Mary Robinson, the former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and former president of Ireland, has agreed to chair the selection panel for the 2006 World Business Awards in support of the Millennium Development Goals.

Dr Robinson, who is currently the chair of the Ethical Globalization Initiative, will help to select projects which are making a significant contribution to the Millennium Development Goals. Nominations for the last Awards, presented in Marrakesh in 2004, came from 27 countries.

The World Business Awards are sponsored by the International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and ICC and are the first worldwide business awards to recognize the significant role business can and does play in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.

Every business entity including associations, chambers of commerce, confederations and individual businesses of any size and from any country is eligible to apply. The deadline for nominations is 31 December 2005, and the Awards will be presented at a ceremony held in May 2006, during the 14th meeting of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development.

The eight Millennium Development Goals offer an integrated framework for tackling major challenges that afflict individuals, countries and the global community. They set quantitative and measurable targets to be achieved by 2015 for the reduction of poverty, hunger, disease and tangible improvement in education, healthcare, drinking water, shelter and environmental protection.

World Business Award finalists will receive worldwide recognition for their projects and will be listed in websites and publications of IBLF, UNDP and the ICC. Those recognized in 2004 included: De Beers' HIV/AIDS Programme, India's ITC eChoupal information technology centres, Hewlett -Packard's Mogalakwena HP i-community, GlaxoSmithKline's Personal Hygiene & Sanitation Education programme, Procter & Gamble's PuR water purifier, and SUEZ Environnement's Water for All initiative.

For more information on how to apply for the 2006 Awards, go to www.iccwbo.org/awards .