Mr. Ercan Murat

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Opening Statement

    Distinguished Guests, Representatives of National NGOs, Ladies & Gentlemen, good morning and welcome to Azerbaijan.

     I am delighted to take the opportunity to host this conference and, on behalf of UNDP, welcome you to this three-day regional Conference organized by the International Council on Social Welfare.

     The aim of the conference is to specifically provide a perspective from the civil society into the UN review process of implementation of the commitments derived from the World Summit for Social Development. At the World Summit for Social Development in 1995, over 180 countries discussed social development issues under the central themes of poverty, unemployment, and social exclusion. This conference will make an assessment of the current situation by gathering perspectives of the NGO communities from different countries of the region.

     This will enable the Central Asian and the Southern Caucasus countries to prepare for the Special Session of the General Assembly in June 2000, which is dedicated to the five-year follow-up of the Summit. The Special Session will convene heads of state, ministers, senior country delegations and representatives of civil society organizations from all over the world.

     During the 1990s, under the auspices of a series of United Nations sponsored conferences, the world community reached a common understanding as to what must take place in the years ahead if we are to successfully promote sustainable social and economic development and create a world where men, women, and children are able to live in peace and security. The goals and benchmarks are in place for education, environment and sustainable development, population growth, women’s progress, social development and poverty reduction. Now we must put these goals into action, through building new partnerships, mobilizing the resources required and ensuring that sustainable development is to be achieved through the active cooperation of all parties involved. Specifically, NGO participation in the process of social development has been recognized as an indispensable factor for its success.

     Poverty reduction has been recognized as the central element leading to the success and sustainability of development efforts. However, there needs to be a more comprehensive approach to development that focuses on human development, sound macroeconomic frameworks, environmental concerns, institution building and good governance. This provides us with an opportunity to build more effective and lasting partnerships within a framework of country-driven development cooperation.

     I consider it a distinct privilege of mine to be able to participate in this historic day of the national NGOs from the southern Caucasus and Central Asia. This is a ‘historic day’ because the NGO representatives from many of these countries are here to share their experiences and recommendations to alleviate poverty not only from their own country in particular but also from this region in general, and subsequently from around the globe.

      This meeting in Baku is the first such meeting of national NGOs in light of their respective republics’ commitment made during the Social Summit. I am also confident that, during these three days, your individual contributions will not only turn into a shared knowledge on the social development issues of all the participants but, very importantly, will also contribute to a truly regional evaluation of the Copenhagen Commitments. This meeting will also provide an NGO input into other high level meetings of the government and the UN, which are scheduled to be held in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan from 9-11 November, 1999, and two pre-Summit meetings in New York during early 2000 before holding the Special Session in Geneva in June 2000.

     I would like to conclude my opening statement by expressing my wish for the fruitful outcome of the conference and further success in social development of the region.

Mr. Ercan Murat is UN Resident Co-ordinator, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Azerbaijan