Terekhova_E_Dvustoronniy_perevod_obshchestvenn

‘...It is now for them to set out upon the many paths opening before them in UNESCO’s spheres of competence, towards a humanism commensurate with all mankind and towards an ethic whereby each people, each individual, will at last be able to assume full responsibility while at the same time weaving the fabric of fel lowship throughout the world... During the years to come, we shall have, together, the Member States and the Secretariat, to determine by what means UNESCO should endeavor, to the best of its abili ties, to meet the new expectations of people ‘and of nations. It will be our responsibility to see that the Organization sets up exchanges and communication, broadening both to match the scale of the present day world, which is essentially a plural entity. Finally, it will be our responsibility, on our own ground, which is that of the mind, to combine our strength and our determination in the tireless quest of mankind, so that humanity may be responsible for its own destiny, conscious of the fellowship that unifies it, and inspired by concern for peace.’

AMADOU-MAHTAR M’BOW, Unesco Director-General, 21st Session of the General

Conference, Belgrade, October 1980

On October 26, 1983, St Christopher and Nevis signed the UNESCO Constitution, thus becoming the 161st Member State of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

By November 4,1946, only twenty States had accepted the Constitution drawn up a year earlier in London. The founding States included only one country in Africa, and three from Asia.

Following the decolonization process begun in the 1950’s and 1960’s, the developing countries today form the majority of Member States. In the year 1960 alone, seventeen African countries who had just achieved independence entered UNESCO. Such is the distance traveled since the official creation of UNESCO.

Like the United Nations itself, and others of the many special ized agencies which compose what is known as the “United Nations

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family”, UNESCO was born of an immense aspiration towards peace arising from one of the most dramatic crises in man’s history: ‘the great arid terrible war... made possible by the denial of the dem ocratic principles of dignity, equality and mutual respect of men...’ Since those early years, UNESCO has remained faithful to the ideal proclaimed in the first clause of its Constitution, inspired by British Prime Minister Clement Attlee at the opening conference which created the organization, and by the American poet Archibald MacLeish, a Member of the Committee which drew up the Constitution: ‘Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the

minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed.’

By the same token, UNESCO has kept as objectives ‘to con tribute to peace and security by promoting collaboration among the nations through education, science and culture in order to further universal respect for justice, for the rule of law and for the human rights and fundamental freedoms which are affirmed for the peoples of the world, without distinction of race, sex, language or religion...’

It is virtually impossible to draw up a complete record for 38 years of struggle and activity devoted to the realization of the Organization’s ideals, but a few examples from the history of UNESCO can throw light on the immensity of what has been undertaken and the significance of the results obtained.

EDUCATION: ACTION A PRIORITY

The Organization’s first reason for existence was Education — the ‘E’ of the UNESCO acronym— recognized in 1948 by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as one of the fundamental human rights.

To begin with, the aim was to reconstruct the schools destroyed by the Second World War and re establish teacher exchanges dis rupted by the conflict. Training teachers in the Third World soon became a top priority with the launching of educational systems adapted to the particular needs of each country. In concrete terms, this meant enabling Member States to devise and apply their own

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educational policies and to assess the results of such policies. This objective applies to three essential areas: the universalization of elementary education, the abolition of illiteracy and the democratization of education.

In the Latin America of the 1950’s, for example, scarcely 19 million of the 40 million children of school age received any ele mentary education, due to lack of teaching staff. Half a million teachers had to be trained and the same number of schools to be built. Responding to a situation, which threatened disaster for the future of the continent, UNESCO called a regional conference on free and compulsory education (Lima, 1956.) This gave birth to the

‘Major Project relative to the extension and improvement of primary education.’ For almost ten years, experts recruited by UNESCO took part in the organization of hundreds of seminars and training courses designed to improve the caliber of educational staff and the efficiency of teaching. Two thousand training colleges were opened and a programmed of scholarships was created to help train several thousand specialists in the preparation of schoolbooks, statistics and pedagogic research. By the time this ‘Major Project’ came

To an end, between 87% and 95% of the population ranging from seven to fourteen years of age was receiving an elementary edu cation.

