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Issue No. 90 – January 2009
In this issue:
Topic people are talking about: e-Governance
 “Mr. Obama is on record as fully supporting the dramatic appeal by the former US Secretaries of State, George Shultz and Henry Kissinger, the former Secretary of Defence, William Perry and the former Senator Sam Nunn. It urges the US to take the initiative with Russia and other nuclear weapon states to seek the elimination of nuclear weapons and to begin moving to that goal by seeking a number of important arms control and disarmament measures.”
Hans Blix comments “2009 – Year for détente, disarmament and non-proliferation” Moscow, 9 December 2008
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 Ján Kubiš, the Foreign Minister of Slovakia has been appointed Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Europe, which promotes dialogue and cooperation among 56 nations on a range of issues, including economic integration, energy, environment and trade.
 Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has informed the Security Council of his intention to appoint Christopher Ross of the United States as his Personal Envoy for Western Sahara and Michael von der Schulenburg as his Executive Representative for the UN Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone.
 Dr. Charles G Hitchcock, from Peace Action International, will be the Chair of the DPI/NGO conference on the theme of Disarmament in September 2009, in Mexico City.
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Committee on the Rights of the Child
12- 30 January, Geneva
Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations
19 -28 January, New York
Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
19 January- 6 February, Geneva
Conference on Disarmament
19 January-27 March, Geneva
Human Rights Council Advisory Committee
26-30 January, Geneva
International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust
27 January
Civil Society Forum for the UN Commission for Social Development
3 February, New York
47th Session of the Commission for Social Development
4-13 February, New York
World Day of Social Justice
20 February
53rd session of the Commission on the Status of Women
2 -13 March, New York
International Women's Day
8 March
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 UN Response to Gaza Crisis
In an historic event, on 8 January the General Assembly held the 32nd Plenary Meeting of the 10th Emergency Special Session on the Illegal Israeli Actions in Occupied East Jerusalem and the Rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The President of the General Assembly, H.E. Mr. Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann said “we meet today recognizing the obligations of the entire United Nations system, of which its most representative and democratic body is the General Assembly, to work, as Article 1 of our Charter defines our purpose, for universal peace, for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, for human rights and fundamental freedoms." The full statement is available on the President's website at: www.un.org/ga/president/63
UNA-Spain issued a statement on The Tragedy in Gaza and Human Rights which can be located on www.humanrightsnexsus.org
 Join the International Affairs Discussion Group on Flickr
The “International Affairs Discussion Group” is for objective discussion of the relationships between different countries, their internal affairs insofar they are of general interest, the work of international agencies such as the United Nations and its agencies, the World Bank, World Trade Organisation and International Monetary Fund. Recent discussion topics have included the crisis in Gaza. www.flickr.com/groups/international_affairs/
 UNDP Launches Social Stock Exchange for Development Cooperation
The UNDP’s Special Unit for South-South Cooperation recently announced the creation of the South-South Human Development Stock Exchange, which will act as an online marketplace for cooperation projects. The “social stock exchange” concept was launched by the São Paulo Stock Exchange in 2003 as a place where social investors could go online to find information about different projects in need of funding. The Special Unit has been looking closely to this trend, and based on southern successful experiences is launching its own marketplace where civil society organizations from developing countries can list their cooperation initiatives, and if accepted, can be supported by social investors. To be approved, the projects will need to comply with all application requirements, present initiatives aiming to advance human development and the MDGs through cooperation between at least two countries of the global South, be peer-reviewed, and enhance human development in a cost effective way. http://tcdc.undp.org
First meeting of the Commission of Experts on Reforms of the International and Monetary and Financial System
The General Assembly President’s Commission of Experts on Reforms of the International and Monetary and Financial System held its first meeting in New York on 4-6 January 2009.
