GenevaOn 29 October, at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM) sixth Plenary session, held in Palermo, Italy, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) was granted the PAM Award for its contribution towards the region's attainment of sustainable economic development and regional integration.
This Award recognizes UNECE's strategic partnership with PAM (17 out of PAM’s 27 members are UNECE member States), which entered a new phase last year following the Joint PAM and United Nations Conference on Trade and Productive Capacity that took place in Geneva in May 2010. The Conference ended with an agreement to undertake joint activities to support the region's development efforts in the areas of: (i) trade facilitation and electronic business; (ii) technical regulations and standardization policies; (iii) transport development; and, (iv) energy and water resources management.
In his speech, Mr. Sergio Piazzi, Secretary-General of PAM noted that the PAM Award is granted annually to individuals and institutions that have "distinguished themselves in initiatives and activities, be they cultural, economic, social or academic, dedicated to the achievement of those principles and goals set by our Assembly and which are common to all people of goodwill".
Mr. Ján Kubiš, Executive Secretary, UNECE said that the award "speaks to the UNECE's highest aspirations – showing that our actions matter, and that we can contribute to bringing about economic prosperity for all. This Award also speaks to UNECE's commitment to forge partnerships with other organizations and other regions in order to enhance our mutual impact and effectiveness".
He reiterated UNECE's readiness to cooperate with PAM in setting up a joint programme of action to support economic development in the Mediterranean region, as called for by the Joint Conference. The UNECE-PAM strategic partnership, he noted, is all the more pertinent to overcome the mounting challenges facing the region in light of the global economic crisis and recent political developments.
Note to editors
A list of individuals and organizations that received PAM Award for 2011 is available on PAM website at: http://www.pam.int/default.asp?.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM) includes: Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Palestine, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, Syria, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Tunisia and Turkey.