Director-General's remarks at the opening of the United Nations Women’s Guild’s
International Annual Bazaar and Lottery 2007

Dear Organizers of the Bazaar
Ladies and Gentlemen:

It is indeed a great pleasure to welcome you to the opening of the United Nations Women’s Guild’s International Annual Bazaar and Lottery. Let me, first of all, thank the organizers for putting together this important event. You always plan to outdo yourselves, and by the looks of it, you have achieved your aim yet again.

The overarching theme of this year’s Bazaar is “every child has the right to education”. This is a particularly poignant caption this year. As you know, this year we are at the halfway mark towards meeting the Millennium Development Goals. One of the Goals is to achieve universal primary education. This is not only a valuable aim in itself, but it is also central to meeting other Goals, such as reducing poverty and combating disease. And education is key to continuing development efforts beyond 2015, which is the deadline for the realization of the Millennium Development Goals.

Dear Friends:
The Bazaar is not only a reminder of the importance of the Goals in the United Nations’ efforts, but also of the value of individual engagement in meeting the Goals. Making the Goals a reality requires a collective effort, where everybody can – and should – make a contribution. It is often said that nobody can do everything, but everyone can do something. The Annual Bazaar is a clear example of this. By volunteering time, energy and creativity to raise funds, the Women’s Guild will help advance the work to reach the Millennium Development Goals.

Today’s event certainly demonstrates that by drawing on the talents and skills of all cultures, working towards a shared objective, it is possible to mobilize support and to make a real difference.

I trust that you will spend generously to honour the commitment to the values and objectives of the United Nations that this Bazaar represents. Just as the Women’s Guild has outdone itself in terms of organization, I hope that we – together – will outdo ourselves by raising even more money than last year. I hope that the spirit of compassion and dedication embodied in this event will guide our future efforts.

It is my honour to declare the Annual Bazaar open.