Social

Poverty eradication, youth unemployment and socially inclusive policies will be the main focus of the 50th session of the United Nations Commission for Social Development, which kicked off today at UN Headquarters in New York.

The newly-elected President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Lazarous Kapambwe of Zambia, today outlined the body’s agenda for the coming year and pledged to work to strengthen its effectiveness in carrying out the United Nations’ global development agenda.

Ambassador Sylvie Lucas of Luxembourg was elected today as the 65th President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), making her the second woman to lead the world body’s principal organ responsible for coordinating work in these critical fields.

As the proportion of older persons continues to increase at unprecedented rates worldwide, countries will need to examine and adapt national policies, particularly those relating to pension systems and health care, according to a new United Nations report launched today.

The United Nations Commission for Social Development opened its annual session today in New York with a call for the adoption of policies that will ensure that economic growth generates employment to help fight poverty.

The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) today filled vacancies on a number of its subsidiary bodies, including the Geneva-based Commission on Human Rights.

With 10-year reviews of several key United Nations conferences having ended, the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) met today to figure out how to meet the challenges of carrying out recommendations on global socio-economic development as well as population issues and women's struggle for greater equality.

Although the United Nations development agenda is still dominated by economics, the 10-year review of the World Summit on Social Development in Copenhagen, Denmark, these past two weeks has brought social concerns back to a central position, a UN expert said today.

Having agreed that the social impact of globalization deserves further study, the United Nations Commission for Social Development today said policies to provide full employment and eradicate poverty should champion social integration and protect human rights in stable, safe and just societies.

The governments of developing countries should invest in the basic services that enable their people to take part in market economies and accelerate the kind of social development that lessens social inequality and exclusion, United Nations Deputy Secretary General Louise Fréchette said today.