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| Mr. Desai, as Secretary-General of the Conference, highlighted two major outcomes of the Summit. First, as previously noted, the partnerships approach resulted in a number of significant initiatives. Second, the Summit has brought about the active engagement of the corporate sector in the implementation phase. Mr. Desai cited a number of examples, including the umbrella agreement reached between the world’s nine largest electricity utilities and the UN. If these partnerships work in areas such as energy or water, they will be a major part of what the Summit will be remembered for. In the same context, it is important to note that the outcome document calls for a stronger global commitment to corporate accountability. Mr. Desai felt that the focused and substantive media coverage of the Summit had helped to broaden the general understanding of sustainable development. While much of the coverage dealt with controversies, Mr. Desai emphasized the fact that these controversies were central to the Summit’s agenda. At the Summit itself and at numerous parallel events, there was an unprecedented level of civil society involvement. There was also a great deal of criticism and protest around a wide range of issues: some critics feared that the Summit had provided encouragement to the increased use of nuclear energy by choosing not to specifically exclude it from the category of ‘energy technologies’ to be pursued, others questioned the wisdom of handing over to private enterprise a resource as indispensable to human life as water. There was sharp criticism of the role of the U.S., the largest consumer of the world’s natural resources, particularly over the issue of the Kyoto agreements. Critics and demonstrators expressed scepticism about the strength of the corporate commitment to the environment, in some cases from the standpoint of uncorrected past corporate failures in this regard, as in the protest held by the survivors of the world’s worst industrial disaster, the Union Carbide gas leak in Bhopal, India, in 1984. However, Mr. Desai observed that unlike the Monterrey conference, the Johannesburg Summit did not elicit an entirely uniform reaction of disappointment from NGOs. Some NGOs even entered into partnerships with the corporate sector, as in the case of Greenpeace’s agreement with the World Business Council on climate change. In concrete terms, agreement was reached in Johannesburg on commitments and implementation initiatives in the following areas.
Regarding Summit follow-up, Mr. Desai identified two challenges. The first is to avoid looking at issues in terms of conference by conference goals. A framework of action is required to preserve the system-wide character of the Summit, and to encompass bilateral, corporate sector and NGO activities. The second challenge is to determine the modalities of the interface between the UN and the Summit partnerships. He observed that a similar challenge exists in relation to follow-up to the World Summit on Social Development. The WSSD was the last in a series of summits, and as a result the department’s focus is now shifting from policy development to influencing programmatic action, he said. Mr. Desai stressed the importance of highlighting the positive aspects of the partnerships, which had achieved more than had been anticipated (although the actual amount of additional resources they have generated is still being determined). It is important, in his view, to look at the agreed outcome as a base rather than as a ceiling in terms of possible follow-up action. In a number of areas, including energy and Africa, countries are expected to go beyond the Summit consensus. Contact: JoAnn Disano, Director, DSD, Tel. (212) 963-0902, E-mail: disano@un.org (Back to top ) Fifty-seventh Session of the General Assembly The Second Committee of the General Assembly (Economic and Financial), largely serviced by DESA, began its deliberations on Monday 30 September under the chairmanship of Marco A. Fernandez of Honduras, a former DESA staffer elected on 8 July under the amended rules of procedure which allow for elections to take place three months or more before the session. It is expected that this year’s discussions will address issues related to the follow-up and implementation of the Monterrey Conference and the Johannesburg Summit, among others. N o resolutions were adopted last year under the item on macroeconomic issues which were ‘on hold’ in anticipation of the two major conferences.
