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Sec-Gen, US President Bush Hold Constructive Talks On Iraq 1

With general agreement that sovereignty should be handed over to the Iraqis as soon as possible, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and United States President George W. Bush on 3 February held talks in Washington, D.C., aimed at achieving that end.

Following their meeting, Mr. Annan voiced hope that the electoral team he is sending to Iraq would persuade the country's people to decide on a process by which to choose their government and break the present impasse.

"Everyone agrees that sovereignty should be handed over to Iraq as soon as possible," he told a joint news conference held with the US President. "The date of 30 June was been suggested, but there is some disagreement as to the mechanism for establishing the provisional government."

Mr. Annan recalled that during meetings last month in New York, the Coalition Provisional Authority and the Iraqi Governing Council indicated that they would accept the conclusions of a UN team. "So we do have a chance to help break the impasse which exists at the moment and move forward," he said.

He said he hoped the electoral team would "be able to play a role getting the Iraqis to understand that if they could come to some consensus and some agreement on how to establish that government, they're halfway there."

Overall, the Secretary-General characterized the meeting as "very good and lengthy." Echoing this view, President Bush said the two held "a really constructive dialogue."

The President said that with regard to Iraq, he has "always said that the United Nations needs to play a vital role, and it's an important role."

He added that the two leaders discussed "ways to make sure that by working together the Iraqi people can be free, their country stable and prosperous, and an example of democracy in the Middle East."

Other topics discussed with the Secretary-General included Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, the Middle East and Africa, Mr. Bush said.

 

UN Electoral Team Set To Travel To Iraq 2

An electoral team from the United Nations should be heading to Iraq in a few days to assess the feasibility of holding elections before the transfer of sovereignty at the end of June, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on 30 January.

"The coalition has promised to do the maximum to protect the team working in Iraq. I think that in a few days the team will be able to travel and start its work," the Secretary-General told reporters in Brussels after inaugurating the UN's new European Regional Information Centre, which replaces nine national UN information centres that were closed down at the end of 2003.

The Secretary-General announced that he would follow through with a request earlier this month by Iraqi and coalition officials for a UN technical mission to visit Iraq to establish whether elections for a transitional national assembly can be held before 30 June, and, if not, what alternative arrangement would be acceptable.

Two separate UN security teams are already in the country; the first is liasing with the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and the coalition forces, as well as providing a focal point for UN national staff remaining in Iraq, while the second is preparing for the arrival of the electoral team.

Responding to other questions during the press encounter, the Secretary-General said he was concerned about the situation in the Middle East, describing it as "extremely worrying."

"We have seen in the last couple of days many, many people killed," he said. "As you know, I have always condemned without reservation suicide bombings that take innocent lives and have also indicated that we need to be active and energize our efforts to find a way of bringing the parties to the table."

"And it is essential that we do all we can to lead them to the path of peace and I believe we owe it to the people in the region, their families and their children, to really find a way of breaking this cycle of violence and revenge," he added, stressing that, "The only solution to this is to focus on peace."

 

Sec-Gen Hopes Sharon's Decision On Gaza Pullout Offers New Dynamic To Peace Efforts 3

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on 4 February he was "intrigued" by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's decision to withdraw settlers from Gaza, adding that he was hopeful the move would provide a new dynamic in pushing the Middle East peace process forward.

Reacting to the Israeli leader's announcement, Mr. Annan said he saw the withdrawal from Gaza as a "first essential step," adding, "If it does take place, it can really be a very important moment and a new dynamic that can propel the process forward."

Responding to questions from reporters upon arrival at UN Headquarters in New York, the Secretary-General said the topic of the Middle East was discussed during his meetings in Washington with top officials from the United States.

"We would want, as the Quartet, to be able to do something to move the process forward," he said, referring to the UN, US, European Union and Russian Federation, which together have sponsored a peace plan known as the Road Map. The plan calls for a series of parallel and reciprocal steps leading to two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace by 2005.

