UNITAR Executive Director meets Japanese Foreign Minister

1 February 2016, Tokyo, Japan - The Executive Director of UNITAR, Mr. Nikhil Seth, arrived in Japan today for his first visit to the country since he was appointed in October 2015. The Hon. Fumio Kishida, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Japan, welcomed Mr. Seth to Japan and congratulated him on his appointment as Executive Director.

During their meeting, Minister Kishida confirmed that Japan and UNITAR, through the UNITAR Hiroshima Office, have developed a close relationship, and looks forward to enhancing this association in the future, with a focus on ;the areas of peace building and disarmament.

Mr. Seth thanked the Minister and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for their support of UNITAR. Mr. Seth noted the success of the UNITAR South Sudan Fellowship Programme, which launched in 2015 with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan, as a testament to the cooperation between Japan and UNITAR. He outlined that the Hiroshima Office is an important outpost for UNITAR, and that UNITAR is committed to expanding its activities further in the city of peace and resilience, Hiroshima.

Mr. Seth noted the significant outcomes for the UN in 2015, including the Sendai Disaster Risk Reduction Conference, the launch of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the COP21 Climate Change Conference. Mr. Seth said that UNITAR looks forward to further partnering with Japan to strengthen the capacity development of Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States, and to work towards fulfilling the SDGs.

Mr. Seth will visit Hiroshima for the first time later this week, when he tours the UNITAR Hiroshima Office. Whilst in Hiroshima, he will deliver a Public Session on the Sustainable Development Goals on Thursday, 4 February.

UNITAR Executive Director meets Japanese Foreign Minister

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