REGULAR PRESS BRIEFING BY THE INFORMATION SERVICE
Elena Ponomareva-Piquier, Chief of the Press and External Relations Section of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired the briefing which provided information about the Secretary-General's visit to Switzerland; events related to the International Year of Microcredit, the humanitarian situation in Central America, especially El Salvador, and other issues. Spokespersons for and a representative of the Centre for Applied Studies in International Negotiations, the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the United Nations Children's Fund, the World Health Organization, the World Trade Organization, the High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organization for Migration participated in the briefing. The Spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights was present but had no announcements.
Secretary-General in Switzerland
The Secretary-General also met yesterday with Detlev Mehlis, the Commissioner of the UN International Independent Investigation Commission into the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. The Secretary-General then went to the World Health Organization where he met with Director-General Lee Jong-wook. The Secretary-General toured WHO's Strategic Health Operations Centre which dealt with diseases like avian flu. Speaking at the end of the visit, Mr. Annan said preparedness was the key to dealing with possible pandemics, adding that he wanted to see world leaders take keen interest and show leadership in leading the preparedness efforts. He appealed to leaders around the world to come together, to pool their efforts, to make the resources available and to assist those countries which do not have capacity to set up their own systems because the world was in this together. A transcript of the Secretary-General's comments had been posted on the UNOG website last night and had been sent to journalists.
Mrs. Ponomareva-Piquier said today, the Secretary-General was in Bern on an official visit. At 11 a.m., he would meet with Ms. Micheline Calmy-Rey, Federal Councillor and Chief of the Federal Department for Foreign Affairs of Switzerland. He would meet with Mr. Samuel Schmid, President of Switzerland and Chief of the Federal Department of Defense, at noon, and the President would then host a luncheon in his honour. There would be a brief appearance before the press at Lohn Residence at 1:40 p.m.
On Monday, 10 October, the Secretary-General would inaugurate the Geneva Micro and Small Business Finance Symposium at the World Meteorological Organization at 9 a.m. At 11:30 a.m., he would hold a press conference in Room III of the Palais des Nations; and he would visit UNAIDS at 3 p.m.
The Secretary-General would leave Geneva on Tuesday, 11 October and would fly to Portugal for an official visit during which he would meet with Government officials. Mr. Annan was also expected to receive an honorary degree from the New University of Lisbon. From Portugal, the Secretary-General would travel to Salamanca, Spain, to participate in the Ibero-American Summit on Friday, 14 October.
International Year of Microcredit
Jean Freymond, Director of the Centre for Applied Studies in International Negotiations which was organizing the Geneva Micro and Small Business Finance Symposium, said the two-day symposium was taking place in the context of the International Year of Microcredit. The symposium would discuss the link between development and the world of business and finance. The Secretary-General would be inaugurating the symposium and available was a press release with further details.
Brigitte Leoni of the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) said the International Year for Natural Disaster Reduction would be commemorated this year on 12 October. On this occasion and in the context of the International Year of Microcredit, ISDR would hold a debate on what financial tools can be used to protect the poor against natural disasters like the tsunami and Hurricane Katrina. Looking at the after effects of Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Stan, it was always the poor who were most affected by natural disasters and who were least covered by insurance. The debate would be held on 11 October at 11:30 a.m. in Room III. Salvano Briceño, Director of the ISDR secretariat in Geneva, would participate in the debate along with experts from ProVention Consortium Secretariat, Deutsche Bank AG, Munich Re Foundation and others.
Natural Disasters in Central America
Mrs. Ponomareva-Piquier said the Secretary-General was saddened by the loss of life and damage caused by the severe flooding and mudslides that have affected hundreds of thousands of people across Mexico and Central America. He extended his condolences to all those who have been affected by this natural disaster, and particularly to the families who have lost their loved ones. The United Nations was currently assessing the extent of the needs created by the flooding and mudslides in the affected countries. The Regional Disaster Response Adviser for Latin America and the Caribbean was in El Salvador and a team of disaster assessment and coordination experts was deployed in the region. United Nations officials remained in close contact with local authorities and stood ready to mobilize international support for emergency relief and recovery efforts. Copies of the statement of the Secretary-General were available in the press room.
