UNITED
NATIONS, April 5 (Xinhua) -- United Nations (UN) and Brazilian officials
Thursday signed an agreement allowing Brazil to host June's UN Conference on
Sustainable Development, also known as the Rio+20, in Rio de Janeiro.
The
agreement, known as the Host Country Agreement, was signed by Rio+20
Secretary-General Sha Zukang and Brazil's Permanent Representative to the
United Nations Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti at the offices of the Rio+20
Conference Secretariat.
The
agreement, along with 117 pages of annexes, concerns the logistics for the
upcoming UN conference and pre-conference meetings that will be held at the
Riocentro Exhibition and Convention Center. The meetings include a preparatory
conference from June 13 to 15, three days devoted to civil society dialogues on
key issues from June 16 to 18, and the Rio+20 Conference that runs from June 20
to 22.
The
official transfer of the conference site to UN jurisdiction will take place on
June 5, UN officials said.
More than
135 vice presidents and prime ministers will speak at the Rio +20, the
officials said.
UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Sha, who is also the UN
under-secretary-general, will be joined by thousands of CEOs, parliamentarians,
mayors, NGO leaders, academics, senior UN officials and representatives from
many other groups at the Rio+20.
More than
50,000 people are expected to participate in the UN conference and related
events in Rio de Janeiro during that period.
"Signing
this agreement is a major milestone on our way to Rio," Sha said.
"The agreement that we signed today, together with the strong cooperation
we have enjoyed with the Government of Brazil throughout the preparatory
process, paves the way forward for Rio+20 to achieve its potential for setting
us on a new path towards a sustainable future - the future we want."
Calling the
agreement "a good sign," Viotti said, "Today we are launching
the process. This is the beginning of our engagement with the UN in terms of
hosting the Conference. There is goodwill on all sides and we will all work
together to make sure that the Conference is a success."
The Rio+20
provides a historic opportunity to take decisive action to set the world on a
new path that is economically viable as well as socially and environmentally
sustainable, and to stimulate progress by bringing together representatives
from all sectors of society.
Several
outcomes are expected in Rio, including the government-negotiated outcome
document that will set the sustainable development agenda; the announcement of
a large number of new, voluntary commitments and initiatives for sustainable
development by governments, businesses and others; and recommendations,
including by nongovernmental organizations, business and industry and other
major groups.
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