Sr. Germaine Price, DC reports on meeting with Head of the UN

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met with representative of the NGO community and stressed that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can play a crucial role in supporting countries in transition as they work to build and strengthen their fledgling institutions with the assistance of the United Nations.

Sr. Germain Price DC  writes that Mr. Ban noted that many countries in the Middle East and North Africa undergoing the Arab Spring reform movement face major challenges like organizing elections, drafting new constitutions, promoting democratic practices, building independent judiciaries and developing free media.
“There can be no success without a healthy civil society. Please, do your part. Help these women’s groups, social media activists, human rights defenders and others to take their rightful place in place in society – in government, in parliament, in every public institution.”

The Secretary-General also stressed the need for NGOs to continue supporting those in need despite dwindling resources in the current difficult economic times when budgets are being cut and austerity measures instituted.
“It is up to us – organizations like yours and mine – to help restore that faith. To deliver for people in need. The austerity challenge is not merely about quantity; it is about quality. It is not merely about ‘doing more with less’ but about ‘doing better with less’,” he said.

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