The Commission aims to identify the broad principles needed in institutional reforms that would help ensure sustained global economic progress and stability for all countries. The first meeting resulted in a number of recommendations for priority action, ranging from the need for developed countries to implement effective economic stimulus policies, providing developing countries with funds to enable them to undertake comparable policies, and the creation of a new credit facility, perhaps within the framework of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank or the regional or sub-regional development banks. The next meeting will be held from 8-10 March in Geneva. Read the recommendations at:
www.un.org/ga/president/63/commission/firstmeeting.pdf
Follow-up on Doha: Focus on Paragraph 79: Conference on the financial crisis
 Paragraph 79 of the Doha outcome document states that: The United Nations will hold a conference at the highest level on the world financial and economic crisis and its impact on development. The conference will be organized by the President of the General Assembly and the modalities will be defined by March 2009 at the latest. This paragraph was the most discussed and the most controversial one and the member states only agreed on it at the last minute of the conference. Unfortunately, there is no reason yet to believe that civil society will be invited. Oscar De Rojas, Director of the Financing for Development Office at the UN, said that the process is going to be really difficult to achieve within the deadline, considering that the member states will have to agree on an agenda, a venue, rules of procedure etc. The goal would have been to hold the meeting before the spring meeting of ECOSOC with the Bretton Wood Institutions but the more realistic time might be in the second part of the year. If the political will is there, then everything is still possible. That is what the President of the GA is working on. Read the outcome document at:
http://daccessdds.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N08/630/55/PDF/N0863055.pdf?OpenElement
 Reflections on the Doha conference
by John Langmore, National President, UNA-Australia
“There were low expectations for the UN conference in Doha on financing for development: preparations had not had the authority or momentum of those for the first conference in Monterrey in 2002; the global financial and economic crisis became increasingly severe as preparations were proceeding. But, despite the effort by the representatives of the current US Administration to prevent the conference reaching significant conclusions, all the Monterrey agreements were reiterated and a number of additional policies and incremental steps for further work were agreed. These are modest results but keep alive discussions on a number of centrally important issues. There will be major demands on the Secretariat for the preparation of the commissioned reports and conference background papers. The intellectual and political momentum for concerted improvements in financing for development and in multilateral economic and financial governance seemed to pick up during the conference. Just meeting is an encouragement for renewed commitment and action”.
MDG Awards
The inaugural “MDG Awards Ceremony” will take place in February 2009 to pay tribute to individuals, organizations and nations working to implement the Millennium Development Goals. This globally broadcast event will feature an array of special guests including musicians, international luminaries and those working to address the needs of the world’s poorest. Awards will be given in each of the eight categories addressed by the MDGs with an additional 9th Award: “The Lifetime Achievement Award” going to a remarkable individual who has positively impacted the world and helped to raise the consciousness of humankind. The UN MDG Awards will be underpinned each year by a roundtable forum hosted by ‘Humanitad’ www.un-mdgawards.org
In January 2011, Singapore plans to host the 21st World Volunteer Conference. www.iave.org
WFUNA Launches Human Rights Website
On 10 December 2008, WFUNA launched a new website entirely dedicated to human rights: www.humanrightsnexus.org
The website, available in all six UN languages, is intended to facilitate access to educational materials on human rights, enhance interaction and information sharing between UNAs, and to support closer engagement of UNAs with the work of the UN Human Rights Council and human rights treaty bodies. A strong focus will be placed on human rights education as 2009 will be the International Year of Human Rights Learning. The website is sponsored by the Russian Friends of WFUNA and UNA-Russia.
UN Trust Fund on Slavery
The UN Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery allocates project grants (for a maximum of 15,000 USD), for programs of humanitarian, legal and financial assistance to individuals whose human rights have been severely violated as a result of contemporary forms of slavery. Contemporary forms of slavery include trafficking, sexual slavery, child labour and child servitude, debt bondage, serfdom and forced labour, forced marriage and sale of wives ect. Applications for funding should be duly completed and submitted by 31 Mars 2009. www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Pages/ListOfIssues.aspx
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The 196th WFUNA Executive Committee meeting will be hosted by UNA-Canada in Ottawa from 5-8 March 2008.
The WFUNA Secretary-General sent out a notice to all UNAs about the preparations for the 39th Plenary Assembly that will be hosted by UNA-ROK, in Seoul, Republic of Korea from 9 – 12 August 2009. Information about the Plenary Assembly and hotel/ hostel recommendations are available in the members section of the WFUNA website.
 WFUNA Partners with BluMail
BluMail is a global email, content and networking portal for youth and others who will be coming online in developing countries. The portal provides "make-a-difference content" on activism, conflict resolution, education, entrepreneurship, environment, health, human rights, humanitarian relief, news from around the world, religious understanding, women's empowerment, youth empowerment, and other areas that educate and inform, not just entertain. Content will be provided by partnering United Nations organizations and global non-governmental organizations through Google's email platform. www.blumail.org
On 12 January the WFUNA Secretariat hosted a screening event for 8 short MDG films created by 300 students from around the world who worked together at Jai Hind College, in Mumbai in November 2008 at the “Global Youth MDG Summit” supported by the Indian Federation of UNAs. Eight Indian students who were organizers or participants traveled to New York to attend the screening. They had the opportunity to meet and discuss their ideas of using technology to engage young people with the MDGs, with senior UN officials, including Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, Mr. Kiyo Akasaka.
