UNCTAD Secretary-General Supachai Pantichpakdi is presently in New York to attend the High-Level Segment of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) where the High-level policy dialogue with the international financial and trade institutions on current developments in the world economy is being held on Tuesday, 3 July.
The High-level policy dialogue is an annual event bringing together the United Nations and the Bretton Woods Institutions (IMF, World Bank), and the WTO. UNCTAD was included in the high-level meetings of ECOSOC with Bretton Woods Institutions and the WTO after 2005 as a result of the insistence by the UNCTAD membership at UNCTAD XI in Sao Paulo for UNCTAD to be represented in order to provide the development dimension.
The UNCTAD Secretary-General has also been invited to participate in the ECOSOC interactive session on Thursday, 5 July on "Cooperative solutions for global challenges -- development cooperation and sustainable development," to be moderated by Nik Gowing of the BBC, with Heikki Holmas, Minister of International Development of Norway, Bob Geldof, Founder of ONE Campaign, and Joanna Kerr, CEO of ActionAid International as the other panellists.
Also on 5 July, Dr. Supachai will participate at a Friends of DCF lunch event organised as part of the 3rd UN biennial Development Cooperation Forum (DCF). The DCF has become an important platform for interactive and participatory global policy dialogue on key challenges in development cooperation.
As the third cycle of the DCF (2010-2012) draws to a close, members will be invited to reflect on the strategic priorities for the fourth cycle (2012-2014). It is expected that discussions will focus on core areas such as trends in aid quantity and quality, mutual accountability and South-South and triangular cooperation. Participants are also expected to be asked to think creatively about the emerging challenges and opportunities for the DCF in the context of the evolving post-2015 UN development agenda.