Despite these remarkable results, the educational problems of the Latin American continent are far from being solved. That is why UNESCO convened a conference in Mexico (1979) of ministers of education and ministers responsible for economic planning, and an intergovernmental meeting in Quito (1981) to define the strategies and conditions of a new ‘Major Project.’ The objective of the Project is the progressive growth of educational budgets, from 3.9% in 1977 to 7% or 8% of overall national budgets. These increased sums are aimed first and foremost at aiding the populations of rural areas and of city shantytowns, regions that so far have been largely neglected by educational efforts. Attempts will also be made to establish a clos er liaison between educational planning and that of economic and social development, in order to gear education more toward the needs of the labor market. Scientific and technical instruction and

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its corollary, the training of qualified teachers, will also be extended and improved. In a region where 30% of the 159 million adult pop ulation does not know how to read or write, the Project also aims at eliminating illiteracy between now and the end of the century.

Two years after the Organization of African Unity ratified the ‘Lagos Plan of Action1, which lays down the strategies for develop ment in Africa, and twenty years after the first conference in Addis Ababa, which set forth a development plan for education in Africa, the fifth Conference of ministers of education and ministers respon sible for planning in Africa met in 1982 at Harare (Zimbabwe.) Based on a critical assessment of the effort made in education, the ministers signed the ‘Declaration of Harare’, which lays the founda tions for a new education policy on the African continent. In partic ular, the Declaration emphasizes the need to increase the scope of scientific and technological research. The aim of this is to accelerate the exploitation of all the resources so far left untouched, with a view to fostering self reliance.

An Education Adapted to Local Needs

In the field of education, UNESCO’s role may therefore be said to take different forms according to the country concerned. In Europe, for example, the Organization concentrates on the co ordination of educational programmers. The ‘European Center for Higher Education’, opened in Bucharest in 1972, runs programmers for information, documentation, and academic exchanges between universities and institutes of higher education. At its Paris headquar ters, UNESCO has created a ‘Scientific Co operation Bureau for Europe’, which links the various bodies concerned. It also provides permanent assistance to the European Center for Leisure and Edu cation, in Prague.

In addition to this, UNESCO is currently preparing the International Conference of States with the aim of adopting the

Regional Convention on the recognition of studies, diplomas and degrees in higher education in Asia and the Pacific. Similar conven tions have already been ratified in most other regions and these form a prelude to the adoption of a world convention in this field of acti

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vity. Conventions of this kind are geared toward the increased mobility of staff in higher education and the recognition of their studies and diplomas. They also help prevent the exodus of trained personnel by enabling, for example, a qualified person from a devel oping country who has come to an industrialized country for the advancement of his studies, to reintegrate more quickly once he returns to his country of origin.

Particularly since the General Conference in Belgrade (1980), the Organization has tried to translate into concrete educational action the fostering of certain essential principles: respect for Human Rights, especially the right to education; the struggle against all forms of discrimination; the defense of peace; the institution of a New International Economic Order. This formed the theme of a major intergovernmental conference held in April, 1983.

The Natural Sciences and Their Application to Development

Without the persuasiveness of the British biologist, Sir Julian Huxley, who became UNESCO’s first Director General, the Organization could well have remained UNESCO.’ Indeed, the very first Conference of Allied ministers of education (London, 1942) proposed to limit themselves to education and culture. Science was introduced a little later as a field that the new international organi zation aimed to foster, and it quickly became integrated into the Organization. From the start, science programmers were directed towards two closely linked objectives: the development, by and for all peoples, of science and technology; the application of science and technology to the harmonious development of all societies.

The international intellectual co operation UNESCO seeks to promote has proved to be most active and promising in the scientif ic field.

