‘The House of UNESCO is a Place, but It is Also an Idea’ at Heart

 

of Quest for Better World, Says Secretary-General in Message

 

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s video message on the sixty-fifth anniversary of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), in Paris, 14 December:

It is a pleasure to congratulate UNESCO on the organization’s sixty-fifth anniversary.  I offer special greetings to the Director-General and her predecessors who are joining this celebration.

For 65 years, UNESCO has worked to build the defences of peace in the minds of men and women.  It has promoted education for all, safeguarded cultural expression and supported cultural diversity.  It has worked to harness science for the greater good, and to advance freedom of information and access to knowledge.

UNESCO also builds the defences of peace in the hearts of men and women by reminding us of the dignity and human rights that we all share.  Hearts and minds — this is the passion that has always driven the Organization. 

UNESCO’s mandate is as relevant as ever.  The organization’s ability to broker new ideas, to bring the right people together, to mobilize political will, to explore thorny questions, to set standards, and to build capacity — these are vital today and for the century ahead.

I thank UNESCO for its vision and its achievements.  I thank UNESCO staff for their dedication and hard work.  And I thank all Member States for their continuing commitment to the ambitions that animate this great Organization.

The House of UNESCO is a place.  But it is also an idea that lies at the heart of our quest for a better world.  I look forward to even closer cooperation and even greater achievements in the period ahead.

Happy birthday!

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For information media • not an official record