Sessions
Ordinary sessions
The General Assembly meets annually in regular session, intensively from September to December, and resumes in January until all issues on the agenda are addressed – which often is just before the next session starts.
Since the 60th session in 2005, the President-elect of the General Assembly suggests a theme of global concern for the upcoming general debate, based on informal discussions with Member States, the President of the current session of the General Assembly, and the Secretary-General. Shortly after his/her election, the President-elect sends a letter to all Member States announcing the theme for the upcoming general debate and inviting them to focus their speeches on the proposed theme.
| Session | President | Theme |
|---|---|---|
| 78th (2023-2024) | M. Dennis Francis (Trinidad and Tobago) | "Peace, prosperity, progress and sustainability" |
| 77th (2022-2023) | M. Csaba Kőrösi (Hungary) | "A watershed moment: transformative solutions to interlocking challenges" |
| 76th (2021-2022) | Mr. Abdulla Shahid (Maldives) | "A presidency of hope: delivering for people, for the planet and for prosperity" |
| 75th (2020-2021) | Mr. Volkan Bozkir (Turkey) | "The Future we want, the United Nations we need: reaffirming our collective commitment to multilateralism – confronting COVID-19 through effective multilateral action" |
| 74th (2019-2020) | Mr. Tijjani Muhammad-Bande (Nigeria) | "Striving together, delivering for all" |
| 73rd (2018-2019) | Ms. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés (Ecuador) | "Making the United Nations relevant to all people: Global leadership and shared responsibilities for peaceful, equitable and sustainable societies" |
| 72nd (2017-2018) | Mr. Miroslav Lajčák (Slovakia) | "Focusing on People: Striving for Peace and a Decent Life for All on a Sustainable Planet" |
| 71st (2016-2017) | Mr. Peter Thomson (Fiji) | "The Sustainable Development Goals: A Universal Push to Transform our World" |
| 70th (2015-2016) | Mr. Mogens Lykketoft (Denmark) | "The United Nations at 70 — A New Commitment to Action" |
| 69th (2014-2015) | Mr. Sam Kutesa (Uganda) | "Delivering on and Implementing a Transformative Post-2015 Development Agenda" |
| 68th (2013-2014) | Mr. John W. Ashe (Antigua and Barbuda) | "The way forward: a disability-inclusive development agenda towards 2015 and beyond" |
| 67th (2012-2013) | Mr. Vuk Jeremić (Serbia) | "Bringing about adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations by peaceful means" |
| 66th (2011-2012) | Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser (Qatar) | "The role of mediation in the settlement of disputes by peaceful means" |
| 65th (2010-2011) | Mr. Joseph Deiss (Switzerland) | "Reaffirming the central role of the United Nations in global governance" |
| 64th (2009-2010) | Dr. Ali Abdussalam Treki (Libya, formerly Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) | "Effective responses to global crises: strengthening multilateralism and dialogue among civilizations for international peace, security and development" |
| 63rd (2008-2009) | Mr. Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann (Nicaragua) | "The impact of the global food crisis on poverty and hunger in the world as well as the need to democratize the United Nations" |
| 62nd (2007-2008) | Mr. Srgjan Kerim (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia) | "Responding to climate change" |
| 61st (2006-2007) | Ms. Sheikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa (Bahrain) | "Implementing a global partnership for development" |
| 60th (2005-2006) | Mr. Jan Eliasson (Sweden) | "For a stronger and more effective United Nations: the follow-up and implementation of the High-level Plenary Meeting in September 2005" |
| 59th (2004-2005) | Mr. Jean Ping (Gabon) | |
| 58th (2003-2004) | Mr. Julian Robert Hunte (Saint Lucia) | |
| 57th (2002-2003) | Mr. Jan Kavan (Czech Republic) | |
| 56th (2001-2002) | Dr. Han Seung-soo (Republic of Korea) | |
| 55th (2000-2001) | Mr. Harri Holkeri (Finland) | |
| 54th (1999-2000) | Dr. Theo-Ben Gurirab (Namibia) | |
| 53rd (1998-1999) | Mr. Didier Opertti (Uruguay) | |
| 52nd (1997-1998) | Mr. Hennadiy Udovenko (Ukraine) | |
| 51st (1996-1997) | Mr. Razali Ismail (Malaysia) |
See also resolutions of all sessions
