The annual meeting of UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors in Paris

The annual meeting of UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors took place in Paris, March 15. First Lady of Azerbaijan, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Mehriban Aliyeva participated in the meeting.

UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Mehriban Aliyeva addressed the meeting.

Speech by Mehriban Aliyeva:

Dear general director!

Dear Goodwill Ambassadors!

Ladies and gentlemen!

It is our first meeting after carrying out of the 60 anniversary of UNESCO. Within 60 years, the Organization served the highest ideas. For this period, it has received notable results, greater work has been is done, and reached successes in a lot of the important projects.

Mr. Matsuura, let me once again cordially congratulate You on UNESCO's 60 anniversary and wish the whole UNESCO family success in development of education, culture and science, and in strengthening of constructive dialogue among numerous cultures and civilizations.

Visit of the UNESCO delegation led by the Director General to Azerbaijan on the eve of the 60th anniversary of the organization will always live in history of our country. For this I express my sincere gratitude to Goodwill Ambassadors that visited Azerbaijan in frame of the delegation. Together with them we discussed the problems of education, as these problems are very vital for future of every country.

Together we visited historical Gobustan. According to famous Norwegian scientist Tur Heyerdal, Gobustan proves all we have the same origin. We listened to the wonderful concert organized in Ateshgah in Surakhani and this historical Ateshgah indicates to the capacity of Azerbaijan to protect the heritage of different cultures in a worthy manner.

All we laid the foundation of Mugam Center and I am hopeful we will attend its opening in close future.

I want to inform all my colleagues that Heydar Aliyev Foundation headed by me has widened its activity in Azerbaijan. During the annual conference held in March 2005 I stated everyone having partaken at UNESCO actions has noted the necessity of 'Education for all' program and importance of its realization. But I want to clearly emphasize that implementation of this program in every point of the world must be freed of unfair attitude and approach towards different nations. For example, it is an essential fact that UNESCO working group had visited our country to help the settlement of education problems of refugee and IDP children in Azerbaijan.

Lastly, the first project we carried out in 2006 was the festival arranged by two goodwill ambassadors. It was the project we implemented along with Mstislav Rostropovich. Beginning from February 20, during a week we marked in Azerbaijan the 100th jubilee of world-famous composer Dmitri Shostakovich. Today I express my deep gratitude to Mstislav Rostropovich for such wonderful music holiday, the wide-scale vaccination campaign implemented in Azerbaijan against measles immediately after the festival.

Dear friends, I express my delight of meeting with you once again. I wish you plenty of success, good health and happiness.