Addressing the Plenary of the National Assembly, the Director-General commended the President of the National Assembly, His Excellency Mr Jose Serrano Delgado, for setting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as the benchmark of its legislative functions.

The Director-General congratulated the National Assembly on its recent publication and implementation of their orientation guide on how to implement and achieve sustainable development and human rights goals, underscoring Ecuador’s active participation in the elaboration of the 2030 Agenda and underlining the importance of the Memorandum of Understanding between the National Assembly and United Nations System to promote the new global agenda.

Within the framework of the Plenary, the Director-General received the “National Assembly of the Republic of Ecuador, Dr Matilde Hidalgo de Procel” Decoration, presented to her by the President of the National Assembly of Ecuador. H.E. Mr José Serrano Delgado. 

“I am honored to receive this recognition as a symbol of the strong ties between UNESCO and Ecuador, anasd a symbol of our common values,” said the Director-General, highlighting the vision guiding Dr Matilde Hidalgo de Procel of the importance of education as a tool to building a brighter future for all.

On the same day, the Director-General participated in a ministerial meeting chaired by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility, Ms María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés. This high-level meeting was an opportunity to reinforce cooperation with Ecuador. This gathered ministers working in UNESCO’s fields of expertise, including the Minister of Culture and Heritage, Mr Raúl Pérez Torres, the Secretary of Science, Technology and Innovation (SENESCYT), Mr Augusto Barrera Guarderas, the Vice Minister of Education, Mr Alvaro Saenz, the Undersecretary of Climate Change, Ms María Victoria Chiriboga, and the Undersecretary of International Cooperation, Silvia Espíndola. The Director of the National Institute of Cultural Heritage of Ecuador, Mr Joaquín MOSCOSO, also participated in the ministerial meeting.

The Director-General highlighted the close ties between UNESCO and the Republic of Ecuador throughout the seventy years since its membership in 1947.  She commended President Lenin Moreno’s leadership in strengthening political transparency and access to information, as well as in the fight against corruption. In this context, she applauded the President’s initiative, underscoring its importance for unity and social cohesion, “that should inspire not only Ecuador but also the rest of the world.”

In light of this, the Director-General highlighted UNESCO’s readiness to support Ecuador in elaborating the 2017-2021 National Development Plan, in line with the goals of the 2030 Agenda.

Irina Bokova also reaffirmed UNESCO’s collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Heritage in protecting and safeguarding Ecuador’s cultural heritage, a matter in which Ecuador plays an exemplary role as demonstrated through inscribing the Galapagos Islands and the Historic Centre of Quito as World Heritage Sites. The Director-General also reaffirmed the Organization's cooperation with the Ministry of the Environment, which, together with Peru, established the first South American "Bosques de Paz" Transboundary Biosphere Reserve (2017).