The President of the 76th session of the General Assembly, H.E. Mr. Abdulla Shahid,?met?today?Mr. Joshua?Setipa, the?Managing Director of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Technology Bank for Least Developed Countries?(Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµTB-LDC).?

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Mr. Joshua?Setipa?congratulated the President?on his election as the President of the General Assembly and provided him with an update of the?current status?of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Technology Bank,?which is a subsidiary organ of the General Assembly established in 2016 by General Assembly resolution 71/251.?

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The President and the?Managing Director?discussed?how the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµTB-LDCs can be further strengthened to contribute to the capacity?development of the LDCs in science and technology for achieving the SDGs. ?He also briefed the PGA about the initiatives undertaken by the Bank during the pandemic to enhance the capacities of a number of countries to manufacture PPE kits, face masks and ventilators.

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Managing Director Setipa also briefed PGA on a specific technology intervention undertaken by the bank to help enable early detection of congenital and progressive hearing loss in newborns and young children in Bhutan and potentially reduce incidences of ear disorders.

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The President highlighted that?science and technology are essential to our collective response to sustainable development challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic and climate crisis, and in particular the LDCs.?

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New York, 25 October 2021

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