 "MECHANICS OF INDIA'S PARTICIPATION IN UNESCO" BY S.R. TAYAL

UNESCO is unique among the multilateral organizations in as much as it seeks to lead and harmonise global action in the realm of the intellect. UNESCO's universal and timeless messages of peace and global harmony, of the unity of humankind, of tolerance and mutual respect are carried through the vehicles of culture, through education, through advancement of sciences, exploration for a deeper understanding of social phenomenon and strengthening the instruments of mass communications as well as making its contents more objective.

UNESCO takes up a broad spectrum of activities in the endeavour to reach the noble aims of the Organization. In this massive enterprise, Governments are partners of UNESCO along with the body of concerned institutions, academics, cultural persons, artists, scientists, mass media and policy makers. To co-opt all the important players in the civil society to work for the aims and objectives of UNESCO an institution of "National Commission for Cooperation with UNESCO" has been conceived.

In India as in most other countries, the two main pillars for interaction with UNESCO are the Indian National Commission for UNESCO (INC) functioning from the Department of Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development and the Permanent Delegation of India (PDI) to UNESCO in Paris.

The Government of India in compliance with Article VII of the UNESCO Constitution set up the Indian National Commission (INC) in 1949 which was later placed on a permanent footing in 1951. The Commission consists of five Sub-Commissions namely (i)) Education; (ii)

Natural Sciences; (iii) Social Sciences; (iv) Culture; and (v) Communication. The Commission advises the Government of India on all matters relating to UNESCO.

The Indian National Commission for UNESCO functions with the Minister of Human Resources Development as President and Education Secretary as the Secretary-General. The Commission acts as an advisory, coordinating and liaison agency at the national level in respect of all matters within the competence of UNESCO. It also collaborates with the National Commissions of the Asia-Pacific region and with UNESCO's Regional Offices. It performs executive functions like: operation of UNESCO Coupons Programme, public information activities, coordination of UNESCO Clubs movement and UNESCO Associated School Project in the country, publication of Hindi and Tamil editions of UNESCO's monthly magazine Courier, nomination of experts to participate in national/regional and international meetings and conferences, convened by or held under the auspices of UNESCO, identification and recommendation of candidates for various vacancies notified by UNESCO, handling of contracts offered by UNESCO to experts in India for writing articles or undertaking special studies, and administration of funds allocated under the Participation Programme of UNESCO.

In the mechanics of implementing UNESCO's activities a number of Ministries and Departments and major institutions have been playing a prominent role on a continuing basis. The Department of Culture, Department of Science & Technology, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Indian Council of Social Science, Research (ICSSR), Indian Council of Philosophical Research (ICPR), Indira Gandhi National Centre of Arts, India International Centre, scientific and technical institutions, NCERT, NIEPA, etc., have willingly offered their resources and infrastructure to carry out programmes under the auspices of UNESCO. The

synergy between Principal Regional Office of UNESCO for Asia Pacific (PROAP) in Bangkok and the Regional Office for Science and Technology in South and Central Asia (ROGTSCA) in New Delhi and other regional bodies and the institutions in India has had a multiplier effect in maximising the benefits from the increasingly modest budgets of the regional offices for specific activities.

The members of the INC -- both institutional and individual -- contribute in the shaping of the Commission's views on policies and programmes of UNESCO. All the major policy documents such as the Medium Term Strategy and Biennial Programme and Budget are circulated among all the members at the drafting stage. The, Commission consolidates the comments of the members and from these our position on different issues is distilled. Exhaustive and extensive consultations are held with all concerned Government departments in the preparations for participation in the General Conference of UNESCO which is held once in two years. The Indian delegation to the Conference is normally headed by the Minister of HRD and is composed of senior officials as well as non-officials renowned in the fields of culture, education or sciences.

The five Sub-Commissions of the INC as well as the full Commission normally meet before the General Conference to discuss and finalise India's stand on important ideas to be projected by the Indian delegation during the Conference. These meetings are occasions for an informed intellectual debate on issues of topical relevance. Suggestions for UNESCO's Participation Programme -- in which the Member States are Invited to propose ten medium sized projects for funding from UNESCO -- are usually thrown up during these deliberations., These proposals are then consolidated and formally presented to UNESCO Secretariat by the INC for funding. With a membership of 184 countries, there is keen competition among the delegations

to secure as large a slice of funds from the participation programme as possible for one's own country. Our institutions such as the Indira Gandhi National Centre of Arts and NCERT have organised some very useful regional programmes from these funds.

India has the unique privilege of having continuously been an elected member of the Executive Board ever since its establishment in 1946. The Executive Board, which comprises 51 members, normally meets twice a year. Over the years India has nominated a succession of personalities to the Executive Board who have enhanced the stature and prestige of UNESCO by their association with the body. Former Presidents Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and Zakir Hussain, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, historian S. Gopal, Sardar Swaran Singh, Ambassadors T. N. Kaul and N. Krishnan, among others have enriched the proceedings of the Board with their intellectual capacity, education and vision for a better future for humankind. India's current representative on the Executive Board is Ram Niwas Mirdha.

The, INC and our Permanent Delegation to UNESCO (PDI) have a mutually complementary relationship and one cannot be effective without the other. PDI has the following main tasks: (a) to put forward INC's views before all the organs of UNESCO particularly to the Secretariat and its functional divisions; (b) to ensure active participation of institutions as well as individuals from India in the programmes of UNESCO and its regional offices; (c) to interact with other country delegations to evolve common positions on important issues; (d) to organize Indias official participation in important meetings e.g., the biennial General Conference and the Executive Board; (e) to study and analyse documents and policy papers of UNESCO Secretariat and present Indias views and comments in appropriate fora; and (f) to maintain a dialogue with

institutions, departments and individuals in India to deepen their involvement in UNESCO's programmes and activities.

