PETALING JAYA: Malaysia is in its final lap to bid for UN-Habitat General Assembly presidency, says Housing and Local Government Ministry.
Its minister Nga Kor Ming said the bid for the UN Habitat presidency was currently ongoing in Nairobi, Kenya, through a high-level delegation led by him.
“Bilateral meetings were held on Wednesday (May 28) at the UN-Habitat Headquarters with representatives from Mexico to strengthen support and exchange insights related to its candidacy.
“In a key meeting with His Excellency Enrique Javier Ochoa Martinez, Mexico’s Under-Secretary for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights, the delegation sought to learn from Mexico’s experience as the outgoing UN-Habitat Assembly President (2019–present),” he said in a statement on Wednesday (May 28).
If elected, Malaysia will lead the UN body, which comprises 193 member states, for the 2026-2029 term.
Nga stressed that Malaysia remains committed to continue the momentum of excellent work and positive impacts achieved during the previous presidency.
“We remain steadfast to strengthen multilateral partnerships through this platform for constructive dialogues and meaningful outcomes,” he added.
At the same time, Nga said Malaysia is also set to have bilateral meetings with Azerbaijan, Iran and Brazil.
He said Malaysia’s engagement in Nairobi marks a strategic step forward in advancing its vision for inclusive, sustainable, and innovative urban development through leadership in the UN-Habitat platform.
“Through these bilateral meetings, we hope to elevate the country’s presence on the global stage particularly in the aspect of sustainable urban development,” Nga said.
Also part of the Malaysian delegation are Housing and Local Government Ministry secretary-general Datuk Wira M Noor Azman Taib, and High Commissioner of Malaysia to the Republic of Kenya Ruzaimi Mohamad.
The UN-Habitat Assembly is the highest-level decision-making body on sustainable urbanisation and human settlements within the United Nations system.
It convenes every four years to set key issues and policy priorities for UN-Habitat’s work.
UN-Habitat’s presidency applies a rotation system among regional groups within the United Nations.
The current president is from Latin America and the Caribbean, represented by Mexico.
The next president will come from the Asia-Pacific region and will serve a four-year term from 2025 to 2029.
If Malaysia succeed in its bid, it would be the first time in 15 years that a Malaysian has chaired a UN body since Tan Sri Hamidon Ali served as president of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (Ecosoc) in 2010.
Previously, Tan Sri Razali Ismail held the presidency of the United Nations General Assembly (Unga) from 1996 to 1997, and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim served as president of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) in 1988.
