LITHUANIA ELECTED TO THE POST OF VICE MINISTER OF THE MOST IGC
On 7 November 2011 Lithuania was elected to the post of vice minister of the Intergovernmental Council of the Management of Social Transformations (MOST) Programme.
The election took place during an extraordinary session of the MOST Intergovernmental Council, at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris. At the Council Lithuania was represented by Prof. Audrius Bitinas, vice minister of Social Protection and Labour. He will act as the vice minister of the 2nd regional group of UNESCO.
The MOST Intergovernmental Council consists of 35 UNESCO member states. For the 2011-2013 mandate the 2nd regional group is represented by Lithuania, Albania, Latvia, and Slovakia. The representatives of all these countries unanimously supported the Lithuanian candidature to the post of vice minister.
In his speech Prof. A. Bitinas congratulated all the new members elected to the MOST Intergovernmental Council during the 36th session of the General Conference of UNESCO. On behalf of his country, Prof. A. Bitinas also expressed determination of Lithuanian authorities to promote the objectives of the MOST Programme, and emphasized the necessity to address at the global level such issues as social protection accessible to all, reduction of poverty, social inclusion, and equality between different social groups.
The MOST Intergovernmental Council convenes every two years. Its mandate includes determining the priorities and overall strategy of the MOST Programme. The Council also delivers on financial issues and the relation with governmental authorities.
The MOST Programme was initiated by UNESCO in 1994. Its objective is to promote policy decision-making informed by research results in social sciences.
