Key Actions for the Further Implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development – ICPD+5
General Assembly 21st special session
New York, USA, 30 June-2 July 1999


The first five-year review of the implementation of the Programme of Action was conducted by the General Assembly in 1999, which adopted, by consensus, the Key Actions for the Further Implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development . The review demonstrated that the ICPD goals were still relevant and that much progress had been made in advancing them. At the same time, it revealed that much greater and continued action was needed in certain programme areas. The Key Actions provided a new set of benchmarks for four priority issues: education and literacy, reproductive health care and unmet need for contraception, maternal mortality reduction and HIV/AIDS.
(http://www.unfpa.org/icpd/10/note.htm)

Download ICPD+5 Report (Eng) (pdf version)
Download ICPD+5 Report (Ar) (pdf version)

The International Conference on Population and Development – ICPD
Cairo, Egypt, 5-13 September 1994


The Fifth International Conference on Population and Development was held from 5 to 13 September 1994 under the auspices of the United Nations. More than 180 States participated in this event, at which a new Programme of Action was adopted as a guide for national and international action in the area of population and development for the next 20 years. This new Programme of Action places emphasis on the indissoluble relationship between population and development and focuses on meeting the needs of individuals within the framework of universally recognized human rights standards instead of merely meeting demographic goals. The adoption of this Programme marks a new phase of commitment and determination to effectively integrate population issues into socio-economic development proposals and to achieve a better quality of life for all individuals, including those of future generations.
(http://www.un.org/esa/devagenda/population.html)

Download ICPD Plan of Action (Eng) (pdf version)
Download ICPD Plan of Action (Ar) (pdf version)

ICPD at 10
UN General Assembly Commemoration of ICPD at 10
New York, USA, 14 October 2004


The 10th Anniversary of the ICPD, in 2004, marked the mid-point of its 20-year Programme of Action. This offered an opportunity to reflect on progress to date and take stock of challenges ahead. Towards this end, UNFPA conducted an in-depth, country-by-country analysis of achievements, constraints, lessons learned and viable approaches towards full implementation of the ICPD PoA. The 10th Anniversary was also an opportunity to reflect on the diversity of the ICPD goals, and demonstrate how their achievement would forward progress toward the Millennium Development Goals. This page reflects some of the highlights of the ICPD at Ten Review.
(http://www.unfpa.org/icpd/10/note.htm)

Download Official outcomes of ICPD at Ten Review (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Arab Population Forum - Beirut Declaration (Ar) (pdf version)
Download ICPD+10 National Report - LEBANON (Ar) (pdf version)

 

"Only through broad and sustained efforts to create a shared future, based upon our common humanity in all its diversity, can globalization be made fully inclusive and equitable", world leaders stated as they unanimously adopted a "United Nations Millennium Declaration" at the conclusion of their Millennium Summit on 8 September 2000.

Millennium Development Goals

The MDGs represent a global partnership that has grown from the commitments and targets established at the world summits of the 1990s. Responding to the world's main development challenges and to the calls of civil society, the MDGs promote poverty reduction, education, maternal health, gender equality, and aim at combating child mortality, AIDS and other diseases.
Set for the year 2015, the MDGs are an agreed set of goals that can be achieved if all actors work together and do their part. Poor countries have pledged to govern better, and invest in their people through health care and education. Rich countries have pledged to support them, through aid, debt relief, and fairer trade.
(http://www.undp.org/mdg/)

Download Millennium Development Goals (Eng) (pdf version)
Download UN MDG Report 2005 (Eng) (pdf version)
Download UN MDG Report 2006 (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Arab MDG Report 2005 (Eng) (pdf version)
Download LEBANON MDG Report (Eng) (pdf version)
Download LEBANON MDG Report (Ar) (pdf version)

Millennium + 5 Summit
2005 World Summit
New York, USA, 14-16 September 2005

At the 2005 World Summit, the largest-ever gathering of world leaders reaffirmed the need to keep gender equality, HIV/AIDS and reproductive health at the top of the development agenda. The World Summit followed up on and added to the Millennium Summit, an historic convocation of world leaders in 2000.
(http://www.unfpa.org/icpd/index.htm)

Download 2005 World Summit Outcome (Eng) (pdf version)

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women – CEDAW
Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly resolution 34/180 of 18 December 1979
Entry into force 3 September 1981, in accordance with article 27(1)