Discussions on item 86, Macroeconomic policy questions, should reflect on the outcome of the Monterrey, Doha and Johannesburg meetings. Items 86(a), International trade, (d), External debt, and (e), International financial system, may be particularly relevant for the substantive preparations for the next spring meeting of ECOSOC, Bretton Wood Institution, and World Trade Organization which will address specific issues regarding the implementation of the Monterrey Consensus. The discussions on trade will also draw from the mid-term review of United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, contained in the Report of the Trade and Development Board. The conclusions of the tenth submitted to this session. Important issues regarding the Monterrey follow-up will be discussed under three items. The outcome of Monterrey will be reviewed under item 95, Financing for Development. This will be the occasion to take an initial account of stakeholders’ initiatives in support of the implementation of the Monterrey Consensus. Under item 88(d), High-level dialogue, the GA will decide how to reconstitute the high-level dialogue to enable it to become the intergovernmental focal point for the general follow-up to Monterrey. In an effort to continue moving forward the substantive debate in the Monterrey follow-up, the S-G’s report on item 96, Globalization and Interdependence focuses on governance, one of the key issues that emerged from Monterrey. The report addresses areas such as global coherence, participation in decision-making and the role of civil society in intergovernmental processes. Several items are important in the context of the follow-up to the Millennium Summit and the global conferences. The outcome of WSSD will be reviewed under item 89(a), Implementation of Agenda 21. Further implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of SIDS will be discussed under item 89(f). The implementation of the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2001-2010 will be reviewed under item 98, Third UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries. Under Item 94, Integrated and coordinated follow-up to major UN conferences, the GA will examine how best to address the reviews of the implementation of the outcomes of the major United Nations conferences and summits of the 1990s, in the economic and social fields, including their format and periodicity (resolution 56/211). ECOSOC’s role in integrating the review and follow-up processes of the Millennium Summit and of other conferences and summits would be considered in order to streamline the conference review processes. Under item 91, UN Decade for the Eradication of Poverty, further action to achieve the 2015 targets will be discussed, including the identification of resource requirements and possible sources of funding such as the proposal for a world solidarity fund for poverty eradication (A/57/137). Funding modalities of the UN system alternative to the current pledging conference will be discussed under item 90, Operational activities. A number of plenary items may have important implications on the issues addressed in the Second Committee, such as item 32, Information and communication technology for development; item 33, Causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa; item 41, Final review and appraisal of UN-NADAF; item 44, Outcome of the Millennium Summit, and the new proposals of the Secretary-General for reforming the Organization. Some delegations have also initiated informal contacts on how to restructure the Second Committee agenda, and in particular, the issues under the item on macroeconomic policy questions so as to develop a coherent process for the follow-up to Monterrey. The Secretary-General’s reform proposal will clearly have broad implications for the whole range of economic and social issues and how these are addressed by the Assembly. Contact: Nikhil Seth, DESC, Tel. (212) 963-1811, E-mail: seth@un.org (Back to top ) Secretariat Reform
The Secretary-General’s report on reform, Strengthening of the United Nations: an agenda for further change (A/57/387 ), was released on 23 September. The three main purposes of the current reform exercise are to align programmes of work with the new priorities set by the Millennium Declaration; to lighten the workload, and to make processes more efficient. While the report provides an overall outline of the proposed changes to be introduced, details will appear in the 2004-2005 programme budget. This reform exercise is the initiative of the Secretary-General and builds on progress made during the past five years in implementing his Programme of Reform of 1997 (A/51/950 ). It is neither a response to pressure from Member States nor a budget-cutting exercise. The self-assessments undertaken by departments were the starting point for the report. The five main messages conveyed by the report are: doing what matters; serving Member States better; working better together; allocating resources to priorities, and investing in excellence. With regard to improved services to Member States, the increased efficiency of technical conference support and fewer and better reports to intergovernmental bodies are called for, as well as an improved architecture of reporting. Concerted efforts would be made to eliminate duplication of reports and publications. For this purpose reviews would take place not just within, but across departments and programmes (e.g. DESA, UNCTAD, regional commissions). The Executive Committee on Economic and Social Affairs (EC-ESA) could provide key guidance on this front. It is hoped that the General Assembly will approve this general approach, or give the Secretary-General the authority to respond flexibly to parliamentary bodies' requests for reports. In terms of those aspects which most affect DESA, the report acknowledges the important contributions of the Department to policy development through the global conferences of recent years. It is also recognized that the department’s broad and complex responsibilities have stretched its capacities. It therefore proposes that a small policy-planning unit be established, and a post for a third Asistant Secretary-General be provided in the next programme budget. In line with the recommendations of the Independent Evaluation of the UN-NADAF, the resources of OSCAL would be transferred to the office of the Adviser for Special Assignments in Africa, in the Executive Office of the Secretary-General, who will guide the preparation of reports and inputs for Africa-related debates by the General Assembly and its subsidiary bodies. Other proposals affecting DESA as well as