On October 3, 2017, the Deputy Director-General of Finance Center for South-South Cooperation (FCSSC) Ms. Jenny Yao, and the Director of International Affairs Ms. Susan Zhao, were invited to participate in the fourth high-level meeting of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) held in Château de la Muette in Paris, and visited the OECD Development Centre and the headquarter of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The parties held in-depth discussions on South-South cooperation, the 2030 agenda for sustainable development, and the education goal of sustainable development, and all looked forward to further cooperation.
The fourth OECD Development Centre Council high level meeting invited government officials from OECD member countries, international organizations and representatives of civil society organizations. The meeting was chaired by OECD Secretary-General Mr. Angel Gurría and discussed the challenges and opportunities faced by countries in transition to high-income, the impact of international migration on developing countries, the origin of gender discrimination and other issues. During the meeting, representatives of member states especially proposed to build a public platform to discuss economic problems and solutions in transition economy, communicate with each other in domestic policies, and promote international cooperation especially South-South and triangular cooperation. In this regard, the Council said that it will promote the platform construction through strengthening cooperation with the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation, Finance Center for South-South Cooperation and other stakeholders.
After the meeting, Ms. Jenny Yao and Ms. Susan Zhao made a special visit to meet Mr. Pezzini Mario, Director of OECD Development Centre, and introduced FCSSC’s endeavor in promoting international development cooperation and the realization of UN sustainable development goals. Mr. Pezzini said that the milestone of South-South cooperation - the “Buenos Aires Plan of Action” would usher in the 40th anniversary, and OECD expected the cooperation with FCSSC in a series of commemorative activities. FCSSC then visited the OECD Education Council, the OECD Development Centre of Latin America and Caribbean branch, and the social cohesion branch.
In addition to attending the OECD conference, Ms. Jenny Yao and Ms. Susan Zhao also visited the UNESCO headquarter in the Paris Fontenoy square, so as to meet Mr. Sobhi Tawil, Chief of Section - Partnerships, Cooperation and Research in UNESCO and share the work of South South Education Foundation for realizing the education goal of sustainable development, including “one laptop, one dream”, targeted poverty alleviation, “South South Education Program for Economics and Finance”, etc.. Mr. Tawil expressed his hope that UNESCO would like to build a cooperation relationship with SSEF, starting from co-organizing forums, sharing education information, and boosting education development in Africa, Southeast Asia and Latin America, so as to contribute to the sustainable development education goal of “Inclusive, Equitable and Quality Education”.
Finance Center for South-South Cooperation is a non-profit international organization registered and founded in Hong Kong in April 2014. It is an integral platform set under the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Agenda framework, specializing in production capacity cooperation, development experience exchange and financial services, to promote pragmatic cooperation and partnerships among governments of developing countries, private enterprises, multilateral development institutions and international development assistance organizations. In addition, guided by successful models, FCSSC provides comprehensive solution plans for South-South cooperation projects and uses financial services as means to assist countries of the Global South to propel industrialization and achieve sustainable development, in an effort to make valuable contributions to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. FCSSC has been in Special Consultative Status with ECOSOC of the United Nations since 2017.
Founded in May, 2014, the South South Education Foundation is a non-religious, non-political and non-profit charity foundation approved by the Inland Revenue Department of Hong Kong. The SSEF dedicates itself to promoting education exchange, sponsor talent training, donate education facilities and equipment, and support important researches, for the sake that it firmly believes education catalyzes positive changes worldwide and the improvement rests upon our interaction and exchange. The “2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” sets out a global goal to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education. Not only does SSEF dedicate itself to fulfilling the education goal, but also SSEF endeavors to let knowledge light up the dreams, let education change the future.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development is an intergovernmental economic organization with 35 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade. It is a forum of countries describing themselves as committed to democracy and the market economy, providing a platform to compare policy experiences, seeking answers to common problems, identify good practices and coordinate domestic and international policies of its members.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the UN based in Paris. Its declared purpose is to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through educational, scientific, and cultural reforms in order to increase universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and human rights along with the fundamental freedom proclaimed in the UN Charter.
