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15 June 2022<\/p>\n <\/strong><\/p>\n Dear friends,<\/span><\/p>\n I am privileged to have this opportunity to engage with you all and I thank the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights for the support provided in this regard.<\/p>\n In all my travels, I make it a point to hold meetings with civil society representatives. I do so because civil society organizations play an integral part in advancing human rights and in the maintenance of the social, cultural, and humanitarian aspects of society.<\/span><\/p>\n You are the voice of the people. You provide invaluable information from the ground up, helping to inform the work of the United Nations, including here at the Human Rights Council.<\/span><\/p>\n Yet, to this day, the contribution of CSOs to the work of the United Nations remain insufficiently recognized, marginalized, and undervalued.<\/p>\n This holds particularly true for organizations fighting for the rights of women and marginalized groups, as well as human rights defenders.<\/span><\/p>\n I have and will continue to stress the necessity of ensuring you have the freedom needed to conduct your work and that you are protected from any acts of intimidation.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Governments, international organizations, and the international community in general should promote and support civic spaces in the broadest terms.<\/span><\/p>\n For these reasons, I strongly believe that spaces such as this meeting provide us the opportunity to gain better insights into the important work you do. To understand the loopholes, the challenges and how the United Nations General Assembly can better deliver for CSOs.<\/span><\/p>\n My friends,<\/p>\n During my presidency, I have carried out many initiatives as part of <\/span>my resolve to strengthen the engagement of civil society and other stakeholders in the work of the General Assembly.<\/span><\/p>\n In the earliest months of my presidency, I held a Town Hall Meeting with CSOs \u2013 the first such in-person engagement at the United Nation Headquarters since the outbreak of COVID-19. Close to 200 representatives attended and shared with me their views on the priorities of my presidency.<\/p>\n CSOs were also present and engaged for the High-Level Meeting on Delivering Climate Action in October, offering their views on how to maintain progress towards the goal of 1.5 as stipulated by the Paris Agreement.<\/span><\/p>\n CSOs were part of our High-Level meeting on vaccine equity, in February, and contributed to calls and commitments to address the immoral divide in vaccine access.<\/span><\/p>\n And more recently, CSOs were fully engaged in the High-Level Debate on Sustainable Tourism, in May, which focused on a resilient, build back better approach to the tourism sector.<\/span><\/p>\n I am particularly grateful for the vital contributions of CSO representatives during the thematic consultations I convened on the Secretary General\u2019s \u2018Our Common Agenda\u2019 report, which, amongst other things, outlines what is needed for a more agile, forward-looking UN 2.0.<\/span><\/p>\n Dear friends,<\/span><\/p>\n Under the current international situation, the participation of civil society and the promotion of civic space is more important than ever. And the United Nations General Assembly will continue to emphasize and recognize this through its work.<\/span><\/p>\n I see this as critical to enabling the United Nations to be more responsive and effective.<\/span> Multilateralism can only work if it is working <\/span>for<\/span> and <\/span>with <\/span>the people. And there is no better representation of the views of those on the ground than through the involvement of CSOs.<\/span><\/p>\n I am not alone in this thinking, and the Sustainable Development Goals, along with the SGs \u2018Our Common Agenda\u2019 Report, have recognized and called for more active participation of civil society across the work of the United Nations.<\/p>\n I hear this also from civil society themselves, in all corners of the globe.<\/span><\/p>\n From COP26 in Glasgow, where I met with youth climate activists, to the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in Bali, to Kenya, Sweden, and Angola, I have heard from civil society.<\/p>\n I have learned and I continue to learn from these encounters.<\/span><\/p>\n Because the fact of the matter is that we simply cannot achieve our work nor deliver effective multilateralism, without the support and cooperation of CSOs.<\/span><\/p>\n We are all in this together. Whether talking about the climate crisis, or the crisis in Ukraine; whether recovering from COVID-19, or protecting biodiversity, there is no path forward that does not entail all hands-on deck. <\/span><\/p>\n My friends,<\/p>\n I thank each of you for your tireless support and commitments through your respective roles and organizations.