Concluding Remarks of Professor Gita Sen, Chairperson of the Third United Nations Forum on Minority Issues “Minorities and the Effective Participation in Economic Life” Geneva 14-15 December 2010 Yesterday we started our discussions by calls for inclusive development, the need for equitable distribution of resources, and access to assets, capabilities, productive resources & participation in decision making processes. We heard many witness accounts about the discrimination again minorities on all fronts – often, we find the worst social indicators, education, health, water and sanitation, the highest maternal mortality rates in minority communities. We were also reminded throughout those two days of the impact of the financial crisis of dimensions not seen before and of trade agreements such as under the WTO that in the name of non-discrimination, actually make it very difficult for affirmative action to remain in place. How do we maintain the momentum to strive for non-discrimination and equality and strengthen efforts to overcome discrimination? How do we ensure labour standards in light of this crisis? It is important to emphasize that the impact of crises on minorities must be closely monitored and crisis response should be guided by the “do not harm” principle. We were reminded that early warning