By Rob Probert
Swiss InfoJuly 14, 2002
Up to 1,500 delegates are congregating in Geneva for the World Civil Society Forum. Geneva is hosting a meeting of representatives of civil society as they attempt to increase their influence within the United Nations system.
The World Civil Society Forum runs until July 19, and has the backing of the Swiss government, the Geneva authorities, and several UN agencies. Up to 1,500 delegates - three-quarters of them from the developing world - have descended on Geneva's International Conference Centre.
As well as serious discussions on topics like the environment, health, human rights, education, security and information technology, a Civil Society Village is offering films, theatre, art and food from all over the globe.
The idea for the forum was conceived during the Millennium Forum on UN reforms, held in May 2000, four months before the UN Millennium Summit.
Good practices
The UN has frequently expressed its willingness to work more closely with the actors in civil society - non-governmental organisations, indigenous groups and academics, for example. Some UN agencies allow NGOs a surprisingly big role in the decision-making process.
"But these good practices are isolated," said Sébastien Ziegler, the head of the organising committee. "We want to see them becoming more general throughout the UN system."
The aim of the Geneva forum is not only to improve cooperation with UN specialised agencies, but also between all the representatives of civil society.
"The key issue of this forum is how to work together," Ziegler told swissinfo.
"We need to bring together all the actors from civil society - not only NGOs, but research centres, foundations, communities."
Platform
This is by no means the first gathering of non-state actors from around the globe. The World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil, is a high-profile alternative to the World Economic Forum, while Geneva itself hosted a large forum on the fringes of the UN Social Summit two years ago.
"Most of these other conferences concentrate on particular issues or a specific agenda," Ziegler said. "This forum will provide a platform for organisations from different fields to find synergies and common ground."
In this way, the organisers hope, farmers' associations from developing countries will be brought into contact with fair trade organisations in Europe; African AIDS activists will learn from those engaged in education and health and also in human rights.
"This kind of cooperation is essential on a practical level," Ziegler said.
The forum will offer a number of workshops on a number of themes, ranging from Internet access in developing countries to understanding human rights and humanitarian law, from harnessing solar energy to freedom of expression for journalists.
Complementary skills
The United Nations is, ultimately, the sum of its parts - the member states. At the big UN gatherings - such as the current World Food Summit in Rome, the forthcoming Johannesburg summit on sustainable development, or last year's conference on racism in Durban - the decisions are always political.
What influence can the actors in civil society hope to have? "It's increasing," Ziegler pointed out.
"There is a growing trend for governments to include representatives from NGOs in their official delegations". And, he said, it is not just to keep the NGOs happy. "They're complementary. The diplomats have the negotiating skills, NGOs have the expertise," he added.
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