other departments include the improved oversight of publications and increasing migration to online service and delivery while maintaining the capacity to provide hard copy where needed, the establishment of a high-level panel to review relations with NGOs, a comprehensive review of the division of labour in technical cooperation, the abolition of the Repertory of Practice, and the introduction of an improved planning and budgeting system. Some changes could be introduced immediately, others over the course of the coming year, and still others over a longer timeframe. The redeployment of resources to different priorities would be the main source of financing for the reform initiatives; a small increase in resources in the next UN programme budget would also be proposed to Member States. The 2004-2005 programme budget proposals would reflect the reforms and would be scrutinized by a small team of outside experts. Contact: Office of the Under-Secretary-General, DESA, E-mail: esa@un.org (Back to top
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General Assembly, 57th SessionExpert Group Meetings Expert Group Meeting on Global Priorities for Youth
General Assembly
General
Debate
on Economic, Social and Related Issues Overview A total of 188 speakers participated in the general debate. This included 33 Heads of State, 14 Heads of Government, 14 Deputy Prime Ministers and 110 Foreign affairs Ministers. In the current political climate, the focus of the general debate was inevitably on political and security issues. In fact many of the development issues on the UN Agenda – poverty, human rights, sustainable development, - were seen with reference to the need to address the underlying causes of conflict and insecurity. As described by Chile, "a safer world requires that we build consensus and develop new approaches that take account of the multi-dimensional nature of the threats and which place people at the center of its concerns." Ridding the world of persistent poverty was underscored as the greatest global challenge. The Secretary-General's remarks that multilateralism was the one and only way to respond to pressing issues, both on the developmental and political sides, resonated in the debate. The Johannesburg Summit, the Millennium Declaration Goals, and the Monterrey Consensus enjoyed broad political support. The dominant concern was on how to move to an "era of commitment and implementation" and how to ensure globalisation becomes a positive, inclusive force. World Economic Situation A number of countries referred to the world economic down-turn and the repercussions of September 11. Developing countries expressed difficulties in participating in the multilateral trading system and called for increased ODA and foreign direct investments, debt relief, and the reform of the international financial architecture and trade to enable wider participation. The benefit of regional cooperation for helping countries to integrate in the world economy was stressed by several speakers. Trade was essential for development. The outcome of the WTO Conference in Doha offered the opportunity to set up a more open and transparent multilateral trade system, which would help increase the developing countries’ share in international trade. Reduction of tariffs on agricultural products and the elimination of subsidies were essential. Speakers were concerned that the unprecedented advance of ICT was widening the gap between developed and developing countries. In this regard, UN and other relevant international organizations were asked to become more proactive in bridging the digital divide. World Summit on Sustainable Development In general, the World Summit on Sustainable Development was considered a success. Many speakers referred to the far-reaching decisions taken at the Summit and underscored the importance of realizing the goals contained in the programme of implementation. A few others expressed concerns and regretted that it had not been possible to agree on meaningful targets in all areas. It was also regretted that it had not been possible to make greater advances on the issue of renewable energy. The comprehensive outcome on oceans was also appreciated. A number of Small Island Developing States drew attention to their unique environmental and economic problems, and called for greater support by the international community. Samoa, speaking as Chairman of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), said that small island developing states were satisfied with the provisions in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation dedicated to the sustainable development of Small Island developing States. Many, however, regretted the lack of action to address climate change and called for ratification and full implementation of the Kyoto Protocol. It was hoped that the next WTO ministerial conference would lead to enhanced market opportunities for these countries. A theme, which recurred, was that the challenge of sustainable development and poverty eradication can be met only if the UN and other international organizations, development banks, civil society and the private sector collaborate much more closely, and coordination and coherence of international action is ensured. (See also feature above
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The Consensus achieved in Monterrey was praised especially for strengthening partnership between developed and developing countries, which were indispensable to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. The Monterrey Consensus was the basis for redirecting the course of globalization, through finance and trade, and ensuring a more equitable growth that would help in the battle against poverty. Developing country statements called for the implementation of the financial commitments made at the Monterrey Conference to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and to implement outcomes of the Johannesburg Summit. Aid was recognized essential for realizing the international development agenda and speakers reiterated the need to make speedy progress towards the 0.7% target. Increasing aid effectiveness and diminishing conditionalities were also deemed important. Many speakers welcomed the new global partnership that had emerged from this year's UN conferences and summits. It now had to be translated into effective actions by all partners and genuine international cooperation. Partnerships were essential to achieve environmental protection and development. Importance was attached to monitoring progress towards agreed goals. Africa and NEPAD The establishment of the African Union and