Vietnam pledges greater contributions to UNESCO

DNHN - The nation always places great importance on its comprehensive co-operation with, as well as the global role of, UNESCO and pledges to make more positive contributions to UNESCO as a member of the Executive Council during the 2022-2025 term.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Quang Hieu made the statement at the plenary meeting of the UNESCO Executive Board's 214th session which was held between April 4 and April 5 in Paris, France.

As part of his address at the event as the head of the Vietnamese delegation, Deputy Minister Hieu emphasised that the meeting took place at an important time. The impact of global problems such as the COVID-19 pandemic and armed conflicts not only impacts economic development, increases inequality, and erases human development achievements, but also directly threatens the lives of people, peace, security, and development around the world.

In that context, more than ever, UNESCO's mission of "building peace in the minds of people" must be respected and pursued, he said.

UNESCO and the UNESCO Executive Board's 214th session should therefore focus on making concrete steps in fields such as education, culture, science, and information and communication. This should be done alongside carrying out the medium-term vision and strategy for the 2022 to 2029 period, along with the programme and budget for the 2022 to 2025 period.

Deputy Minister Hieu also suggested promoting several new issues such as open science, ethics in artificial intelligence, and the future of education, whilst also contributing to the organisation of the UN Transforming Education Summit in September 2022 in New York and the upcoming preparatory meeting in Paris.

The UNESCO Executive Board’s session is scheduled to last until April 13, discussing more than 50 topics relating to the organisation's activities.
It is expected to approve a list of new and expanded global geoparks, including Vietnam’s Non Nuoc Cao Bang.
During the course of the function, the head of the Vietnamese delegation held a meeting with the President of the UNESCO General Conference and the heads of other countries’ delegations. This was done as a means of stepping up multilateral cooperation and campaigning for Vietnam's candidacy as a member of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (Convention 2003) for the 2022 to 2026 term.

The Deputy FM also met Audrey Azoulay, director general of UNESCO, the organisation’s Deputy Director-General, and its President of the Intergovernmental Committee to discuss how to enhance the two sides’ co-operation in the future. In particular, efforts will focus on realising the memorandum of understanding on bilateral collaboration in the 2021 to 2025 period signed last year within the visit to UNESCO’s headquarters by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.

Source VOV