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UNAIDS Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS |
Strategic Planning: Situation AnalysisIn June 1999 the first field steps in analysing the situation in the regions participating in the strategic planning process were made. A group of researchers of the State Institute of Family and Education, which is the key project partner in carrying out a sociological component of the situation analysis, worked in the Saratov and Volgograd Regions in close cooperation with the regional partners to deeper understand the roots of the HIV epidemic and highlight possibilities of slowing down the spread of the disease.
Preparing for the process, early in spring UNAIDS carried out a workshop which brought together key project actors to reach a common understanding and shared vision of the objectives, strategies and expected outcomes of the strategic planning exercise in general, and situation/response analysis in particular. Representatives of 11 Russian regions, specialists of 4 interested federal ministries, and researchers of the State Research Institute of Family and Education worked together to develop mechanisms of coordination and cooperation between all actors before, during and after the field works in the regions. Later in the preparatory stage UNAIDS in cooperation with the Return Fund organized in St. Petersburg a mini-workshop to give the Institute researchers a chance to gain experience in collecting information about and within especially vulnerable to HIV populations, like intravenous drug users and commercial sex workers. Based on the background information the researchers were to identify and agree with the regional partners upon the issues, which would need the on-site studying. With respect to the complexity of the task at hand, it was decided to pilot field studies in the two better prepared regions assuming that the experience gained would help at a later stage in preparing the field study process for the other ten partner regions. The Saratov and Volgograd Regions, who were the first to join the project, became pilot regions for carrying out the field research. By the end of August the reports on the situation in relation to HIV/AIDS in the two pilot regions will be prepared, and in mid-September all partners will gather again to plan further activities for the analysis of the situation and preparation of the strategic plan. |
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UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific & Cultural Organisation |
The World Federation of UNESCO Clubs Holds a ConferenceOn July 7-11 Yekaterinburg hosted the fifth World Conference of the Federation of UNESCO Clubs, which brought together representatives from more than one hundred countries from the planet’s five continents. The conference looked at the results of the work of the World Federation of UNESCO Clubs in past years and outlined plans for the future. The gathering was addressed by UNESCO’s Director General Federico Mayor, who was on a visit to Yekaterinburg. Replying to the criticism of the «Toward a Culture of Peace» program for its idealistic approach and lack of realism, he emphasized that in the history of mankind only idealists have been capable of changing the world, planning the future and implementing their ideas, while realists, who accept realities as they are, can not bring about any serious changes. The conference adopted the Yekaterinburg Declaration, which called upon every participant of this large-scale international movement to pay particular attention to spreading and propagating the ideas of the culture of peace, non-violence, tolerance and human rights. The Urals Association of UNESCO’s Clubs and the municipal administration of Yekaterinburg contributed to the preparation of the conference. UNESCO’s 22 clubs of the Urals region mounted an exhibition of their most gifted members in the honor of the participants of the conference. UNESCO’s Director General Federico Mayor
An Inter-Regional Conference on KidnappingOn July 3-4 the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria (a republic in the Russian Federation) hosted an inter-regional conference that addressed the issues of kidnapping, hostage-taking, and selling people and looked at the prospects of human rights activities. The conference, organized with UNESCO’s support, brought together 123 representatives of governmental and non-governmental organizations from 13 entities of Russia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia and Germany. The following reports were presented at the gathering: «General Problems of Hostage-Taking, Kidnapping and Selling People», «Moral and Psychological Aspects of the Problem» and «The Problem as It Stands Today». The conference included work in the following sections: «International and National Legislation and CIS Practice», «Principles of a Mediator’s Efforts in Getting Hostages Released and Cooperation of Governmental and Non-Governmental Organizations», «A Culture of Peace and Non-Violence and the Moral-Psychological Aspects of Hostage-Taking». The conference drew up and adopted a large package of documents on hostage-taking, kidnapping and selling people. The documents contain an update on the situation and concrete proposals on preventive measures and methods of combating these phenomena. Among some other most important results of the conference was the decision to set up a fund for struggle against hostage-taking and a coordinating council that will comprise representatives of governmental and non-governmental organizations. This is meant to step up the joint efforts aimed at getting hostages released and carrying out the conference’s other proposals. It was also agreed to hold in 2000 an international conference that will look into the historical and legal aspects of kidnapping, hostage-taking and selling people on post-Soviet territory and analyze the causes of the appearance and development of this practice. The inter-regional conference was organized and held on the initiative and with the active participation of the permanent conference «Women for a Life Without War and Violence!». The co-chairwoman of the conference is Professor Marina Salie, Ph.D., member of the Political Consultative Council of the Russian President. |
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UNAR United Nations Association of Russia |
Kofi Annan Visited UNAR
In the course of the dinner Kofi Annan and Anatoly Torkunov, Chairman of the UN Association of Russia, exchanged messages of greeting and agreed to continue promoting bilateral cooperation. The UN Secretary General emphasized the priceless efforts of the UN Association of Russia and its work with the public. The dinner party was also attended by Russia’s Permanent Envoy to the United Nations Sergei Lavrov and Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Ordzhonikidze. |
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UN Association of Russia Invited as an Observer to the Elections to the European ParliamentUnited Nations Association of Denmark and the Esperanto Forum invited representatives of East European countries to attend as observers the elections to the European parliament. Russia was represented by Alexei Borisov, Executive Secretary of the UN Association of Russia. The observers worked at the polling stations in Copenhagen (Denmark) and Malmo (Sweden). The elections revealed no serious violations of the election legislation of either of the Scandinavian countries. The sides involved used the mission’s results and agreed to continue the practice, from which, they believe, every side stands to gain thanks to a more extensive exchange of experience. |
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Prior to the in-depth on site studies the regional partners made available to
the researchers documentation and statistical data to prepare for the field research that
would correspond with the specificity of each region. The collected background information
covered different areas; along with the specific HIV-related matters, like procedures of
recording the HIV cases, support offered to the HIV infected and affected individuals and
families, dynamics of the HIV spread, routes of HIV transmission, risk groups and risk
factors, the issues of employment, family income, education and leisure activities for
youth, priorities and decision making process in the social sphere, and many others were
detailed. 
The United Nations Association of Russia gave a dinner party in honor of the
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan during the high guest’s visit to Russia in late June.