of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) was widely welcomed. Progress towards the Millennium Development Goals in Africa was slow. Poverty, famine, conflict, control of natural resources, influx of refugees and displaced persons, the HIV/AIDS pandemic and other diseases continued to affect the continent. NEPAD raised hopes that Africa could resume a faster path to development. Speakers expressed strong support to NEPAD as a programme for the socio-economic revitalization of Africa. They appreciated its orientation towards good governance, human rights, economic and social goals close to those of the Millennium Declaration. NEPAD was viewed by several speakers as a reaffirmation of the new spirit of partnership defined in the Monterrey Consensus. It was designed and owned by the African countries themselves and took a comprehensive view of the myriad problems facing Africa. In this regard, many African speakers said that NEPAD was a framework for them to move from rhetoric to purposeful action, and for the international community to help Africa, to become part of the mainstream economy. The need for the international community to support NEPAD and the role of UN in the coordination of activities were stressed. Speakers appreciated that the G8 Summit in Kananaskis had endorsed NEPAD. Assistance was needed in the areas of agriculture, health, education, ICT, nutrition, water and sanitation, and affordable and sustainable energy. Significant flows of foreign investment, access to markets and partnerships and international support, through ODA and debt relief, and infusion of technology were essential to sustain Africa’s development. The private sector had to help in fighting disease. It was noted by Tanzania that the solution for a crisis in an African country cannot be left to NEPAD alone. (See also feature below ) Other key economic and social issues Delegations also emphasized that education, respect for human rights, empowerment of women and empowerment of the poor were essential for achieving international development goals. It was felt that, as Brazil said, a modern understanding of development must encompass the protection of human rights, be they civil and political or economic, social and cultural. Some speakers reaffirmed the right to development. A few speakers called for integrating human rights into all the United Nations activities. A new generation of human rights mechanisms had to be created. Speakers called for pursuing the goals of the GA special session on children, so as to guarantee children a decent standard of living in a safe environment and to ensure that they can complete at least primary school. The conferences on ageing and population, HIV/AIDS and the food summit were also touched upon. Several called attention to the need to address trafficking in women and human beings and to become party to the new Protocol on these issues. Delegates called for stronger commitments to combat communicable and other diseases, including HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, which threatens to undermine development programmes. They urged increase contributions to the Global Health Fund. HIV/AIDS was seen as a continuous concern of developing countries, particularly in Africa. Several speakers also reiterated the importance of multilateral action for combating crime, trafficking in persons and drug trafficking . The Monterrey consensus called for more assistance for the Least Developed Countries . Benin reiterated that each least developed country should design strategic priorities for development in keeping with its local context. Further efforts were called for to open markets to products of LDCs and to build these countries’ capacities. It was hoped that the establishment of the Office of the High Representative for Least Developed countries in the UN Secretariat would promote regular consultations and closer follow-up of agreed programmes of action to ensure their fulfillment. Landlocked developing countries called attention to the economic disadvantages they face. The lack of territorial access to the sea, aggravated by the remoteness and isolation from major international markets and prohibitive transit transport costs continue to constitute major obstacles to national economic development. In this regard, the decision of the General Assembly to convene in 2003 an International Ministerial Meeting on Transit Transport Cooperation was appreciated. UN reform on the economic and social side Effective multilateralism requires a strengthened UN. Many speakers expressed support for the new impetus for reform of the organization proposed by the Secretary-General . Although most interventions on UN reform focused on the Security Council, reform of General Assembly and ECOSOC was called for to make them more complementary and effective toward the common interest. Speakers stressed that the UN should continue to keep development at the forefront of its agenda with the MDG as a main focus. A few speakers stressed that a deep UN reform was needed to help the organization to respond to new challenges, notably sustainable development, and involve civil society actors in its work. Several speakers acknowledged the continued efforts to strengthen the Council and its role within the UN system, including the improved cooperation with the BWIs, NGOs and the private sector and the establishment of an ad hoc advisory group on African countries emerging from conflict . The increased interaction of ECOSOC with the Security Council and the GA, in particular, through the ad hoc advisory group on Africa, was supported. There was also a call for reform and restructuring of the World Bank, the IMF and WTO so that they become more democratic and better focus on development and poverty eradication. (See also feature above ) A compilation of new proposals and initiatives formulated during the general debate appears as an annex to DESA News. Contact: Marion Barthelemy, Tel. (212) 963-4005, E-mail: barthelemy1@un.org (Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) ( Back to top ) Final Review of the United Nations
New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF) Agenda items The events at the 57th session of the General Assembly centre around two Agenda Items, namely:
Contact: Yvette Stevens, OSCAL, Tel. (212) 963-5084, E-mail: stevens@un.org (Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) ( Back to top ) Security Council
Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) mandated the Secretary-General to carry out a study on the impact of armed conflict on women and girls, the role of women in peace-building and the gender dimensions of peace processes and conflict resolution. The resolution also requested the Secretary-General to submit a report on the results of the study to the Council. Both documents will be released in October 2002. The Security Council, under the presidency of Cameroon, is scheduled to hold an open debate on women, peace and security on 25 October 2002. The preparation of the study on women, peace and security has been co-coordinated by the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women in close cooperation with the Inter-agency Task Force on Women, Peace and Security. The study draws on the collective experience of the UN system and analyses the impact of armed conflict on women and girls and describes the relevant international legal framework; and reviews the gender perspectives in peace processes and in peace operations; humanitarian operations, reconstruction and rehabilitation, including Disarmament Demobilization Reintegration processes. The study indicates that while women and girls share experiences with men and boys during armed conflict, the culture of violence and discrimination against women and girls that exists during peace times is often exacerbated during conflict and negatively affects women’s ability to participate in peace processes and ultimately inhibits the attainment of lasting peace. The study documents how during the last 15 years the UN system, Member States, regional organizations and civil society increased efforts to better respond to the differential impact of armed conflict on women and girls and recognized women’s efforts in conflict prevention and conflict resolution. The study, however, also notes that one of the major constraints to integrating gender perspectives into peace and humanitarian operations is a lack of implementation of existing policies and guidelines. The study recommends the systematic integration of gender perspectives in all peace accords and mandates of peacekeeping and peace-building missions as well as in the programming and delivery of humanitarian assistance; representation of women at all stages and at all levels of peace operations, in humanitarian operations and in decision-making processes in post-conflict reconstruction; improved compliance with existing international legal norms; adequate gender awareness training of staff before and during deployment in field missions; and clearly defined codes of conduct and their enforcement. It also recommends financial resources to strengthen the integration of gender perspectives in UN activities related to peacekeeping and peace-building as well as support for women’s peace initiatives and networks. Contact: Sylvia Hordosch, DAW/OSAGI, Tel. (212) 963-5450, E-mail: hordosch@un.org(Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) ( Back to top ) Outcome of Ad Hoc Committee
on a Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on The Committee organized its substantive work in accordance with the thematic approach, including kind and scope of legal instruments, its relation to other human rights instruments and the United Nations standard rules and overarching principles/rights, equality in civil and political rights, equality in economic, social and cultural rights, panel discussions, monitoring mechanisms and other topics. The Ad Hoc Committee recommended a draft resolution to the Third Committee of the fifty -seventh session of the General Assembly on proposals for a comprehensive and integral international convention to promote and protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities. The draft report is contained in A/AC.265/2. Contact: Akiko Ito, DSPD, Tel. (212) 963-1996, E-mail: ito@un.org(Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) ( Back to top ) Expert Group Meeting
on Global Priorities for Youth
The Commission for Social Development, as part of its on-going review of the relevant United Nations plans and programmes of action pertaining to the situation of social groups, will review the global situation of youth at its forty-first session in 2003. The General Assembly, in its resolution A/RES/56/117 of 18 January 2002, further requested the Secretary-General to present a comprehensive report on this issue, with concrete action oriented recommendations, to the Commission at its forty-first session. To this end, the Division for Social Policy and Development is organizing an Expert Group Meeting on Global Priorities for Youth to take place in Helsinki, Finland, 6-10 October 2002. Preparations are almost complete for the meeting and around eighty participants are expected. The participants include representatives of major regional and international youth NGOs, representatives of United Nations agencies, experts, discussants and Finnish government delegates. Contact: Joop Theunissen, DSPD, Tel. (212) 963-7763, Fax: (212) 963-0111, E-mail: theunissen@un.org(Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) (Back to top ) Technical Subgroup of the Expert Group
on International Economic and Social Classifications Meeting The main purpose of this meeting will be the discussion of the conceptual basis for the ISIC and CPC revision in 2007, resulting in a concept paper proposal that will determine scope and methodological approach to the revision process. Background papers for the meeting will be posted on the UN Classifications website at: http://unstats.un.org/unsd/class/ Contact: Ralf Becker, SD, Tel. (212) 963-4600, E-mail: Beckerr@un.org (Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) (Back to top ) Expert Group Meeting on the Technical Report
on Household Surveys This meeting will assemble about twenty experts from around the world, for the purpose of reviewing the draft volume of the forthcoming UN publication on household surveys in developing and transition countries. The publication provides a comprehensive review of several aspects of the design, implementation, and analysis of household surveys, with principal focus on three operating characteristics of surveys: Design Effects, Survey Costs, and Non-sampling Error. In particular, the publication examines the portability of these operating characteristics or their components, across surveys, sub-populations, countries, and time. The experts are expected to critically review the draft volume and make final recommendations, before it is submitted for official publication. The technical material and other documents related to the publication are available at the project website: http://unstats.un.org/unsd/hhsurveys/index.htm Contact: Ibrahim Yansaneh, SD, Tel. (212) 963-2054, E-mail: Yansaneh@un.org(Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) (Back to top ) Meeting of the Steering Committee
