Durban - President Cyril Ramaphosa will meet with members of the Diplomatic Community ahead of the annual 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, from September 18 to October 05, 2018.
The engagement will include members of the Diplomatic Community accredited to South Africa led by its Dean, Ambassador Bene Lofongo M’poko.
The Diplomatic Corps comprise of Ambassadors, High Commissioners, Consuls-General and Charges d’Affaires of 139 missions and international organizations represented in South Africa.
Khusela Diko, spokesperson to the presidency said in a statement that South Africa successfully campaigned to be elected by the United Nations General Assembly to serve in the United Nations Security Council for the term 2019-2020 as a non-permanent member.
"This will be the third time that South Africa will be serving in the Security Council since the dawn of democracy in 1994," said Diko.
Diko added that President Ramaphosa expressed his gratitude to the Southern African Development Community and the African Union for their endorsement and confidence in South Africa’s international cooperation policy.
"The policy is informed by the goals and priorities of the African continent aimed at achieving a Africa and a world that is prosperous, peaceful, democratic, non-racial, non-sexist and united and contributing to a world that is just and equitable."
"The President will optimise this engagement to speak to the diplomatic corps about priority issues and programmes that the South African government is pursuing, which includes the International Investment Summit which will take place in October 2018 and the constitutional process of land restitution and redistribution."
South Africa is said to be more committed than ever to work towards greater multilateral engagement by the international community with a renewed to commitment to the maintenance of international peace and security, inclusive growth, sustainable development and protection and promotion of human rights.