WTO SHOULD ADDRESS MULTILATERAL INVESTMENT AGREEMENT ONLY AFTER THOROUGH STUDY BY UNCTAD, ASEAN TELLS SECOND COMMITTEE

7 November 1996

Press Release
GA/EF/2748

WTO SHOULD ADDRESS MULTILATERAL INVESTMENT AGREEMENT ONLY AFTER THOROUGH STUDY BY UNCTAD, ASEAN TELLS SECOND COMMITTEE

19961107 Unilateral Trade Sanctions, Protectionist Measures Criticized, As Debate on Trade and Development Continues; Two Drafts Introduced

As the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) continued consideration of trade and development issues this afternoon, the representative of the Philippines, speaking on behalf of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), said that a multilateral investment agreement should first be thoroughly studied by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and only then addressed by the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The importance of evaluating east Asian development experiences and their applicability to problems encountered in Africa was highlighted by the representative of Japan, who said his Government was contributing to an UNCTAD project which focused on the experiences of east Asian countries in fostering export industries and attracting foreign investment.

Also this afternoon, protectionism in the guise of subsidies, environmental protection, labour rights and other artificial or politically motivated barriers was decried by several countries. The representative of Venezuela said a rigorous analysis of environment and trade was required, particularly in circumstances when norms and precepts of an environmental nature were used for protectionist purposes in the area of international trade.

The representative of Uruguay also called for eliminating discrimination and establishing a rule-based system of international trade. Moreover, sanctions imposed unilaterally and extraterritorially were a violation of international law, he said.

The representative of Iran agreed and said the imposition of coercive economic measures and approval of domestic legislation with extraterritorial implications by some developed countries was contrary to the provisions of the United Nations Charter, the WTO commitments and international trading rules.

The Committee was told by the Secretary-General of the South Pacific Forum that its member countries had chosen to benchmark their trade and investment reforms against standards set for WTO membership. As a first step, they had focused on improving the transparency of investment regimes in the region and were collaborating to improve mechanisms to identify fraudulent financial operations, to combat international drug trafficking and to develop a common approach to weapons control, he said.

Statements were also made by the representatives of Senegal, South Africa, Uganda, Egypt, India, Niger, Libya, Bangladesh and Ghana.

The Committee also heard the introduction of a report of the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) on the United Nations system support for science and technology in Asia and the Pacific.

In addition, two draft resolutions were introduced this afternoon. By the provisions of a draft text on commodities, the General Assembly would emphasize the urgent need to create a more favourable international environment for supportive international policies to improve the functioning of commodity markets through efficient and transparent price formation mechanisms.

By the other draft resolution, on implementation of the decisions adopted by the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II), the Assembly would endorse the Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements and the Habitat Agenda adopted by the Conference on 14 June. The two drafts were introduced by representatives of Costa Rica, on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China.

The Committee will meet again at 4 p.m. tomorrow, 8 November, to continue its discussion of trade and development issues.

Second Committee - 1a - Press Release GA/EF/2748 30th Meeting (PM) 7 November 1996

Committee Work Programme

The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) met this afternoon to continue its consideration of trade and development and to hear the introduction of draft texts on commodities and on the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II). (For background information on trade and development, see Press Release GA/EF/2747, issued today.)

Drafts for Introduction

Under the provisions of a draft resolution submitted by Costa Rica, on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, on commodities (document A/C.2/51/L.14), the General Assembly would emphasize the urgent need to create a more favourable international environment for supportive international policies to improve the functioning of commodity markets through efficient and transparent price formation mechanisms, including commodity exchanges, and through the use of commodity price risk management instruments.

Also by the draft, developed countries would be urged to continue to support the commodity diversification efforts of developing countries, especially African countries, in a spirit of common purpose and efficiency.

