Publications
 
UN Flags
 

Regional Dimensions of the Ageing Situation

This Publication contributes to the series of events, conferences and publications related to the first review and appraisal of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing. It highlights priorities, as well as recent trends and policy developments, in the five UN regions of the world. The publication, which is a joint effort of UN staff and international experts, aims to assist national governments, the international community and the public at large to better assess the situation of older persons five years after the Second World Assembly on Ageing. It should better inform the debate on how to align priorities, policy innovations and technical cooperation to implement the objectives of the Madrid Plan of Action.

bullet Foreword and Table of Contents
bullet Full Publication

Resource Kit on Indigenous Peoples´ Issues

SPFII, in cooperation with ILO, UNICEF, UNDP, UNFPA and SCBD has published the Resource Kit on Indigenous Peoples Issues. The Kit is aimed UN Country Teams (UNCTs), and other development agents, providing them with guidance as to how to engage indigenous peoples and include their perspectives in development processes.

Growing Together: Youth and the Work of the United Nations

The brochure is a welcome example of how the United Nations system and the young people it serves are growing together. By taking stock of UN system activities related to youth development, the brochure provides a chance to assess how effectively the United Nations system is responding to this important development challenge, and it helps to identify any gaps that may exist in our approach. It is intended as a source of information to assist all stakeholders and to ensure that the United Nations truly delivers as one in the area of youth development, in an effective and forward-looking fashion.

Guide to the National Implementation of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing

The publication represents the culmination of activities carried out in connection with the Expert Group Meeting on Policies on Ageing at the National Level: Challenges of Capacity Development, organized by the Division for Social Policy and Development in cooperation with the International Institute on Ageing (Malta) and held in Sliema, Malta, from 13 to 15 June 2007.

Handbook for Parliamentarians on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

The Handbook was jointly prepared by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). Parliaments and parliamentarians have a key role to play in promoting and protecting human rights. This Handbook aims to assist parliamentarians and others in efforts to realize the Convention so that persons with disabilities can achieve the transition from exclusion to equality.

World Youth Report 2007

The World Youth Report 2007 examines the challenges and opportunities existing for the roughly 1.2 billion young people between the ages of 15 and 24 in the world. Distinct from the 2003 and 2005 editions, it provides a regional overview summarizing the major youth development trends in the fifteen priority areas of the World Programme of Action for Youth. The report explores major issues of concern to youth development, including employment, education, health, poverty and violence. At the same time, it highlights youth as a positive force for development and provides recommendations for supporting their essential contributions.

Report on the World Social Situation 2007: The Employment Imperative

The 2007 issue of the Report on the World Social Situation focuses on the key role of productive employment and decent work in reducing poverty and promoting social development. The Report surveys the global trends in employment and work, as well as the socio-economic context within which the world of work has evolved in the last two decades. It closely examines four areas of increasing concern: jobless growth, global informalization of the labour market, economic and social liberalization, and migration.

Review of National Action Plans on Youth Employment

This present report is a comprehensive version of the Report of the Secretary-General entitled “Global analysis and evaluation of national action plans on youth employment” and its analysis of the complexity and diversity of concerns expressed in National Action Plans, which provide the basis upon which to build and facilitate peer partnerships. This global review of National Action Plans allows countries around the world, at all levels of development, to share and gather experiences of good practice in addressing youth employment challenges.

Indigenous Women and the United Nations System

The publication offers an overview of the work of the Task Force on Indigenous Women of the Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality (IANGWE). In 2005-2006, the Task Force collected 18 cases studies submitted by SCBD, FAO, IFAD, ILO, UNFPA, UNIFEM and UNDP about their work with indigenous women in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The publication entitled “Indigenous Women and the United Nations System” will be launched during the Sixth Session of the Forum. Following the Forum’s call for wide dissemination of good practices, the collection will be disseminated widely so that it may serve as a practical tool for future work of the UN system and other organizations engaging with indigenous peoples.

Towards a Stable, Safe, and Just Society for All

The present publication offers an overview of social integration and related concepts, explores the role and principles of participatory dialogue in creating more socially cohesive societies, and provides practical examples of dialogue use and dialogic tools. It also reviews global trends influencing social integration dynamics, and examines what elements are essential to creating societies that are resilient with respect to social tensions/disintegration [read the introduction and the executive summary, in pdf]

Guide to the Implementation of the World Programme of Action for Youth

The Guide offers practical ideas and recommendations for concrete action to the people who make and carry out legislation, policies and programmes that affect the everyday realities and struggles of young people.

The 2005 Report on the World Social Situation: The Inequality Predicament

The 2005 Report on the World Social Situation: the Inequality Predicament was launched on August 25. The Report sounds alarm over persistent and deepening inequality worldwide, focusing on the chasm between the formal and informal economies, the widening gap between skilled and unskilled workers, the growing disparities in health, education and opportunities for social, economic and political participation.

The report is available for download:
English | French | Spanish | Arabic | Chinese | Russian |

Social Justice in an Open World: The Role of the United Nations

This publication provides an overview of the discussions that took place during the International Forum for Social Development, a three-year project undertaken by DESA for the purpose of promoting international cooperation for social development and supporting developing countries and social groups not benefiting from globalization. The outcomes of the meetings that took place during the Forum were also presented orally at the annual sessions of the Commission for Social Development.

The World Youth Report 2005: Young people today, and in 2015

Young people hold the key to society's future. Their ambitions, goals and aspirations for peace, security, development and human rights are often in accord with those of society as a whole. The international development agenda is centred around the achievement of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) incorporated in the United Nations Millennium Declaration. Each of these goals relates directly or indirectly to the well-being of children and young people.

United Nations Workshop on HIV/AIDS and Family Well-being

The Policy Workshop was organized by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs and hosted by the Government of Namibia, National Planning Commission Secretariat. It was held at Windhoek, Namibia. The purpose of the workshop was to bring together representatives of governments and non-governmental organizations as well as academic experts and practitioners from various countries in southern Africa to discuss the impact of HIV/AIDS on families in the region.

AIDS and the Family: Policy Options for a Crisis in Family Capital

AIDS and the Family began five years ago, as a background document for the United Nations General Assembly discussions on the occasion of the Tenth Anniversary of the International Year of the Family. Intended as short overview in support of the activities of United Nations bodies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), it was gradually expanded to include a review and analysis of the rapidly growing body of information, knowledge and international experience surrounding the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

The Social Summit Ten Years Later

The Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action adopted in 1995 at the World Summit for Social Development marked a defining moment in how the world addressed the key challenge of building "a society for all". The era of globalization was well under way, yet its benefits were bypassing many, of whom more than a billion were living in extreme poverty and hundreds of millions were unemployed.