07-01-2005Third session of the intergovernmental meeting on the International Convention Against Doping in Sport
The third session of the intergovernmental meeting of experts on the preliminary draft of the International Convention Against Doping in Sport* will take place at UNESCO Headquarters from January 10 to 15. During the meeting, some 200 participants are expected to finalize the text that will be submitted to the 33rd session of UNESCO’s General Conference in October for adoption ahead of the 2006 Winter Olympics (Turin, Italy). More
04-01-2005UNESCO stands ready to extend tsunami watch system to Indian Ocean
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura has welcomed proposals by several countries to help create a tsunami alert system for the Indian Ocean, similar to the one established by UNESCO to protect the countries of the Pacific. More
03-01-2005Countess Setsuko Klossowska de Rola named UNESCO Artist for Peace
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, will name the internationally renowned painter, Countess Setsuko Klossowska de Rola, UNESCO Artist for Peace, in a ceremony at Organization Headquarters on January 7 (12.30 p.m.). More
21-12-2004Director-General condemns the killing of Gambian journalist Deyda Hydara
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today condemned the killing on December 16 of Deyda Hydara, managing editor and co-owner of Gambia’ independent newspaper The Point, saluting his longstanding commitment in favour of freedom of the press. More
16-12-2004UNESCO Director-General welcomes release of two Laotian political prisoners
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today expressed satisfaction and pleasure over the release of Laotian political prisoners Latsami Khamphoui and Feng Sakchittaphong. The two men, for whose release UNESCO campaigned for many years, arrived with their families in France today and will be given medical care. More
10-12-2004European coalition of cities against racism launched in Nuremberg
The European Coalition of Cities Against Racism was launched today in Nuremberg, at the Fourth European Conference of Cities for Human Rights* which brought together representatives from more than 140 cities. More
10-12-2004Tirana Summit commits to foster inter-ethnic and inter-religious dialogue
Tirana (Albania) - The regional Summit of Tirana1, organized at the initiative of the President of Albania, Alfred Moisiu, and the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, ended today with the adoption, by some 150 participants, including six Heads of State, of the Tirana Summit Declaration on Inter-Religious and Inter-Ethnic Dialogue in South-East Europe, in which the participants pledge to release themselves “from the disputes of the past […] by practicing a culture of dialogue”, within and among their countries. More
10-12-2004Vitit Muntarbhorn from Thailand wins 2004 UNESCO prize for Human Rights Education
Director-General of UNESCO Koïchiro Matsuura has named Professor Vitit Muntarbhorn of Thailand the winner of the 2004 UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education. More
08-12-2004Political will reaffirmed during MINEPS IV
Athens (Greece) – The Fourth International Conference of Ministers and Senior Officials Responsible for Sport and Physical Education (MINEPS IV) closed today after having reaffirmed the will to overcome the last remaining differences concerning the Draft international convention against doping in sport. More
08-12-2004Sport prizes awarded by UNESCO and the International Committee for fair play
Athens (Greece) – Greek Olympic Champion Voula Patoulidou and New Zealand rugby player Tana Umaga are among the laureates of sports prizes awarded by UNESCO and by the International Committee for fair-play (CIFP) in Athens yesterday at the Fourth International Conference of Ministers and Senior Officials Responsible for Sport and Physical Education (MINEPS IV). More
31-08-200447th Session of the International Conference on Education to focus on quality
A growing loss of confidence in education systems and structures and a general perception that students are not learning what they need to cope with today’s societies, provide the backdrop for the 47th session of the International Conference on Education (ICE), which will take place in Geneva, Switzerland, from September 8-11* on the theme “Quality education for all young people: Challenges, Trends and Priorities”. More
28-08-2004Director-General condemns killing of italian journalist Enzo Baldoni in Iraq
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today condemned the assassination in Iraq of Italian journalist Enzo Baldoni and voiced outrage at the increasing targeting of media professionals in the country. More
