Press Releases
Meeting between Foreign Minister MOTEGI and Ms. Catherine Russell, Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
On April 27, commencing at 4 p.m. for approximately 15 minutes, Mr. MOTEGI Toshimitsu, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, held a meeting with Ms. Catherine Russell, Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), who is visiting Japan.
- At the outset, Minister MOTEGI welcomed Executive Director Russell’s visit to Japan, and stated that he would further strengthen cooperation with UNICEF, which has been an important partner in Japan’s diplomacy and development cooperation policy for many years, as children worldwide face hardship due to the impacts of the international situation and disasters. In response, Executive Director Russell expressed her gratitude for Japan’s support to date and her expectation for further strengthening the relationship between Japan and UNICEF.
- Both sides also exchanged views on facilitating collaboration between UNICEF and Japanese companies, and concurred to further strengthen their partnership.
- Minister MOTEGI also stated that increasing the number of Japanese staff members and ensuring their active roles are important for both Japan and UNICEF, and called for the enhancement of recruitment and promotion of Japanese staff members at UNICEF.
(Reference) United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
UNICEF is the only United Nations agency specializing in activities for children, including education, health, nutrition, water and sanitation, and child protection. UNICEF is an international organization with a balanced focus on both humanitarian and development assistance, and is a prime example of an organization implementing "human security," a concept promoted by Japan, at the field level. Furthermore, through its broad and comprehensive activities, it provides humanitarian and development assistance toward the achievement of a wide range of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).