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, is often described as an international bill of rights for women. It defines what constitutes discrimination against women and sets up an agenda for national action to end such discrimination.
The Convention provides the basis for realizing equality between women and men through ensuring women's equal access to, and equal opportunities in, political and public life -- including the right to vote and to stand for election -- as well as education, health and employment. States parties agree to take all appropriate measures, including legislation and temporary special measures, so that women can enjoy all their human rights and fundamental freedoms.
The Convention is the only human rights treaty which affirms the reproductive rights of women and targets culture and tradition as influential forces shaping gender roles and family relations. It affirms women's rights to acquire, change or retain their nationality and the nationality of their children. States parties also agree to take appropriate measures against all forms of traffic in women and exploitation of women.
Countries that have ratified or acceded to the Convention are legally bound to put its provisions into practice. They are also committed to submit national reports, at least every four years, on measures they have taken to comply with their treaty obligations.
(http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/)

Download CEDAW (Eng) (pdf version)
Download CEDAW (Ar) (pdf version)
Download LEBANON Report to CEDAW Committee 2005 (Eng) (pdf version)
Download LEBANON Report to CEDAW Committee 2005 (Ar) (pdf version)
Download 25 years of the CEDAW in the world: how the countries are performing… (Eng) (pdf version)

Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Adopted and proclaimed by General Assembly resolution 217 A (III) of 10 December 1948

On December 10, 1948 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Following this historic act the Assembly called upon all Member countries to publicize the text of the Declaration and "to cause it to be disseminated, displayed, read and expounded principally in schools and other educational institutions, without distinction based on the political status of countries or territories."
(http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html)

Download Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Ar) (pdf version)

World Conference on Human Rights
Vienna, Austria, 14-25 June 1993 
 

On 25 June 1993, representatives of 171 States adopted by consensus the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action of the World Conference on Human Rights, thus successfully closing the two-week World conference and presenting to the international community a common plan for the strengthening of human rights work around the world. The World Conference on Human Rights in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (in particular, para. 33 of Section I ) stated that human rights education, training and public information were essential for the promotion and achievement of stable and harmonious relations among communities and for fostering mutual understanding, tolerance and peace. The Conference recommended that States should strive to eradicate illiteracy and should direct education towards the full development of the human personality and the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It called on all States and institutions to include human rights, humanitarian law, democracy and rule of law as subjects in the curricula of all learning institutions in formal and non-formal settings. Pursuant to a suggestion of the World Conference, the United Nations General Assembly, in its resolution 49/184 of 23 December 1994, proclaimed the 10-year period beginning on 1 January 1995 the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education, and welcomed the Plan of Action for the Decade contained in the report of the Secretary-General. The Viena Declaration also made concrete recommendations for strengthening and harmonizing the monitoring capacity of the United Nations system. In this regard, it called for the establishment of a High Commissioner for Human Rights by the General Assembly, which subsequently created the post on 20 December 1993 (resolution 48/141).
(http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu5/wchr.htm)

Download Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (Eng) (pdf version)

Five-Year Review of the Implementation of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action
COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS, Fifty-fourth session, 16 March - 24 April 1998
Items 3 and 21 of the provisional agenda

The Commission on Human Rights at its fifty-fourth session (March-April 1998) - while reflecting on the role of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, undertook an initial review of the implementation of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action based on the Interim report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the Five-Year Review of the Implementation of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action.
(http://www.unhchr.ch/html/50th/vdparev.htm)

Download the Five-Year Review of the Implementation of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (Eng) (pdf version)

Fourth World Conference on Women
Beijing, China, 4-15 September 1995

The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action were adopted at the Fourth World Conference on Women, held from 4 to 15 September 1995, by the representatives of 189 countries. The Platform reflects the new international commitment to achieving the goals of equality, development and peace for women throughout the world. It also strengthens the commitments made during the United Nations Decade for Women, 1976-1985, which culminated in the Nairobi Conference, as well as related commitments undertaken during the cycle of United Nations world conferences held in the 1990s.
(http://www.un.org/esa/devagenda/gender.html)

Download Beijing Declaration & Platform for Action (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Beijing Declaration & Platform for Action (Ar) (pdf version)

Women 2000: gender equality, development and peace for the twenty-first century – Beijing + 5
General Assembly 23rd special session
New York, USA, 5-9 June 2000

Five years after the Beijing Conference, the special session of June 2000 gave all stakeholders an opportunity to share and compare experiences, renew existing commitments and assume new ones, and consider the obstacles encountered and good practices observed in the implementation of the Platform for Action.
(http://www.un.org/esa/devagenda/gender.html)

Download Beijing+5 Report (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Beijing+5 Report (Ar) (pdf version)
Download ESCWA Report: Beijing+ 5 - Future actions and initiatives (Eng) (pdf version)

Review and Appraisal of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the Outcome Document of the Twenty-Third Special Session of the General Assembly
Commission on the Status of Women 49th session – Beijing + 10
New York, USA, 28 February-11 March 2005

