UNITAR Orientation Course on the Work of ECOSOC Concludes Two-Day Programme

The course opened with welcoming remarks from Mr. Marco A. Suazo, Head of UNITAR office in New York, H.E. Mr. Lok Bahadur Thapa, President of ECOSOC and Permanent Representative of Nepal to the United Nations; and H.E. Mr. Rui Vinhas, Permanent Representative of Portugal to the United Nations. The speakers underscored ECOSOC’s central role in advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and highlighted the importance of informed and effective Member State engagement across the Council’s segments and forums.

Sessions on the first day focused on ECOSOC’s role, institutional architecture, and decision-making procedures. Senior officials from DESA and the Department for General Assembly and Conference Management (DGACM), including Ms. Lotta Tahtinen, Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Support and Coordination for Sustainable Development (OISC/DESA), and Ms. Emer Herity, Secretary of ECOSOC, provided substantive briefings on the Council’s mandates, priorities for 2026, and follow-up to major UN conferences and summits, including the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4).