You can often hear that this or that cultural heritage site is under the protection of UNESCO. The same organization patronizes various socially significant events. What is UNESCO and what tasks does it set for itself?
UNESCO is an abbreviation of the full name of this organization in English: United Nations Educational, Science, Cultural Organization. With about 60 UNESCO bodies operating in all corners of the globe and headquartered in Paris, UNESCO is chaired by a Director General who is elected for a four-year term, and in 2009, Irina Bokova (representative from Bulgaria) was appointed to this post.
The history of the organization dates back to the 40s of the last century. In 1942, the Allied countries discussed the prospects for the restoration of educational systems and cultural development, envisaged at the end of the Second World War. The negotiations resulted in the signing of the UNESCO Charter on November 16, 1945 and the creation of a preparatory commission. The first meetings of the UNESCO General Assembly took place in Paris in 1946.
The goal of UNESCO is to strengthen peace and establish universal security by increasing the availability and quality of education everywhere, developing a dialogue of civilizations, preserving the cultural heritage of all nationalities, ensuring equality for all inhabitants of the Earth, regardless of gender and race, language and religion. UNESCO also sees its mission in defeating poverty and hunger, eradicating interethnic conflicts, preserving the Earth's biosphere and maintaining the climate.
From the first years of its existence, UNESCO has been actively involved in the problems of education and science. Today, one of the main goals of the organization is the dissemination of modern communication tools for the cohesion of the world society. In particular, UNESCO has long supported the Free Software Foundation.
Currently, UNESCO sets itself many tasks, highlighting the problem of African countries and the topic of gender equality as priorities.