The Assembly would reiterate the importance of maximizing the contribution of the commodity sector to economic growth and sustainable development in commodity-dependent developing countries, and it would stress, among others, that trade-distorting policies and practices, including tariff and non-tariff escalation and obstacles to competition in the markets of developed countries, have a negative effect on the ability of developing countries to diversify their exports and to undertake the requisite restructuring of their commodity sector.

The Common Fund for Commodities, in cooperation with the International Trade Centre, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and other relevant bodies, would be encouraged to explore effective ways and means of using the resources of the First Account of the Common Fund to help the commodity-dependent countries, especially the least developed countries, to diversify their commodity sector projects and to promote their commodity market development. Producers and consumers of individual commodities would be urged to intensify their efforts to reinforce mutual cooperation and assistance.

The Secretary-General of UNCTAD would be requested to report on world commodity trends and prospects, with particular emphasis on commodity- dependent developing countries in the light of the outcome of the ninth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD IX).

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A draft resolution on the implementation of the decisions adopted by the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) (document A/C.2/51/L.15) is submitted by Costa Rica on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and by Colombia on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement.

Under its provisions, the Assembly would endorse the Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements and the Habitat Agenda adopted by the Conference on 14 June 1996. It would call upon governments and organizations to implement, fully and effectively, the Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements and the Habitat Agenda, and to give both instruments the widest possible dissemination.

The Assembly would decide that, at its special session to be convened from 23 to 27 June 1997 for the purpose of an overall review and appraisal of Agenda 21, it should give due attention to the issue of human settlements in the context of sustainable development; it would also decide to review, at its fifty-second session, the effectiveness of the steps taken to implement the outcome of Habitat II; and further decide to convene a special session of the Assembly in the year 2001 for an overall review and appraisal of the implementation of the outcome of Habitat II.

The Economic and Social Council would be invited to consider dedicating one of its high-level segments before 2001 to human settlements and the implementation of the Habitat Agenda, with the active involvement and participation of the specialized agencies, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It would also be requested to review the mandate of the Commission on Human Settlements, with a view to strengthening it, taking into account the Commission's responsibilities for the implementation of the Habitat Agenda.

The Commission on Human Settlements would be requested at its forthcoming session, in 1997, to review both its work programme and that of the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) in order to ensure an effective follow-up and implementation of the outcome of the Conference, and to make recommendations thereon to the Economic and Social Council. The Assembly would decide that the Commission on Human Settlements, as a standing committee of the Economic and Social Council, would monitor, review and assess the implementation of the Habitat Agenda at the national, regional and international levels. Also, starting from 1997, the Commission on Human Settlements should meet annually to ensure a sustained follow-up and accelerated implementation of the decisions and recommendations of Habitat II.

The Secretary-General would be requested to include the implementation of the Habitat Agenda in the mandates of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC) with a view to facilitating an integrated and coordinated implementation of the cross-cutting themes of the global conferences. He would be further requested to consult with governments and organizations with

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a view to promoting an exchange of information among them on the resource requirements for international assistance in the field of adequate shelter for all and human settlements development.

Introduction of Draft

LILIANA HERNANDEZ (Costa Rica), speaking on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, and for Colombia, on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, introduced a draft resolution on the implementation of the decisions adopted by the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II).

CARLOS FERNANDO DIAZ (Costa Rica), also speaking on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, introduced the draft resolution on commodities.

Statements

FRANCESCO MEZZALAMA, of the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU), introducing a report on United Nations system support for science and technology in Asia and the Pacific (document A/51/721), said the report's recommendations were aimed at strengthening the Organization's science and technology information systems for South-South cooperation, particularly among the regional economic commissions and intergovernmental economic groupings. The Unit had undertaken a series of evaluations to ascertain the extent to which organizations of the system had been supporting the developing countries to narrow the gaps that existed in science and technology among nations, especially between the developed and developing countries. The first evaluation, published in 1994 under the title "United Nations system support for science and technology in Africa", was favourably received. A third evaluation would cover Latin America and the Caribbean.

