Wednesday September 17, 2014
UNITED NATIONS--Sam Kahamba Kutesa of Uganda assumed presidency of the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) here on Tuesday.Kutesa was elected president of the 69th UNGA session on June 11. At the time of his election, he was serving as Uganda's foreign minister, a post he held since Jan. 13, 2005.
He replaced John William Ashe of Antigua and Barbuda to lead the plenary session of the 193 UN member states.
The one-year presidency of the UNGA rotates among regions, with the 69th session being the turn of the African regional group and Kutesa the unanimous choice.
A lawyer, parliamentarian and businessman, Kutesa brings to the position wide-ranging experience in international affairs. As foreign minister, Kutesa played a key role in the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, in regional peace processes in Sudan and South Sudan and in stabilization efforts in Somalia.
An elected Member of Parliament for more than three decades, Kutesa was a member of Uganda's Constituent Assembly and Chairman of that body's Political Systems Committee, during which time he contributed to drafting a new Constitution for the country, adopted in 1995.
From 2001 through 2005, he served as Minister of State for Finance, Planning and Economic Development, in charge of investment, and from 1996 to 2000, as Minister of State for Planning and Economic Development. He was his country's Attorney General from 1985 to 1986.
Born in Uganda on Feb. 1, 1949, Kutesa holds an honors degree in law from Makerere University and is an advocate of the High Court of Uganda, having completed post-graduate studies in legal practice at the Uganda Law Development Center. He is married with six children.