UN-ECA 50th Anniversary commemorated in Addis Ababa
The UN-Economic Commission for Africa celebrates its 50th Anniversary in Addis Ababa these days during the first joint AU/ECA Ministers of Finance and Planning conference. The meeting kicks off a year long celebration of ECA after it was established by the UN ECOSOC back in 1958.
Opening Statement by Mr. Abdoulie Janneh, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ECA at the 1st Joint Annual Meetings of the AU Conference of Ministers of Economy and Finance and ECA Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development
31 March 2008 can be found at http://www.uneca.org/
Also at the opening ceremony spoke Donald Kaberuka, president of the African Development Bank, the Deputy Commissioner of AU Patrick Mazimhaka, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia as well as UN Secretary Ban Ki Moon (video transmission from New York).
Thematically the Conference is focussing on high level thematic debates on: Empowering the Poor, Climate Change at which Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Dr. Rajendra Pachauri spoke yesterday as well as HIV/AIDS where UNAIDS director Peter Piot participated.