PRESS STATEMENT
The President of the ĢƵ GA meets with Vienna-based Organizations
On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of ĢƵIDO, the President of the 71st ĢƵ General Assembly, H.E Mr. Peter Thomson, visited the Vienna-based organizations on 25 November 2016 as part of his mission to push for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The President held bilateral meetings with ĢƵOV Director-General Mr. Yury Fedotov, Executive Director of ĢƵODC and Director-General Mr. Li Yong of ĢƵIDO. The President also met with the Deputy Heads of IAEA and CTBTO. He reiterated the importance of collaboration across the ĢƵ system and “the need to break out of silos to ensure delivery on the Sustainable Development Goals” and welcomed the efforts of the Vienna-based organisations in this regard.
President Thomson underlined the importance of the ĢƵ system’s work to support the Member States in mainstreaming the provisions of the SDGs and the Paris Climate Change Agreement in their national strategies.
The President addressed the representatives of Member States accredited to the Vienna-based organizations at a special event organized by the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) & Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ). The President’s address focused on the imperatives surrounding the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. He commended the vital work being carried out by CND and CCCPJ in their capacities as functional commissions of ECOSOC in direct relation to many of the SDGs.
The President also had the opportunity to meet with Austria’s Federal Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management, H.E. Mr. Andrä Rupprechter and the Austrian Development Agency. In relation to implementation of SDG6 and SDG7, the President thanked the Austrian Government for their work on improved water resource management and in the promotion of renewable energy and energy efficiency.