BPW International

On Wednesday, 26 October 2011, Secretary General Ban Ki Moon held an unprecedented event at UN Headquarters in New York, when he meet with the NGO community in an open exchange of questions and views. He prefaced the session with remarks. Read the Secretary General highlights crucial role civil society organizations can play.

The main theme of the session, at which Under-Secretary General Kiyo Akasaka, Mr. Maher Nasser, Director, Outreach Division at Department of Public Information, and Mr. Navid Hanif, ECOSOC, were present was the need to hear from NGOs on every possible topic. In accordance with the statement printed below,  all the panelists reiterated the crucial role to be played by civil society on a wide range of issues, including sustainable development, disarmament, improving the status of women, maternal and child health, and other issues. The Secretary General called for active partnership between the UN, States Parties and NGOs, as well as among the NGOs, to strengthen their advocacy. NGOs asked questions, made comments, and in general participated with some enthusiasm in what we hope will be only the first in a series of exchanges with the Secretary General.

Eva Richter
BPW International UN Representative