In all of these areas, international co operation has developed in concrete terms and its scope has continued to grow. The UNESCO programmed covering scientific and technological poli cies is primarily aimed at fostering easier access for the developing countries to the great fund of modern scientific and technological knowledge. The practical application of a scientific and technologi

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cal policy to endogenous development and the New International Economic Order should enable Member States to find concrete solutions to their serious problems of production, employment and the improvement of living standards. Thus they will gradually be able to emancipate themselves from the technological dependence that is impeding their development.

The “Major Programmers”

Activities in the field of natural science manly affect scientific and technological policies, training and research, and the “major programmers”.

Among the major international scientific programs, mention must be made of the following: Man and the Biosphere (MAB), the International Hydrological Program (IMP), the International Geological Correlation Program (IGCP) and the Intergovern mental Oceanographic Commission (IOC). To cite an example, the project carried out in Africa and the Arab States concerning applied biotechnology and microbiology led to the creation of a network of institutions and laboratories in several African countries. This has strengthened co operation in the field of rhizobiology and the pro duction of biological fertilizers. The major project on the applica tion of geology to development in Africa includes the preparation of a metallogenic map of Africa which will be of help in the work that affects metallic deposits.

The research and application of new ways of creating endogenous infrastructures in the field of science and technology have led to the launching of nine major regional projects. They deal with the integration of technological research, technical training, and devel opment in Southeast Asia and the Pacific. They are also geared towards biotechnology and microbiology in Africa and the Arab States, the application of geology to African development, the inte grated organization of humid tropical zones, the rational use of water resources in rural areas (Latin America, the Arab States, the Sahel), and research and training for the organization of offshore systems. For example, 975 field research projects, involving 10,000 researchers, were carried out within the MAB program in mid 1981.

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The Indian Ocean Expedition (1959 1965) undoubtedly represents one of the most successful programs in the scientific exploration of the sea. Under the co-ordination of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, twenty five countries took part in the enterprise, and some forty ships carried out a total of 180 expedi tions.

The importance of the marine sciences will indeed continue to grow, particularly since better exploitation of the sea can help meet the food needs of a large part of mankind. Because, at the same time, the Convention on the Law of the Sea should be ratified by all of the Member States, UNESCO is particularly keen to strengthen infrastructures for research and training in the marine sciences, so that within the new legal context that is to emerge, the Member States will be better able to exploit their marine resources. By way of example, the Organization has for the first time accepted to order an Oceanographic ship, which was delivered to the University of Qatar in late 1982.

UNESCO’s scientific programs include countless other fields of action, ranging from earthquake forecasting to the development of engineering sciences; from computer science to research for new and renewable sources of energy; from hydrology to the earth sci ences. Hundreds of specialist publications spread the results of these studies through periodicals such as “Impact of Science on Society” or “Nature and Resources.”

The Social Sciences: a Means of Endogenous Development

Another publication, the International Social Science Journal, reflects the central place these sciences have in UNESCO’s activi ties.

Perhaps more than in any other field, the programs of the Social Sciences section are aimed at ensuring authentic development, and in particular, to mobilizing all the spiritual resources of mankind.

First and foremost, the originality of UNESCO’s role is to be noted, for it is the only organization within the United Nations sys tem to deal with these questions. Another important point is the meaning attached by UNESCO to the concept of extended devel

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opment, resulting from the dynamics of essentially internal forces within each country, in giving priority treatment to specific needs. The concept of “endogenous” development was devised and popular ized by the Organization.

In this context, no development program is conceivable without first proceeding to an intimate knowledge of the setting in which the development is to take place. The Social Sciences section is there fore concerned with carrying out research bearing, for example, on man’s relationship with his environment, on migration patterns, or on demographic problems. In a wider context, the Organization attempts to assess and define the role that education, science, cul ture and communication can play in development.

A command of these facts in turn paves the way for the preparation of planning policies, which are indispensable to the channeling and orientation of available energies. The Social Sciences section also helps train specialists capable of implementing planning tech niques and technologies, as well as supervisors able to improve and better organize human settlements, for example in the field of archi tecture and town planning.

Individual Fulfillment for All

Conversely, the Organization is concerned with studying the effects of development policies and programs on the surrounding environment. It is trying to help set in place the relevant instruments and train the experts required to carry out studies of this kind.