"I was quite intrigued by Prime Minister Sharon's decision to pull out of Gaza. I think it is a positive development, and I hope the Quartet can work with him in implementing that decision," Mr. Annan said, adding that withdrawal from the West Bank would also be required to really fulfill the spirit of land for peace.

 

S-G Calls For All-Embracing Approach In Fighting Threats To Peace 4

Stressing that the prime purpose of the United Nations is collective security, Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 4 February called for an all-embracing approach that deals not only with terrorism and weapons of mass destruction but also with small arms and the root ills of poverty, hunger and disease.

"Dire potential scenarios involving nuclear, chemical and biological weapons have dominated recent disarmament discussions," Mr. Annan told his Advisory Board on Disarmament at UN Headquarters in New York. "But a much more direct threat to many people around the world is the day-to-day violence of conflict fought with small weapons, which are supplied - sometimes legally, sometimes illegally - by often unscrupulous and predatory arms merchants."

Noting that the very first article of the UN Charter calls for "effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace," he said it is essential to show that the UN is capable of fulfilling that purpose, "not just for the most privileged members of the Organization, who are currently _ and understandably _ preoccupied with terrorism and weapons of mass destruction."

In addition, he stressed, the UN must protect against the more familiar threats of poverty, hunger and deadly disease. "We must understand that a threat to some is a threat to all, and needs to be addressed accordingly," he said.

International political attention "has drifted dangerously away" from the Millennium Development Goals, such as halving extreme poverty and hunger by 2015, he observed, stressing that the world cannot afford to neglect the so-called soft threats of poverty, hunger and disease.

On the issue of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) he said there were important gaps in international coverage, most notably concerning missiles. Efforts to fight small arms trafficking might involve ensuring jobs for disarmed ex-combatants in countries emerging from conflict, clamping down on the illicit exploitation of natural resources, and greater transparency in information among States about armaments and military matters in general, he added.

 

Conference At UN Seeks Nearly $500 Million To Rebuild Liberia 5

A donors' conference seeking almost $500 million for the next two years to help Liberia rebuild from its devastating 14-year-long civil war opened on 5 February at United Nations Headquarters in New York with speakers calling for generous pledges to help the nation _ and the West African region _ get on the track to stability and recovery.

The meeting was a "critical milestone" in the country's journey from crisis to recovery, offering a chance "to help achieve a real and lasting peace dividend" for Liberians, Mark Malloch Brown, chair of the UN Development Group (UNDG), which organized the two-day International Conference on the Reconstruction of Liberia, said in his opening address.

Christian Herbert, Liberia's Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs, said domestic resources were woefully inadequate to meet the needs of post-conflict reconstruction. External assistance is required to ensure improved security; the success of the disarmament, demobilization, reintegration and resettlement programme; good governance; democratic development and the rule of law; and respect for human rights and international humanitarian law.

Mr. Herbert said the priorities contained in the rebuilding plan reflected the basic needs of the Liberian people. While the situation in the capital, Monrovia, and its environs could be considered to have improved, most of the country's rural areas were inaccessible, and international support was critical to distributing humanitarian assistance there. 

On the humanitarian front, Carolyn McAskie, the UN Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, noted that while great strides had been made since last summer, many Liberians had still not seen the benefits of the peace agreement. Urgent assistance was needed now so that people could return to their homes knowing that basic services were available. Stressing that many Liberians still live under conditions of war, she said there should be no false sense that everything was normal. Humanitarian action, she added, was essential to consolidate peace.

A team comprising representatives from the UN, World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the Liberian transitional government has been working for the past two months to prepare a report for the Conference assessing the country's needs.

