TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY CHALLENGES CANNOT BE FACED ALONE, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL IN MESSAGE TO MODEL UNITED NATIONS
Press Release
SG/SM/6446
TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY CHALLENGES CANNOT BE FACED ALONE, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL IN MESSAGE TO MODEL UNITED NATIONS
19980127 Following is the message of Secretary-General Kofi Annan to The Hague International Model United Nations thirtieth anniversary session, held at The Hague, 27 January:It gives me great pleasure to extend my warmest greetings to you all on the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary session of The Hague International Model United Nations -- a meeting that takes place at a crucial time in the history of our United Nations.
Gatherings such as yours bring together some of the Organization's best friends and allies, and offer invaluable insights into the full range of United Nations activities and responsibilities. They demonstrate to young people that the United Nations' agenda is also their agenda; that the issues that concern the United Nations concern us all as human beings.
That was never more the case that it is today. As we look to the twenty-first century, it is clear that all countries are increasingly affected by the same difficulties and challenges. Some threats are overt: terrorism; pandemics; arms proliferation. Others are insidious: climate change; drug- trafficking; money-laundering. All of them transcend border. No country can ward them off alone. Every country, therefore, needs the United Nations.
The emerging, post-cold-war consensus on the virtues of international action is a major new development. But, with such dramatic changes in the external political development, the United Nations itself has to change. That is why I have launched a quiet revolution to reform the United Nations, to give it greater unity of purpose, greater coherence of efforts. As you know, the General Assembly has now endorsed that reform programme. I hope I can also count on your continued leadership and support in our endeavour to revitalize the Organization.
I applaud your choice of global education as the theme for this anniversary session. The United Nations has made it a particular concern to help promote education. My many years of service with the United Nations have convinced me that the first ingredient of political stability is an informed citizen; that the first ingredient of economic progress is a skilled worker; and that the first ingredient of social justice is an enlightened society.
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But, if the United Nations is responsible for contributing to the promotion of education, I would submit that educators, too, have certain responsibilities towards the United Nations. For the United Nations to earn and sustain the faith of Member States and society alike, it needs their support. That can come in many forms: political; military; moral; financial. But, the surest support finds its roots in knowledge about the United Nations and its work.
I know you will find your conference stimulating and rewarding. On behalf of the United Nations, I wish you every success in your meeting.
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