1st Meeting, Sixth Intersessional Meeting of the…

10:00 – 11:00, Opening Session 

Chair: H.E. Mr. Marc Bichler, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Luxembourg 

Opening remarks:

• H.E. Mr. Omar Zniber, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Morocco, President of the Human Rights Council
• H.E. Ms. Paula Narvaez, President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
• Mr. Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

Keynote address:

• Ms. Fernanda Cimbra Santiago, Special Advisor to the Minister of Finance, Brazil

11:00 – 13:00, Session 1: Applying a human rights lens to the reform of IFIs to eradicate poverty and advance human rights and the Sustainable Development Agenda.

Consistent with the global call for the reform of the international financial architecture and Member States' human rights obligations, the first panel discussion will focus on how international financial institutions' (IFI) policies, operations, analyses and metrics could be aligned with the human rights obligations of Member States and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Moderator: Ms. Magdalena Sepulveda, Executive Director for the Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Panel discussion with:

• Prof. Jayati Ghosh, Professor of Economics at University of Massachusetts Amherst, Member of the UN High Level Advisory Board for Economic and Social Affairs
• Prof. Avinash Persaud, Special Advisor on Climate Change at the Inter[1]American Development Bank, former Special Envoy to the Prime Minister of Barbados on Investment and Financial Services
• Mr. Robert Powell, Special Representative to the UN, International Monetary Fund
• Ms. Sarah Saadoun, Senior Researcher and Advocate, Poverty and Inequality, Human Rights Watch