The Ministry for Foreign Affairs organises a seminar on reform of sustainable development administration
Press release 94/2005
17 March, 2005
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is organising a seminar, held in Hanasaari, Espoo on 18–19 March, to discuss sustainable development administration and its reform. The seminar, open to those invited, has an attendance of about 40 Finnish and foreign experts in the field.
The foreign participants come from five continents in all, and they represent international organisations, national institutions as well as some of the largest civil society organisations. Among the seminar participants are: Rajenda Pachauri, Director General of the IPCC (the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change); Kiyo Akasaka, Deputy Secretary-General of the OECD; and Shafqat Kakakhel, Deputy Executive Director of Unep (the United Nations Environment Programme).
Sustainable development administration, obstacles to efficient administration and existing proposal for reform of the UN administration, with a view, in particular, to achieving economic, social and ecological sustainable development in order to eradicate poverty, are discussed from a broad perspective during the seminar. Discussions are held at both the general level concerning the entire international administration machinery, and at the level of individual institutions, for example in considering the need for reform of Unep, the United Nations Environment Programme. Special attention is paid to ongoing reform of the United Nations and to the achievement of the administration reforms required in order to achieve the generally approved goals of cutting poverty in half.
Three core questions are prominent in the discussions: what challenges are in the way of realising the UN Millennium Development Goals and the Programme of Actions agreed on at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg; how should the existing institutional system be revised in order to achieve results; and how can these renovations be implemented in practice.
The seminar is part of the Finnish Government’s consistent efforts towards the realisation of a fairer, safer world. As Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja stated in his opening speech, Finland fully understands that national governments bear the main responsibility for steering international development, but at the same time he hoped that national governments would be able to cooperate more intensively and productively. According to Foreign Minister Tuomioja, the UN system has a strong base for achieving sustainable development.
Additional information: Kari Karanko, Head of Unit, Unit for International Environmental Policy, tel. +358 9 1605 5590, or attaché Antti Lehmuskoski, tel. + 358 9 1605 6180 or GSM +358 40 558 3889