A number of projects in Asia and the Pacific, supported by the organizations of the system, stood out as emblematic case studies of what the United Nations system should be doing to raise the scientific and technological capacities of the developing countries and to help accelerate their economic and industrial growth, he said. An important lesson from that evaluation was that projects should be planned and executed in full partnership with all the socio-economic agents concerned, especially the intended beneficiaries of project outputs. The Unit was of the view that the Asian experience in the development and application of science and technology offered some valuable examples for other developing regions. It believed that organizations of the system were uniquely placed to disseminate that experience through expanded South-South interregional mechanisms and modalities of cooperation.

KEN KANIWA (Japan) said South-South cooperation in trade and investment should be promoted. Japan had supported the analysis of the development experiences of east Asia to evaluate the applicability of their experiences to

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problems encountered in Africa. It was contributing $300,000 to UNCTAD's project on the subject which would focus on the experiences of east Asian countries in fostering export industries and attracting foreign investment. Japan was also ready to support analysis of experiences of other regions. It was also necessary to promote multilateral and bilateral South-South cooperation, including triangular cooperation, by formulating concrete projects.

Japan had also contributed $450,000 towards a project of UNCTAD on African commodity sector diversification through South-South cooperation, he said. The project sought to promote the sharing of the practical experiences of Asian and African entrepreneurs in diversifying their commodity business and to facilitate the identification of possible areas for Asian-African joint ventures in trade and trade-driven investment through a series of workshop- cum-study tours in Asia, and through subregional seminars in Africa.

BORIS SVETOGORSKY (Uruguay) said in the last 10 years, democracy had become a reality in most of Latin America. A closer connection between the World Trade Organization and UNCTAD was needed, and mutual cooperation and complementarity between the two was crucial. Moreover, the involvement of developing countries in both organizations should be strengthened.

A further liberalization of trade was called for, he said. It was essential that the commitments made at the Uruguay Round Agreements be implemented. Moreover, the elimination of protectionism and subsidies was important, as was lack of discrimination, fair play and a rule-based system of international trade. Sanctions imposed unilaterally and extraterritorially were a violation of international law, he stressed.

Integration of individual economies into global trade would lead to increase in productivity, he said. Many countries in Latin America had taken the initiative of expanding free trade areas in their region and that was being done on a continuing basis. Moreover, issues related to agriculture should be discussed at UNCTAD, since liberalization of trade in agricultural products would lead to food security worldwide. He also expressed concern at the decline in official development assistance (ODA) in recent years and stressed that development assistance was not a political matter.

FELIPE MABILANGAN (Philippines), speaking on behalf of the member countries of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), including Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Viet Nam and his own country, said UNCTAD had adopted far-reaching institutional reforms. Those reforms had encompassed policy orientations, intergovernmental machinery and working methods. The Lyons summit meeting of the "Group of Seven" most industrialized countries in June had acknowledged that.

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He stressed that new issues like multilateral investment agreements should first be thoroughly studied by UNCTAD. The ASEAN countries believed that only when an issue was sufficiently mature, could it be productively addressed by the World Trade Organization. Moreover, the ASEAN countries hoped that the Organization's ministerial conference to be held in December in Singapore would provide the impetus for the speedy implementation of the Uruguay Round Agreements. The Marrakesh ministerial decision with regards to the concerns of least developed countries and net food importing developing countries should be fully implemented, he added.

In a rapidly globalizing and interdependent world where opting out was not an option, developing countries had a strong interest in the success of a rule-based multilateral trading system, rather than one in which unilateralism prevailed, he said. To assure developing countries full participation in the process and benefits of globalization, attempts to impose measures of unfair competitive advantage, or to erode the comparative advantage of developing countries, must be resisted. Protectionism in the guise of subsidies, environmental protection, labour rights, and other artificial or politically motivated barriers could not be accepted. The UNCTAD could contribute immensely to the ongoing process of trade liberalization, while seeing to it that opportunities were opened to developing countries to play an active role in the world economy.

