STATEMENT BY
H.E. DR. MICHAEL IMRAN KANU
AMBASSADOR AND PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE
Chair,
The delegation of Sierra Leone welcomes the debate on the work of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) carried out during its fifty-eighth session, held in Vienna from 7 to 23 July 2025.
Solemnly my delegation expresses its deepest condolences to the family, the Government and people of El Salvador, as well as the international community as a whole, on the passing of Ambassador Julia Emma Villatoro Tario, Permanent Representative of El Salvador to the United Nations in Vienna, who served with dedication and distinction as Chair of the Commission until her final days. We pay tribute to her leadership and her valuable contributions to the field of international law.
I also thank you Chair and members of the Sixth Committee, Her Excellency Egriselda López, the Permanent Representative of El Salvador to the United Nation; Mr. Paul Kwabena Nana Sei Osei, the Vice-Chair of the Commission, and the Secretary of the Commission, Madam Anna Joubin-Bret, for the fitting and moving tributes yesterday.
We also thank the Vice-Chairs and other elected officers of the session for their commitment, and we thank the Secretariat for its diligence in supporting the Commission and its Working Groups. We take this opportunity to commend in particular the leadership of the Secretary for her remarkable stewardship.
In further thanking Vice-Chair Mr. Paul Kwabena Nana Sei Osei, for introducing report A/80/17, Sierra Leone aligns with the statement delivered by the distinguished representative of Cameroon on behalf of the African Group., and we wish to make the following additional remarks in our national capacity.
Chair,
Sierra Leone is honoured to have begun its tenure as a member of the Commission during its fifty-eighth session. We look forward to continued constructive engagement, particularly in bringing forward the perspectives and priorities of the African continent and of least developed and developing countries, which are central to the mandate and purpose of UNCITRAL. We embrace the “Vienna Spirit” of consensus that characterised our deliberations and underpinned the Commission’s achievements.
We commend the adoption of the draft Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents and applaud the work of Working Group VI in developing this modern instrument to digitalize and harmonize international trade documentation, thereby facilitating multimodal trade and improving legal certainty in the use of electronic negotiable documents of title. Sierra Leone supports the adoption of this Convention by the General Assembly and welcomes the expression of interest by Ghana to host the signing ceremony.
We congratulate Working Group V on completing its work on Asset Tracing and Recovery in Insolvency Proceedings. Sierra Leone welcomes the adoption of the Toolkit and Background Notes, which will serve as valuable resources for judges, insolvency practitioners and other stakeholders in improving the enabling environment for doing business and in safeguarding the interests of creditors.
Sierra Leone also welcomes the adoption of the Toolkit on Prevention and Mitigation of International Investment Disputes. We commend the Secretariat for developing this non-prescriptive, practical guide that offers examples and strategies for States and regional organizations to prevent and manage disputes with foreign investors.
As Working Group III continues its broad mandate to reform investor-State dispute settlement, Sierra Leone calls for adequate resources and the cooperation of all Member States to advance consensus on much-needed reform. We also encourage continued use of intersessional meetings and other innovative formats to sustain progress.
We note with appreciation the publication of the Model Organization Rules for Limited Liability Enterprises, building on the UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Limited Liability Enterprises, which provides a coherent framework to support small and medium-sized enterprises globally.
We recognize the Commission’s continued effort to integrate emerging global concerns into its work, including those related to climate change and digital transformation. We welcome the collaboration between UNCITRAL and UNIDROIT on the legal nature of verified carbon credits, and the work on a guidance document on legal issues relating to the use of distributed ledger technology in trade. We look forward to the publication of both instruments and their contribution to the modernization of trade law.
Sierra Leone also welcomes the Commission’s continued work on the legal aspects of digital trade and exploratory work on digital payments. We appreciate the support received for the proposal jointly supported by Sierra Leone and Saudi Arabia to undertake further work in this area and look forward to cooperating closely with the Secretariat in this regard.
Chair,
Sierra Leone takes note of the reports received from the respective Working Groups and wishes to make three additional observations:
First, on consensus-building. We note with cautious optimism that the Commission’s work continues to be based on consensus. Consensus should not be mistaken for indifference or a weakness. Rather, it reflects UNCITRAL’s inclusive and cooperative approach. Despite increasing polarization across the UN system, the work of UNCITRAL must remain insulated from political divisions. We urge all Member States to continue to negotiate constructively and in good faith to advance the Commission’s technical and developmental mandate.
Second, on prioritization and support. We extend appreciation to all contributors to the Trust Fund for UNCITRAL Symposia and the Trust Fund for Assisting Developing Countries. We emphasize the importance of inclusive participation and urge continued support from the UN system, particularly as discussions proceed on administrative and budgetary matters in the relevant Committees.
We underscore the need for enhanced support for Working Group III, which is at a critical juncture in its reform mandate, particularly as discussions advance on procedural and cross-cutting issues that contain essential elements at the very core of the reform process.
Finally, Sierra Leone views UNCITRAL as a key platform for rethinking and strengthening the global trade, finance and governance architecture so that it better reflects the voices and interests of developing and least developed countries. This is premised on the view that its work is vital to addressing the socio-economic challenges that lie at the root of global inequality, peace and security.
Our collective goal should be to move beyond extractive models toward genuine partnerships and trade that drives sustainable development. We urge Member States to leverage their positions within the multilateral system not to preserve privilege, but to advance equitable, inclusive and sustainable growth for all.
We also acknowledge UNCITRAL’s non-legislative activities, including the growing success of “UNCITRAL Days”, recently inaugurated in the Arab States, and confirm Sierra Leone’s continued participation, including in this year’s event under the theme: “UNCITRAL Instruments as Enablers of End-to-End Trade Digitalization.” We look forward to combining the notably celebration of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of UNCITRAL with the UNCITRAL Days activities next year.
In conclusion, Sierra Leone reaffirms its strong support for UNCITRAL’s work and its enduring contribution to the development of a harmonized, inclusive and forward-looking framework for international trade law.
I thank you.
