UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has reissued the call for the right to development to be mainstreamed in policies and operational activities across the United Nations system; UNCTAD will be responding actively and positively to this call.
In a note to heads of UN departments, bodies, funds and programmes, specialized agencies, and international financial and multilateral trading institutions, including to UNCTAD Secretary-General Supachai Panitchpakdi, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights reminded all of the legislative mandates emanating from the UN General Assembly, the Human Rights Council and its intergovernmental Working Group on the Right to Development that call for active engagement by all concerned entities aimed at realizing the right to development, and in particular the repeated requests of the UN General Assembly that the right to development be mainstreamed in policies and operational activities across the entire United Nations system.
As an organ of the UN General Assembly, and an integral part of the UN Secretariat, UNCTAD will be re-doubling its efforts to implement this legislative mandate, particularly through the UN System Chief Executives Board for Coordination, and the UN Development Group Human Rights Mainstreaming Mechanism, which provide opportunities for discussion and coordination of activities in mainstreaming the right to development, ensuring human rights policy coherence and strengthening the global partnership for development.
In particular, UNCTAD will be responding positively to the specific requests of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to:
- share its views on opportunities or obstacles to the full mainstreaming of the right to development in its mandate, policy and operational programmes and activities;
- strengthen the work of the focal point within its organization to liaise with the Office of the UN-HCHR to share information on activities planned or carried out; and
- support the activities of the intergovernmental Working Group on the Right to Development.
