Thoughts About Choosing a New Director General for UNESCO

UNESCO is the lead agency of the United Nations system for education, natural and social sciences, culture and communication and information. More fundamentally, it was created in the aftermath of World War II to build the defenses of peace in the minds of men.

A new Director General of UNESCO is to be elected in October. The term is four years, but Directors General often serve two terms. Thus the delegates of the member nations will soon select someone to act as a global spokesperson for peace, for education, for science, for culture and the protection of our cultural heritage, and for freedom of expression for most of the coming decade.

Member nations have until the end of May to nominate candidates for the position. The nominations will be considered by the Executive Board consisting of the representatives of 50 nations. The Executive Board's recommendation will be acted upon by the General Conference of all 193 nations in October.

UNESCO has a unique governance structure in that its Constitution calls for member states to create national commissions which provide their educational, scientific and cultural communities with the means to exercise leadership in UNESCO affairs in collaboration with their governments. In no other United Nations organization is there such empowerment of civil society.

Now is the time for the national commissions to search for suitable candidates and to encourage their governments to make suitable nominations. This summer will be the time for the national commissions to consider the nominations, to evaluate the qualifications of the candidates, and to encourage their governments to support the best candidate.

The next Director General should be:

• An articulate and charismatic spokesperson for peace and international understanding;
• Capable of leading an organization with 2,000 staff and a $500 million annual budget which is capable of catalyzing global action;
• A world leader in one of the fields of competence of UNESCO;
  
• A capable diplomat, able to negotiate compromise among the disparate interests of UNESCO's member nations; and of course
  
• A person of sterling personal and professional integrity; as well
  
• As someone who can communicate effectively in the major languages used in UNESCO.
  

UNESCO's first Director General was Julian Huxley, a world class scientist who was one of the leaders in the synthesis of genetics and Darwinian evolution, a former Director of the London Zoological Society, and an effective disseminator of scientific information to the general public. The first Director General from the United States was Luther Evans, who had been the Librarian of Congress (the world's largest library) and who had organized and headed the Historical Records Survey (bringing order to the disparate historical records held in the individual states of the United States for the first time). Both of these men were known worldwide in fields of central importance to UNESCO, and both had demonstrated records in successfully leading major organizations. The next Director General should be add further luster to the tradition that they began.

If the nominations and selection of a new Director General is left to diplomats we can expect a diplomat to be selected. While diplomatic skills are important in the Director General, there are few diplomats who are qualified to lead UNESCO in its global mission. It is time for the educational, scientific and cultural leaders to stand up and be sure that the best representatives of their communities are considered for the post. The national commissions must exercise their authority to assure that a truly outstanding leader will be chosen to lead UNESCO into the new decade.

John Daly
(The opinions expressed are those of the author alone, and do not necessarily represent those of Americans for UNESCO.)

Undertaking a Human Rights Approach to Development

The Bangkok office of UNESCO has recently published three new reports encouraging a human rights approach:

Undertaking a Human Rights-Based Approach: Lessons for Policy, Planning and Programming – Documenting Lessons Learned for the Human Rights-Based Approach to Programming: An Asia-Pacific Perspective – Implications for Policy, Planning and Programming. by Gabrielle Berman
Bangkok: UNESCO Bangkok, 2008. 32 pp.


Undertaking a Human Rights-Based Approach: A Guide for Basic Programming – Documenting Lessons Learned for Human Rights-Based Programming: An Asia-Pacific Perspective – Implications for Policy, Planning and Programming. by Gabrielle Berman
Bangkok: UNESCO Bangkok, 2008. 40 pp.



The Human Rights-based Approach to Journalism: Training Manual, Viet Nam. Bangkok: UNESCO Bangkok, 2008. 41 p.

UNESCO Director-General expressed grave concern over attacks against Gaza UNRWA schools

In a joint statement, UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura and UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Radhika Coomaraswamy, expressed grave concern over the recent attacks against UNRWA schools and associated facilities. These facilities had been set up by the UN as places of refuge for civilians fleeing the fighting in Gaza.

Read more!