According to that report, an estimated $488 million in assistance will be required for priorities ranging from demobilizing combatants _ some as young as 12 _ and helping them return home, get schooling and find jobs, to organizing elections in 2005, rebuilding roads, restoring electricity, reopening schools and health clinics, and stopping the spread of HIV/AIDS. That figure is in addition to about $180 million requested for Liberia in November by the UN as part of its consolidated appeal for all of its humanitarian activities worldwide.

 

Sec-Gen Invites Greek Cypriot And Turkish Cypriot Leaders To New York For Talks 6

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 4 February wrote to the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders inviting them to New York next week to resume negotiations on the basis of his settlement plan.

"The objective of the negotiations would be to put a completed text to referenda in April 2004, in time for a reunited Cyprus to accede to the European Union on 1 May," a spokesman for Mr. Annan said in a statement released on 4 February.

The Secretary-General has also written to the Prime Ministers of Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom asking them to have representatives on hand in New York on that occasion, according to the statement.

Mr. Annan "was moved to take this initiative by his recent, encouraging contacts on the Cyprus question during his trip to Europe and afterwards," the statement said.

In his letters, the Secretary-General "appealed to the leaders to summon the political will needed to bring about this result in the short time available," the statement said. "He has also set out what needs to be done for this to happen."

 

Implementing Anti-Terrorism Resolution Hits Obstacles, Security Council Panel Says 7

The United Nations Security Council's Counter-terrorism Committee (CTC) says the implementation of a resolution to monitor and try to increase the capability of States to fight terrorism "is encountering serious problems, both at the States and at the (committee) levels."

The committee, which has the same 15 members as the Council itself, says in a report issued on 30 January that the crucial prevention and suppression of the financing of terrorism "has the effect of placing new burdens on banking institutions and financial professions."

Some States argue that passing anti-money laundering legislation is enough to prevent the financing of terrorism, but the transfers of terrorist funds "have different characteristics from other criminal funds (for example, they may have a legal origin)," the report says.

"Efforts to prevent the financing of terrorism are therefore undermined by the lack of transparency of international financial transactions and the weakness of national legislation to prevent inflows of criminal money."

Measures to improve State control over illegal or even informal financing systems should be considered as essential complements to the present banking regulations, the committee says.

On the links between organized crime and terrorist groups, the report says trafficking of drugs, weapons and contraband generated by organized crime often constitutes a source of financing for terrorists, "thus efforts to combat organized crime are a direct means of preventing terrorist phenomena" as pointed out in Resolution 1373, adopted in the wake of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States.

On the work of the committee, the report says the panel sometimes need the service of international experts who are regarded as short-term consultants, but are then expected to work for longer than a year without being granted the medical and other "benefits that would make living in New York feasible, let alone compensate them for the disruption of their careers."

 

Security Council Tightens Sanctions Against Taliban And Al-Qaida 8

The Security Council 30 January tightened the sanctions regime against the Taliban and Al-Qaida in what the President of the 15-member UN body called a significant step forward in the struggle against terrorism.

"We've learned the lessons of our past errors to close the gaps that we had in the previous regime system," Ambassador Heraldo Muñoz of Chile told reporters following the resolution's adoption, adding that the process of improving the measures would continue.

The sanctions were originally adopted, and later tightened, in response to the indictment of Osama bin Laden for the 1998 terrorist bombings of US embassies in Nairobi and Dar-es-Salaam.

States were required to freeze financial resources, including funds derived or generated by any undertaking owned or controlled by the Taliban, and to ensure that they are not used by the group. Countries were also obliged to freeze funds and other financial assets of Osama bin Laden and his associates in the Al-Qaida organization, and to prevent their entry or transit through the State's territory. In addition, nations must prevent the supply, sale and transfer of all arms and materiel _ along with any form of military training _ to the named individuals and entities.

Those measures were expanded by this resolution, which covers additional kinds of financial assets while setting up mechanisms to ensure implementation.

