International Human Solidarity Day (IHSD), observed on December 20, is an international annual unity day of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

and its member states. Its main goal is to recognize the

universal value A value is a universal value if it has the same value or worth for all, or almost all, people. Spheres of human value encompass morality, aesthetic preference, human traits, human endeavour, and social order. Whether universal values exist is ...

of solidarity by making member states aware of global objectives and initiatives to reduce poverty and to formulate and share poverty reduction strategies of independent nations around the world. IHSD is promoted by the World Solidarity Fund and

United Nations Development Programme The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human dev ...

, which are focused on achieving goals set for worldwide poverty eradication. An individual can participate or celebrate the day, either by contributing to education or by helping the poor or physically or mentally

disabled Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, ...

. Governments are instead encouraged to respond to poverty and other social barriers through the Sustainable Development Goals.

Background

International Human Solidarity Day was established under the U.N. Millennium Declaration that determines the

civil and political rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

of an individual in the modern era by establishing

foreign relations A state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterally or through m ...

between the member states and the U.N. It was introduced by the General Assembly during the

2005 World Summit The 2005 World Summit, held between 14 and 16 September 2005, was a follow-up summit meeting to the United Nations' 2000 Millennium Summit, which had led to the Millennium Declaration of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Representatives ( ...

and formally established on December 22, 2005, by resolution 60/209, which recognized solidarity as a fundamental and

. According to the

, International Human Solidarity Day is * a day to celebrate our

unity in diversity Unity in diversity is used as an expression of harmony and unity between dissimilar individuals or groups. It is a concept of "unity without uniformity and diversity without fragmentation" that shifts focus from unity based on a mere tolerance ...

; * a day to remind governments to respect their commitments to

international agreements A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pers ...

; * a day to raise public awareness of the importance of solidarity; * a day to encourage debate on ways to promote solidarity for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals including poverty eradication; * a day of action to encourage new initiatives for

poverty eradication Poverty reduction, poverty relief, or poverty alleviation, is a set of measures, both economic and humanitarian, that are intended to permanently lift people out of poverty. Measures, like those promoted by Henry George in his economics cl ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control United Nations days United Nations General Assembly subsidiary organs IHSD 2005 establishments in the United States Economic development