U.S. Participation in the International Conference on Education

U.S. Ambassador to UNESCO Louise V. Oliver led the U.S. delegation to the 48th session of the International Conference on Education, hosted by UNESCO's International Bureau of Education in Geneva, from November 25-28, 2008. The delegation included Tracy Justesen, Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, and Troy Justesen, Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education, from the U.S. Department of Education, Sally Lovejoy, Education Attaché to the U.S. Mission to UNESCO, Emily Spencer, Education Program Officer, Office of International Organizations/UNESCO, Kenneth Schagrin, Trade Attaché, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, and Anna Mansfield, Deputy Legal Advisor, U.S. Mission to the United Nations in Geneva.

Approximately 153 UNESCO member states, 20 intergovernmental organizations and 25 NGO's, foundations and other institutions of civil society attended the IBE Conference, which is held every four years, bringing together Ministers of Education, representatives from international organizations, and civil society representatives to discuss and exchange ideas related to a specific education-related theme. The theme for this year’s session was "Inclusive Education: The Way of the Future."

Read more about U.S. Participation!

Rea the final document of conclusions and recommendations for Member States and UNESCO.

Related Links:

• 48th session of the International Conference on Education, Geneva, 25-28 November 2008
  Inclusive Education: The Way of the Future



• UNESCO Press Release: Don’t cut education funding, urge ministers attending UNESCO’s
  International Conference on Education



• UNESCO International Bureau of Education

Commissioning of the Institute for African Culture and International Understanding

DG Matsuura meeting with Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo
(UNESCO archival photo)

UNESCO Director-General Koichiro Matsuura has traveled to Nigeria for the commissioning of the Institute for African Culture and International Understanding (IACIU) in Abeokuta, Ogun State, as well as the Centre for Black Culture and International Understanding in Osogbo, Osun State.

The Institute is a "Category II" Center, supported by the Government of Nigeria. According to the UNESCO documentation proposing the approval of the center:

The Institute aims to study, evaluate, inventorize, exhibit and disseminate all relevant material related to Africa's cultural heritage – both tangible and intangible – and its diasporas. In addition, it will encourage academic and scientific research on black culture and its cultural expressions, creating a global network of specialists on this topic with workshops and seminars aimed at raising awareness not only among Nigerian stakeholders but also among national and local decision-makers. The Nigerian Government wishes to link this Institute to other national bodies devoted to the safeguarding of heritage and black culture from Africa and other parts of the world.

The first such body is the Center for Black Culture and International Understanding. That Center is built around a collection of Nigerian materials, largely drawn from the Yoruba culture, donated by Ulli and Georgina Beier.

Read the Guardian article about the DG's visit.

Interview with Ali Moussa Iye

Ali Moussa Iye is the Chief of the Inter-cultural Dialog Section of UNESCO where he coordinates the slave routes projects and UNESCO's History of Africa. He was recently interviewed by McPhilips Nwachukwu for Vanguard Online (Nigeria).

African leaders in the 1960's were concerned that the available historical record of Africa had been written by Europeans and reflected the views of the colonial powers rather than of the Africans themselves. As a result, UNESCO was asked to take on the job or coordinating the production of a major survey of African history written by African historians. Over a period of 25 years that history was published in eight volumes. In his interview Iye states:

Now at UNESCO, we are launching the second phase of the Journal History of Africa. We are launching a project to try to elaborate three contents to be included at the primary and secondary levels for all the African Union member States. So, we are working with African Union.

Iye also discusses UNESCO's Slave Route Project, which was started in 1993. That project initially focused on the Atlantic slave route, but Iye (who is from Djibouti on the Horn of Africa) is seeking to move now to include the trade of slaves from Africa into the Islamic lands.

Read the full interview.

A New Year Brings New Vitality to Push for Education and Training

Those paying even scant attention to the news in the past few months may be a tad pessimistic about the current economic landscape. Yes, the present situation clearly does not warrant much to cheer about as no field is unaffected. Certainly included in this group is education; growth in educational fields has most certainly seemed quite grim as of late.

But wait.

Now may be the time to reintensify efforts for education and training on all levels as UNESCO and Education for All have recently done. This intensification call is supported by research conducted by UNESCO and others under the Education for All movement that has drawn constant links between education and economic development. Because of this and other findings, the High Level Group on EFA has called for national governments to allocate 15 to 20 percent of public expenditure to education. Addressing the shortage of teachers and teacher training are particular areas for investment.

Although these calls to support education are at national and international levels, much can be done locally and individually as well. Now, in the first days and hopes of the new year, is the time to offer simple acts of devotion of time and resources toward enhancing education. These small steps will add up to ensure all generations have the opportunities they deserve.