"The decision has been made to upgrade _ to improve _ the sanctions against the terrorist network of Al-Qaida and the Taliban," Ambassador Muñoz explained. "The idea is to, through renewed efforts, not only freeze assets and economic resources, but very specific reference is made to properties, to concrete resources other than bank accounts."

He called this "a signal for countries to look at charities and also to be mindful of alternative remittance systems that could be used by terrorists to channel funds."

The resolution sets 31 March as the deadline for countries to submit written reports on the measures they have taken or to give reasons for not reporting. Those that do not comply will be named on a list to be circulated by the Security Council committee monitoring the implementation of the sanctions.

"I think that is a strong signal so that countries do what they have to do _ in other words, comply with the Security Council resolutions," the President said.

Under the resolution, the Council also established a New York-based Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team to work at the Committee's direction for the next year and a half. The Secretary-General was asked to name eight experts to serve on that team, which will periodically report to the Council on the implementation of the improved sanctions regime.

 

IAEA Calls For Stronger Security To Fight Proliferation 9

The United Nations nuclear watchdog agency on 3 February reiterated its call for a "vital" upgrading of security to prevent nuclear technology from falling into the wrong hands through an emerging global network of sophisticated black marketeering in weapons technology.

The Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) issued a news release drawing attention to recent statements by its Director-General, Mohamed ElBaradei, dealing with the problem, including additional information that has come from the agency's ongoing verification of nuclear programmes in Iran and Libya.

Mr. ElBaradei raised the issue during his participation in sessions on global and regional security at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and in press interviews last month, stressing the mounting challenges facing the world's regime to stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the urgent need for a stronger security framework, the release noted.

"What we are seeing is a very sophisticated and complex underground network of black market operators not that much different from organized crime cartels," he said. "We are very much into the process of investigating key pieces of this complex picture, with assistance from a number of countries.

"It's vital that we keep making progress in combined efforts against illicit trafficking, and to keep upgrading security to effectively prevent sensitive nuclear material and technology from falling into wrong hands," he added.

He stressed that the emerging picture so far has not indicated governments are involved, but rather points to individuals engaged in illicit trafficking of material and equipment.

Over the coming weeks, the IAEA Board of Governors is set to receive reports from Mr. ElBaradei on the IAEA's verification of nulear programmes in Iran and in Libya. The Board meets in Vienna on 8 March.

 

As Africa Stabilizes, World Must Commit Troops To Peacekeeping, UN Official Says 10

Africa, with three-quarters of the United Nations' 45,000 uniformed peacekeeping forces, made real progress in achieving peace in 2003, but many challenges remain, a senior United Nations official said on 5 February.

"It is important to sustain the peacekeeping efforts there," the Under- 

Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Marie Guéhenno, told a news conference.

Highlighting the continent's accomplishments, he cited the establishment of a transitional government in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the prospect of real peace in Sierra Leone and Burundi, possible success in Liberia and negotiations in Sudan.

He also voiced hope that the Security Council would back the expansion of the UN Mission in Côte d'Ivoire (MINUCI), which currently has 34 military liaison officers.

 

New UN Envoy To Eritrea And Ethiopia Appointed 11

Concerned about the lack of progress in arbitrating the border dispute between Ethiopia and Eritrea according to the Algiers Agreement, United Nations Kofi Annan on 30 January appointed former Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy his Special Envoy for the two Horn of Africa countries. 

"The Secretary-General hopes that in carrying out this important assignment, the Special Envoy will enjoy the full cooperation of all parties concerned," a UN spokesman said in a statement.

In addition to having served in several Canadian government cabinet positions, Mr. Axworthy helped to negotiate the Ottawa Convention banning anti-personnel landmines and was nominated for a Nobel Peace prize in 1997. He has been director and CEO of the Liu Institute for Global Issues at the University of British Columbia since 2001.

 

New UN Report Paints Mixed Picture Of Kosovo's Provisional Institutions 12

The record of achievements by Kosovo's Provisional Institutions is mixed, with progress apparently stalled in some areas, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan says in a new document made public on 30 January.

