On 3 February 2025, Latvian experts active in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) gathered for their annual meeting hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The aim of the meeting was to promote cooperation, outline the fields of activities and work accomplished by UNESCO experts in 2024, and to share information about the plans of the involved institutions for 2025.
The event was opened by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Latvia to the OECD and UNESCO, Andris Pelšs, who presented current developments in UNESCO and Latvia’s priorities. Andris Pelšs welcomed the involvement of Latvian experts in various UNESCO formats, as well as the organisation’s support for Ukraine.
Contribution by Latvian experts is highly appreciated in UNESCO programmes for the promotion of education and science, communication, artificial intelligence and bioethics, the protection of the diversity of cultural expressions, in the implementation of the UN International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022-2032), and in cooperation with the small island countries in the field of digitalisation.
During the meeting, the Ambassador underlined the importance of preparing for the next UNESCO General Conference, which will take place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from 30 October to 14 November 2025. At the conference, Latvia will stand for election to several UNESCO institutions, including the UNESCO International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC). In this way, we will highlight Latvia’s positive visibility and sustained efforts in the UNESCO’s fields of activity – media freedom, safety of journalists and media literacy.
Background information
- UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is an international organization that brings together 195 countries committed to the fields of education, natural sciences, social sciences and humanities, culture, communication and information. Latvia joined UNESCO in 1991.
- About International Programme for the Development of Communication
- The 43d session of the UNESCO General Conference
