Two 17-year-old girls will represent Bulgaria at the second special UN session on children from September 19 to 22 and the first UN special children's forum in New York. It will take place despite this week's terrorist attacks on the U.S.

The official Bulgarian delegation will be headed by President Petar and will include representatives of the Foreign Ministry, the Agency for the Protection of Children and the Bulgarian UNICEF Committee.

Marta Kunova and Ginka Todorova were chosen to represent Bulgaria after a competition involving essays and interviews. UNICEF required participants to have a high command of French and English, as they will be the working languages at the UN session, explained executive director of UNICEF-Bulgaria.

Twenty-nine children participated in the competition. Twelve were short-listed for interviews, six from Sofia and six from other towns.

The motto of the competition was To Change the World for the Children with the Children. In her essay Marta wrote about drugs in Bulgaria and Ginka discussed the universal problems of children.

"The problems of children were identified by four million answers to a questionnaire returned to the UN headquarters from all corners of the world," said Karaslavova.

Approximately 75 heads of State have confirmed their participation in the Special Children's Session from September 17 to 19. It will be one of the largest gatherings of world leaders ever and will signal the strong emphasis that the world places on the rights and welfare of children.

In addition, the United Nations Security Council will hold a special meeting in conjunction with the session to address the pressing issue of children and armed conflicts.

"This extraordinary gathering of heads of state is very promising and also very appropriate," said Carol Bellamy, executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the leading United Nations agency for the special session. "Children should be at the top of the international agenda. World leaders are demonstrating that by coming together to commit to a better future for children. And that translates into a better future for all."

According to Ginka, the special session will review progress made since the historic 1990 World Summit for Children, where governments committed themselves to specific goals on child survival, protection and development. "It will explore the long-standing obstacles to children's well-being, emerging challenges to child health and universal access to quality basic education," she said.

At the session the Bulgarian girls will address the issues of the best possible start in life for children, basic education for children and the opportunity for children to meaningfully participate in their communities.