In a report to the Security Council on the activities of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), Mr. Annan calls for Kosovo's leaders and institutions to uphold the values of multi-ethnicity, tolerance and equal rights for all communities.

The Secretary-General notes that not all ethnic communities meaningfully participate in the Provisional Institutions _ the presidency, the government and the Kosovo Assembly. He voices concern that the Assembly "is once again refusing to take into account legitimate minority concerns in the legislative process, [and is] over-stepping its competencies."

But Mr. Annan says he was encouraged by some progress, including the preparation and adoption of laws at the central and local levels of self-government.

Mr. Annan observed that in November a mechanism was set up to review and measure the progress made by the Provisional Institutions towards the benchmarks required before any final decision on Kosovo's status can be made.

In another development, UNMIK customs officers on 30 January detected a large quantity of what is suspected to be heroin in the boot of a car leaving Kosovo for Albania.

The seized goods _ the latest in a series of discoveries by UNMIK customs officers _ have been transferred to the border police, with laboratory analysts set to determine the precise nature of the substance.

 

S-G Pays Tribute To Memory Of UN Official Killed In Uzbek Plane Crash 13

Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 30 January mourned the death of the United Nations Development Programme's (UNDP) top official in Uzbekistan, killed earlier this month in a plane crash, remembering him as not only a dedicated and talented colleague but also "a thoroughly decent human being."

In a message to a memorial service for Richard Conroy, who was among those killed when a passenger airliner crashed on 13 January in the Uzbek capital Tashkent, the Secretary-General described him as possessing a rare blend of qualities that epitomized the characteristics needed to represent the UN in the field.

A citizen of Australia and the United Kingdom, Mr. Conroy, 56, joined UNDP in 1990 and served in China, Sri Lanka and India before assuming his post in Uzbekistan.

 

Sec-Gen Welcomes Report Calling On Nations To Develop Science And Technology Strategy 14

A new report launched on 5 February at United Nations Headquarters in New York calls on all nations to develop a science and technology strategy to give policymakers ready access to this expertise in order to take effective action against worldwide ills.

The report, "Inventing a Better Future: A Strategy for Building Worldwide Capacities in Science and Technology," was produced by the InterAcademy Council (IAC) _ a new organization created by 90 of the world's science academies to provide expert knowledge to international bodies such as the United Nations.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan welcomed the study, which he said complemented UN efforts to mobilize the best scientific minds and to put their expert knowledge and advice at the service of the world's peoples as they work to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The Goals are eight time-bound and measurable commitments that range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education _ all by 2015.

"Reaching the Goals requires us to tap into human creativity, resourcefulness and innovation to the fullest extent possible," he said in opening remarks at the report's launch. "That is where science and technology come in."

The report proposes new initiatives to strengthen national scientific capabilities worldwide, and to foster opportunities for cooperation among the world's scientific and technological communities. "We must do all we can to translate the report's recommendations into actions," said Mr. Annan.

He also expressed hope that the Council and the wider world scientific community will build further on this foundation, in partnership with the UN and its agencies, other international and regional organizations, and the world's governments.

"That is how the potential of science and technology can be realized in the struggle to improve the human condition," he concluded.

The IAC is headquartered at the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in Amsterdam. Formed in 2000, its governing board is composed of the presidents of 15 national academies of science and equivalent organizations _ representing Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Russian Federation, South Africa, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States, as well as the Third World Academy of Sciences.

 

UNDP: Millions Of Natural Disaster Deaths Could Be Averted By Better Preparedness 15

With billions of people in more than 100 countries facing at least one earthquake, cyclone, flood or drought during their lifetimes, millions of lives could be saved if developing countries did more to anticipate and reduce the risks from natural disasters, according to a new United Nations report.

