TURNER FOUNDATION APPROVES $51 MILLION IN NEW PROJECT FUNDING SAYS DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL IN HEADQUARTERS ANNOUNCEMENT

Press Release
DSG/SM/76

TURNER FOUNDATION APPROVES $51 MILLION IN NEW PROJECT FUNDING SAYS DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL IN HEADQUARTERS ANNOUNCEMENT

The following statement was issued by the Office of Deputy Secretary- General Louise Fréchette at Headquarters on 9 November:

I am pleased to report that, as a result of deliberations by the United Nations Fund for International Partnerships (UNFIP) Advisory Board and approval by the Board of Directors of the United Nations Foundation, new projects amounting to over $51 million have been approved for funding.

The majority of projects are in support of activities aimed at improving the health of children, ranging from new and important joint United Nations initiatives designed to decrease child mortality, as well as improving immunization and sustainable vaccination activities; protecting children and young people from tobacco; and developing HIV/AIDS prevention communication strategies. Funding is also being made available for projects supporting the promotion of the health and well-being of adolescent girls, including improving adolescent reproductive health. In terms of the environment, a variety of activities will be supported such as: promoting efforts to conserve biodiversity in biologically rich areas of the world designated as World Heritage Sites; providing sustainable energy services to the rural poor in Africa through the support of small renewable energy enterprises; and supporting the adoption of energy efficiency standards and labels for appliances, equipment and lighting in developing countries. (Detailed information on the individual projects awarded by the United Nations Foundation Board of Directors in November 1999 is available through a press release issued by the Foundation on the matter.).

We remain grateful for Mr. Turner’s generosity in supplementing much needed development assistance in such key sectors as child health, population and women, and the environment. In the brief period since the Secretary-General established this partnership with Mr. Turner, a total of some $188 million have been awarded to 112 projects, spanning the five continents and involving 24 different organizations of the United Nations system working together.

To date 32 projects have been programmed in children’s health, amounting to $78.7 million; 38 projects in the women and population area, amounting to $53.8 million; 27 projects in the environment sector, amounting to $38.6 million; and 15 projects in support of select United Nations causes, including assistance to further the Secretary-General’s reform initiatives, support for humanitarian emergencies and institutional strengthening, amounting to $16.5 million.

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