The Rome chapter of UNA-Italy is organizing a series of events to investigate the reasons for the global financial crisis. In two weeks, a group of members of MSOI will have the opportunity to meet with the former President of Italy, Carlo Azeglio Ciampi and the former governor of Italy's central bank, to discuss economy-related issues. The UNA Chapter in Rome is planning to hold a Conference on International Piracy, and its legal issues and implications in the 21st century. For more information contact Miss Elisabetta Martini, at: msoiroma@msoi.org
As the next step in the partnership between UNA-UK-Scotland and UNA-Iran, on 1 January Dr. Gari Donn and Dr. Alec Gaines of UNA-UK-Scotland traveled to Tehran where they led a Workshop with the local UNA on “Introduction to International Mechanisms” for Iranian NGOs. They plan to arrange exchanges of teachers and school children around joint Model UN conferences in Tehran and Edinburgh, and collaborate on initiatives focusing on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.
UNA-Colombia has developed several cultural projects for children over the past year, such as workshops on candle making, cultivation of flowers and writing workshops.
 In December, UNA-Pakistan organized a Human Rights Day event at a grammar school, on the theme "Dignity and justice for all of us". Students participated in a debate focused on causes and solutions, and presented innovative ideas for action plans on this very important issue.
Join WFUNA’s network on www.change.org!
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Preparations are being made for the WFUNA-Youth Meeting at the 39th Plenary Assembly of WFUNA. The Coordinating Committee has begun discussions on the agenda and program and will be disseminating information to members shortly. All input is appreciated.
 The UNA-Turkey Youth section, organized a 4-day seminar series with over 200 participants on “Human Rights and International Organizations” in the first week of December. Speakers included Mahmood Ayub, UN Resident Coordinator of Turkey; Nabuaki Tanaka, Ambassador of Japan to Turkey; Rahmi Kumas, President of UNA-Turkey; and Professor Ömer Faruk Gençkaya from Bilkent University.
First Global Model UN under UN Auspices will be on the MDGs
The United Nations Department of Public Information, in partnership with WFUNA is organizing the first annual Global Model UN (GMUN) conference at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, from 5 – 7 August 2009. Held for the first time under UN auspices, the theme for this University-level Model UN conference will be “The Millennium Developments Goals -- Lifting the bottom billion out of poverty”. GMUN plans to invite the outstanding delegates from Model UN conferences around the world, as selected by their peers – it aims to be the first truly global Model UN.
There is now a call for applications for Secretariat and General Assembly positions, more information is available at http://www.un.org/gmun/applications.html.Please distribute the information below to your Model UN network and interested individuals.
5-8 March
The UNA-Serbia will hold its sixth Belgrade International Model UN (BIMUN) in Belgrade with University students. For more details, go to: www.unaserbia.rs
3-4 April
The UNA-USA will hold his 4th annual Middle School Model UN conference in NYC. Topics to be discussed include freshwater resources, trafficking of wild animals, access to education, and food security and distribution.
13-17 April
The UNA-Russia will hold the Moscow International Model UN conference at MGIMO-University both in Russian and English.
22-24 April (the dates could change)
The UNA-Finland will hold its National Model UN conferences with lower and upper secondary level students.
29 April – 2 May
The UNA-Spain will hold the 4th International Model United Nations of Catalonia in Barcelona.
5-8 May
The UNA-Ivory Coast (ANU-CI) will hold the West African UNAs summit for the Millennium Development Goals.
14-16 May
The UNA-USA will hold his 10th annual Model UN conference in New York. The conference will have over 2,300 students and 18 committees, covering diverse and pressing international issues such as separatist state movements, the economic effects of HIV/AIDS, micro-loans, biofuels, and the situation in Myanmar.
2-6 August
The UNYSA-Austria (United Nations Youth and Student Association of Austria) and the Academic Forum for Foreign Affairs will hold the Vienna International Model United Nations (VIMUN) with students and young graduates from all education levels from 18 to 35 years. For more details go to: www.vimun.at
27-30 November 2009
The UNA-Flanders Belgium (Vereniging voor de Verenigde Naties) will hold its Model UN (VVN) on the recent Russian-Georgian war and the delicate situation in southern Caucasus with university students.
