Remarks
By
H.E. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser
The High Representative for the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations
At
The IPS Forum on Global Citizenship
November 18, 2014
Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations
(Delivered on his behalf by Nihal Saad, Spokesperson for the High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations)
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Colleagues,
Good morning,
H.E. Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, the High Representative for the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations couldn’t be here today as he is in Vienna representing the UN Secretary General at a conference titled “United Against Violence in the Name of Religion”. Mr. Al-Nasser asked me to deliver remarks on his behalf :
When someone turns 50… the big five zero… he or she would say “age is just a number”. Not so in the life cycle of news organizations, especially IPS. Because IPS fifty years on, continues to provide in depth news from journalists from all around the world. As it turned fifty, it enters a new phase if its life that adapts to the events that are transforming our world today – primarily globalization with all its advantages and shortcomings. We, at the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations are very proud of our partnership with IPS and I was honored to Chair its board for the past years.
I am very pleased to be addressing this forum on Global Citizenship , a topic that I had the opportunity to talk about in multiple occasions against the backdrop of the opportunities and challenges of Globalization.
Globalization has been welcomed and embraced as a paradigm of economic and social interdependence and linkage among states, particularly areas of finance, markets, trade, technology, media and communications as well as education.
In fact, the UN Secretary General has identified Global Citizenship as the third priority area in his Global Education First initiative. The reason for that is that Education, which is one of the four key areas of focus for the Alliance of Civilizations, is much more than an entry point to the job market.
It has the power to shape a sustainable future and better world. Educational policies should promote peace, mutual respect and environmental care. It does not suffice for education to produce individuals who can read, write and count. Education should and must bring shared values to life. It must cultivate a sense of caring and belonging to the global world which all we share as human beings.
Nurturing the noble values of peace, human rights, respect of the other, cultural diversity and justice in the younger minds is key . Those values which are often absent from today’s curricula and textbooks is an impediment to raising a generation perceptive of social, cultural and religious diversity. Sadly, today’s textbooks often reinforce stereotypes, and foster fear of the other rather than fostering the bonding value of the culture of peace.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear colleagues,
As you all know too well, the peaceful and prosperous co-existence of people and nations is the cornerstone of the United Nations mission. We are bound together as the international community in the belief that despite different cultures, languages and religions, there are fundamental shared values and principles that underpin our humanity.
We are bound together, as the UN family because we recognize that is through the celebration of diversity as well as promotion of tolerance and dispelling fear of the other that we build a more peaceful world. And because we are bound together, we understand that citizens of the world share common problems that require global solutions.
To conclude, I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to address this important and timely issue.
I wish you fruitful discussion.