<\/p>\n Once again thank you for this opportunity and I look forward to hearing more of the work you do and your views going forward.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Geneva, Switzerland<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":361,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":" Excellencies, colleagues,<\/p> I welcome you all to our second meeting and our first interaction following the resumed part of the session.<\/p> Before I begin, I would like to recognize the loss of our dear friend and esteemed colleague, Ms. Gail Farngalo.<\/p> A Liberian national, Gail was my Team Leader for Human Rights and was active on gender during both the 75th<\/sup> and 76th<\/sup> sessions. She leaves behind a legacy of achievements and a groundswell of respect and affection from across the UN and diplomatic communities. Her presence is certainly felt here today.<\/p> Colleagues,<\/p> When I took on this Presidency of Hope, I pledged to make gender equality a priority area for the 76th<\/sup> session. I continue to look to the board for its wisdom and expertise, as I endeavour to fulfil that pledge.<\/p> In this regard, I have already benefited from the board\u2019s advice, from when we met on October 28th<\/sup> last year.<\/p> Acting on that advice, I committed to ensuring that all my five rays of hope, and all my major initiatives, are approached with a gender lens.<\/p> I made sure that the composition of my office is gender-balanced.<\/p> I have committed to participating only in panels that have equal gender representation.<\/p> Throughout my official interactions and travels, I have endeavoured to meet with women, including heads of states and governments, scientists, civil society representatives, and youth.<\/p> And I am proud to inform you that five young women have been recruited into the Fellowship for HOPE<\/em> that my office recently launched. The Fellowship as you are well aware is targeted at benefiting young diplomats from underrepresented countries, pursuing careers in diplomacy or public service.<\/p> Colleagues,<\/p> While recognizing that we have a long way to go in the battle for gender-equality, I am proud of what my team has been able to accomplish within the past few months.<\/p> Our work continues.<\/p> We will continue to raise our voices on issues disproportionately impacting women, such as domestic violence and work place harassment. We will continue to push the importance of gender-equal work spaces.<\/p> And we will continue to find new paths to empower young women with ambitious professional aspirations.<\/p> Now is not the time to rest on our laurels.<\/p> With the board\u2019s guidance and support, we must use the many opportunities over the coming months to further empower women and girls, and dismantle discriminatory practices against them.<\/p> There are several upcoming events that will provide us such opportunities. I look forward to the board\u2019s suggestions on how we can best utilize them.<\/p> As an example, the International Day of Women and Girls in science is fast approaching. We must recognize that women\u2019s contributions in science and technology have helped us cure diseases; discover new horizons in space; and develop technologies that have vastly improved our quality of life.<\/p> As we celebrate their achievements, we must also open pathways for young girls who aspire to follow in the footsteps of pioneers in science and technology.<\/p> Colleagues,<\/p> Let us also reflect that the theme chosen by the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women for this year is on \u201cachieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls in the context of climate change, environmental and disaster risk reduction policies and programmes\u201d.<\/p> As we strive to meet our obligations to the planet, let us recognize the important work done by women and girls at the forefront of the climate crisis, and whose humanitarian work in disaster-stricken areas has helped save lives and rebuild communities. We owe it to them to not only celebrate their work but to support them.<\/p> Colleagues,<\/p> Our programme of work for the months ahead has been circulated to members prior to the meeting, for consideration and feedback. Please note that the events we have planned are not exhaustive. I welcome further suggestions from the board on the content and format of future events and activities.<\/p> Colleagues,<\/p> We have made much progress within a short while. And with the board\u2019s support and guidance, I am sure that we can keep up this strong momentum.<\/p> I look forward to working alongside all of you to achieve our vision of a gender-equal world.<\/p> Thank you.<\/p>","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[111],"tags":[550,556,553],"committee-meeting":[],"class_list":["post-267746","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-speeches","tag-ga","tag-pga","tag-shahid","et-doesnt-have-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n