Participation eligibility Registering representatives Confirmation letters Making statements and oral interventions Organizing a side event NGO CSW: Annual consultation

Organizing a Side Event

DAW has developed an online system called SERCS (Side Events Request and Coordinating System) to improve the coordination and scheduling of Side Events held during the CSW Sessions. This new SERCS system is a ‘one stop shop’ for UN Missions and UN entities for coordination and scheduling of Side Events during the CSW Sessions.

All requests for Side Events will now be made online by Side Event organizers. Some of the benefits of this new system are:

• Reduce data entry error.
  It will reduce data entry errors as each organization will be responsible for their own Side Events requests.
• Enhance Communication.
  There will be enhanced communication between DAW, the NGO committee and the organizers via automatic email notification of Side Event submission and scheduling. Important ad-hoc notifications from DAW and/or the NGO committee will be sent via email to Side Event organizers through the new system.
• Dynamic Side Events Calendar.
  Organizers will have access to the dynamic Side Event calendar. This calendar will show all Side Event requests as they are updated by the organizers and by the DAW or/and the NGO committee. It will show the current live status of each Side Event request e.g. pending requests, submitted requests, and finally scheduled requests showing the locations and times of the Side Events. This calendar will be an invaluable tool for organizers who may want to host a joint event or to make use of existing information to choose the timing of their own events. With this dynamic calendar they can coordinate with other organizers who are hosting similar Side Events.
• At any stage in the new system you can access help information from the main SERCS menu.
• NGO Committee on the Status of Women will manage all NGO requested Side Events.
• DAW will manage all UN Mission or UN Agency requested Side Events.

UN entities and NGOs who wish to organize side events during the session, or who wish to sponsor exhibitions in the Conference Building Neck Area, are requested to fill out the side events reuest using the SERCS online form (please complete one for each event) on or before 15 January 2006. Due to limited space, requests will be considered on first come, first served basis. Please note that the sponsoring organizations for the events are responsible for all charges related to the event, including room, equipment, and any other services. Fees will have to be paid in advance to the United Nations (send to Mr. Gordon Tapper, S-2170C). Please use the standard rates for side events to calculate fees to be paid.

The standard rates are applicable to the side events taking place on the UN premises. These side events must be co-sponsored by either a Permenant Mission to the United Nations, or an United Nations Agency. For side events taking place in the Church Center, there will be no charge. However, the non-governmental organizations sponsoring the events will have to provide the equipment if so needed.

For further information, please contact Ms.Tsu-Wei Chang.

The NGO Committee will also conduct its annual consultation the day before the session begins, Sunday, 27 February, 8:30 A.M. – 6:00 P.M at Barnard College in Manhattan. Information about the events organized by the NGO Committee, including the registration form, is available here for download in PDF or click http://www.ngocongo.org/ngonew/index.htm.

See also:

• ECOSOC resolution 2004/57 on participation of non-governmental organizations in the forty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women (page 153 of ECOSOC document E/2004/INF/2/Add.2, PDF)
• ECOSOC decision 2004/309 on preparations for the forty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women (page 212 of ECOSOC document E/2004/INF/2/Add.2, PDF)
• Answers to the frequently asked questions on the 49th session of the Commission on the Status of Women