The world is too unstable, too unequal and too unsustainable: How can UNESCO contribute to change?

Seminar with the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, on the relationship between peace and development, at the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, Oslo 6 September 2010.

 

Check against delivery.
The Minister’s address was based on the following points:

 

 

Director-General, ladies and gentlemen, dear friends,

 

• The theme of this seminar is development and peace. I could also add another quote from Bill Clinton’s Yale University speech (i.e. the seminar’s point of departure) that may be an appropriate starting point: “Peace is not a spectator sport... The enemies of peace don’t need your approval. All they need is your apathy.” Lack of knowledge. (“I don’t know and I don’t care.”) 
• The same could be said about development. If we want to change the world – make it more equal, more secure and more sustainable – we have to get our hands dirty. Just observing the challenges is not enough. We must engage. Get involved. Make a difference.
• UNESCO’s mandate is: Promoting peace in the minds of men. Minds ...
• Minds... Last month I visited the Middle East. The West Bank wall or barrier may look impenetrable, but are the minds of the people even less penetrable? We must work on this dimension as well...
• A contrast to driving here in Oslo. Jerusalem - Ramallah. Or in contrast to the Norwegian-Swedish border and the signpost there: “The border follows the river.” The impact on people’s minds, people’s words. 
• We can download knowledge – but we cannot download understanding.

 

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• In September 2000, world leaders met in New York and agreed on eight common goals for development – the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In two weeks, world leaders will again meet in New York for the MDG Review Summit to take stock of the progress made so far and to renew commitments and intensify efforts to meet the MDGs by 2015.  
• Why are the MDGs so important?  
• The MDGs’ ability to inspire a broad constituency is often emphasised as one of their key strengths – as a key achievement. The MDGs have certainly been successful in mobilising people from different backgrounds into action, be it Shakira, Bill Gates, or Norwegian school children spinning the wheel of fortune for MDG 2 – primary education for all.   
• But the MDGs have also played an important role in consolidating the human development approach to development – championed by Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen and gradually introduced into the international discourse by the UN – through the annual Human Development Report.
• Such reports make us a little bit wiser – the Human Development Index, the World Health Report...
• In its support for the MDGs, Norway has specifically sought to strengthen the UN’s global leadership and the ability of UN organisations to deliver on these global development commitments.  
• For example, as a result of our partnerships with UNESCO and UNICEF, millions of children – particularly girls – have gained better access to education. “When you have an extra dollar, spend it on education for girls.”
  We are working closely with the UN Secretary-General to ensure more concerted action to improve maternal and child health. And we have been among the most avid advocates for the establishment of a new UN organisation for gender equality, which will become operational this year. Better health. Trigger a positive spiral.
• Furthermore, I would like to make three (more) main points in my intervention: 
• First: As to the Millennium Development Goals. UNESCO is key in our efforts to reach the MDGs. And again: Education is the key to the MDGs.
• Education for all. Ambitious – but also where most progress has been made. UNESCO plays an important role in the efforts to reach MDG 2 on universal primary education. As lead agency on MDG 2, UNESCO functions as a global coordinator. Norway will continue to support UNESCO in this vital task.
• During the last ten years, the number of children who do not attend school has fallen from 106 million to 69 million. This is a remarkable statistic! Today 90% of all children in the world go to school.  
• And Africa is showing the way. Here, education is being rolled out at a much faster pace than was the case in our own part of the world when we were at similar income levels.  
• Improved access to education in nearly all developing countries is the result of a combination of political will and available financing. Development assistance has certainly played an important role, but it is the strong political will that is the more decisive factor. Access to basic education – besides being a human right – has become a global norm. 
• We know that around half of those children who do not go to school live in areas affected by conflict and violence. This is an important fact.  
• Ensuring education for all in the absence of security and peace is virtually impossible. (Example: Afghanistan, numbers of children attending school some years ago – and now.) Our efforts to broker peace and combat armed violence are of direct relevance to our work to achieve education for all. Foreign policy and development policy work complement each other. (For example: Last Friday: the seminar on human rights defenders. Today: the conference on humanitarian access. Tomorrow: a seminar in the Storting (CARE, Amnesty, UNICEF) on MDGs 4&5. Strong good focus on these issues). 
• Armed violence is one of the major obstacles to development and achieving the MDGs. An increasing body of research shows the significant impact of armed violence on human development  
• Conservative estimates of the (fiscal) burden of armed violence indicate a cost of USD 163 billion annually – that is more than the global expenditure on official development assistance (ODA), and more than Norway’s budget. The issue of armed violence is a Norwegian priority for the MDG Review Summit.  
• Another critical factor: access to energy – which is of relevance to many of the MDGs.
• If women and children have to use a large part of their days collecting wood, there is little time for other tasks. And if there is no electricity or good lighting, it will not be possible to read or study in the evenings.
  