OUMAR DEMBA BA (Senegal) called for practical advice from UNCTAD and the World Trade Organization on the new multilateral trade rules stemming from the Uruguay Round Agreements. Developing countries should be helped in implementing them. He also called for equity, transparency, non- discriminatory trade measures and for the dismantling of barriers in international trade. He noted that conditions for promoting international trade were not being met. There was need for equal opportunities on an equal footing. Only $5 billion of the world's foreign direct investment out of more than $300 billion went to Africa, he noted.

MATHE DISEKO (South Africa), speaking on behalf of his Government as President of UNCTAD IX and on behalf of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), welcomed the Secretary General's report containing the outcome of the Conference's ninth session.

He described the Midrand Conference as "another opportunity" for the international community to renew its commitment towards an effective partnership between the developed and developing countries. That spirit should serve as inspiration and guidance to the implementation of the agreements reached there which represented the collective international consensus on the continued validity and relevance of UNCTAD in matters related to trade and development.

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The member States of SADC reaffirmed their collective commitments to the implementation of the outcome of UNCTAD IX, he said, welcoming the reforms undertaken by UNCTAD, which would enable it to fully implement the results of the ninth session. At Midrand, it was agreed that the process of globalization and liberalization affected countries in different ways given their different stages of development. Some countries, especially in Africa and the least developed countries, were affected more adversely than others. It was therefore essential for the United Nations to focus on the impact of that process and identify potential options and support from such groups as the International Trade Centre (ITC), UNCTAD and the Word Trade Organization in the region. "We also invite our development partners to assist in our ongoing efforts in this field", he stated.

He welcomed the United Nations System-wide Special Initiative on Africa and the outcome of the Mid-Term Review of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, including the Secretary-General's report, and especially in areas relating to trade and development. African countries had implemented their decisions by building and strengthening subregional economic communities and also sought to harmonize and rationalize regional organizations. The SADC was a major contribution to that endeavour. That would lead to more investment opportunities and to an enlarged African market. He looked forward to the ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization to be held later this year in Singapore. The SADC Ministers of Industry and Trade had already met this month in the United Republic of Tanzania to prepare for the meeting.

MOHAMMAD-ALI ZARIE-ZARE (Iran) said at the ninth session of UNCTAD in South Africa, specific measures had been taken to make the intergovernmental machinery of UNCTAD more efficient and responsive to the needs of a rapidly changing world economy. In order for those measures to be implemented, there had to be constructive and effective cooperation between UNCTAD and World Trade Organization based on their complementary functions, taking into account UNCTAD's clear advantage in tackling trade-related development issues and investment.

Iran attached great importance to regional cooperation in Asia and the Pacific, he said. The expansion of land transportation links in Asia was pivotal in order to promote economic and social development of the region. To that end, Iran had been expanding the road, air and sea links with the newly independent central Asian States by investing in multibillion-dollar projects.

He said the imposition of coercive economic measures and approval of domestic legislation for horizontal escalation of those coercive measures with extra-territorial implications exercised by some developed countries against developing countries was absolutely contrary to the provisions of the United Nations Charter, Word Trade Organization commitments, international trading

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rules and regulation as well as to the principles of international law embodied in various international instruments and documents.

IEREMIA TABAI, Secretary-General of the South Pacific Forum, said that the Forum countries had agreed on a range of measures to achieve more progress in both economic reform and development. The region's finance ministers had met twice to work on a reform agenda appropriate to their small island countries. They had agreed on the need for high-level political commitment to economic reform, to ensure accountability, transparency and community involvement in the reform process. An issue of concern to the Forum was the coming to an end of the current Lome Convention which linked the African, Pacific and Caribbean countries with the European Union. Negotiations on a successor convention was under way.

