UNICEF Adopted a New Approach

USA NEWS, New York, 12 September:

UNICEF President Dr. Abdul Momen, Bangladesh Ambassador and Permanent
Representative to the UN presided over the Second Regular UNICEF
session this week at the UN Headquarters and during this 3-day
session, UNICEF finalized and adopted maximum decisions in the UNICEF
history.   This was possible as innovative ways were developed to
facilitate negotiations in a spirit of flexibility, cooperation and
consensus that Dr. Momen has been promoting and his Economic Minister
Nojibur Rahman smartly applied.  Through this initiative Dr. Momen was
successful to achieve a consensus resolution review for the UN Global
Counter Terrorism Strategy last week which was acclaimed by all 192
member nations of the UN.

In addition, a completely new approach to UNICEF program was also
approved and launched.  This strategy is known as ‘Equity Approach’.
UNICEF Executive Director Dr. Anthony Lake, former White Houses Chef
de Cabinet and President Bill Clinton’s National Security Advisor, a
former college professor of Massachusetts outlined this new approach.
This basic focus of this new approach is to devote more resources to
those areas which are deprived and hard to reach.  In various studies
especially in Bangladesh and Brazil it has been observed that while
100% primary school enrolment (MDG-2) or similar MDG programs
apparently have reached the target goals in a macroeconomic sense  or
on tract but in more detail analysis such have not reached to
vulnerable groups in remote areas or specific minority groups.  For
example, while primary school enrolment in urban cities maybe high or
dropout rate in cities in Bangladesh is relatively low or on target
but such enrolment is low or school dropout rate is extremely high in
those areas, for example, remote areas of Sylhet or Sunamgonj or
Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh.  A number of analysis have been
done in terms of cost-benefit analysis of this new strategy and there
is strong evidence that ‘equity approach is not only the right
approach but also ethical and moral’ stated UNICEF Executive Director
Dr Lake.

Bangladesh in cooperation with few other member countries and UNICEF
is now organizing a special event on ‘Children Issues and MDGs’ aiming
to promote this equity approach and highlight the issues of children
during the upcoming MDG Plenary.  Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina will co-chair this especial event.  It is to be mentioned that
more than 150 million children cannot go to school and out of 1
billion people below poverty level, most of them are women and
children.  In addition, nearly 584 million children live in South Asia
primarily Bangladesh, India and Pakistan.   According to Professor
Abdul Momen out of 8 MDG goals, 6 are relevant to children issues and
he believes, if problems of children could be correctly handled or
eased out, many problems of the global community especially of
Bangladesh be could be resolved.  Therefore, UNICEF President Dr.
Abdul Momen is putting additional emphasis on children issues and MDGs
during the upcoming MDG Summit at the UN.