UNESCO. General Conference; 30th; Records ... - unesdoc - Unesco

20.5 Mr President, during the 1998-1999 biennium, UNESCO organized several important international
conferences, including the World Conference on Higher Education and the World Conference on Science, which
are of great significance worldwide. The conferences laid foundations on which to consolidate further
UNESCO’s role within its field of competence and enable it satisfactorily to perform its noble mission as an
intellectual forum.
20.6 Education is a vital issue which is decisive in the destiny of any nation. The economy, culture, science
and technology cannot progress without first developing education. Education can also contribute to sustainable
peace. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea successfully eradicated illiteracy 50 years ago through the
campaign against illiteracy in 1949, and is now accelerating the work of ensuring the intellectual development of
the whole of society, after having introduced the universal 11-year compulsory education system in 1972.
20.7 It is commendable that UNESCO continued to promote education for all throughout life as one of its
cardinal activities in the past biennium and, in particular, successfully organized the Education for All 2000
Assessment among Member States in collaboration with other United Nations agencies. In collaboration with
UNESCO, the Democratic People’s Republic has conducted nationwide EFA 2000 Assessment work and
elaborated integrated indicators on the development of basic education over the past decade. On this basis, we
have produced the national EFA 2000 Assessment report. We have also carried out many successful activities,
including the rehabilitation of various educational services and facilities that were severely damaged by natural
disasters along with other branches of the national economy, and the holding of the Second National Workshop
on Teaching of Foreign Languages in Pyongyang in April this year with the participation of UNESCO’s Deputy
Director-General for Education. This is another illustration of successful collaboration with UNESCO. On the
basis of its past experience, UNESCO should pursue its efforts to promote education for all throughout life and
refocus attention primarily on offering effective assistance in accordance with Member States’ characteristics and
the level of educational development in the country.
20.8 We commend and fully support UNESCO’s effort to strengthen the dissemination of advanced science
and technology for the benefit of the developing countries during the new biennium. During the past biennium,
UNESCO promoted vocational training and exchange of information in various fields of science and technology
while disseminating new scientific discoveries and organizing various activities aimed at solving social and
environmental problems. It is commendable that UNESCO plans to establish priority targets for scientific
development in developing countries in order to promote the formulation of policies and strategies for science
and technology development in conformity with the specific conditions of countries, to help build national
capacity in scientific research and to reinforce regional and international cooperation in these areas. UNESCO
should pay greater attention to the training of scientists and technicians as well as the promotion of cooperation in
developing countries, and take practical measures to increase the provision of necessary facilities and equipment
badly needed for scientific research.
20.9 Recently, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea became a State Party to the Convention for the
Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage and has taken a series of measures for its implementation.
In order to raise public awareness of the Convention, we translated it into Korean and published the
recommendations concerning the safeguarding of cultural properties, the Convention and the operational
guidelines and distributed them to the specialists concerned. We also organized a National Seminar for the
Protection of Cultural and Natural Property in Pyongyang, in early October 1999, with the participation of
UNESCO experts. Most of the participants stressed the importance of registering worthy cultural properties as
world property and keeping them in good custody. They also raised the issue of returning illegally appropriated
cultural property to countries of origin and restoring it to its original state. The Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea having been a colony for about half of this century and having lost much of its cultural property has a
legitimate right to take back the property and claim reparation for the loss.
20.10 Mr President, today, on the eve of the twenty-first century, the position and role of UNESCO in the
international arena are more important than ever before. The fact is that UNESCO, as an intellectual
organization, has assumed a noble mission to build a more civilized and peaceful world through the development
of education, science and culture. I am convinced that this General Conference will succeed in discussing all
issues on its agenda in conformity with UNESCO’s mandate and ideals, as demanded and aspired to by Member
States. Our government will continue to develop friendly and cooperative relations with UNESCO and its
Member States in line with our principled foreign policy of independence, peace and friendship. Thank you very
much.
21. The PRESIDENT:
Thank you, Your Excellency. I now call upon His Excellency Mr Dini Abdallah Bililis, Minister of
Youth, Sports and Tourism of Djibouti.
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