UN Economic and Social Council to convene in Geneva for the month of July
Press release 212/2006
30 June 2006
The annually held Substantive Session of the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations will begin in Geneva on 3 July. In the session, lasting almost the whole month of July, the Council will handle topic areas related to, for instance, global economy, employment, sustainable development, and humanitarian assistance.
The Finnish delegation will be chaired by Minister of Labour Tarja Filatov, who will also give the main address on behalf of the EU on 4 July. Marjatta Rasi, Under Secretary of State for Development Policy at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, will act as vice chairperson of the delegation. The delegation will consist of civil servants from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.
The Council Session will begin with a High-Level Segment, the main theme of which is creation of an environment conducive to generating productive employment while simultaneously promoting sustainable development. The High-Level Segment will end with a ministerial declaration. During the High-Level Segment, the European Commission and Finland as the holder of the EU Presidency will organise on 4 July a roundtable discussion about promotion of employment in the era of globalisation. The participants of the roundtable will include, among others, Minister Filatov and South-African Minister of Labour Membathisi Mdladlana.
The UN Economic and Social Council is one of the main agencies of the UN. It is tasked with coordination of economic, social and humanitarian questions falling within the scope of the world organisation's activities, and promotion of these matters between the governments of member states.
Further information: Minister Counsellor Jarl-Håkan Rosengren, tel. +1 91 1729 43923, and Counsellor Petri Kruuti, tel. +358 40 5110 9124, from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, and Director of International Affairs Sirkka Potila, tel. +358 10 604 8016, Ministry of Labour http://www.un.org/docs/ecosoc