Vienna, May 7th 2013. Over 100 diplomatic representatives of UNIDO Member States attended the reception at the Italian Embassy in Vienna, in order to hear proposal of Diana Battaggia, the Italian candidate for the position of Director-General of UNIDO.
The Italian Permanent Representative to the International Organizations in Vienna, Amb.  Filippo Formica, opened the event by reading a statement from the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Emma Bonino . In her statement, she reiterates Italy’s full support to the candidate for her skills in the political, private and international development cooperation. Italy is one of the main donors of UNIDO.
During her speech, Ms. Battaggia said: "UNIDO is the only UN agency with a mandate to promote sustainable industrial development, should be revived as a leading Organization for matters relating to the emerging and disadvantaged economies’ development, paying more attention to the real needs of people. The development - said the Italian candidate - should not be measured only by increasing domestic economies, but also by the quality of people's lives. Economic growth means poverty and inequality reduction as well as a truly sustainable for future generations. It must be based on a more inclusive industrialization, careful recruitment and training of young people and women and the small and medium-sized businesses development, the engine of the real economy. "
In this context, Diana Battaggia emphasized the concept of "People Centered Development", according to which people should be the main actors and beneficiaries of sustainable growth.
Ms. Battaggia, which has been working in UNIDO for almost 10 years, finally expressed her great concern about the recent withdrawal of important Member States and proposed solutions to enhance the real effectiveness of the activities of UNIDO to restore confidence into the Organization.
 The next event for Diana Battaggia will take place at the headquarters of UNIDO at the end of May. In this occasion, the candidates for the post of Director-General of UNIDO will present their vision for the future of the Organization directly to the representatives of the 172 Member States of UNIDO.

Speech by Ms. Diana Battaggia

Excellencies,

Distinguished Ambassadors,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Dear friends and colleagues,

I thank you all for being here tonight and I would like to extend my special thanks to our hosts, Ambassadors D’Auria and Formica, for making this enchanting evening possible.

You all know that I will be  presenting my vision in detail at the Forum of candidates for Director-General’s post in two weeks, on 21st of May. 

I promise, I won’t make you fall asleep, but I want you to get back home with a clear picture of  who is Diana Battaggia, a politician, manager, a proud UNIDO staff member, and the Italian candidate for the DG position.

As a child my grandmother used to say that knowing people and looking into their eyes is the best way to probe their temper, their will, personality and commitment. This is why I have a pleasure to meet you tonight and tell you in person what I have done and what I intend to do for this Organization.

I am sure you all, we all, have had dreams…..well, some of those dreams can really drive us. They remain vivid over time and PUSH US to ACT UNTIL THEY become true. When I was a teenager, I dreamt of making this world a better place.

I come from a unique city from the north east of Italy: Venice - the city of explorers, traders, and arts, the centre of a maritime republic, the continent’s commercial and cultural link between Europe and all discovered continents. 

Growing up, I became very passionate and engaged in national politics. As I gained prominence, and became a Member of Parliament, I always promoted industrial growth. 

As a top advisor for economic and institutional affairs, I was involved in boosting small and medium enterprises to be competitive, and to cooperate with each other and with large multinational companies.

Then, I started my management career at the leading private sector organization in Italy - our Confindustria.  

At this point in my life, I felt the best way to expand my horizons was to become a U.N. Civil Servant. I started as an international coordinator at UNCTAD up to heading UNIDO in Italy for almost 10 years. And even during this renovated commitment, I always promoted a long range of successful collaborations and initiatives  with IFAD, FAO, WFP and Members.

You might wonder why an Italian woman with my professional experience might want to be leading UNIDO.

What I have accomplished during this period, what more can I offer. And most of all why am I the most suited candidate to drive UNIDO into the new phase.

Numbers and results often speak louder than words - so let me share with you some facts and figures. 

While piloting my UNIDO team, we assisted and supported 66 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, involving over 3,000 companies and promoting more than 2,000 investment and technology projects. Main results: almost 6,000 new jobs were created, and about 3 hundred million USD of investments generated for developing countries. 

This was made  possible by linking technical assistance and resources, in cooperation with financial institutions. I believe that this is the approach to be scaled up along with other UNIDO solutions with proven impact.

Throughout my UNIDO tenure,  my colleagues and I, promoted and increased the role and visibility of UNIDO in Italy.

Due to our efforts, UNIDO was honored to participate, for the first and only time to-date, in the G8 Summits on Energy and Environment in 2009, where the Syracuse Charter on Biodiversity was approved.

Yet, there is so much more that we can do to lead UNIDO to become a proactive player in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals and the formulation of the Post - 2015 Industrial Development Agenda against poverty.