The report _ Reducing Disaster Risk: A Challenge for Development _ prepared by a team of internationally recognized specialists led by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), is the most extensive study ever published of global trends in exposure, risk and vulnerability, UN experts say. It links vulnerability directly to poverty _ "the real killer."

It analyzes global data from the past two decades and concludes that better planning backed by systematic risk analysis could avert much of the death and destruction caused by natural disasters in poor countries.

"In a sense, this report is arguing that there is nothing natural about these disasters," said Andrew Maskrey, co-author of the report and chief of UNDP's Geneva-based Disaster Reduction Unit. "The impact of disasters can be sharply reduced if governments make an effort to reduce risk before a disaster happens, rather than rush to respond after the damage has been done."

Over the past two decades, 1.5 million people died in earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tropical storms, droughts and other "natural disasters," yet with better preparedness many if not most of these lives could have been saved, according to the study. On an average, natural disasters cause 184 deaths per day, mainly in poor countries even when the incidence and intensity are the same as in wealthy nations.

The report's newly developed Disaster Risk Index provides clear proof of the link between poverty and vulnerability to such disasters, noting, "The real killer is poverty, not the forces of nature." Only 11 per cent of the people exposed to natural hazards live in poor countries, but they account for more than 53 per cent of the total recorded deaths.

The study urges governments to develop better understanding of the depth and extent of disaster hazards, use the best available risk analysis, incorporate such risks in regulatory procedures and include risk assessment in development planning.

During the past two decades the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) had the highest annual per capita death rate from disasters (606 per million), followed by Mozambique (328), Armenia (324), Sudan (275) and Ethiopia (273), according to the study.

The economic impact of these disasters can be devastating for populations living on the margins of society. In the 1990s, they set back development by $660 billion but the majority of these losses were concentrated in wealthier countries.

 

ILO: Benefits Of Eliminating Child Labour Far Outweigh Costs 16

The benefits of eliminating child labour would be seven times greater than the costs, according to a new United Nations International Labour Organization (ILO) report.

Forcing children to continue working _ a practice that affects one out of every six youngsters, or 246 million children _ will cost $5.1 trillion from now until 2020. But if they receive an education instead, that figure drops to just $760 million _ an amount that is more than offset by other social gains, the ILO's International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) says in the study.

"What's good social policy is also good economic policy," said ILO Director-General Juan Somavia. "Eliminating child labour will yield an enormous return on investment _ and a priceless impact on the lives of children and families."

The study, entitled Investing in Every Child: An Economic Study of the Costs and Benefits of Eliminating Child Labour, is the first integrated analysis of the worldwide economic costs and benefits of eliminating child labour.

All regions of the world would experience large net gains from stopping child labour, the study says, "although the costs would almost certainly exceed returns in the early years." Net economic flows would turn dramatically positive, however, as the effects of improved education and health take hold. By 2020, costs would be far outweighed by the returns, leaving total annual benefits of around $60 billion.

In North Africa and the Middle East, the benefits would be the highest relative to the costs _ 8.4 to 1. In Asia, the ratio would be 7.2 to 1 and in the countries with economies in transition, 5.9 to 1. In sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America the ratio would be 5.2 to 1 and 5.3 to 1, respectively.

The worldwide net economic benefits of the hypothetical programme would amount to 22.2 per cent of annual gross national income, the report says.

"Reaping the economic value of expanded education depends on countries' ability to create new jobs, take advantage of higher levels of human capital and develop economic policies to stimulate growth," the report says. "Yet even if the effect of education on future earnings was halved to 5 per cent, the study estimates that global benefits would still exceed $2 trillion."

 

UNFPA: Reproductive Health Investment Could Save Millions Of Lives 17

Millions of lives could be saved with highly cost-effective investments to close gaps in sexual and reproductive health care that account for nearly a third of illnesses and deaths among women of reproductive age, according to a new United Nations report.

