SECRETARY-GENERAL TO ATTEND WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM AT DAVOS FROM 29 JANUARY TO 1 FEBRUARY

SG/T/99/01/Rev.1
22 January 1999



Kofi Annan to Attend World Economic Forum at Davos
from 29 January to 1 February

Coming from Ireland, where he paid an official visit, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan will arrive in Geneva on Saturday, 23 January, for meetings with senior United Nations officials as well as heads of international organizations at Geneva.

The Secretary-General will remain in Geneva until the end of the day on Tuesday, 26 January, when he will fly to Brussels. He will return to Switzerland on Friday, 29 January, to take part in the World Economic Forum at Davos.

On Monday, 25 January, the Secretary-General will visit the International Committee of the Red Cross at 11 a.m. for a meeting with Cornelio Sommaruga, President of the ICRC. There will be a 30-minute public session at ICRC which includes an exchange of statements. Following this, the Secretary-General will hold a working session with Mr. Sommaruga, who will also host a lunch in his guest’s honour.

From 3.30 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday, Mr. Annan will be meeting with High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson, as well as the staff of her Office, at the Palais Wilson, the new “House of Human Rights”.

On Tuesday, 26 January, the Secretary-General will address the Conference on Disarmament at the Palais des Nations at 10 a.m. Mr. Annan will hold a press conference at noon in Conference Room III. He will then attend a lunch which will be hosted by the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Vladimir Petrovsky, in his honour for members of the Diplomatic Committee, currently chaired by the Permanent Representative of Senegal, Absa Claude Diallo, at the Villa La Fenetre.

At 3.15 on Tuesday afternoon, the Secretary-General is scheduled to meet with Astrid Heiberg, President of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and George Weber, Secretary-General of the International Federation, at the Palais des Nations. This will be followed by a visit to the headquarters of the High Commissioner for Refugees and a meeting with High Commissioner Sadako Ogata from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. The Secretary-General flies to Brussels on Tuesday evening.

When he returns to Switzerland on Friday, 29 January, the Secretary-General will head for Davos where he will take part in the World Economic Forum which this year is devoted to the theme “Responsible Globality: Managing the Impact of Globalization.”

On Sunday, 31 January, the Secretary-General will take part in the afternoon in a plenary session on global politics for a global economy. He will hold a press conference at 6 p.m. On Sunday evening, he will attend a dinner in his honour with leading representatives of the international media.

Mr. Annan is scheduled to leave Switzerland on Monday, 1 February, to fly back to New York.