of the Ad Hoc Group of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters The Meeting of the Steering Committee will be comprised of seven experts of the Ad Hoc Group of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters to prepare the agenda items for the 11th Meeting of the Group of Experts as well as to examine the issues relating to taxation which have emerged from the Monterrey Consensus. The Steering Committee will examine the suggested agenda items, namely, the revision and update of the United Nations Model Double Taxation Convention between Developed and Developing Countries and the Manual for the Negotiation of Bilateral Tax Treaties between Developed and Developing Countries, transfer pricing, new financial instruments, taxation of electronic commerce, mutual assistance in collection of tax debts, intermediation and arbitration, protocol for mutual assistance procedure, treaty shopping and process of financing for development. Contact: Suresh Shende, DPEPA, Tel. (212) 963-4189, E-mail: shendes@un.org(Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) (Back to top ) Expert Group Meeting on Information
and Communication Technologies and their Impact on and use as an Instrument for the Advancement and Empowerment of Women
The Division for the Advancement of Women of DESA in cooperation with the Department of Public Information (DPI) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNESCO), is organizing an expert group meeting on Participation and access of women to the media and its impact on and use as an instrument for the advancement and empowerment of women. The meeting will take place at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) in Beirut, Lebanon. The Commission on the Status of Women, as part of its multi-year programme of work for 2002-2006, decided to consider the theme "Participation and access of women to the media, and information and communication technologies and their impact on and use as an instrument for the advancement and empowerment of women" as a priority theme at its forty-seventh session in 2003. In order to assist the commission in its work, the Division for the Advancement of Women (DAW) will convene an expert group meeting on “participation and access of women to the media and its use as an instrument for the advancement and empowerment of women. The Expert Group meeting will consider the experiences and approaches that have proven successful in specific contexts, and will draw out generalised lessons and recommendations for policies and actions directed at various levels - national, regional and international. Taking account of the rapid pace of technological change in the area of media and communications, the group will try to look to the future in an attempt to anticipate new challenges and emerging trends. In preparations for the meeting, an on-line discussion on "Participation and access of women to the media and its impact on and use as an instrument for the advancement and empowerment of women" is running from 26 August to 27 September 2002. The results of the on-line discussion will be presented at the Expert Group Meeting in the Beirut, Lebanon, 12 to15 November 2002. Contact: Amina Adam, DAW/COU, Tel. (212) 063-3169, E-mail: adam@un.org OR Abigail Loregnard-Kasmally, Tel. (212) 963-3137, E-mail: loregnard-kasmally@un.org , (Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) (Back to top ) Expert Group Meeting on Trafficking
in Women and
G
irls The Division for the Advancement of Women is organizing an Expert Group Meeting on "Trafficking in women and girls" which will take place in Glen Cove, New York, USA from 18 to 22 November 2002. The Expert Group Meeting will form part of the Division’s preparation for the forty-seventh session of the Commission on the Status of Women, which will address as one of its thematic issues women’s human rights and elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls as defined in the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome document of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly. The Expert Group Meeting will be attended by experts appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations and observers from various geographical areas and drawn from a variety of fields and expertise. The meeting aims to identify strategies and programmes which have shown to be most effective in the fight against trafficking in women and girls in various parts of the world. It will discuss best practices in combating trafficking in women and girls, with a particular focus on initiatives taken at the national level and taking into consideration, inter alia: the factors which contribute to trafficking and strategies to address such factors; the effects of racial and social marginalisation on women who have been trafficked; the impact of immigration laws on trafficking and migration; provision of remedies and redress for victims and access to justice; human rights protection for victims of trafficking; and the issue of repatriation for victims of trafficking and possible consequences. The issue of trafficking was chosen due to the evidence of the increase of the phenomenon in the recent years, with an estimate by the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention of more than 700,000 people, including women and children, being trafficked every year for the purpose of sexual exploitation and forced labour and the need to find a solution to this problem through international co-operation. The issue of trafficking will be discussed within the broader theme of women’s human rights and elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls as defined in the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome document of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly which will be considered by next session of the Commission on the Status of Women. Thus, the report of the CSW will place the outcome of the EGM within the context of the broader theme. Contact: Emanuela Calabrini, DAW/WRS, Tel. (212) 963-8814 Email: calabrini@un.org(Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) (Back to top ) High Level Committees on Management