Please send information about your UNAs upcoming Model UN conferences for inclusion in our Model UN calendar to alenda@wfuna.org
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MCM: Database Pilot on Malaria
The Making Commitments Matter Initiative is currently working to reach the first milestone of its research. The goal of the project is an online database providing consolidated information on UN resolutions and conventions, ready to be used in the process of implementing these agreements at the national level. A first pilot of this database will be elaborated on the issue of malaria and ready by the end of February. This example will serve as a basis for discussion during the next international meeting of the Initiative, to take place in Budapest from 28 February to 8 March.
For the purpose of programming this database model, MCM welcomes the support of interested experts in the field of Information Technology. Contact:
info@makingcommitmentsmatter.org
 Zsuzsa Biro is working on democracy issues at the New York Office. A Hungarian living in Western Ukraine, she is highly committed to promoting democratic changes and human development in Eastern Europe. Zsuzsa recently earned her International Business MS degree at D’Youville College in Buffalo, NY. She is looking forward to making a good use of her business and diplomacy experience on an international level. Contact: biro@wfuna.org
 Henry LaGue from Wisconsin is the new Disarmament Program Coordinator intern at the New York office. Henry is currently a graduate student of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University, where he received his undergraduate degree in the same subject as well. He recently studied at the Sorbonne University to complete undergraduate studies in French. Contact: lague@wfuna.org
 On the occasion of the election of the President of ECOSOC on 15 January, Jerry Glenn, Director of the Millennium Project, gave a presentation on the State of the Future 2008.
The Millennium Project is updating Futures Research Methodology Version 2.0 that has 27 chapters in a CD to a version 3.0 with over 40 chapters with the support of the Rockefeller Foundation. This is the largest, most comprehensive resource on futures methods ever assembled.
The 32nd Node of the Millennium Project was opened in La Paz, Bolivia with the Franz Tamayo University. While in Bolivia for the signing ceremony, Jerome Glenn the Director of the Project received an honorary doctor’s degree, opened an environmental research and training center named in his honor, and spoke at several conferences on climate change and food security. The head of UNIC, and representatives from WFP and FAO expressed interest in helping the development of the new Node in Bolivia.
The President of the Dominican Republic will host the launch of the Spanish edition of the 2008 State of the Future Report in Santo Domingo on 11 February, and oversee the opening of a Millennium Project Node in the Dominican Republic.
Global Millennium Prize Award Ceremony will take place on 20 February 2009 at the National Anthropology Museum in Mexico City.
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History
 In 1986 a couple of organizations, concerned with international cooperation and peace and justice, began discussions about founding a common Dutch UN Association. The Dutch UNA (NVVN) was launched in 1987. The aim of the new association was to encourage the objectives of the UN in the Netherlands, in order to make the population aware of the need of international cooperation and the building of a world of legal order.
The board consists of professors, members of Parliament and representatives of the participating organisations, such as the Association for International Legal Order, the Dutch World Federation Movement, the Woman International League for Peace and Freedom, the Student Association for International Relations, the Platform of International Youth Organisations and the League for Human Rights. The first chairman was Professor Dr. Paul de Waart.
In the first issue of the new NVVN quarterly magazine, called VN-Forum, the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Hans van den Broek, wrote that it was very important “that especially a new generation, that did not grow up with the UN ideals and addresses them often with some scepticism, will have the opportunity to become acquainted with these ideals as well as the reality of the United Nations”.
To read the entire article, click here>>
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Topic of the Month: e-Governance
 Modern technology is embedded in every day life: people meet their friends in chat rooms and on facebook in addition to meeting in person and do their shopping online instead of going to the store. More importantly, the internet has pushed forward the process of globalization, making this world almost border free, bringing people closer and bridging gaps between different levels of society. How do governments keep up with this evolution?
The answer is e-Governance (short for electronic government) and it entails everything from using internet technology as a platform for exchanging information, to the continuous innovation in the delivery of services, citizen participation, and interacting with businesses, and other arms of government. Moreover, e-Governance is bringing efficiency gains, improving transparency and accountability and helping to create new knowledge. E-Governance can facilitate a more effective integration of government services and improve interconnections. However, the benefit of e-Governance lies not in the use of technology per se, but in its application to processes of transformation
To read the entire article, click here>>
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 Ms. Haiyan Qian is the Chief of the Knowledge Management Branch at the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs. She has been involved with the United Nations for about 20 years, both as a representative of the Chinese government and as a UN staff member. Ms. Haiyan became involved in e-Governance six years ago.
The use of ICTs by government started with the aim not only of improving government efficiency but also promoting increased participation of citizens in democratic processes. Could the UN do more to provide support to civil society organizations to enhance their capacity to participate in online democratic processes and to help achieve the MDGs?
