UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) -- The general debate of the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly is set to kick off Tuesday at the UN headquarters in New York, with theme of "Galvanizing multilateral efforts for poverty eradication, quality education, climate action and inclusion."
The general debate is the annual meeting of heads of state and government as well as high-level representatives of UN member states at the beginning of the General Assembly session.
It is usually the first debate of the session and -- with the exception of high-level meetings -- the only one in which heads of state and government regularly participate.
The UN secretary-general's press office said Friday that 91 heads of state, six vice presidents, 45 heads of government, five deputy prime ministers, 44 ministers, two chairs of delegation, and three observers will attend this year's General Assembly.
Tijjani Muhammad-Bande of Nigeria is the president of the 74th session of the General Assembly.
It is a tradition that Brazil opens the debate, and is followed by the United States. Each speaker has voluntary 15 minutes at the rostrum.
The General Assembly is the main deliberative organ of the world body. Comprising all 193 UN members, it provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues.
The General Assembly meets in regular session intensively from September to December each year. At the beginning of each regular session, the assembly holds a general debate, often addressed by heads of state and government to express their views on pressing international issues.
Brazil has been the first member state to speak in the general debate since the 10th session of the General Assembly in 1955. The United States as the host country is the second member state to take the floor.
According to the list of speakers this year, Egypt's leader will be the third to address the general debate, which will run through Sept. 30.
