DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICES OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL AND THE SPOKESWOMAN FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICES OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

AND THE SPOKESWOMAN FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT

Following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Hua Jiang, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General, and Michele Montas, Spokeswoman for the General Assembly President.

Deputy Spokesman for Secretary-General

Good Afternoon.

**Security Council

The Security Council began consultations today with a briefing under “other matters” by Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Kieran Prendergast on developments in the Sudan Peace Process.

Council members had received the text of the Framework Agreement on Security arrangements recently signed between the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement, which the Secretary-General had welcomed on September 25.

The Council then heard a briefing by the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Côte d’Ivoire, Albert Tevoedjre, on the status of implementation of the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement and recent developments.

France also briefed on the forces of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and France in the country, in accordance with Security Council resolutions on Côte d’Ivoire.

Following the consultations, the Security Council President, U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte, is expected to read a press statement on Côte d’Ivoire.

**Donor’s Conference

According to needs assessment missions undertaken in Iraq soon after major combat ended, the overall stock of reconstruction needs over the period

2004-2007 are on the order of US$36 billion.

These missions are done by the UN Development Group and the World Bank Group, with assistance from the International Monetary Fund.  The results will be used at the Donor’s Conference in Madrid on October 23-24 2003.

According to the findings of the missions, Iraq’s overall reconstruction needs today are vast, and are a result of years of neglect and degradation of the country’s infrastructure, environment and social services.  In addition, the assessment notes that not all of the identified needs may require external financing.  Already in 2004, about $1 billion of these needs are covered by ongoing contracts under the UN “oil-for-food” programme.

A press release is available upstairs and offers the breakdown of needs by sector and year.

**Iraq -- Human Rights

Out on the racks is the interim report to the General Assembly by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iraq, Andreas Mavrommatis.

He says the report explains that he had secured the agreement of the Coalition Provisional Authority to travel to Baghdad in late September.  The terrorist attack on the UN headquarters on August 19 has forced him to delay his trip.

Those tragic events, he says, have redoubled his determination to do everything possible within his mandate to ensure that democracy in Iraq is firmly entrenched in a culture of human rights.

**Liberia

The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Liberia, Jacques Klein, in a statement issued last Thursday, said the UN Mission in that country deplores the events of the first of October, and strongly reminds all parties to observe the ceasefire and desist from engaging in any acts, which might derail the peace process.

The mission emphasized that it will not tolerate any unilateral importation of weapons into Monrovia and areas in which it is deployed, adding that any such actions will be met with a swift response.

Meanwhile, on the humanitarian front, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said that after a one-day halt, it was resuming activities to ease conditions in camps for internally displaced people (IDPs) in Monrovia.

Relief efforts in the IDP camps and the inter-agency initiative to look into the security situation in the Liberian countryside were halted on Thursday, but the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reported today that the situation has now calmed in the capital, where UN peacekeepers are patrolling the streets.

**Secretary-General Message

The Secretary-General, in a message delivered today in Geneva, congratulated the Inter-Parliamentary Union on the inauguration of its new headquarters, the “House of Parliaments”.  He noted that the UN Postal Authority already issued a stamp earlier this year depicting the House of Parliaments, and added that, after the House’s image has been mailed around the world, “I hope that the work done in and through this House will be felt all around the world as well”.

**Sudanese Refugees

UNHCR has launched a supplementary appeal for $16.6 million for emergency assistance to more than 65,000 Sudanese refugees, who have been living under desperate conditions in eastern Chad.

**Sri Lanka –- UNICEF Centre for Child Soldiers

In Sri Lanka, UNICEF opened the first of three rehabilitation centres for child soldiers today.

As a first step, 49 former child soldiers, released by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, in short, LTTE, were placed in a transit centre in the severely war-torn north-east of the country.  Two other centres will be opening in the coming months.

This initiative stems from an action plan agreed upon by the Government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE in August 2003.  It is estimated that 50,000 children have been affected by the conflict in Sri Lanka.

Further details are available in a press release upstairs.

**Southern Africa

The Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Humanitarian Needs in Southern Africa, James Morris, today warned that serious funding shortages are threatening to undermine United Nations relief and recovery efforts for millions of people in southern Africa, as well as to destroy the fragile gains made over the last 12 months.

“A humanitarian tragedy was averted in southern Africa last year, but the crisis is far from over”, said Morris.  “Millions of people across the region are still dependent on aid for their survival.  But so far, the donors’ response has been alarmingly slow, and without their additional help, many crucial projects will have to be scaled back or shut down.”

And we have a press release with more details. 

**New ILO Book Attracts Attention on Women Seafarers

Between 1 and 2 per cent of the world’s 1.25 million seafarers serving on some 87,000 ships are women, and they face tough working conditions, including discrimination and sexual harassment, according to the International Labour Office (ILO).

You can find more information on the new ILO study in a press release upstairs.

**UNFPA

The United Nations Population Fund today made the embargoed report State of World Population 2003 available, which stresses the need to protect the reproductive health of the largest-ever generation of adolescents worldwide.

The agency will launch its new report next Wednesday, however, before then, journalists may access the embargoed report and related materials –- a summary, press releases, charts and photos –- on their Web site by requesting a password online.

**HABITAT Announcement

In observance of World Habitat Day on October 6th, the United Nations Human Settlements Programme will hold an event on the theme “Water and Sanitation for Cities” on Monday from 9:15 to 12:30 in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium.  Members of permanent missions, Secretariat staff, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations and the media are invited to attend.

And, of course, it’s Friday.  We have the week ahead for you to pick up upstairs in the Spokesman Office.  That’s all I have for you.  Michele?

Spokeswoman for General Assembly President

Thank you.

Good afternoon.

The general debate ended last night, as you know, with the closing remarks of the President of the Assembly, who summarized the high-level debate that has attracted the highest level of participation since the Millennium Summit.

President Hunte had indicated early on that he would be listening carefully to the priorities identified by the participants, which would provide the framework for this session’s work.  He underlined that there was resounding support in the general debate for multilateralism and reaffirmation of the United Nations as the primary international organization to address critical global problems.

The central role of the General Assembly as advocate, supervisory and policy-making body was a point consistently made during the debate.  However, continuing revitalization efforts were urged to permit the Assembly to deal effectively with challenges, both old and new.

He also noted that high-level representatives supported the view that the fifty-eighth session should give appropriate focus to issues such as poverty, HIV/AIDS, equity in the global economic system, and the preservation of the environment.  The regrettable outcome of the Cancun round of negotiations gives new impetus to calls for full consideration of development issues by the General Assembly, including the Millennium Development Goals.

Summarizing the major trends in the general debate, President Hunte noted the concern expressed on the situation in post-war Iraq and in the Middle East, in particular.

Almost without exception, all agreed that the brutal attack on the United Nations premises in Baghdad on 19 August was the latest, and a formidable, challenge to the United Nations.  There was support for the Secretary-General’s initiative to review the matter of safety and security for United Nations staff.

The General Assembly will have its next plenary session on Monday with elections to fill vacancies, in particular for the post of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.  The Assembly will also examine the Secretary-General’s report on the outcome of the Millennium Summit, one of the priorities established by the Presidency of the 58^th session.

Thank you.  That’s all I have.

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