event on the entry into force of the Paris Agreement

The UN Journal also states that :  “As momentum gathers towards the rapid entry into force of the Paris Agreement following its historic adoption and signature, the Secretary-General is convening a high-level event on the entry into force of the Paris Agreement on Wednesday, 21 September 2016, from 8 to 9 a.m. in the General Assembly Hall. 53. The event will provide an opportunity for States that have completed their domestic ratification processes since the high-level signature ceremony for the Paris Agreement on 22 April 2016 to deposit their instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval. It will also provide a platform for countries to publicly commit to joining the Agreement before the end of 2016.”

There are many more scheduled side events .

MEANWHILE, government officials from Sierra Leone have started arriving for the Summit.

The Minister of Information and Communications, Hon. Mohamed Bangura, arrived in New York today . It is also reported that the Hon. Marie Jalloh also arrived this afternoon. The Presidential Spokesman, Mr. Abdulai Bayraytay will breeze in on Saturday September 17.