27-08-2004Director-General condemns murder of nepalese journalist Dakendra Raj Thapa
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today condemned the killing of journalist Dakendra Raj Thapa by Maoist rebels in the west of Nepal on August 11. More
20-08-2004Director-General condemns killing of Sri Lankan journalist Iyer Balanadarajah
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today condemned the murder of Iyer Balanadarajah, better known as Sinna Baia, a reporter of the Tamil weekly Thinamurasu, and called for a full investigation of the killing, the second assassination of a journalist in Sri Lanka this year. More
06-08-2004Director-General condemns murder of journalist Roger Mariano, 3rd in Philippines this year
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura condemned the assassination of Philippines radio broadcaster Roger Mariano in Laoag City, in the north of the Philippines on July 31. More
31-07-2004Finalists of first worldwide School Contest based on intercultural dialogue
Paris, July 30 – An international jury selected 25 finalists [*] of the “Mondialogo School Contest” - the first global contest for school students involved in intercultural dialogue - at UNESCO Headquarters today. The 25 finalists, each consisting of two teams from different countries, were chosen by the jury whose members include former President of Iceland Vigdis Finnbogadottir, Brazilian author Paulo Coelho, Lebanese composer Marcel Khalife, Japanese painter Countess Setsuko Klossowska de Rola and Malian scientist Cheick Diarra. More
06-07-2004World Heritage Committee sounds the alarm for Cologne Cathedral
The Cathedral of Cologne (Germany), one of Europe’s masterpieces of Gothic architecture, was inscribed today on the List of World Heritage in Danger by the 21-member World Heritage Committee, which is holding its annual meeting in Suzhou until July 7. More
05-07-2004Angkor among the three sites removed from UNESCO's List of World Heritage in danger
Cambodia’s celebrated temples and palaces at Angkor were removed from UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger today, as were the Bahla Fort (Oman) and Rwenzori Mountains National Park (Uganda). More
02-07-2004Iran’s ancient city of Bam among the 34 new sites inscribed on World Heritage List
The rich archaeological remains of the Iranian city of Bam, where 26,000 lost their lives in the earthquake of December 26, 2003, was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, alongside 12 other new cultural sites listed today by the World Heritage Committee holding its 28th session in Suzhou. This brings to 788 the number of cultural, natural and mixed sites now on the List. More
01-07-2004Thirteen new sites inscribed on World Heritage List
Suzhou (China) - The Democratic People's Republic of Korea had its first site inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List today with the addition of a complex of Koguryo tombs. Andorra also entered the List with the cultural landscape of Madriu-Claror-Perafita Valley. They were among 13 cultural sites listed in Suzhou today. More
29-06-2004United Nations at EXPO 2005 Aichi
At the invitation of the Government of Japan the United Nations has announced that it will participate in the World Exposition (EXPO) 2005 to take place in Aichi, Japan, from next March 25 to September 25, 2005. More
26-06-2004Olympic flame kindles spirit of reconciliation during passage past UNESCO
A 15–year old Israeli girl, Lotus Ammar, passed the Olympic flame to a 15 year old Palestinian boy, Zayd Khader Mostafa, in front of the Organization’s Paris Headquarters this evening, in a gesture charged with the spirit of peace and reconciliation that both the Olympic Games and UNESCO embody. More
25-06-2004Director-General condemns murder of Mexican journalist Francisco Javier Ortiz Franco
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today condemned the murder of Francisco Javier Ortiz Franco, co-editor of weekly Zeta, on June 22 in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. More
23-06-2004Director-General condemns murder of Philippines radio broadcaster Ely Binoya
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today condemned the murder of radio manager and broadcaster Ely Binoya in General Santos City, in the southern Philippines on June 17. More
26-05-2004Film directors Ousmane Sembene and Chantal Akerman awarded UNESCO's Fellini medal
Film directors Ousmane Sembene (Senegal) and Chantal Akerman (Belgium) will receive UNESCO’s Fellini medal on May 28 in Barcelona. The medal is awarded to directors and actors in recognition of their contribution to the respect and promotion of cultural diversity. More
22-05-2004Ice hockey champion Vyacheslav Fetisov to be named UNESCO Champion for Sport