and Programmes to be held in preparation for CEB In preparation for the Fall 2002 CEB session to be held on 8-9 November at UNHQ in New York, the High Level Committee on Management (HLCM) and the High Level Committee on Programmes (HLCP) will hold their fourth session of 2002 in Geneva (Palais des Nations) and Vienna (UNIDO) on 7-8 October and 23-24 September, respectively. High Level Committee on Programmes, fourth session, Vienna, 23-24 September HLCP’s agenda focussed on: Preparations for CEB discussion on follow-up to the Millennium Summit; the future role of HLCP in the follow-up to the Millennium Declaration; UN system’s collaboration with civil society organizations (CSOs); follow-up to HLCP decisions on UN system support for Africa’s development; inter-agency cooperation in evaluation of global programmes; system-wide follow-up to WSSD; preparations for the forthcoming international conferences in 2003: World Summit on Information Society; and update on the UN system Staff College. High Level Committee on Management, fourth session, Geneva, 7-8 October HLCM’s agenda focussed on: Security and safety of staff; information and communications technologies; the impact on management and programmes of the changing relationship between regular and voluntary funding; greater commonality in health insurance arrangements; emergency preparedness and the development of business continuity plans; and reform of the pay and benefits system. The recommendations of both High Level Committees will be presented to CEB for consideration at its meeting on 8-9 November. (Back to "Global dialogue in development" ) (Back to top ) United Nations System Chief Executive
Board for Coordination (CEB)
At the second regular 2002 session of CEB to be held in New York, 8-9 November 2002, Executives Heads will be taking up the issue of system-wide follow-up to the Secretary-General’s report on “Preventing armed conflicts”, the second of the special themes to be covered in the first annual report to the General Assembly on the follow-up to the Millennium Declaration. At this session, CEB will also consider how it might best approach the two themes to be covered in next year’s report on the follow-up to the Millennium Declaration: financing for development, and strategies for sustainable development in the context of the outcomes of Monterrey and Johannesburg Summits. The Committee will also review the reports of its two high-level committees and will be briefed by the Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union on preparations for the World Summit on the Information Society. CEB will hold a retreat on 9 November as a follow-up to their earlier discussions on the campaign for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); and on the issue of African development, addressing the system’s relationship with the new African Union, and focusing on defining a policy framework for the United Nations system’s support of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). Contact: Eric Lacanlale, CEB Secretariat, Tel. (212) 963-6889, E-mail: lacanlale@un.org OR Karina Gerlach, Tel. (212) 963-5858 (Back to "Global dialogue in development"
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ESCAP Regional Meeting on Follow-up to the Second World Assembly on Ageing Noteworthy Documents and Publications Reports on the Advancement of Women Responding to the Johannesburg Summit’s Call for Sustainable Consumption and Production The World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg called for “changing unsustainable patterns of consumption and production”. While this phrase could cover virtually all of sustainable development, it has come to have a more specific, if not always well understood, meaning. Until recently, environmental and social protection measures have generally taken the form of “command and control” policies, such as bans on lead in gasoline, emissions limits for power plants or automobiles, and water quality standards for industrial effluents. While such policies have often been effective, they also have limitations. Their costs may be greater than their benefits, or than alternative means to the same goals; they may elicit powerful political resistance when their burden affects influential groups; and they are difficult to apply to consumption patterns determined by the individual decisions of millions of consumers. Determining the most cost-effective and politically feasible way to achieve development goals requires analysis of the economic, social and environmental impact of policy options. Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, for example, could be achieved through fossil fuel taxes, subsidies for renewable energy, energy efficiency requirements for appliances and buildings, public information and mobilization campaigns for energy conservation, funding for research on cleaner energy and energy efficiency, and other measures. Determining the most effective combination of policies that is politically acceptable requires analysis of available and potential technologies, costs of changing technologies, costs of administering policies, impact of taxes on consumer and producer behaviour, impact on employment in various industries, and impact on low-income households. Such integrated policy analysis is a central focus of work on “consumption and production patterns.” As part of the effort of the Division for Sustainable Development of DESA to promote more sustainable production, an international Expert Group on Environmental Management Accounting has been organized. It has been demonstrated that enterprises often do not undertake profitable changes in production systems because their management information systems do not identify them as profitable, or because no one in the enterprise has an incentive to change the system. If, for example, management of hazardous waste is treated in cost accounting as corporate overhead cost rather than a cost of the production line responsible, then production managers have no incentive to find non-hazardous alternatives that might reduce costs, and the accounting system does not provide the information necessary to compare the costs of the alternatives. Governments are interested in promoting accounting systems that allocate all environmental and social costs to product lines since they will lead to cleaner production together with lower costs without the enforcement costs of conventional environmental regulations. A new initiative of the Division will be to examine how public procurement policies can help expand markets for more sustainable goods and services. A number of cities, including New York, for example, are ordering public vehicles with clean-air technologies, such as natural gas fuel, hybrid engines, and prospectively, fuel cell vehicles. Economic and administrative incentives are also encouraging the use of such technologies in taxis. These policies, in addition to their direct impact on urban air quality, will promote the development of the fuel and service infrastructures necessary to encourage broader public use of clean vehicles. The