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UN-ESCWA to Discuss the Establishment of a UN Arabic Language Centre

30
April
2007
Beirut

UN-ESCWA will hold an expert group meeting to consider the establishment of a United Nations Arabic Language Centre, at the Bristol Hotel in Beirut on 2 and 3 May 2007. The meeting, which is the first to be held on the subject, is intended to review key activities implemented by UN-ESCWA in this regard and decide on future activities to be organized in cooperation with the United Nations Secretariat.

The meeting is being held in accordance with UN-ESCWA resolution 239 (XXII) dated 17 April 2003 on the consideration of the establishment of a United Nations Arabic Language Centre at the Commission. It is also being held in accordance with the legislative mandate conferred by United Nations Economic and Social Council resolution 2003/8 dated 18 July 2003.

The meeting, which will open at 10:00 am on Wednesday, aims to review progress made by UN-ESCWA in implementing the legislative mandate conferred to it by the two aforementioned resolutions and to discuss issues related to the establishment of a United Nations Arabic Language Centre and its role in improving the quality and use of the Arabic language in United Nations documents in response to requests by Arab Member States and in implementation of the relevant General Assembly resolutions. The meeting also aims to review the preliminary feasibility study that UN-ESCWA commissioned on the establishment of the Centre and to seek the views, comments and suggestions of the participants in order to incorporate them in the final conclusions of the meeting. Participants will discuss the issue of terminology coordination in United Nations documents and the role of the proposed Centre in this regard, and explore ways to raise the level of the language used in technical documents and improve the ability to express in Arabic the emerging concepts in the various scientific and technological fields taking into consideration the specificity of the Arabic language. The meeting will seek to establish a larger preparatory committee including representatives of the Arabic Translation Services at UN Headquarters and other duty stations to be entrusted with the follow up of practical and technical matters related to the project.

Participants in the meeting will be representatives of Conference Services and Arabic Translation Services at UN Headquarters and other duty stations, UN organizations and specialized agencies, in addition to language experts and specialists as well as representatives of translation schools and specialized research institutes.