  It is therefore important not only to study the drivers behind and the progress for each MDG, but – as always - to bear in mind the broader, general processes of development. This is the main reason why Norway has increased its efforts to support access to (renewable) energy – as part of the overall effects. 
• On the issue of inequality: continued poverty in a world of plenty is certainly a great injustice. But the war on poverty is not the only line of battle. In many parts of the world, women and girls are denied the same opportunities and rights as their husbands and brothers.
  
  Fewer girls than boys get even a primary education – and the gap widens as we move to higher levels. Discrimination against women is also a major barrier to reaching the health MDGs. 
• My second main point (challenge) is: Freedom of expression.  
• Freedom of expression is a precondition for other fundamental human rights, democratic rule and an active public debate. Amartya Sen (who I quoted earlier) pointed to the link between freedom of expression, democracy and development when he famously said that, “There has never been famine in a country with a free press and free and fair elections.”  
• Freedom of expression is under threat in many parts of the world today. (UNESCO). Anti-terror legislation, changes of ownership, the killing of journalists, censorship and obstacles regarding access to areas of conflict are some of the challenges. According to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) a total of 139 journalists and media workers were killed in 2009 – of which some 113 were targeted killings. 
• UNESCO plays an important role as a champion of freedom of expression. Not only by drawing attention to situations where journalists are under threat or are being killed, but also by working to improve the safety of journalists, and developing the framework under which the media operate. For example, the introduction of media development indicators is one important tool. (Increase cooperation.)
• Now, my third point: Reflections on culture and identity. 
• Religion, culture and cultural differences are sometimes presented as the most important obstacle to peace today. Some say that the world is becoming more multicultural, and that this poses a “threat” to our way of life – that is, a threat to democracy and respect for universal human rights.
• It is true that religion and cultural differences – identities - can cause conflict and violence, as one of several underlying factors. It create walls, barriers, gaps and obstacles to dialogue and a road to peace. But respect for religions can also lead to reconciliation. Bridge or wall?  
• Paradoxically, we could also say that never in history have people been as culturally “alike” or “connected”; never before have people had so much access to the arts, language and culture of other people. (At the same time.) The majority of the worlds’ population is taking part in a common global culture, while at the same time remaining attached to their traditional sources of identity, their local culture. For we still “live locally”, we don’t “live globally”. 
• Consider the spectacular success of mobile telephones and the Internet in connecting people from all corners of the planet. National borders and geographical distances are far less limiting with regard to how and with whom we interact. Thor Heyerdahl once said: “Borders? I have never seen one, but hear they exist in the minds of some people.” I wonder what he would have made of cyberspace. 
• The UN General Assembly has proclaimed 2010 as the International Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures. UNESCO has been designated the lead agency.  
• Exchange and dialogue between cultures – and between religions – are tools for building peace. But not as an easy, “quick fix”. Tools for building common ground, terms of reference, understanding.  
• Today 90% of all children have access to basic education. Reading and writing are becoming universal skills. Imagine how this could broaden the scope for a global dialogue. 
• Globalisation has – in a way – made the world smaller, and as a consequence changed our sense of community. I think most of us feel great responsibility towards those who are vulnerable because they live in precarious conditions. (Haiti, Pakistan). (Responsibility, yes, but also apathy?) World made smaller – but for some also more distant? What we experience is a huge interconnectivity.  
• But also a challenge – because countries such as mine – that were almost mono-cultural only a few generations ago – are now experiencing the challenges and opportunities of many different cultures co-existing. This has happened fast. Not specific to Norway – a global phenomenon. A challenge we must deal with. We will need UNESCO’s principles and inspiration here.

 

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• Returning to Bill Clinton’s speech (our point of departure): “People are screaming ‘Stop the world! I want to get off!’ The problem is you can’t stop it, and you can’t get off. ...And since we’re all stuck, we’d better make it better together!” Clinton said. Wise words! 
• Summing up:
• Quality of education. Access to education. Sequences of education.
• Armed conflict – peace – education.