Media Advisory

 

High-level meeting to mark the closure of the International Decade for People of African Descent

What:  The President of the General Assembly, H.E. Philémon Yang, will convene a high-level meeting on 8 November 2024 at UN Headquarters in New York to mark the closure of the International Decade for People of African Descent. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk will participate in the event.

Over the past ten years, the International Decade under the theme “People of African descent: recognition, justice and development” has highlighted the significant contributions of people of African descent and produced key outcomes such as the establishment of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent in 2021.

Yet, the commitment to ensure the recognition, justice and development of people of African descent remains largely unfulfilled. Systemic racism, rooted in the legacies of enslavement and colonialism and which hamper the realization of their human rights, continues to be pervasive.

This high-level meeting will be an opportunity to assess progress made in the implementation of the programme of activities of the International Decade for people of African Descent during the period 2015-2024.  The meeting will also seek to identify continuing and emerging challenges and seek recommendations on further steps to be taken, including through the proclamation of a Second International Decade for People of African Descent.

Who:           The opening segment will include remarks by

  • H.E. Mr. Philémon Yang, President of the UN General Assembly
  • Ilze Brands Kehris, Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, on behalf of the UN Secretary- General
  • Kimberlé Crenshaw, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the African American Policy Forum
  • Edna Liliana Valencia Murillo, journalist, poet and writer
  • Chairs of regional groups for the month of November 2024 and the Host Country

Other participants include:

  • Panelists and UN experts
  • Format:             There will be an opening commemorative segment followed by three interactive panel discussions that focus on the three areas of the theme of the
      •       International Decade: recognition, justice and development.

When:                Friday, 8 November 2024, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm (EST)

Where:              ECOSOC Chamber, United Nations Headquarters, New York

Follow live on UN WebTV  in all 6 UN official languages. [There is on-demand coverage in English and speaker’s original language].

For more details on the programme and panellists: https://www.un.org/pga/79/high-level-meeting-on-international-decade-for-people-of-african-descent/

 

For more information and media requests, please contact:

Dr. Mariam Shaikh, Adviser / Social and Digital Media/Media Relations, Office of the President of the UN General Assembly, Email: mariam.shaikh@un.org

Laura Gelbert, Media & Communications Officer for UN Human Rights, Email: gelbert@un.org.

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