A review and appraisal of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action adopted at the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995), and the outcome of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly (2000), was mandated in the multi-year programme of work of the Commission on the Status of Women for its forty-ninth session in March 2005. The Commission considered two themes:
• "Review of the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly"; and
• "Current challenges and forward-looking strategies for the advancement and empowerment of women and girls"
The review and appraisal by the Commission focused on implementation at national level and identified achievements, gaps and challenges and provided an indication of areas where actions and initiatives, within the framework of the Platform for Action and the outcome of the special session (Beijing+5), were most urgent to further implementation.
(http://www.un.org/esa/devagenda/gender.html)

Download Beijing + 10 Final Report (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Beijing + 10 Final Report (Ar) (pdf version)
Download Report of the Arab Regional Conference Ten Years After Beijing (Eng) (pdf version)
Download The Beijing + 10 Report on The Role & Contribution of the Arab NGOs (Eng) (pdf version)
Download The Beijing + 10 Report on The Role & Contribution of the Arab NGOs (Ar) (pdf version)
Download Policy Report on Gender and Development: 10 Years after Beijing (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Achievements, gaps and challenges in linking the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action and the Millennium Declaration and Millennium Development Goals (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Beijing+10 Meets WTO+10 (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Beijing betrayed (Eng) (pdf version)

World Summit for Social Development – WSSD
Copenhagen, Denmark, 11-12 March 1995

World events in the mid-1990s formed the backdrop for the World Summit for Social Development. The discussion revolved around globalization, dramatic changes in the world economy, poverty, unemployment and social disintegration. These phenomena highlighted the need to give renewed priority to the social aspects of development, with emphasis on the least developed and most isolated countries.

Commitments:
• Creating an economic, political, social, cultural and legal environment that will enable people to achieve social development.
• Eradicating poverty in the world through decisive actions and international cooperation.
• Promoting full employment as a basic priority of economic and social policy.
• Promoting social integration and the promotion and protection of all human rights.
• Achieving equality between women and men.
• Promoting and attaining the goals of universal and equitable access to quality education and access for all to primary health care.
• Accelerating the economic, social and human development of Africa and the least developed countries. • Ensuring that structural adjustment programmes include social development goals.
• Significantly increasing the resources allocated to social development.
• Improving and strengthening the framework for international cooperation in a spirit of partnership.

In order to achieve these commitments, the Summit participants proposed a Programme of Action based on the three main themes of poverty eradication, expansion of productive employment and reduction of unemployment, and social integration. The Member States also adopted the Copenhagen Declaration.
(http://www.un.org/esa/devagenda/social.html)

Download Report of The World Summit For Social Development (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Report of The World Summit For Social Development (Ar) (pdf version)

Social Summit+5 – WSSD+5
General Assembly 24th special session
Geneva, 26 June-1 July 2000

At this meeting the States members of the United Nations took part in the appraisal and follow-up to the objectives of the World Summit on Social Development and set the following challenges: to confirm each country's responsibility in relation to the Copenhagen accords; convincing the North-South axis of the need for a solid system of basic social services; sound principles for social policies; particular attention to the role of women in social policy; and the role of civil society as a critical partner in the quest for solutions. (http://www.un.org/esa/devagenda/social.html)

Download Resolution adopted by the General Assembly 24th special session (Eng) (pdf version)

10-year review of the implementation of the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action and the outcome of the 24th special session of the General Assembly – WSSD+10
Commission for Social Development 43rd session
New York, USA, 9-18 February 2005

At its forty-third session, the Commission for Social Development held a two-day high-level segment on 10 and 11 February 2005 devoted to the 10-year review of the World Summit for Social Development.
The Declaration on the tenth anniversary of the World Summit, inter alia, reaffirmed that the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action adopted by the Summit and the further initiatives for social development adopted by the General Assembly at its twenty-fourth special session constitute the basic framework for the promotion of social development for all at the national and international levels and recognized that the implementation of the Copenhagen commitments and the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals are mutually reinforcing and that the Copenhagen commitments are crucial to a coherent, people-centered approach to development.
(http://daccessdds.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N05/261/95/PDF/N0526195.pdf?OpenElement)

Download Report of the Commission for Social Development 43rd session (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Report of the Commission for Social Development 43rd session (Ar) (pdf version)

The Convention on the Rights of the Child – CRC
Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly
resolution 44/25 of 20 November 1989
Entry into force 2 September 1990, in accordance with article 49

The Convention on the Rights of the Child is the first legally binding international instrument to incorporate the full range of human rights—civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights. In 1989, world leaders decided that children needed a special convention just for them because people under 18 years old often need special care and protection that adults do not. The leaders also wanted to make sure that the world recognized that children have human rights too.

The Convention sets out these rights in 54 articles and two Optional Protocols. It spells out the basic human rights that children everywhere have: the right to survival; to develop to the fullest; to protection from harmful influences, abuse and exploitation; and to participate fully in family, cultural and social life.

