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External sources (not reviewed)

Two of the 4 general temporary assistance positions, 1 P-4 and 1 P-3 Training Officers, and 1 P-4 continuing post, currently funded from the support account, design, deliver, upgrade, harmonize and evaluate three ongoing cross-cutting leadership programmes: the senior mission leaders’ programme, a two-week course, conducted twice annually at a host Member State, for 26 candidates from Member States, the Secretariat, the United Nations agencies, programmes and funds); the senior leaders’ programme, a compulsory orientation course for all mission personnel at the D-2 level and above, conducted twice annually in New York; and SMART, an intensive year-long programme involving distance learning and three week-long workshops for two groups of 40 candidates.

In paragraph 63 of his report (A/64/380), the Secretary-General provides information on a number of related initiatives being implemented concurrently with ERP within the United Nations Secretariat and missions, including: IPSAS implementation, the talent management system (recruitment and staffing), Lean Six Sigma (non-systems process improvement), enterprise content management and customer relationship management, as well as a fuel management system and a rations management system for peacekeeping functions.

It also called on the Government to consider strengthening efforts to combat violence against women, including domestic violence and trafficking in persons, especially women and children by, inter alia, ensuring the full implementation of related laws and legislation, and also through the continued provision of adequate funding and the creation of a monitoring mechanism.

The Meeting also called on all States Parties to recommit, even in difficult financial times, to realising a world without anti-personnel mines, where the rights of all are respected and where all women, girls, boys and men can live in dignity and prosperity.

It also called for measures to protect women, such as practical solutions to eradicate violence against women, a review of text-books in schools for the purpose of disseminating information on women’s rights, and increased public awareness on action against domestic violence.

It focuses on the conclusions and recommendations of the expert group meeting which, among other things, called upon: the United Nations system, Member States and indigenous peoples’ organizations to recognize the rights and special needs of indigenous women and girls; Member States to adopt measures, in conjunction with indigenous peoples, to ensure that indigenous women and girls enjoy the full protection and guarantees against all forms of violence and discrimination; the United Nations system to support efforts and initiatives that provide support and protection to indigenous women and girls; and indigenous communities to consider seriously the problem of violence against indigenous women and girls in their communities through ways that include the recognition and dismantling of existing patriarchal social relations, the elimination of discriminatory policies and a continuous commitment to indigenous women’s rights in all indigenous institutions and at all levels.

They reiterated their call for the peaceful resolution of the Somali conflict as the only way to a durable peace and genuine reconciliation and called upon all parties that had not yet joined the political process to do so, and urged the Somali stakeholders to take expeditious action and show progress in the accomplishment of the remaining tasks of the transitional period including the drafting and approval of the Constitution as well as expanding the authority of the state, promoting the reconciliation process and improving the livelihood of the population by providing essential services.

In section V, paragraph 11, of the same resolution, the General Assembly requested the Secretary-General to seek a more effective strategy to fill current and future language post vacancies at all duty stations in a timely manner, took note of paragraph 92 of the report of the Secretary-General on the pattern of conferences (A/63/119 and Corr.1), and also requested the Secretary-General to hold the competitive examinations for the recruitment of language staff referred to in that paragraph, as well as other examinations beyond 2009, well in advance so as to fill current and future language post vacancies at all duty stations in a timely manner, and to inform the Assembly at its sixty-fourth session of efforts in that regard.

A host of concrete proposals were suggested to the coordinators of the Dialogue, such as: dialogue and networking among universities; dialogue among young scientists, involving UNESCO chairholders in dialogue activities; dialogue among student journalists and seasoned media practitioners from both regions; the holding of youth forums; reactivation of the Committee for the Translation of Literary Works and increase in the translation of Arabic works into European languages; a comparative study of school textbooks; dialogue involving professionals from cultural industries; the organization of an interregional conference on the image of Arab-Islamic culture in European history books.