PRESS BRIEFING BY UNDP

Press Briefing

PRESS BRIEFING BY UNDP

"Poverty knows no borders and needs no visas or passports", the Director of the Department of Public Affairs for United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Djibril Diallo told correspondents at a Headquarters briefing today. He said that over 60 countries would host public awareness campaigns this week to mark the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, 17 October, with events ranging from televised debates and the publication of human development reports to the running of marathons.

Mr. Diallo stressed that despite the perception that money was the answer to everything, the eradication of poverty required not only resources, but the mobilization of all members of society. While official development assistance (ODA) needed to be increased, central governments needed to have involvement of all levels of society. The UNDP was using its country network to challenge the international community -- governments, non-governmental organizations and civil societies in general -- to come up with answers for eradicating the worst aspects of poverty.

Describing some of the activities being undertaken, he said that this afternoon, UNDP Administrator James Gustave Speth would hold a pre-launch briefing to introduce journalists to a new UNDP report, "Overcoming Human Poverty". The report, which would be released on Friday, 16 October, looked at what had and had not been done since the 1995 Social Summit in Copenhagen.

UNDP Goodwill Ambassador Danny Glover would host a benefit screening of the movie "Beloved" in support of the United States Committee for UNDP on 14 October. The film was adapted from the Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison and focuses on the experiences of people reclaiming their lives after slavery. "It is a tribute of love and resilience of the human spirit", he said. The film will be screened in the Trusteeship Council Chamber. In addition to Mr. Glover, those scheduled to attend are the Secretary-General, Mr. Speth, Joe Pesci, Chris Rock, Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, and the Academy Award-winning director of "Beloved", Jonathan Demme. Access to the media would be complimentary.

On Friday, 16 October, Mr. Diallo said, the Secretary-General would honour five women from five continents who demonstrated how one could pull oneself out of poverty. The women, winners of UNDP's global annual award to people who had helped their communities overcome poverty, are from Dominican Republic, France, India, Jordan and Uganda. Mr. Diallo noted that the presence of a winner from France demonstrated that poverty was a global issue. The awards would be presented at a celebrity musical concert in the Economic and Social Council Chamber with performances by Alhaji Papa Susso (Gambia), Tito Puente (United States), Celia Cruz (Cuba), Johnny Ventura (Dominican Republic) and Victor Victor (Dominican Republic).

Also on Friday, Mr. Speth would launch the UNDP Poverty Report 1998, Overcoming Human Poverty, at a press conference at 11:15 a.m. in the Hank Shannon Conference Room on the twenty-first floor of the UNDP Building, First Avenue and Forty-fourth Street. The press conference would be attended by the five winners of the Poverty Award. United Nations press were invited to the evening concert and presentations from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Mr. Diallo called attention to a UNDP press release which listed events in New York, as well as a global calendar of major events.

Asked if any of the permanent member countries of the Security Council were participating in the public awareness events, Mr. Diallo said that beginning today, France was hosting a major event in Lyon -- the First Global Forum of the World Alliance of Cities against Poverty. Mayors from around the world would look at ways in which they could share experiences and benefit from the support of the international community to eradicate the worst aspects of poverty in the urban areas.

In response to a question, he said that while there were mayors from across the United States who were attending the conference, the Mayor of New York, Rudolph Giuliani would not be there. The results of the meeting would be available across the country.

In the United Kingdom, he said, the city of Liverpool was organizing activities through the Mayor's office. Similar activities were taking place in other Member States, including those which were members of the Council.

To what extent was the current economic crisis in Asia and Latin America a factor in UNDP's fight against poverty? a correspondent asked. Mr. Diallo expressed concern that the current discussion about the Asian crisis was not paying enough attention to the social safety net of Asian countries. Unless that issue was addressed as a matter of priority, a crisis of untold proportions could unfold. Financial packages should go hand in hand with measures to inject resources to protect the social safety net in Asia.

Asked if he was referring to financial packages from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), he said it was difficult to point fingers at specific institutions. It was important to remember that the most vulnerable people did not play the stock market. He or she was dealing with day-to-day survival, but was affected by what was going on in the economic world.

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