Since the very beginning, the PDI has made a notable contribution to the evolution of the policies and execution of the programmes of UNESCO. After the upgradation of the full time representative to the rank of Ambassador in mid 1980s the Indian delegation has assumed an even higher profile. The personalities that headed PDI include well known educationist Inam-ur-Rahman, Scientist Maheshwar Dayal and diplomats Arundhati Ghosh, Ms. Savitri Kunadi and Smt. Nina Sibal.

The INC as well as PDI operate in close co-ordination with the Ministry of External Affairs on all issues which impinge on foreign policy as well as conceptual issues related to development, peace, human rights and multilateralism where we need to adopt a common position in various multilateral fora. Over time a well-oiled mechanism of consultation and decision making has emerged which is smooth, quick and offers clear guidance. In fast evolving situations consultations are held on telephone, instructions of Foreign Secretary, External Affairs Minister as well as Prime Minister's Office are sought when required and follow-up action taken accordingly. The system performed with success during the unique Education for All Summit of Nine High Population Countries hosted by the then Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao in New Delhi on 16 December 1993.

In the Ministry of External Affairs the United Nations Division is responsible for dealing with UNESCO. In recent past, MEA has played a major proactive role on several important issues. The mobilization of support for UNESCO when it came. under concerted attack from

Reaganites and Thatcherites in early 1980s for being sensitive to the developmental concerns of the vast majority of members is an apt instance of close coordination between MEA, INC and PDI. More recently MEA's advice has been of immense value in assessing the perceived shift in UNESCO's policies from its mandate for the development of education, culture, sciences etc. to the issues of human rights, environment etc., which are important but not the primary mandate of the Organization. India's consistent and principled policy has been to seek to strengthen the role and functioning of the Organization in its core sectors without frittering away its dwindling resources in myriad directions. A well-focused and concentrated programme so that the Organization along with its Members can make a visible impact would be the right strategy for UNESCO to prove the sceptics wrong.

Besides normal contacts through participation in UNESCO's regular programmes and activities there is a history of high level interaction between the successive Directors-General of UNESCO and top Indian policymakers and intellectuals. India hosted the IXth General Conference of UNESCO in 1956 in New Delhi. In fact the unique international conference facility "Vigyan Bhawan" was created to host this UNESCO Conference. In recent years former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi addressed UNESCO in 1985. Former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao delivered a Mahatma Gandhi memorial lecture at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris in June 1995. The present Director-General of UNESCO, Federico Mayor, has himself been a regular visitor to India. Dialogue and exchange of views at these levels help in greater understanding of our perceptions in the Organization.

To carry the message of UNESCO to the people and to the schools the UNESCO provides a subsidy for the publication of its highly acclaimed monthly magazine "UNESCO Courier" in

Hindi and Tamil. 37 Indian schools participate in the UNESCO Associated Schools Project. These schools are encouraged to organise pilot projects and special programmes designed to increase the knowledge of global issues and to develop a better understanding of other peoples and cultures as well as the principles of human rights.

UNESCO clubs movement is quite strong in the country and more than 250 UNESCO clubs in all regions of the country are registered with the INC. The Indian National Commission regularly supplies publications, special kits and other material to these clubs to celebrate international years and days such as UN Day, Human Rights Day etc. Besides, INC also extends financial assistance on request to UNESCO clubs for undertaking activities such as debates, painting contests, essay competitions, etc.

UNESCO has been inevitably caught in the struggle between multilateralism and bilateralism and has been a victim of the anti- United Nations rhetoric of certain powerful countries. As the benefits of UNESCO's activities are largely intangible and difficult to quantify, it has been relatively easy to criticise and snigger at UNESCO for its so-called inefficiency, burgeoning bureaucracy and lack of focus. Analogy has been given of UNESCO with a luxury liner full of passengers but devoid of fuel and thus adrift in the ocean of good- intentions not backed by required commitment and drive. The Indian delegation has been sensitive to much of the criticism against UNESCO and has strongly advocated reform but to strengthen the organization rather than weaken it.

It is a fact of life that differences creep even in the pursuit of achieving the most lofty objectives. In UNESCO the majority of conflicts are on largely two planes. One is the rather

harmless battle fought in the offices of the Fontenois by the country delegations for a bigger slice of UNESCO's programme activities, greater involvement of a country's experts and institutions and holding of workshops and projects in a specific country or region. The other ongoing struggle is on an ideological and conceptual plane. UNESCO is a microcosm of the fears and aspirations of its member states. It mirrors in its debates the vast socioeconomic disparities, the diverse perceptions of developed and developing countries as well as the different priorities of East and West. The Organization therefore constantly seeks a balance between its developmental role and peace promotion role. Member countries have to be on, guard that the Organization is not hijacked by vociferous single-agenda constituencies which may dangle the carrot of funding to the cash strapped Organization.

Striving to expand the horizons of education, sciences, culture and information for the collective good of humankind is a noble mission in which UNESCO Secretariat as well as the member nations are both stake holders. From the seemingly simple but, in fact, mammoth task of total literacy to the goal of a wider and better balanced global dissemination of information UNESCO's sweep of priority issues is daunting. These are challenges which must be met in the battle to better the quality of life of individuals as well as the society and to have balanced and sustainable development in the intellectual as well as physical advancement of the human race. Our association with UNESCO is informed by the thought that in serving UNESCO, we serve humanity at large.

SESSION-II

SOCIAL, NATURAL SCIENCE AND COMMUNICATION