More than 100 World Leaders to attend Summit

29 July 2002 - Leaders of more than 100 countries have officially indicated that they will attend the World Summit on Sustainable Development that will take place in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 26 August to 4 September.

The Summit will be an historic opportunity for world leaders, together with representatives of citizen groups and the private sector, to commit to decisive actions that will promote better standards of living in a better global environment.

Among the world leaders that have expressed interest in attending are 58 Heads of State, 40 Heads of Government, 7 Vice-Presidents and one Crown Prince. The indication of interest comes from the drawing of lots for speaking times at the Summit, and is subject to change.

"The Summit is clearly a must for world leaders," according to Johannesburg Summit Secretary-General Nitin Desai. "It is evident that most leaders see the importance of attending the Summit to revitalize efforts to pursue sustainable development. They see this as a major chance to make something happen."

There were 108 world leaders at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, where Agenda 21, the blueprint for sustainable, was adopted. The Johannesburg Summit is expected to build on the Rio conference through the launch of concrete actions that will promote sustainable development.

Negotiations on the outcome of the Summit will be completed in Johannesburg. Countries have already agreed on three-quarters of a draft Plan of Implementation. To expedite the negotiations, South Africa has invited delegations to come to Johannesburg two days early, to begin pre-Summit consultations on 24 August.

In addition to the Plan of Implementation, the Summit will result in a political declaration adopted by the world leaders in attendance, and it is expected that a large number of partnership initiatives will be launched in Johannesburg as part of the Summit. The partnership initiatives, by and between governments, NGOs, and the private sector, are intended to bring additional resources to the table and deliver results on the ground.

Note: The provisional list of speakers can be found on the Summit website, www.johannesburgsummit.org. In addition to the speakers listed, the Head of State of South Africa will be speaking first in the general debate, as President of the Summit.

Published by the United Nations Department of Public Information