In progress at UNHQ

Economic and Social Council


ECOSOC/6546
Government ministers and other high officials from around the globe meeting in New York committed themselves to strengthening the United Nations Economic and Social Council, in order to engender more coherent multilateral action to face the daunting challenges of sustainable development, at a Special Ministerial Meeting of that body this afternoon and evening.
The United Nations needed to regain relevance to rise to the twenty-first century’s new challenges, including the recent food and financial crises, the Senior Vice-President of the Economic and Social Council told reporters today at Headquarters, as he announced a special ministerial meeting on sustainable development — “Building the Future We Want” — to be held here on 24 September.
ECOSOC/6545
The Economic and Social Council wrapped up its 2012 substantive session today with the adoption of nine resolutions and five decisions on a range of topics — from women’s empowerment to human settlements and support for least developed countries — that would allow the 54-member body to assume its rightful place as the hub of coordinated action in setting the post-2015 development agenda.
ECOSOC/6544
Touching on issues ranging from drug control to the challenges faced by indigenous youth, to post-earthquake recovery in Haiti and the critical role of the family, the Economic and Social Council today adopted 18 texts forwarded by its subsidiary bodies, as well as four independently submitted resolutions, while deciding to recommend five additional texts to the General Assembly for final adoption.
ECOSOC/6543

Continuing its general segment, the Economic and Social Council today took up a host of issues, including implementation of the Declaration on Decolonization, regional cooperation and socioeconomic challenges in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The Council’s busy day also included the adoption of recommendations on economic and environmental questions. It also adopted five decisions, including one on statistics, three on population and development, and another on cartography.

ECOSOC/6542
A prosperous future for the world’s 48 poorest nations hinged on continued support for building their productive capacities, improving their access to technology and integrating into their national development plans the Istanbul Programme of Action, which aimed to see at least half of those countries graduate from their “least developed” status by 2030, the Economic and Social Council heard today, as it examined those challenges with a focus on Haiti and South Sudan.