broad agenda of changing consumption and production patterns and the integrated policy analysis will benefit from collaboration between many UN agencies and governmental and non-governmental organizations. Based on the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, the Division for Sustainable Development is planning to organize a meeting to define a conceptual and organizational framework to identify existing and planned activities in the area, exchange information on the activities, and disseminate the results. The European Union was a strong supporter of this work area at the Summit and is expected to lead government efforts in the area. DESA, UNEP and UNIDO all have substantial activities in this area. Contact: Ralph Chipman, DSD, Tel. (212) 963-5504, E-mail: chipman@un.org (Back to "Trends and analysis" ) ( Back to top ) Freshwater : Monitoring Global Progress Some of the world’s greatest advocates in the water sector gathered on 3 September 2002 at the Water Dome in Johannesburg for a side event of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), jointly organized by the UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Led by the Summit’s Secretary-General Nitin Desai, and held in the presence of HRH the Prince of Orange, the event focused on concrete ways to measure the state of a nation’s water as a means of improving water resources management in the longer term. Several speakers stressed the opportunity afforded by the International Year of Freshwater, 2003. Mr. Desai stated, “Perhaps water has been the biggest success story at the WSSD. We have clear goals for both water supply and sanitation. The broader issues of water resources management have had the greatest attention in the partnership announcements.” Among NGOs, IGOs and bilateral donors, the greatest levels of funding had been pledged in the water sector, including $970 million over the next three years from the USA, a major European Water Initiative and $500 million from the Asian Development Bank for the Water for Asian Cities programme. There was wide recognition that water was central to the whole agenda of the Summit, together with health, girls’ education, land management, agriculture and biodiversity. “If you get the water management right at the village level, it will improve land management, fisheries, biodiversity, energy and their impact on poverty. Water connects all the areas of sustainable development.” Mr. Desai announced that 2003 has been proclaimed the International Year of Freshwater by the General Assembly, following the proposal made by the President of Tajikistan. It is excellently timed to measure what countries can do as follow up on agreements reached in the area of water. The 23 UN agencies participating in the World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP) could help countries measure their performance in implementation of promised water programmes. One of the co-coordinators of the UN Task Force on Implementation of the Water-related Millennium Development Goals, Mr. Albert Wright (who is also Chair of the African Water Task Force) noted that the Water Dome provided a unique opportunity for all the “water people to meet each other, do business and lobby the Summit.” Mr. Roberto Lenton, the second Coordinator, described how the Task Force was laying out the steps needed for the international community to reach the Millennium Development Goal of halving the proportion of people without access to safe and affordable water supply and sanitation by the year 2015. Sir Richard Jolly, Chair of the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council, also linked the water and sanitation goals to the assessment programme of the UN system. He stressed the importance of setting goals and monitoring, so that the public and the media have up-to-date assessments and feedback on whether programmes are on track, moving ahead or lagging behind. Three presentations were made on case studies being included by the WWAP in the World Water Development Report – for Thailand, Sri Lanka and Peru/Bolivia. In closing, Mr. Koichiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, reminded those present that, “water is the centre of the global debate. Freshwater is the interface between energy, health, food security and biodiversity.” He said that UNESCO considered the International Year of Freshwater 2003 to be vitally important, and that the release of theWorld Water Development Report at the 3 rd World Water Forum in Japan in March 2003 would be an important contribution to the International Year. He was pleased that UNESCO and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs would be coordinating preparations for that effort. All participants were in agreement that, in order to reach the Millennium Development Goals in water and sanitation, monitoring systems would have to be put in place. The World Water Assessment Programme was seen to be a very good starting point, as the programme can be extended widely throughout the developing world. The International Year of Freshwater, 2003 is being regarded as an excellent opportunity to mobilize resources and to hold governments accountable for their commitments in the areas of water resources and sanitation management.
(Back to "Trends and analysis" ) ( Back to top ) ESCAP Regional Meeting on Follow-up
to the Second World Assembly on Ageing The ESCAP Secretariat convened an Asia-Pacific Seminar on Regional Follow-up to the Second World Assembly on Ageing in Shanghai, China, 23-26 September. Governments, NGOs, UN Agencies and other organizations were invited to attend the meeting. The meeting aimed at the adoption of a regional strategy for the implementation of Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing. Contact: Diane Loughran, DSPD, Tel. (212) 963-1707, Fax: (212) 963-0111, E-mail: loughran@un.org(Back to "Trends and analysis" ) ( Back to top ) International Day of Older Persons
The theme of the 2002 International Day of Older Persons is "Meeting the Challenges of Ageing: Follow-up to the Second World Assembly on Ageing". The observances at UN Headquarters are scheduled for Thursday, October 3, and are sponsored by the UN/NGO Committee on Aging in collaboration with the UN Department of Public Information and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs. The Day observances will provide a forum to discuss the immediate and long-term tasks for the implementation of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing, which was adopted by the Second World Assembly on Ageing in April 2002. Contact: Alexandre Sidorenko, DSPD, Tel. (212) 963-0500, E-mail: sidorenko@un.org |