Development is not, however, limited to economic growth: It must contribute towards the fulfillment of the individual, and there fore demands the affirmation of a whole range of universally acknowledged rights.

UNESCO particularly stresses the obligation of states and indi viduals to lake account of new human rights, such as the right to peace, the right to development, the right to education and commu nication, and the right to a healthy environment. The “Social Science section also aims at identifying the obstacles to” the exer cise of human rights by the disadvantaged —those living in shanty towns, for example, and minority or marginal groups such as immi

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grants and refugees. The Social Science program is also concerned with encouraging women to exercise their full economic, social, political and cultural rights.

Also in the field of human rights, UNESCO has denounced racism and racist theories from its earliest days. Its publications in this field in the 1950’s led South Africa to leave the Organization. In 1981, twenty three scientists reviewed racist theories at a UNESCO meeting in Athens. Their concluding statement demolished once and for all the so called scientific justifications for racial discrimi nation in any shape or form. Public opinion must, however, be more strongly mobilized to take concrete steps in the struggle against racism and apartheid.

The substantial programs affecting the role of youth in educa tional, social and cultural activities are an indication of the interest UNESCO takes in the place and part played by youth in contempo rary society. In particular, UNESCO is preoccupied by the margin alization of a large number of young people, resulting from unem ployment or underemployment, as well as their confusion or helplessness in the face of unbridled urbanization, and the growing uniformity and inordinate automatization of many contemporary societies.

UNESCO is already preparing the International Youth Year, which will take place in 1985. The Roundtable Conference on “Youth in the 1980” (Cortinesti, Romania, May 1982) adopted by consensus a “Message” which stressed the unstable conditions in which young people live in many countries, and noted that in both numerical and socio dynamic terms, their numbers continue to increase.

In this context, UNESCO maintains close and active links with non governmental youth organizations. These constitute highly valuable partners in the preparation of the Organization’s programs.

Cultural Identity and Exchanges between Cultures

Assistance in the creation of the Cairo and Aswan Museums, the commemoration of the birth of Picasso, Bela Bartok and Simon Bolivar, the preservation of the oral tradition in Africa, participation

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in the Festival of Pacific Arts, the fostering, among others, of the Slavic, Celtic, Arabic and Islamic cultures, the preservation of monuments and sites belonging to the common heritage of mankind — these are just some of the thousands of cultural pro grams implemented by UNESCO throughout the world.

Two interdependent themes form the focal point of these pro grams: the increase of exchanges between the world’s cultures, aimed at mutual enrichment, and the affirmation of cultural identify in all societies, directed toward the preservation of their originality. UNESCO indeed regards the dialogue between societies and the development of each respective society as the foundation for inter national cultural co operation.

On this subject, the Second World Conference on Cultural Policies (Mexico, July 1982), which took place just twelve years after the Venice Conference on the institutional, administrative and financial aspects of cultural policies, was an event of major impor tance. It emphasized the growing awareness in the world of the determinant role that culture now plays in every field —including those which, until now, have not been regarded as linked to culture, for example, the development of the peoples of the world.

The preservation of the temples of Egyptian and Sudanese Nubia after a campaign of twenty years (March 1960 to March 1980) is a marvelous illustration of this desire to protect the cultural heritage of each country with the help of the international community. Two spectacular stages in this vast campaign —the first in this domain to have started so great a movement of solidarity— remain in every one’s memory: the dismantling, removal and reconstruction of the twin temples of Abu Simbel and the complex of buildings on the sacred island of Philae, the ‘Pearl of Egypt’. Here again, statistics are eloquent: The temples of Abu Simbel were carved into 1,036 blocks weighing between seven and 30 tons each. They were recon structed on the cliffs dominating their original site according to the orientation chosen by the builders 3,000 years ago, so that twice a year, the sun’s rays penetrate into the heart of the sanctuaries. The temples of Philae were also dismantled into 40,000 blocks, and moved and reconstructed on the neighboring island of Agilkia, itself

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