tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9291628.post4969598659468769055..comments2024-02-28T08:40:06.026-05:00Comments on UNESCO in the Spotlight: Science and Communications: Thoughts About Choosing a New Director General for UNESCOUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9291628.post-70788667988942134742009-02-21T16:31:00.000-05:002009-02-21T16:31:00.000-05:00Dick Nobbe emailed me a comment on this posting, w...<A HREF="http://amunescoboard.blogspot.com/2006/05/richard-k-nobbe.html" REL="nofollow">Dick Nobbe</A> emailed me a comment on this posting, which he has allowed me to share. Dick is a long term member of Americans for UNESCO's Board of Directors. He also served in the State Department staff following UNESCO for a couple of decades. Here is his comment:<BR/><BR/>"I could not agree more with John"s general assertion that 'While diplomatic skills are important in the Director-General, there are few diplomats who are qualified to lead UNESCO in its global mission", and " it is time for the educational, scientific,and `cultural leaders to stand up and be sure that the best representatives of their communities are considered for this post" Altruistic as this may sound, I think US/UNESCO's history attests to these truths.. .<BR/> <BR/>"Bullet One : "Articulate and Charismatic" are the magic words. This was Matsuura's biggest deficiency. What UNESCO needs is another Frederico Mayor who wowed audiences across the globe with his looks, charm, verbal skills, and vision..<BR/> <BR/>"Bullet two : Don't disagree with this statement, but it is too general. A more important concept to stress is the importance of anglo-saxon management experience (Explanation: For years, the US`has bleated about bloated budgets, poor sectoral coordination, and over programing. Matsuura has left a legacy of significant administrative reforms such as overhauling the personnel system and downgrading posts, decentralization,, improving UNESCO's image in member states, revising the substance, periodicity, and attractiveness of UNESCO's publications, and winnowing out sunset program activities. UNESCO now needs a leader to build and improve on this legacy,and an Anglo-Saxon rather than French concept of management is likely to be more conducive to producing such results.)<BR/> <BR/>"Bullet three : Agree.<BR/> <BR/>"Bullet four : Suggest a rewording to mention "a leader with strong negotiation skills" to effect compromise etc.(Explanation: As noted above, we don't want a diplomat as a leader, and one does not have to be a diplomat to be able to negotiate.)<BR/> <BR/>"Bullet five: "Sterling personal and professional integrity" goes without saying. A more important concept to stress is experience in development assistance. (Explanation :UNESCO needs a Director-General with a strong background in managing large bilateral/multilateral A.I..D. programs dealing with social, humanitarian,`cultural, and educational issues. UNESCO is essentially a developmental assistance agency. In this regard, it should be noted that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has officially declared that this "stool" will now become a vital and long-overdue priority component of U.S. foreign policy.)<BR/> <BR/>"Bullet six : A good point which I would subsume in Bullet one. I propose a new bullet six which stresses intersectoriality. (Explanation : This is admittedly a tough nut to crack. Matsuura has made a good start in this direction with support from some western countries (including the United States) , but there is ample room for improvement.One of UNESCO's principal attributes is that it can bring a multidisciplinary approach to bear on world problems. This approach needs to be pursued more vigorously, and experience in this field would be a plus.)"John Dalyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05363204598363726098noreply@blogger.com