The Future of Development Policies and Changing Priorities: Africa [antikvár]

In recent years the importance of international cooperation in the economic and social life of Hungary has grown considerably. As a result of Hungary's membership of the UN, the European Union and OECD as well, it has become a major responsibility for the country to participate in international development cooperation, that is, to assist and speed up development in the developing countries. The European Union and the OECD have committed themselves to the implementation of the decisions made by the large international conferences - like sustainable development and financing development - organized by the UN in the last fifteen years and to the realization of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). By becoming a donor country, Hungary has started to formulate its development cooperation policy in harmony with that of the above mentioned international organizations. In addition to the development of the adequate institutional framework, it is important to disseminate information about the goals and activities of international development cooperation in order to make it more acceptable in society. Professional training programmes are also necessary. In the framework of policy formulation and capacity building, on the occasion of the 60th Anniversary of the UN and the 50th Anniversary of Hungary's membership of the UN, the United Nations Association of Hungary and HUN-IDA (an organization responsible for the implementation of Hungary's International Development Cooperation programmes) have organized a UN ACADEMY in cooperation with UNDP and the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2004/2005 in Budapest. The theme of the UN Academy was "International Development Cooperation in the 21st Century". The aim of the UN Academy was to provide for national capacity building, to transfer the necessary knowledge for human resource development and to influence public opinion. The Academy, which started with a full day conference on 19 November 2004, proved to be a great success. More than 350 persons (mostly students, but also representatives of NGOs, government and private sector) registered for the Academy. The Conference was followed by a series of 10 lectures and consultations (once in a week) and a closing conference on 21 March 2005. The lecturers were well known Hungarian and foreign experts and researchers. Some 100 participants received a certificate of attendance as a result of having attended the majority of lectures. The proceedings of the Academy have been published in a 400-page book titled: "International Development Cooperation in the 21st Century" The success of the Academy was one of the inspiring factors for continuation. The organizers decided that a conference should be held on Africa. The special needs of Africa were clearly recognized by world leaders in the Millennium Declaration, and the United Nations system as a whole is firmly committed to supporting African efforts. The Millennium Summit six years ago, and in particular the eight MDGs, all of which are aimed at dramatically reducing