The report, Adding it Up: The Benefits of Investing in Sexual and Reproductive Health Care, released by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and the non-profit Alan Guttmacher Institute, stresses the severe global shortage of contraceptive services and the need for far greater aid from donor countries to address the scarcity, which accounts for as much as a fifth of the worldwide burden of illness and premature death.

In one striking indication of potential benefits, the report notes that programmes providing contraceptives to 500 million women in poor countries already prevent each year 187 million unintended pregnancies, 60 million unplanned births, 105 million abortions, 22 million miscarriages, 2.7 million infant deaths and 215,000 pregnancy-related deaths. Those measures also protect 685,000 children from losing their mothers.

Providing the services to all women at risk of unintended pregnancy at a cost of $3.9 billion more a year would save an additional 1.5 million women and children annually, reduce induced abortions by 64 per cent and cut pregnancy-related illness and preserve 27 million years of healthy life _ for just $144 per year of healthy life. Beyond contraception, the report calls for increased funding for sexual and reproductive health services, particularly in poor countries, by illustrating the broad societal and individual impact of investments in prevention, diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted infections as well as measures to secure maternal health.

The report notes that individual consumers, national governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in developing countries provide more than three-quarters of the money spent there on sexual and reproductive health care. But donor countries have fallen far short of the funding commitments made at the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo, it adds.

 

WHO: Health Professionals To Promote New Code Of Conduct On Tobacco Control 18

To stem trends in tobacco use, which currently causes nearly 5 million deaths each year, healthcare professionals at a World Health Organization (WHO) meeting in Geneva on 30 January agreed to promote a new code of conduct, which includes a pledge to quit smoking.

Smoking prevalence among health professionals in many countries is the same if not higher than the average of the population, according to WHO. In Albania in 2000, 44 per cent of medical students smoked, compared with 39 per cent of the population. In Saudi Arabia, 20 per cent of the doctors smoke whereas the average for the population is 13 per cent.

Studies have shown that even brief counselling by health professionals on the dangers of smoking and importance of quitting is one of the most cost-effective methods of reducing the harmful practice, according to WHO.

The associations, meeting last week at WHO headquarters in Geneva, represent members in almost all countries and participants include pharmacists, dentists, nurses, midwifes, chiropractors and physicians. During the discussions, professionals vowed to strengthen tobacco surveillance and cessation programmes, ensure access to tobacco-free healthcare facilities and implement education and community advocacy programmes.

The participants agreed that health professionals should introduce tobacco control in the national public health agenda, support the signature and ratification of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) by their governments, and back the treaty's implementation.

 

`Artists For The UN' Scheme Launched To Promote Global Peace 19

An initiative to encourage artists, entertainers, statesmen and stateswomen to publicly support the ideals, vision and mandate of the United Nations as the best organization to promote peace across the globe was launched at the world body's Headquarters in New York on 5 February.

The UN and the Global Vision for Peace, a non-governmental organization (NGO), have joined forces to set up Artists for the UN _ a collection of artists and other public figures who will affirm the role and work of the UN.

Actress Drew Barrymore was named "A Friend of the UN" and given the Dove of Peace pin, a symbol of the Global Vision for Peace, to wear.

Ms. Barrymore told a press conference that she felt honoured to use her celebrity status as "an outlet to do something deeper and more important than just the fame itself."

Oscar-winning actor Chris Cooper has confirmed he will wear the Dove of Peace pin at this year's Academy Awards ceremony, to be held on 29 February. Later this year the Audrey Hepburn Award will also be given to a "film artist who serves the higher cause of humanity and the ideal of global peace."

The Dalai Lama, five Nobel Peace Prize laureates, several members of the United States Congress and such artists as Robert Altman, Susan Sarandon, Kurt Vonnegut and Yoko Ono are backing the initiative.

Designer Xorin Balbes and producer-journalist Heathcliff Rothman created the Global Vision for Peace last year. The NGO supports causes such as the removal of landmines and tackling the AIDS pandemic.