TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The Iranian Red Crescent Society could secure its place as a member of the Governing Board of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) with the highest number of votes in Asia Pacific region.
The 19th session of the General Assembly of the IFRC convened in the Australian city of Sydney from 12-15 November.

The meeting, attended by delegates representing the Red Cross and the Red Crescent movements from different countries, aimed to address several humanitarian issues, with a special focus on the post-2015 development agenda and the IFRC’s contribution to the Millennium Development Goals.

During the general assembly, delegates also elected a new president, vice-presidents and national society members of the governing board.

Twenty national societies were elected as members of the IFRC governing board, with five national societies represented from each IFRC zone coming from Africa, Americas, Asia Pacific and Europe.

Iran, which was previously a member of the governing board from 2001 to 2009, was reelected for a new term from the Asia Pacific zone.

The factors leading to accession of Iran to the IFRC governing board are believed to lie in the Iranian Red Crescent Society’s considerable experiences in handling a range of contingencies, such as flood in Pakistan, famine in Somalia and earthquake in the domestic province of East Azarbaijan.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is the world's largest humanitarian organization, providing assistance without discrimination as to nationality, race, religious beliefs, class or political opinions.

Founded in 1919, the IFRC comprises 187 member Red Cross and Red Crescent national societies, a secretariat in Geneva and more than 60 delegations strategically located to support activities around the world. There are more societies in formation. The Red Crescent is used in place of the Red Cross in many Islamic countries.

The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that were established following the Millennium Summit of the United Nations in 2000, following the adoption of the United Nations Millennium Declaration. All 189 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations committed to help achieve the goals by 2015.

The goals include eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, achieving universal primary education, reducing child mortality rates and combating HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases among others.

By Tasnim News Agency

 

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