Russian ice hockey champion Vyacheslav Fetisov, who heads the Russian Federation’s Federal Agency for Sport, Physical Education and Tourism, will be named UNESCO Champion for Sport by UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura in a ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters on Wednesday, May 26, 6.30 p.m. More
27-02-2004Scaling up action against HIV/AIDS: meeting of UN agencies and Southern African ministers in Zambia
Paris, February 27 - The Committee of the Cosponsoring Organizations (CCO) of UNAIDS, which brings together the heads of the nine* United Nations agencies participating in the joint HIV/AIDS programme, will hold its annual meeting in Africa for the first time, March 3 to 5. Some 20** ministers of health, education, and finance from the region, one of the parts of the world worst hit by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, will attend the meeting, in Livingstone (Zambia). It will be chaired by Koïchiro Matsuura, the Director-General of UNESCO which is currently chairing UNAIDS. More
26-02-2004Goodwill Ambassadors to sponsor Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage
Paris, February 26 – UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors – leading personalities who place their talent and international renown at the service of the Organization’s ideals – decided to sponsor some of the 47 Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity during their annual meeting in Paris today. More
26-02-2004UNESCO Director-General voices profound sorrow at the death of Boris Trajkovski
Paris, February 26 – UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura expressed his “profound sorrow” at the death of President Boris Trajkovski, President of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, in an air crash this morning. More
24-02-2004Jailed Cuban journalist Raúl Rivero awarded World Press Freedom Prize 2004
The jailed Cuban journalist Raúl Rivero Castañeda was today awarded the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize for 2004 by UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura, on the recommendation of an international jury. More
20-02-2004Director-General condemns murder of Peruvian journalist
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today condemned the murder of radio journalist Antonio de la Torre Echeandía in the city of Yungay in the Ancash region of Peru on February 14. More
08-01-2004UNESCO Director-General voices alarm at sharp increase in number of journalists killed in 2003
Paris, January 8 - UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today condemned the killing of five journalists in recent weeks and deplored the fact that more reporters were killed in the line of duty in 2003 than in any year since 1995. More
05-01-2004Launch of International Year for the Commemoration of the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition
On January 10, UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura will officially launch the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition in Cape Coast (Ghana), one of the slave trade’s most active centres and today a World Heritage site. The year, devoted to an unprecedented tragedy that was recognized as a “crime against humanity” at the Durban World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance (2001), should help humanity accomplish its duty of remembrance and fight all forms of slavery and racism in the world. More
27-12-2003UNESCO Director-General offers condolences and support to Iran following tragic earthquake
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura has conveyed his condolences to the people of the Islamic Republic of Iran, following the terrible earthquake that struck the country yesterday morning. In a letter to President Seyyed Mohammad Khatami, Mr Matsuura expressed his distress at the “cruel loss of so many lives” and offered his “sincere condolences and heartfelt sympathy to the families of the victims at this time of national mourning.” More
13-12-2003Director-General welcomes endorsement of freedom of expression by WSIS
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura has welcomed the clear and unambiguous reaffirmation of the human right to freedom of expression by the World Summit on the Information Society, WSIS, in Geneva on December 12. More
Lancement de l’initiative Universitaires sans frontières21-11-2005 9:00 am
Organisée par la Section pour la coopération internationale dans l'enseignement supérieur, le lancement de l’initiative Universitaires sans frontières (USF) est un nouveau pas vers le renforcement de la solidarité universitaire à l’échelle mondiale.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
Lancement de l’initiative Universitaires sans frontières 21-11-2005 9:00 am