September 10 2010
UN Secrectary-General Ban Ki-moon meets SOS Children's Villages President
10/09/2010 - On the occasion of the UN Senior Management Meeting and a "UN Retreat" on special topics of the Security Council in Alpbach in Austria, SOS Children's Villages President Helmut Kutin had the opportunity to meet with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at a gala dinner on 6 September.
The highest representatives of the UN as well as several UN Ambassadors, NGO representatives and Austrian politicians attended the dinner which was organized by the government of the hosting province Tyrol. These UN Meetings followed the 66th European Forum Alpbach (from 19 August to 4 September).
In a relaxed atmosphere, President Kutin informed UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the emergency relief activities in Haiti and Pakistan and about the strategic goals of SOS Children's Villages to reach out to more and more children in need in the coming years. Ban Ki-moon acknowledged the work of SOS Children's Villages, which he is familiar with, all over the world and assured President Kutin his support… not for the first time.
Last year, Richard Pichler, Secretary-General of SOS Children's Villages International, had also the opportunity to meet with Ban Ki-moon at the European Forum in Alpbach, a yearly-held, internationally recognized symposium of representatives and experts from the fields of science, politics and economics. Ban Ki-moon, a key-note speaker then, assured Mr Pichler his commitment to supporting the welcoming of the "Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children" by the UN General Assembly in November 2009 which was in fact achieved successfully.