About - UNESCO's participation in the G20
As a privileged partner of the Brazilian presidency of the Group of 20 (G20), and for the first time, UNESCO has crafted a robust roadmap to aid the Presidency in fulfilling its priorities related to UNESCO mandate, i.e fighting hunger, poverty, and inequality, combatting climate disruption, and acting for the sustainable development goals, in all its dimensions.
The 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, adopted by all UN Member States in 2015, are a global call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and improve the lives of everyone. UNESCO contributes to achieving the SDGs through its cross-cutting mission - in education, sciences, culture, and communication.
The G20's priorities are closely linked to the achievement of these sustainable development goals, and UNESCO's participation in the G20 will help to emphasize the importance of achieving these SDGs, and our organization role in supporting all its Member States in the face of today's global challenges.
UNESCO's G20 Sherpa
The Director-General of UNESCO, Madame Audrey Azoulay, appointed Mr. Charaf Ahmimed as UNESCO’s G20 Sherpa in November 2023. Mr. Ahmimed supports the Director-General’s engagement with the leaders of G20 and steers UNESCO contribution to G20 Working Groups and Task Forces. Mr. Charaf Ahmimed is a Senior Advisor to the Director-General of UNESCO since 2020. He advises the Director-General on policies, strategies, and political issues, including Priority Africa.
Before, he advised the Director-General on her engagement with governing bodies and Member States, contributed to UNESCO’s response to COVID-19 pandemic and coordinated the reform of UNESCO field network.
In 2018, Mr. Ahmimed was appointed to the Office of the Director-General of UNESCO to coordinate the Strategic Transformation process of the Organization, a major reform of UNESCO’s programmes and operations. He assisted the Deputy Director-General, Mr. Qu, in the design, implementation, reporting and evaluation of the reform.
Between 2011 and 2018, he was responsible for the social and human sciences programme of UNESCO, based in Southeast Asia (Jakarta Office), Central America (San Jose Office) and Southern Africa (Harare Office).
Prior to joining UNESCO, Mr. Ahmimed was Senior Programme Officer with Canada’s International Development Research Centre (2005-2010). He managed the Middle East Good Governance Fund, and the Peace, Conflict and Development Programme. He advised various departments of the Government of Canada, including Privy Council Office and Department of Foreign Affairs, on political development in the Middle East and North Africa.
Mr Ahmimed has also worked at IMAPCT (former Partnership Africa Canada), United Nations Development Programme, and Council of Europe. He collaborated with international organizations such as Crisis Group and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Mr. Ahmimed published field research and peer-reviewed articles on youth development, education, migration, and inclusion. His recent publications are: Intercultural dialogue: A tool for young people to address exclusion in southern Africa (Journal of Intercultural Communication, vol. 50, 2019); Changing realities. A youth perspective from Southern Africa (UNESCO, 2019); Youth political participation in Costa Rica (Critica y Emancipación, vol.3, 2015); Role of media in the promotion of sustainable development and culture of peace (UNESCO, 2015); and Public policies and social inclusion in South-East Asia (Trinity College/Melbourne University/UNESCO, 2014). Mr Ahmimed is a Ph.D. Candidate at the Department of Sociology of the University of Cape Town. He is writing his thesis on the social reintegration of migrants’ returnees. He obtained a Master’s in International Relations (Laval University, Canada), and a B.A. in Communication and Politics (University of Montreal, Canada).