The four core principles of the Convention are non-discrimination; devotion to the best interests of the child; the right to life, survival and development; and respect for the views of the child. Every right spelled out in the Convention is inherent to the human dignity and harmonious development of every child. The Convention protects children's rights by setting standards in health care; education; and legal, civil and social services.

By agreeing to undertake the obligations of the Convention (by ratifying or acceding to it), national governments have committed themselves to protecting and ensuring children's rights and they have agreed to hold themselves accountable for this commitment before the international community. States parties to the Convention are obliged to develop and undertake all actions and policies in the light of the best interests of the child.
(http://www.unicef.org/crc/)

Download U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (Eng) (pdf version)
Download U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (Ar) (pdf version)
Download LEBANON 2nd Report to CRC Committee 2000 (Eng) (pdf version)
Download LEBANON 3rd Report to CRC Committee 2005 (Eng) (pdf version)
Download LEBANON 3rd Report to CRC Committee 2005 (Ar) (pdf version)

The World Summit for Children
New York, USA, 29-30 September 1990

On 29-30 September 1990, the largest gathering of world leaders in history assembled at the United Nations to attend the World Summit for Children. Led by 71 heads of State and Government and 88 other senior officials, mostly at the ministerial level, the World Summit adopted a Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children and a Plan of Action for implementing the Declaration in the 1990s.
(http://www.unicef.org/wsc/)

Download World Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Plan of Action for implementing the Declaration in the 1990s (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Goals for Children and Development in the 1990s (Eng) (pdf version)

United Nations Special Session on Children
General Assembly 27th special session
New York, USA, 8-10 May 2002

From 8 to 10 May 2002, more than 7,000 people participated in the most important international conference on children in more than a decade, the Special Session of the UN General Assembly on Children, at which the nations of the world committed themselves to a series of goals to improve the situation of children and young people.

The Special Session was a landmark, the first such Session devoted exclusively to children and the first to include them as official delegates. It was convened to review progress since the World Summit for Children in 1990 and re-energize global commitment to children's rights.

About 70 Heads of State and/or Government, prime ministers or their deputies, together with many high-ranking government delegations came to New York to take part in the Session. Four governments had youth representatives address the General Assembly on behalf of their respective countries (the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Togo).
(http://www.unicef.org/specialsession/)

Download Resolution adopted by the General Assembly 27th special session (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Resolution adopted by the General Assembly 27th special session (Ar) (pdf version)
Download A World Fit for Children (Eng) (pdf version)
Download UNFPA's contribution to the goals of the World Summit for Children: Future Generations Ready for The World (Eng) (pdf version)
Download UNFPA's contribution to the goals of the World Summit for Children: Future Generations Ready for The World (Ar) (pdf version)
Download U.N. Special Session on Children: A First Anniversary Report on Follow-Up (Eng) (pdf version)

The World Conference on Education for All
Jomtien, Thailand, 5-9 March 1990

Mid-Decade Meeting on Education for All
Amman, Jordan, 16-19 June 1996


Download The Amman Declaration (Eng) (pdf version)

The World Education Forum
Dakar, Senegal, 26-28 April 2000


The World Education Forum (Dakar, Senegal, April 2000) was the first and most important event in education at the dawn of the new century. By adopting the Dakar Framework for Action, which incorporated the six Regional Frameworks for Action, the Forum participants demonstrated a collective commitment to action to achieve the goals and targets of Education for All by 2015.
(http://www.un.org/esa/devagenda/education.html)

Download World Education Forum 2000 Final Report (Eng) (pdf version)
Download World Education Forum 2000 Final Report (Ar) (pdf version)
Download Dakar Framework for Action (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Dakar Framework for Action (Ar) (pdf version)
Download Education for All in the Arab States 2000 (Eng) (pdf version)

United Nations Conference on Environment and Development – Earth Summit
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 3-14 June 1992



Download Report of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (Eng) (pdf version)

Earth Summit+5
General Assembly 19th special session to review and appraise the implementation of Agenda 21
New York, USA, 23-27 June 1997


The Earth Summit review:
• Showed that sustainable development works by highlighting stories of successful efforts being made by people around the world
• Identified reasons why goals set in Rio have not always been met and suggest corrective action
• Highlighted special issues -- such as finance and technology transfer, patterns of production and consumption, use of energy and transportation, scarcity of freshwater -- and identify priorities for future action
• Called on Governments, international organizations and major groups to renew their commitment to sustainable development.
(http://www.un.org/esa/devagenda/sustainable.html)

Download Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21 (Eng) (pdf version)

Rio+10
World Summit on Sustainable Development
Johannesburg, South Africa, 26 August-4 September 2002


(http://www.un.org/esa/devagenda/sustainable.html)

Download Report of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (Eng) (pdf version)
Download Report of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (Ar) (pdf version)