Date: 06 December 2011
Event: Consultative Group Meeting – 6 December 2011
Venue: Millennium Meeting Hall, Grand Plaza, Hanoi
Date: 06 December 2011
Event: Consultative Group Meeting – 6 December 2011
Venue: Millennium Meeting Hall, Grand Plaza, Hanoi
On the occasion of the 24th World AIDS Day (1 December 2011), Dr Shin Young-soo, the World Health Organization's Regional Director for the Western Pacific, says that "together we can and must work towards the vision of 'Getting to zero – zero new HIV infections, zero AIDS-related deaths and zero discrimination.
Montevideo, 10 November 2011 – Government and United Nations representatives from more than 40 countries have agreed to continue advancing the Delivering as One Initiative, the UN reform process. The final outcome document from the IV High Level Intergovernmental Conference, which closed this afternoon in Montevideo, highlights the role of the United Nations as the “most legitimate, universal and representative forum to discuss the development agenda.” The outcome document also stresses the importance of national ownership and government leadership in this process and affirms that “there is no going to doing business as prior to Delivering as One.” “Lessons learned must be widely shared, including through South-South cooperation,” the document adds. Funding continues being a key element in this process and the countries signing this declaration state that “the provision of core un-earmarked, predictable, multiyear and sustained funding is needed.” In addition, the document asserts that the process of reform has to continue and that “the momentum of the UN reform should be maintained”. Lessons learned and concrete results demonstrate that the process deserves to be “fulfilled and strengthened”.
Ha Noi, 3 October 2011 - National and international experts will meet in Ha Noi to discuss Viet Nam’s science, technology and innovation policy and strategy development, which will contribute to the achievement of Viet Nam’s goal of becoming an industrialized and modernized country by 2020.
The discussion is within the frame work of an international conference to be held in Ha Noi on October 5 by the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and the National Institute for Science, Technology Policy and Strategy Studies (NISTPASS) of the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST). The conference will focus its discussion on following key areas:
5 September 2011, Ha Noi - "I never ever imagined finding such a neglected little girl in the center of Hanoi," says Nguyen Thu Trang. "When I first saw Nhu (not her real name), her body was covered with terrifying injuries, her lips swollen, with blue and black marks all over her body. I decided to rent a room next to her worn-down, dark home to comfort her and to dispel her terrible fear and loneliness." 
Nhu today, one year after being rescued thanks to an award-winning story by Nguyen Thu Trang
Her voice stills trembles as Thu Trang, first-place winner out of 15 winners of the writing competition "Say No to Domestic Violence", remembers the first time she saw Nhu after neighbors contacted her about a little girl being mistreated next door. Trang, a reporter for Family and Society Newspaper, co-wrote "Help the four-year-old girl escape from a living hell", which tells the story of the brave rescue of Nhu, a little girl subjected to serious domestic violence. Today, Nhu lives with her grandmother and slowly recovers from the traumatizing experience.
New York, 22 August 2011—A UNDP-led partnership that rewards communities around the world for their conservation and development solutions today launched a call for nominations for the Equator Prize 2012, to be submitted online at www.equatorinitiative.org.
22 Aug 2011 - As a result of sharp reductions in fertility and mortality as well as increased life expectancy at birth, the elderly population in Viet Nam is increasing rapidly in both absolute and relative numbers. The population projections by the government's General Statistics Office (GSO, 2010) show that the elderly population (persons aged 60 and over) as a percent of Viet Nam's total population will reach 10 percent in 2017, and the Vietnamese population will enter the so-called ”ageing phase” from 2017 onward.
This new report provides a comprehensive review and analysis of ageing in Viet Nam, as well as tentative recommendations for policy responses to issues related to aging in the years to come. The report has been commissioned by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Viet Nam.
"Change Our World" is more than the theme of this year's International Youth Day; it is an injunction that should inspire young people at all times.
Far too many of the world's more than one billion young people lack the education, freedom and opportunities they deserve. Yet despite these constraints – and in some cases because of them – young people are mobilizing in growing numbers to build a better future. Over the past year, they have achieved stunning results, overturning dictatorships and sending waves of hope across regions and around the world.
Young people are gifted with open minds and a keen awareness of emerging trends, and are bringing their energy, ideas and courage to some of the most complex and important challenges facing the human family. They often understand better than older generations that we can transcend our religious and cultural differences in order to reach our shared goals. They are standing up for the rights of oppressed peoples, including those who suffer discrimination based on gender, race and sexual orientation. They are confronting sensitive issues in order to stop the spread of HIV. And they are often the leading proponents of sustainability and green life-styles.
The international community must continue to work together to expand the horizons of opportunity for these young women and men and answer their legitimate demands for dignity, development and decent work. Failing to invest in our youth is a false economy. Investments in young people will pay great dividends in a better future for all.
This Day marks the end of the International Year of Youth, a milestone in global advocacy by and for the world's young people. My hope is that this experience will now provide a foundation to go even further in harnessing the talents and energies of young people. To them I say: you have the opportunity to change our world. Seize it.
Ban Ki-moon
See also the:
Cat Ba, July 14, 2011 – The launching ceremony for “Biosphere Reserves for Environmental and Economic Security (BREES): A Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Program in Asia and the Pacific” took place at Cat Ba Biosphere Reserve this month under the auspices of UNESCO Ha Noi, Viet Nam Man and Biosphere Programme National Committee (MAB Viet Nam) and Hai Phong People's Committee.
The Cat Ba biosphere reserve in northern Viet Nam
At the ceremony, Ms. Katherine Muller-Marin, Representative of UNESCO to Viet Nam, said that in order for development to be both long-term and sustainable, there needs to be a joint effort from the business sector, authorities, tourists and local communities. Ms. Muller-Marin pledged UNESCO’s commitment to support the BREES project and Cat Ba Biosphere Reserve in their future activities.
Joint Statement of the UN Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development