In the MDGs, Goal 8 is about international partnerships. There are many targets to this goal and one of them is to facilitate easy access to technology, particularly ICT. All schools should have computers and access to the internet, but special attention is paid to the marginalized groups which include poor people, the disabled, women, the elderly and the youth, especially those who are illiterate.
A special program called GAID (Global Alliance for ICT Development) and the Internet Governance Forum are networks which are part of the UN and are represented by stakeholders, government, civil society and anybody interested in participating. They meet every year and everyone has an equal footing and can freely discuss policies and make decisions- but there are no resolutions made. One of the things discussed in these meetings is how to reach the next billion people and how they can access the internet.
To read the entire interview, click here>>
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UNA-Uganda runs the “Promotion of Information Communication Technologies” program which aims at creating awareness of how to use Information Communication Technologies towards the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals.
Working independently and through partnerships with other national civil society organizations, UNA-Georgia strives to strengthen the organizational backbone of democratic institutions and promote good governance. The UNA encourages cooperation of public and civil institutions, supports transparency and promotes demand-driven civil development, with a focus on using technologies efficiently.
 The e-Governance Institute's mission is to explore how the internet and other information technologies have and will continue to impact on the productivity and performance of the public sector and how e-Government fosters new and deeper citizen involvement within the governing process.
http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~egovinst/Website/
 Centre for Good Governance (CGC) aims to be a world-class institution to guide governance reforms in India and the developing world at large, by bringing together and harnessing the power of knowledge, technology and people for good governance. Objectives of CGC include working with government departments and other stakeholders to analyze key issues in governance, identifying solutions, helping develop action plans, and support implementation of these plans and the reform agenda, and to create a bank of best practices, methodologies and tools in governance reforms including successful e-Governance applications. www.cgg.gov.in/index_id29e.jsp
 CARICAD is a regional intergovernmental organization specializing in transforming and modernizing the Public Sector of Caribbean States. Since 2001, CARICAD has assumed the mandate for promotion of e-Government as a vehicle for public sector modernization in the region. The agency's work has been premised on the idea that attempts towards a smooth functioning public sector must take into consideration not only the environment within the public institutions but the relationship between these institutions and departments and the interface with the clients they serve.
http://caricad.net/index.cfm?CFID=5137220&CFTOKEN=49944251
 UN e-Government Survey 2008: From e-Government to Connected Governance
UN Economic and Social Affairs, NY 2008
The UN e-Government Survey assesses the e-Government readiness of the 192 Member States of the UN, according to a quantitative composite index of e-readiness based on website assessment, telecommunication infrastructure, and human resource endowment. The focus of the report, in Part II, is e-Government initiatives directed at improving operational efficiency through the integration of back-office functions. Whilst such initiatives, if successful, will deliver benefits to citizens, the primary purpose is to improve the effectiveness of government and governmental agencies. http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/UN/UNPAN028607.pdf
 e-Governance: Managing or Governing?
Edited by Leslie Budd, Lisa Harris, Routledge, 2008
Taking a multidisciplinary approach, this book explores e-Governance in theory and practice with an analytical narrative from multiple perspectives. Covering such essential issues as global governance of the internet, the European Knowledge Economy, the transformative promise of mobile telephony, the rise of e-Universities, internet accessibility for the disabled, and e-Governance in transition economies, the book draws on contributions from experienced academics and practitioners with an expertise in this emerging field. www.routledge.co.uk/books/e-Governance-isbn9780415965187
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United Nations e-Government Readiness Knowledge Base
UNPAN, March 2008
This short film gives an overview of the United Nations e-Government Readiness Knowledge Base (UNKB) - a benchmarking tool that provides a comparative assessment for monitoring the progress of a country’s e-government readiness. As such it provides an interactive snapshot picture of a country’s e-government readiness in the world. It was created by the Division for Public Administration and Development Management of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs to provide governments and all members of civil society easy access to this valuable information for research, education and planning purposes.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0A9CnAHnks
 E-Government for Efficiency and Transparency in Kenya
World Bank, October 2007
This film looks at how the Government of Kenya is rolling out e-government services to improve efficiency and transparency. Case studies include the Land Registry office and the Department of Motor Vehicles. Kenya's Permanent Secretary for ICT explains why the country feels strongly that e-government applications are crucial and gives an insight into some of the applications in the planning pipeline for transition into e-Government delivery and this in term will be used to benefit the rest of Africa and eventually spread through other regions. The World Bank is also working with the Government of Kenya on a Transparency and Communications Infrastructure Project (TCIP) to achieve the dual objective of Connectivity and Transparency.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBKa1TihqXU
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