Gender Advisory Board, Persons with Disabilities…

Tuesday, 13 June 2023

GENDER ADVISORY BOARD

This hour, President Csaba Kőrösi met with his Gender Advisory Board.

They discussed next steps, and linkages with the high-level GA week.

This will likely be the last gender advisory board meeting of the 77th session.

Taking part in today’s meeting with Ambassador Mitch Fifield, the Permanent Representative of Australia, and one of the co-facilitators leading the process on GA revitalization.

Also invited and attending was PGA-elect Dennis Francis.

PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES

Turning to the General Assembly…

Today is the opening of the 16th Session of the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as you heard from Stephane.

In his opening remarks, President Kőrösi asked, 15 years on from the Convention’s creation, are we removing the physical, technological and attitudinal barriers for persons with disabilities to participate equally in communal life?

There are barriers still in access to daily life – such as barriers to food, health care, housing; public facilities – such as schools, workplaces, courthouses; and barriers to services and technologies.

He called for more data, particularly to ease the digital barriers, to step up action to “leave no one behind”. With the SDG Summit around the corner, it is on the international community to pay attention to these efforts.

The President has been convening Member States and other partners around issues of interest to persons with disabilities.

Yesterday he spoke about the role of “easy-to-understand communication” to help people with disabilities to engage fully in UN life.

OPGA also convened a training session on Accessibility and Disability Awareness in April.

And on Thursday, the President said that he looks forward to addressing and chairing the Assembly’s High-Level Meeting on “Equal Access to Justice for All”.

The President said that quote “Our sisters and brothers with disabilities are different, not less. And we should know them for their abilities.”

Full remarks online and in your inboxes: https://www.un.org/pga/77/2023/06/13/pga-remarks-to-the-16th-session-of…

SECOND PODCAST EPISODE

On the issue of importance of data…

The second episode of the PGA Fellows’ podcast is out.

Our Fellow Gerard Anapu speaks with Claire Melamed, who leads the Secretariat of the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data. She talks about the importance of data in making progress on the SDGs, and also highlights some of the risks and reasons why Governments shy away from data.

https://soundcloud.com/pga-youth-fellows/episode-2-claire-melamed-ceo-o…

TOMORROW

And turning to tomorrow, at 10AM ET, there will be the plenary debate on the Culture of Peace. President Kőrösi will have remarks.

Afterward, President Kőrösi will participate in a meeting of the Muslim World League at its international conference on the theme of “Forum for Building Bridges Between East and West”.

And General Assembly Member States will hold informal consultations on the political declaration for the high-level meeting on the fight against tuberculosis