United Nations Day spotlights Organization’s invaluable contributions for better world – Ban

24th October 2013

Marking the 68th birthday of the United Nations, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the annual celebration offers a chance to recognize the invaluable contributions of the Organization to peace and common progress.

“It is a time to reflect on what more we can do to realize our vision for a better world,” Mr. Ban said in his message for the Day, observed on 24 October, the anniversary of the entry into force in 1945 of the UN Charter.

It was with the ratification of this founding document by the majority of its signatories, including the five permanent members of the Security Council, that the UN officially came into being.

Mr. Ban said that this year again, the world witnessed the UN coming together on armed conflict, human rights, the environment and many other issues.

“We continue to show what collective action can do. We can do even more,” he stated. “In a world that is more connected, we must be more united.”

Mr. Ban called the fighting in Syria the biggest security challenge, while the most urgent development challenge is to make sustainability a reality. (Read full story and see images here)

  [source: UN News Centre]