The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon at the Panama Summit

By: UN Communication Team

UNITED NATIONS (UNIC) Panama, April 11, 2015 The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon urged the presidents and heads of state of the Americas to continue their efforts to eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities and promote development, as he reiterated the commitment of the organization to accompany and support countries in meeting the challenge of further progress in the pursuit of prosperity, during the opening ceremony of the VII Summit of the Americas held in Panama City, Panama.

Prior to his speech at the opening ceremony of the meeting of leaders of the Western Hemisphere for the first time with the participation of Cuba, the Secretary-General of the UN met with a busy schedule of meetings that began at early hours of the morning with a meeting with his counterpart from the Organization of American States, José Miguel Insulza. They both analyzed the current political situation in the hemisphere and the collaboration between the two agencies, particularly on the process of full reintegration of Cuba into the community of American nations.

Subsequently, the Secretary-General met with the President of Panama, Juan Carlos Varela, whom he invited to be a speaker at the high-level UN to take place from 25 to 27 September this year to address issues of global agenda and especially the threat to international security.

The Secretary-General of the UN recognized that Panama has become a regional hub of United Nations and the efforts of the Panamanian government to contribute to the unity of the Americas. They agreed on the need to address the challenges and global challenges focused on solving the problems that affect peoples. At the end of the meeting, President Varela Rodríguez reaffirmed its commitment to work with the United Nations on issues of security and development of peoples.

Their next encounter was with the Central American presidents called Northern Triangle: of El Salvador, Salvador Sánchez; of Guatemala, Otto Pérez Molina and Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernandez, who was devoted primarily to Plan Prosperity Alliance a regional strategy between the three countries, to support also contain illegal migration to the United States, through development programs for which they requested support from the UN.

Also in the morning, the Secretary-General of the UN held a meeting with the President of the Dominican Republic, Danilo Medina, who reviewed the common agenda of the Caribbean country and the UN. The President expressed concern Medina order and regularize the presence of foreigners in the Dominican territory.

Then, the Secretary-General held a meeting with UN staff in Panama to exchange ideas on the future of the organization and its impact on the development of the Americas. Later, the UN SG met with the president of Cuba, Raul Castro.

In the afternoon, the Secretary-General of the UN attended the Business Forum, which urged senior entrepreneurs to support the new development agenda through partnerships and funding.

Its mission concluded his message to heads of state at the opening ceremony of the VII Summit, who congratulated for their valuable contribution to the formulation of the new Agenda for Sustainable Development Post 2015. "This is a year for Global Action . Before the horizon, is a brighter and sustainable future, a future of prosperity with equity, where no one is left behind. A life of dignity for all. Every country in the Americas is well positioned to assist in the achievement. The United Nations is here to support them and accompany them," he said.

Regarding the VII Summit of the Americas

Panama is home to the VII Summit of the Americas on 10 and 11 April 2015, whose central theme will be "Prosperity with Equity: The Challenge of Cooperation in the Americas". The meeting will address the axes of health, education, environment, energy, security, migration, democratic governance and citizen participation.

As part of the Summit,  four forums that brought together representatives of civil society, youth, entrepreneurs and university presidents from all countries, were held in which the same topics discussed presidents were addressed and made recommendations to their leaders .

Panama introduced a number of innovations that hemispheric meeting such as invitation, first, to all Heads of State and Government of the Americas. For the continental date there have been confirmations of attendance from governments of the 35 countries in the region, including Cuba and the United States.