Working in UNIDO, I had to learn and understand it, not as an Organization but as a body of living organs, needs and complexities. 

This is to say that UNIDO is my home, not only my working place. That is why I am determined to lead the Organization and to unlock its staff potentials in the UN family for industrial development and people prosperity.

 Furthermore, I know the importance of diversity in every organization, and as a woman, I will promote full gender equality and access of women to managerial careers.

I wish to underline that UNIDO is the only specialized Agency of the UN with the mandate to promote sustainable industrialization. 

I believe that development should tow people and societies into self-reliant growth, and sustainable growth patterns in harmony with the environment, providing equal and appropriate opportunities.

Furthermore, I believe  People Centered Development is a crucial goal and a powerful tool for sustainable growth.

For me development is not mere progress of GDP, it is poverty reduction and human sustainable development, through  functioning green industrial systems and small and medium enterprises. These, in fact play an important role in the development of a country.  

I will push on SMEs to move to products and processes with a lower environmental impact. We at UNIDO need to promote industrial processes that rely on the use of environmentally friendly technologies. We need to preserve the vital ecosystem services such as clean water and oxygen, marine and other food and raw material resources that we all depend on. 

In a nutshell, I envision a development which makes the land greener and richer. As a mother, I want a development where every mother can drive their children to school, not gasping behind a paper mouth-mask thanks to urban pollution, but smiling freely.

I always felt and believed that our children are the hopes and promises for growth and for a better future. In this sense, I think that our commitment to the new generation should be strong and tangible.

This is my everyday work and commitment. I intend to build UNIDO upon this pillar taking industrial development towards a more participative, balanced and all  inclusive approach with a measurable impact on the ground.

There are many other important UN agencies and NGOs involved in humanitarian assistance helping, feeding the starving ones, saving the babies, rescuing refugees, mending the atrocities of war and inequality. All these things  are necessary wherever and whenever development has failed to fully fledge its wings.

I would like to express my gratitude to all those Member States which, despite the challenging moment the world is facing, continue to sponsor the cause of UNIDO, with Italy among the strongest supporters.

Member States are the heart and bones of the Organization,   and  I will make sure that I will consider all members recommendations and priorities very seriously and incorporate those into the UNIDO work plan.

I understand that several countries have decided to leave the organization. I, as long-standing UNIDO employee  intend to address their motivations.

Cost efficiency and impact of activities in the field are of paramount importance. We should all get together to come up with an agenda that will bring them back to our family.

In drafting my UNIDO plan of action I have already taken this into due account.

I understand what each individual donor country expects from us , as UNIDO. I will guarantee that every single dollar spent,  will be invested in civilian technical support and development cooperation for sustainable inclusive industrialization for the benefit of developing countries in the most efficient and effective manner. 

Not a cent will be devoted for causes different from civilian development.

Finally in thanking you for your presence here tonight I would like you to know,  that I feel confident as the best candidate for this position because I am already ON and IN the job. 

My working approach is “hands on”. I am a visionary, a problem-solver and results-oriented UNIDO senior officer.

I wish to leave you tonight with three key messages:

1) People first.

2) Job creation.

3) Importance of Members role.

Here in Vienna my door will always be open for you all. My promise to you is that I will make UNIDO the new legacy for development, wealth and equality in the coming years.

I count on your support to make this happen!

Thank you all !!!!!!!!

Vienna, May 21st 2013. It was concluded on May 21, the Candidates’ Forum at the UNIDO Headquarters. Speaking to the diplomatic representatives of the Member States, the Italian candidate Diana Battaggia had the opportunity to introduce herself and present her vision for the future of the Organization.
During her speech, Diana Battaggia highlighted the way in which UNIDO should play an increasingly significant role in promoting  sustainable industrial development aimed at the fight against poverty.
According to the Italian candidate, an industrial development that would guarantee equal opportunities and that would overcome regional disparities for a more balanced future, cannot abstract  from a process of valorisation and involvement of people, ideas, and needs. Indeed, people-centred development is the priority based on which people must be the main actors and beneficiaries of sustainable growth.
Furthermore, Diana Battaggia has emphasized the fact that Italy is one of the main international actors in development cooperation and has always sustained UNIDO’s activities, considering them a valid instrument to support economic growth in less favoured countries. 
The next Director General of UNIDO, who will be elected at the end of June, will be the successor of Kandeh K. Yumkella, who has covered this position since 2005. Diana Battaggia, in reference to Yumkella, expressed “deep gratitude for the significant results achieved,” considering them “a solid foundation” on which to build more and better.