Note to Correspondents

Economic and Social Council Holds Forum, Special Dialogue on Game-Changing

 

Partnerships, Philanthropy Role in Post-2015 Agenda

 

On 23 and 24 April, at the United Nations Economic and Social Council, a forum on partnerships and a special dialogue highlighting the role for philanthropy in the post-2015 agenda will be held.  Keynote speakers will include United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and philanthropist Mo Ibrahim.

Partnerships are becoming an increasingly integral part of the work of many United Nations organizations, and as such, they are also key to advancing the common goals.  Discussions on the role of philanthropic organizations in the post-2015 era and partnering for innovative solutions to sustainable development challenges will be the centre of the two events at Headquarters.

Commencing 23 April, the Economic and Social Council Special Policy Dialogue on “The role of philanthropic organizations in the post-2015 setting” will aim to facilitate Council engagement of philanthropic institutions in shaping the post-2015 United Nations development agenda.  Promoting effective country-level partnerships with Member States and identifying ways to scale up innovative approaches to philanthropic engagement in development cooperation will be discussed at the day-long event, co-organized by the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Global Network of Foundations Working for Development and the Worldwide Initiative for Grantmaker Support.  The dialogue’s outcome will contribute to ongoing discussions on shaping development collaboration and a renewed global partnership for development and feed into preparations for the 2014 Economic and Social Council Development Cooperation Forum.  For details, visit www.un.org/en/ecosoc/newfunct/dcfphilanthropic2013.shtml.

On 24 April, the Economic and Social Council will hold its sixth partnerships forum, “Science, Technology, Innovation and Culture: Partnering for Innovative Solutions to Sustainable Development Challenges”, which will aim to harness the power of transformative partnerships in addressing pressing issues that affect millions of people worldwide.  Partnership clinics on issues including mobiles for midwives and design solutions to address extreme poverty are intended to move from policy to action on special sustainable development challenges that could benefit from new, game-changing partnership ideas.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Mo Ibrahim, founder of Celtel, philanthropist and President of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, will address the session, which is being co-organized with the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the Global Compact, the United Nations Office for Partnerships and the Global Partnership Forum, in collaboration with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).  For details, visit www.un.org/en/ecosoc/philanthropy2/index.shtml.

Both events can be viewed live on at webtv.un.org.  For further information, contact Paul Simon of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, +1 917 367 5027, simonp@un.org; or Eileen Travers of the Department of Public Information, +1 212 963 2897, travers@un.org.

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For information media • not an official record