THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS: THE EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE (17/13) 22-28 April 2013 (and beyond) This document is for planning purposes only and is subject to change. Please check also our website for latest changes http://www.unric.org or call +32 2 7888484 or + 32 476 215 485
VIP Visits Gabriela Knaul, UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers: the Russian Federation (till 25 April). Najat Maalla M’jid, UN Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography: Kyrgyzstan (till 26 April). Marleen Temmermann, Director, WHO, Department of Reproductive Health and Research: Brussels (22 April). Navi Pillay, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: Angola (22 - 24 April). Princess Astrid of Belgium, Roll Back Malaria Partnership's Special Representative: Tokyo (2224 April); Phnom Penh (25-26 April). Nicolas Tiangaye, Prime Minister of the Central African Republic: Brussels 23 April). Jan Kubis, UN Secretary General’s Special representative for Afghanistan: Brussels (23 April) Olav Kjørven, UN ASG, Director, UNDP Bureau for Development Policy: Brussels (23-25 April). Ali Zeidan, Prime Minister of Libya: Brussels (24 April). Ben Emmerson, UN Special Rapporteur, Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights: Brussels (25 April) José Manuel Durão Barroso, President of the EU Commission: Abu Dhabi (25 April); Addis Ababa (25-26 April). EU Commissioners Andris Piebalgs (Development), Karel De Gucht (Trade), Kristalina Georgieva (International cooperation, humanitarian aid and crisis response), Connie Hedegaard (Climate action), Dacian Cioloş (Agricultural and rural development) and Algirdas Šemeta (Taxation and customs Union, audit and anti-fraud): Addis Ababa (25-26 April). Catherine Ashton EU High Representative: China (25-28April); Mongolia (28-30 April). Marc Bichler, UNCDF Executive Secretary: Brussels (29 April – 2 May). Amina Mohammed, UN SG Special Advisor on Post-2015 Development Planning: Brussels (7 May).
Jane Goodall, UN Messenger of Peace: Brussels (7 May).
Achim Steiner UNEP Executive Director: Brussels (14 May). ----------------------------------------------
Monday, 22 April Int. Mother Earth Day
http://www.earthday.org/
Brussels: -Accession conference with Montenegro (first meeting at ambassador level). -European Parliament - Committee on Development: Reconstruction and democratization of Mali. Also on the agenda, a discussion with the Prime Minister of Central African Republic. -exhibition: “Landmines: Treacherous Weapons” (open to the public till 28 June). http://www.klmmra.be/klm-new/engels/main01.php?id=../danger-mines/mines-en
Dublin: -Informal Meeting of EU Ministers for Environment and Energy (till 24 April). http://www.eu2013.ie/news/news-items/20130421preenviinformalpr/
-Conference on gender equality and Europe 2020 (under the theme “Women’s Economic Engagement and the Europe 2020 Agenda". The conference will bring together representatives of the Commission, the European Parliament and NGOs, as well as national experts and academics) Geneva: -Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (till 26 April). http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/cmw/ -Second NPT Preparatory Committee (till 3 May). Luxembourg: - General and Foreign Affairs EU Councils (till 23 April).
http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_Data/docs/pressdata/EN/genaff/136849.pdf http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_Data/docs/pressdata/EN/foraff/136854.pdf
-Agriculture and Fisheries EU Council (AGRI FISH).
http://www.eu2013.ie/news/news-items/20130419preagrifishpr/
Montreal: ICAO, Committee (till 3 May). New York: Security Council- Consultations on MINURSO. -Special high-level meetings of the Economic and Social Council with the Bretton Woods institutions, the World Trade Organization and UNCTAD. http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/ecosoc/springmeetings/2013/index.htm
Special meeting of ECOSOC on “External debt sustainability and development”. http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/ecosoc/debt/2013/index.htm
-Commission on Population and Development (till 26 April). -Committee on Information (till 2 May). Paris: UNESCO, Executive Board (till 26 April). http://www.unesco.org/new/en/executive-board/ Rome: FAO, Council (till 26 April). Stockholm: Meeting of National Recruitment Services and UN Organizations on the Associate Expert/JPO/APO Programmes (till 24 April).
Vienna: Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (till 26 April).
Tuesday, 23 April
World Book and Copyright Day
http://www.unesco.org/culture/bookday
Launch of the UNCTAD New Study on Promoting Local IT Sector through Public Procurement. Launch of the Economic Report on Africa 2013.
