Washington, DC (October 30, 2018) – Yesterday the Embassy of Italy organized an event dedicated to the theme of child protection in the digital era to celebrate the United Nations Day. The event, organized in collaboration with the UN Association of the Capital and the UN Information Center, was attended by the Unicef Executive Director, Henrietta Fore. Speakers included the Dean of the School of Public Policy of the University of Maryland, Robert Orr, former Undersecretary General at the UN, and moderator Suzanne Kianpour, BBC Foreign Affairs Journalist and Fellow at the Georgetown Institute of Politics and Public Service.
In his introductory speech, Ambassador Varricchio highlighted how Italy is one of the Fund’s main partners and hosts the Innocenti Research Center in Florence, and recalled the recent contribution of 4 million dollars for two projects in Libya and Gambia. “It is essential, continued the Ambassador, to broaden the benefits of developing new technologies while working to mitigate the risks for the weakest and most vulnerable groups in our societies.”
A theme taken up by UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore who, after thanking Italy for the generous contributions to the Fund, recalled how many initiatives that UNICEF contributes to or leads, are aimed at allowing young people to have access to technology, but also to protect them (“empower and protect”). During her speech, Mrs. Fore also mentioned her next trip to Italy, during which she will meet members of the government ass well as private sector representatives to strengthen the relationships and reflect on how to join forces to support children and minors in many areas of the world.
The event is part of the Digital Diplomacy Series, a series of meetings and round tables organized since 2012 by the Embassy in Washington and focusing on the effects of new technologies and the digital age on numerous sectors.
