Context: The Maldives' Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid was elected as the new President of the UN General Assembly (UNGA).

• He won a three-fourth majority against contender Afghanistan’s former foreign minister.

Key highlights

• The election to the UNGA presidential post is held on an annual basis, rotated amongst various regional groupings.
• The 76th UNGA session (2021-22) was the turn of the Asia-Pacific group.
• In the session, the five priority areas outlined were- Covid response, vaccine equity, environment, human rights, and gender equality.

United Nations General Assembly

• The UNGA is one of the principal organs of the United Nations (UN).
• It was established in 1945 under the Charter of the United Nations.
• It serves as the main deliberative, policy-making, and representative organ of the UN.
• It is the only UN organ wherein all member states have equal representation.
• Any resolution, proposed in the UNGA, requires a two-third majority of the members present and voting.
• UNGA approves the budget of the United Nations and decides how much money each member state must pay to run the organization.
• Members: 193 members

Functions

• It prepares UN budget
• Appointing the non-permanent members to the Security Council
• Appointing the Secretary-General of the UN
• Receiving reports from other parts of the UN system
• Making recommendations through resolutions.