Asunción: EP Election Observation Delegation. The Head of the EP delegation and the Chief Observer of the EU EOM will hold a joint press conference on the preliminary findings of the EU EOM. Bandar Seri Begawan (Brunei): ASEAN Summit (till 25 April). Brussels: NATO Foreign Ministerial. At a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council (NRC), which will include the participation of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, ministers are expected to discuss closer practical cooperation, as well as global security issues of relevance to the NRC, including Afghanistan and North Korea. NATO ministers will meet with their counterparts from the 22 non-NATO countries which contribute to the ISAF mission in Afghanistan. The Afghan Foreign Minister Zalmai Rassoul, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton and the UN Secretary General’s Special representative Jan Kubis have also been invited to attend this session. -European Parliament - "Exchange of views with Commissioner Georgieva on the situation in Syria and the impact of refugees in Jordan and Lebanon" event. -European Parliament-Committee on Development: Adoption of draft report on ‘Millennium Development Goals - defining the post-2015 framework and Adoption of draft opinion one: Recommendation to the Council on the 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly. -Mali, DRC, Syria (…): Does the UN have the capacity to tackle such political and humanitarian crisis? Debate with Professor Michel Liégeois, Expert in Political Science from the University of Louvain and Antoine Gerard, Head of UN OCHA Brussels. Organizers: French Speaking UNA with the support of UNRIC. Venue: UNRIC Conference room, IPC, 8th floor, Entrance block C2. 12.30-14.00. Registration: invitation@unric.org -Round Table on the Human Development Report 2013: “The Rise of the South: Human Progress in a Diverse World". Venue: Residence Palace, IPC, room Polak. 17 h. Registration and information: https://www.unric.org/en/events/28395-round-table-on-the1
human-development-report-2013
Dublin: - Informal Meeting of EU Ministers for Environment and Energy (till 24 April). New York: -Special meeting on “External debt sustainability and development: Lessons learned from debt crises and ongoing work on sovereign debt restructuring and debt resolution mechanisms”.
Wednesday, 24 April Launch of the ILO book: "Public Sector Shock: The Impact of Policy Retrenchment in Europe". Brussels: Presentation of policy paper: What Can the European Union Do in Syria? As a follow-up to the closed workshop that took place in December 2012 on the responsibility to protect in Syria. Organisers: Heinrich Böll Stiftung European Union and Dutch peace organisation IKV Pax Christi. Venue: SOFITEL EUROPE Place Jourdan. -European Parliament - Subcommittee on Security and Defense: ‘Situation in Afghanistan. New York: Security Council - Open Debate on the Middle East. Thursday, 25 April World Malaria Day [WHO]
http://www.rollbackmalaria.org/worldmalariaday/
Abu Dhabi: Global Vaccine Summit. Addis Ababa: The EU Commission holds executive talks with the African Union (till 26 April). President Barroso and six European commissioners will meet their AU counterparts. This collegeto-college meeting will launch the preparations of the EU-Africa Summit to take place in April 2014 and will be an opportunity to take a fresh look at the EU-African Union strategic relationship. The EU and AU are working jointly on a broad range of areas to be discussed during this meeting such as peace and security, education, health, agriculture, trade, climate change and science and technology. The topics for the plenary meeting will also include an exchange on the post-2015 development framework. Bangkok: Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (till 1 May). Brussels: European Parliament -Building resilient communities: learning lessons through partnership. With speakers from WFP, and FAO, ECHO and EuropeAid. New York: -Security Council – resolutions on MINURSO and Côte d’Ivoire sanctions (tbc). -Security Council-Briefings on Post conflict peacebuilding; - Briefing and Consultations on Somalia. -ECOSOC will hold elections to fill vacancies in the membership of its subsidiary bodies (till 26 April). http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=%20E/2013/2/Add.1 Paris: Third Annual High-Level G20 Anti-Corruption Conference for Governments and Business, jointly organised by the Russian Presidency of the G20, the OECD and supported by the UNODC.
http://www.oecd.org/corruption/anti-bribery/g20-anticorruption-2013.htm
Friday,26 April World Intellectual Property Day [WIPO]
http://www.wipo.int/ip-outreach/en/ipday/
Sunday, 28 April World Day for Safety and Health at Work "The Prevention of Occupational Diseases" http://www.ilo.org/safework/events/safeday/lang--en/index.htm
And beyond: Other dates to pin 29 April Day of Remembrance for all Victims of Chemical Warfare http://www.un.org/en/events/chemwarfareday
Addis Ababa: United Nations African Meeting on the Question of Palestine (till 30 April). New York: Security Council – Briefing and Consultations on UNAMID; Consultations on Sudan/South Sudan. 30 April International Jazz Day
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/events/prizes-and-celebrations/celebrations/international-days/jazz-day
Amsterdam: Abdication of Queen Beatrix and investiture of King Willem-Alexander. 1 May Togo assumes the monthly rotating Presidency of the Security Council Dublin: Informal meeting of the competitiveness ministers (till 3 May). 3 May World Press Freedom Day "Safe to Speak: Securing Freedom of Expression in All Media" http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/events/prizes-and-celebrations/celebrations/international-days/world-press-freedomday/homepage/
6 May Second UN Global Road Safety Week
http://www.who.int/roadsafety/week/2013/en/index.html
7 May Brussels: Cine-ONU Love MEATender, at the VUB The film will be followed by a Q/A, with: Dr. Jane Goodall, United Nations Messenger of Peace http://www.unric.org/en/next-screening
Brussels: Stakeholders Meeting of the Belgian Development cooperation. http://www.assises-dgd.be/programme.html
8 May Time of Remembrance and Reconciliation for Those Who Lost Their Lives during the Second World War http://www.un.org/en/events/remembranceday/ (and 9 May).
