The UIHJ at the 59th Annual DPI/NGO UN conference in New York

The aims of this meeting being in particular to examine the means of reinforcing collaboration between the local communities and the world institutions inside the within 59th annual Conference of the Department of the information for the nongovernmental organizations and which this year had for subject: “an unfinished business: Effective partnerships for Human Security and Sustainable Development ".  These three days meeting were organized by the Department of information in co-operation with the executive Committee of the nongovernmental organizations working with the Department of information and the participation of the nongovernmental organizations associated with the Department and of the nongovernmental organizations having an advisory statute with the Economic and Social Council alike the one of the UIHJ.

The Conference wishes to continue what was already carried out due to the increased participation of the nongovernmental organizations and of the civil society to a great number of debates which proceed at the UN, in particular interactive informal hearings organized by the President of the General assembly with representatives of nongovernmental organizations, civil society and the private sector. It was requested from the participants who expressed themselves at the time of the Conference to give examples of their field of work by presenting concrete examples of effective partnerships on the grounds for the achievement of the objectives of the Millennium for the development.

The Conference, which is taken place each year few days before the opening of the session of the General Assembly, became an enclosure whose utility is recognized for the constitution of networks and the division of sights, opinions, specialized knowledge and practices of reference on the tackled questions. Lately, the Conference was also directed towards the constitution of strategic partnerships by inviting the representatives of Member States to dialogue with the participants.

In the middle of each of those days, in between the five plenary meetings and the six round tables, was organized thirty (30) workshops intended for the nongovernmental organizations, in which took part some representatives of the civil society, the UN, several Governments and of the private sector.

The multiple subjects on these principal workshops, conferences and round tables were as follows:
- Moving Development Forward: (Accountability, Transparency, Equitable Trade Policies);
- Achieving Financial and Ecological Sustainability;
- Sciences and technology for Education;
- Emerging Approaches to healthcare, including Gender-based HIV and AIDS;
- Human security: Responsibility and Protect and Peace building Commission;
- Civil Society and Global Partnerships for Development;
- Commitment to Reducing Extreme Poverty and Hunger;
- Promoting Respect for Cultural Diversity in Conflict Resolution;
- And finally, the Role of the Media and Communications Technology in Achieving the MDG's (Millennium for the durable development).

In conclusion, if it is necessary to retain an ideology on these various subjects, I believe that it is sufficient to mention and reproduce few words of the secretary-General Kofi A. Annan in his message that was addressed to us:

" Yet the relationship between the United Nations and the civil society must never be measured merely by the number of the NGO's attending global conferences, or participating in the meetings at the UN Headquarters.   What matters even more is what happens out in the world and on the ground”.

Let's say that this is in fact what the UIHJ is doing concretely within the limits of its specific sphere of competence namely the evolution of the democracy through its involvement in the processual law and execution proceeding on the ground of each Member State of the UIHJ in partnership with all its members and also of their collectivities?

André Mathieu, Vice-Secretary of the board of UIHJ