<p>My first message is that NOW is the time to invest in young people. Now is the time, not sometime in the future. My second message is that NOW is the time to promote dialogue and understanding across cultures and generations, to advance human rights for all people, both young and old.</p>

<p>Ms. Purnima Mane, UNFPA Deputy Executive Director (Programme), opened the World Youth Conference Social Forum in León, Mexico. In her speech, Ms. Mane encourage young people to make their voices heard in the conference: "Now it is your time to speak, so say it aloud and boldly! The world is listening."</p>

<p>Today, on World Humanitarian Day, UNFPA pays tribute to humanitarian aid workers who risk their lives to save the lives of others. In the past 10 years, aid workers have come under increasing fire as they strive to provide assistance and support to individuals and communities affected by crisis.</p>

<p>UNFPA Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid presented a joint statement by 27 UN agencies at the launch of Internation Year of Youth in the UN General Assembly Hall in New York.</p> <p>Ms. Obaid stated that "we must increase our commitment to invest in youth and their development because doing so will unleash greater economic growth and promote social well-being for generations to come."</p>

<p>Statement of UNFPA Executive Director on the International Youth Day: "Today, on the International Day Youth Day, and every day, young people are searching for opportunities to pursue and fulfill their dreams. The world’s more than 1.8 billion people aged 10 to 24 yearn for a world where they have the knowledge, skills and opportunities to develop to their fullest potential."</p>

<p>"Although reproduction is surrounded by myths and taboos and often shrouded in silence and great privacy, it affects every single human being with a clear impact on the future prospects of individuals, communities and nations," said UNFPA Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. Ms. Obaid gave a lecture at the university on the closing day of the 15th African Union Summit.</p>

<p>Ms. Purnima Mane, UNFPA Deputy Executive Director (Programme), gave opening remarks at the “Youth in the Arab States: Changing the World for the Better” Exhibition, in the XVIII International AIDS Conference"As we look towards the future, the stories told here show the enormous potential of the young people to initiate and lead the change that will contribute to achievement of the Millennium Development Goals," Ms. Mane stated.</p>

<p>Ms. Purnima Mane, UNFPA Deputy Executive Director (Programme), made a statement at the ' Universal Access for Women and Girls - 2010 A Year Not to Forget' event in the XVIII International AIDS Conference. "I like to think that we are on the brink of sweeping change for women and girls. "'Bleak’ no longer conveys where we are today in the AIDS epidemic, nor does it capture the progress or promising trajectory for women and girls. Gains are evident in treatment coverage, drug safety and effectiveness," said Ms. Mane.</p>

<p>Ms. Purnima Mane, Deputy Executive Director (Programme) UNFPA, delivered a Keynote Address at Parliamentary Side Event on the Integration of SRHR and HIV/AIDS European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development in XVIII International AIDS Conference in Vienna. "We now know that there are a finite set of mutually reinforcing responses to HIV that can work, and we now recognize that these responses are integrally linked with those of sexual and reproductive health," she stated.</p>

UNFPA Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid gave a presentation in in the ECOSOC Operational Activities Segment: Dialogue with the Executive Heads of the United Nations Funds and Programmes about partnerships with UN organizations and other development actors. She stated that "partnerships add value to our work because a holistic approach with broad based support is more likely to succeed. The mandates of UN agencies are varied and they complement each other as do the strengths and roles of governments, civil society and the private sector."