The ECOSOC Preparatory Meeting, which took place place in the Czernin Palace, the headquarters of the Czech diplomacy, was opened by the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Andrej Babiš together with the Minister of Planning of Colombia Luis Fernando Mejía and the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic Martin Stropnický. Further speakers included UN General Assembly President Miroslav Lajčák, UN Deputy Secretary General Amina Mohamed, and the President of ECOSOC Marie Chatardová.

“It is not only because such an important UN body meets in the Czech Republic for the first time that the ECOSOC Preparatory Meeting is an important event for us. It is also an opportunity to raise topics which we deem important in the context of international politics. For the Czech Republic such topics are public participation, good governance and human rights. We know from our recent experience that these values are crucial for the development and prosperity of any society,” reminded in his remarks Minister Stropnický.

The aim of the Prague meeting was to highlight the importance of citizens’ participation, good public administration, and inclusive institutions for attaining the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda. Delegates from more than seventy countries had the opportunity to discuss inclusion of the general public, non-governmental organisations, and the private sector in decision making and problem solving in education, housing, environmental protection, gender equality, or humanitarian assistance. Special attention was paid to the role of eGovernment and modern technologies in enhancing public participation.

On March 27 the meeting continued in the City of Kolín with a presentation of a local project of citizen’s participation in public affairs. The delegates met also with the Mayor of Kolín Vít Rakušan. The Prague Preparatory Meeting will be followed by the ECOSOC Special Session, which will take place on May 23, 2018, in the UN headquarters in New York.

The ECOSOC is the third most important UN body, just after the General Assembly and the Security Council. It oversees the international development in the economic, social, and cultural areas as well as in education and health. It has an important role also as the central UN body responsible for coordination of specialised agencies, programmes and commissions of the United Nations. It disposes over 70% of financial and human resources of the United Nations System. The Czech Republic was elected into the Presidency in July 2017 for a term of one year.

• Minister Stropnický’s Speech at the ECOSOC Preparatory Meeting

Minister Martin Stropnický with the President of the UN General Assembly Miroslav Lajčák

Minister Martin Stropnický with the Deputy Secretary-General of the UN Amina Mohammed