Madeleine Moulin-Acevedo of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said available was the latest OCHA situation report on the consequences of Hurricane Stan, floods and volcanic activity in El Salvador. Hurricane Stan had affected Mexico and Central America, but El Salvador had been affected by the Hurricane, floods and volcanic activity. The death toll stood at 49 but it was still rising. OCHA had launched an appeal for $ 7.9 million for El Salvador. Further details were available in the situation report.
Damien Personnaz of the United Nations Children's Fund said available was an information note on UNICEF's response to the emergency in El Salvador. UNICEF had provided a donation of $ 110,000 of life-saving materials to meet the needs of 10,000 people in 70 temporary shelters in San Salvador, of which approximately 60 per cent were children. After five days of national emergency from continuous rains, flooding and landslides, which had added to the dire impacts of the Ilamatepec volcano in El Salvador, the number of dead was more than 62 and more than 40,000 people had been affected and had fled to shelters. Further details were available.
Other
Madeleine Moulin-Acevedo of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said a press release was available on a report by a team from the environment section. The report had been produced at the request of the Government of Cameroon on a dam which was at risk of falling apart in the next few years.
Mrs. Moulin-Acevedo said Dennis McNamara, Director and Special Adviser to the Emergency Relief Coordinator, Inter-Agency Internal Displacement Division of OCHA, would meet with journalists at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, 12 October to speak about the recent OCHA Inter-Agency Internal Displacement Division's mission to Khartoum and South Sudan to assess IDP return programmes.
Damien Personnaz of the United Nations Children's Fund said on the eve of the UN-organized concert by Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour and others "United against Malaria", available at the back of the room were information notes with figures on the toll of malaria around the world, including country examples.
Fadela Chaib of the World Health Organization said there would be a press conference on polio eradication, including new strategies and new solutions for a polio-free world, on Wednesday, 12 October at 2 p.m. in Salle III. On Thursday, 13 October, there would be a briefing on patient safety at 10:20 a.m. at WHO. Some 1.4 million fell sick annually from infections picked up while they were in hospital. A press kit with more details was available.
Jean-Michel Jakobowicz of the Economic Commission for Europe said it was time for the ECE's annual report on robots. A press release on the report would be in the press room this afternoon. There was an embargo on the report until 11 October. The more than 400-page report included information about both industrial and domestic robots.
Aurelia Blin of the World Trade Organization said the schedule of WTO's meetings for next week was available in the press room. The Trade Negotiations Committee would meet on 13 October, and this would be followed by a press conference by WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy at 1 p.m. at WTO. The meetings also included Saudi Arabia membership negotiations on 11 October and Uzbekistan membership negotiations on 14 October.
Christiane Berthiaume of the World Food Programme said WFP was particularly concerned about the high rate of child malnutrition in Mauritania, especially in the south and southwest of the country. In the southwest, the severe malnutrition rate was more than 17 per cent among children under the age of five. WFP was distributing food aid in the country, but this was the peak of the lean season. Also there was a shortage of drinking water and the hygienic conditions were poor. Mauritania was one of the worst affect countries by the locust attacks last year.
Jennifer Pagonis of the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees reminded journalists that High Commissioner Antonio Guterres would brief journalists at noon today on the outcome of UNHCR's Executive Committee session which had been meeting at the Palais des Nations this week. This evening, Mr. Guterres and Mr. Richard Greene, Acting United States Assistant Secretary of State of the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, would brief journalists on this afternoon's round of the Strategic Consultations on Refugees and Population Movements To and From Afghanistan.
Ms. Pagonis said that Mr. Guterres met yesterday with officials from the Central African Republic, Chad and Cameroon to discuss the worrisome security situation in northern and western parts of the Central African Republic. UNHCR supported calls for more international assistance to the Central African Republic to help stabilize the situation in the north of the country where instability had caused some 10,000 people to flee north to Chad since June.
Jean-Philippe Chauzy of the International Organization for Migration said that in Colombia, IOM and the Pan American Development Foundation had signed a cooperation agreement to provide assistance to internally displaced persons and other vulnerable groups in the country for the next five years.
In Croatia, Mr. Chauzy said the Norwegian Government was contributing $ 2 million towards IOM's ongoing programme in the country to provide reintegration assistance to discharged soldiers to ensure their successful transition into civilian society and workforce. The aim of the programme was to facilitate the reintegration of some 3,000 discharged soldiers by providing regular information and counselling with respect to opportunities for gainful employment as civilians.
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