Addis Ababa: World Economic Forum on Africa 2013 (till 10 May). 11 May World Migratory Bird Day (and 12 May)Â http://www.greeningtheblue.org/event/world-migratory-bird-day-11-12-may-2013 13 May Brussels: -Agriculture and Fisheries EU Council (till 14 May). -Eurogroup. 14 May Brussels: Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN). 15 May Int. Day of Families "Advancing Social Integration and Intergenerational Solidarity" http://social.un.org/index/Family/InternationalObservances/InternationalDayofFamilies.aspx
Brussels: The EU Commission's Emergency Response Centre (ERC) will officially open. The Centre will allow for a better coordinated, faster and more efficient response to natural and man-made disasters in Europe and beyond. The ERC will monitor the situation and analyse humanitarian and civil protection issues around the globe and will enable immediate response in needed. 16 May : Brussels: Education, Youth, Culture and Sport EU Council (till 17 May). Chiang Mai: Asia Pacific Water Summit (till 20 May). http://info.apwatersummit2.org/ 17 May World Telecommunication and Information Society Day
http://www.itu.int/wtisd/
19 May Addis Ababa: African Union Summit (till 26 May). 20 May New York: UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (till 31 May). Strasbourg: - European Parliament Plenary (till 23 May). 21 May World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development http://www.un.org/en/events/culturaldiversityday/ European maritime day http://europa.eu/eucalendar/event/id/287070-european-maritime-day/mode/window Brussels: EU General Affairs Council (GAC).
22 May International Day for Biological Diversity: "Water and Biodiversity"
http://www.cbd.int/idb/2013
Brussels: European Council. 25 May Africa Day (AU, OSAA). Week of Solidarity with the Peoples of Non-Self-Governing Territories http://www.un.org/en/events/nonselfgoverning/index.shtml
26 May Dublin: - Informal Meeting of EU Ministers for Agriculture (till 28 May). 27 May Brussels: EU Foreign Affairs Council (plus FAC Development) tTill 28 May).. 29 May International Day of UN Peacekeepers
http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/operations/pkday.shtml
31 May World No-Tobacco Day: Ban tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship. http://www.who.int/tobacco/wntd/2013/en
Brussels: Millennium Film Festival 2013 (till 9 June).
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UN Campaigns, Competitions, Apps and Games For a more complete list of Competitions, Mobile Apps, Campaigns and Games visit: http://www.unric.org/en/competitions-campaigns-mobile-apps-a-games
Migrant Domestic Workers in Europe Photo Contest http://www.unric.org/en/competitions The International Migration Programme of the ILO is organizing a photo contest in order to explore and to showcase the important and positive contributions that migrant domestic workers in Europe make to the societies they live in. The photographs should bring about a positive image of domestic work and migration and demonstrate the character and resilience of these workers. The ILO are inviting anyone residing in Europe and over the age of 18 to participate. The submission deadline is 30 April, 2013
UPU - 2013 International letter-writing competition for young people http://www.unric.org/en/competitions The theme is: "Write someone a letter explaining why water is a precious resource". The 2013 theme ties in with the International Decade for Action "Water for Life" 2005–2015. Water serves a multitude of different purposes, and it is vital that we preserve this precious natural resource. Access to water is essential to ensuring the health and well-being of humans and the protection of nature. Young people up to the age of 15 years may take part in the competition. The submission deadline is 30 April, 2013
Greenlight for girls Campaign http://greenlightforgirls.org/anything-is-possible Join the Tech Needs Girls campaign with Greenlight for Girls to spread the word that “Anything is Possible!” with a background in STEM (science, technology, engineering, + math). Submit your photo or video message on the website by 20 April to be included in the presentation for Girls in ICT Day at the European Parliament on 25 April 2013.
Innovate Your Future campaign (ECOSOC) http://www.unric.org/en/campaigns ECOSOC has launched a major online campaign aimed at bringing the voices of youth into the important discussions and decisions of the Council ahead of its annual meeting in July. Youth are invited to share their ideas and thoughts on how science, technology and culture can help shape a sustainable world on ECOSOC’s dedicated Facebook page. Just launched is also a Thunderclap page, asking people across the globe to help empower youth to sustain the planet.
The online forum will run from 20 March to 1 July 2013
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