EXECUTIVE BOARD FOR INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH AND TRAINING INSTITUTE FOR ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN MEETS AT HEADQUARTERS

EXECUTIVE BOARD FOR INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH AND TRAINING INSTITUTE

FOR ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN MEETS AT HEADQUARTERS

NEW YORK, 28 July (Department of Economic and Social Affairs) -- The Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, José Antonio Ocampo, inaugurated the first meeting of the Executive Board of the International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on 27 July 2004.

Mr. Ocampo emphasized the challenge of the task entrusted to INSTRAW, and the key role that coordination and cooperation with the institutions and agencies of the United Nations system which deal with the advancement of women would play in achieving it.  He congratulated INSTRAW on the recent launch of its updated and expanded Web site, to be increasingly used as an important instrument to engage with stakeholders and build partnerships.

The Executive Board, established by Economic and Social Council resolution 2003/57, includes 10 Member States, each to serve three-year terms:  Burkina Faso, CzechRepublic, El Salvador, Iran, Italy, Mexico, Nigeria, Philippines, Romania, Spain.

The Director of the Institute, the Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, a representative of the host country, the Dominican Republic and each representatives of each of the regional commissions serve as ex-officio members of the Board.  The Board will govern INSTRAW, particularly by guiding the Institute’s policies and programme of work and assisting in fund-raising.  At its first meeting, the Board elected, by acclamation, Spain as its President and approved the Institute’s strategic framework for the period 2004-2007.

In late 2003, Carmen Moreno, former Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Mexico, was appointed by Secretary-General Kofi Annan as INSTRAW’s new Director.

For additional information, please visit http://www.un-instraw.org.

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