The Forum countries had chosen to benchmark their trade and investment reforms against standards set for World Trade Organization membership, he said. As a first step they were focusing on improving the transparency of investment regimes in the region. They were collaborating on improvement of mechanisms to identify fraudulent financial operations, combating international drug trafficking, developing a common approach to weapons control and, more generally, to give high priority to enhancing cooperation.

AMADEO VOLPE (Venezuela) stressed the need for cooperation between the UNCTAD secretariat and the World Trade Organization. The holding of UNCTAD IX this year and the upcoming World Trade Organization meeting in Singapore were two events of particular relevance to efforts to achieve an equitable, secure, transparent, open and rule-based multilateral trading system.

The spirit of cooperation and understanding must prevail at the Singapore meeting, he said. That event should produce the necessary evaluation of substantive aspects in order to determine the degree of achievements of the Uruguay Round. In the last few months the Geneva preparatory committee had been working to define the role of the upcoming World Trade Organization Ministerial meeting considering that its results would define the future guidelines for consideration of issues in coordination with UNCTAD. It was important that there be greater compliance with agreed upon commitments. A rigorous analysis of environment and trade was required, particularly in circumstances when norms and precepts of environmental nature were used for protectionist purposes in the area of international trade.

HAROLD ACEMAH (Uganda) said UNCTAD should focus on issues relating to the full implementation of the Uruguay Round Agreements, especially the aspects on provision of financial, technical and technological support to developing countries as well as those stemming and reversing the distortive factors of trade. There was also a need to implement the provisions relating to the least developed as well as the net-food-importing countries.

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Welcoming the outcome of UNCTAD IX and the organization's reform measures, he called for adequate resources for the effective discharge of its increased and more complex responsibilities. Uganda was particularly encouraged by the improved focus of UNCTAD's work on least developed, small islands, and land-locked developing countries. No new changes should be proposed to allow time for assessment of the restructuring. The reforms should neither erode UNCTAD's mandate nor compromise its independence on policy issues.

He said UNCTAD should be more visible in the field to enhance its ability to fashion a field-oriented and priority-driven technical cooperation strategy supportive of developing countries. Building a system-wide partnership for development should be pursued, and UNCTAD's cooperation with the World Trade Organization and the Bretton Woods institutions strengthened.

ADEL ABDELLATIF (Egypt) drew attention to the difficulties many developing countries were experiencing in gaining access to the world trading system. A new kind of protectionism was emerging and developing countries found themselves being forced to make concessions outside the bounds of the Uruguay Round Agreements. Many developing countries had carried out reforms to equip them to participate fully in international trade, and they required institutional and bilateral support.

The forthcoming World Trade Organization meeting in Singapore would be a good opportunity for the evaluation of the implementation of the Uruguay Round Agreements and to focus on the future of the world trading system, he said. The meeting should promote better access to markets for developing countries, particularly in areas where they enjoyed competitive advantage such as textiles. It would be premature for new agreements to be entered into. The meeting should concentrate on ways of transforming the Uruguay Round Agreements into reality. He called for political support for UNCTAD in its new mission in helping developing countries integrate into the world trading system.

KAMALUDDIN AHMED (India) said world economic growth had been driven by rapidly growing international trade and investment flows, from which new opportunities and benefits had emerged. However, developing countries had largely been excluded from such growth, due to continued rigidity in the international trading and financial system, including use of protectionist measures. The situation had been exacerbated by the fact that those countries used environmental and social concerns for protectionist purposes.

He said developing countries must diversify their exports and improve their terms of trade. The interests of developing countries needed to be protected, and compensation provided for those countries experiencing difficulties. Developing countries required assistance to correct structural

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imbalances and absorb technological advances. Assistance was also required in the area of capacity-building.

He welcomed the consensus reached at UNCTAD IX on challenges arising from globalization and liberalization, and the spirit of partnership for development underlying the Midrand Declaration. He reminded the Committee that in recent years developing countries had contributed to the growth and interdependence of the global economy, that they were beginning to constitute a significant growth factor for international trade, and that many developing countries today were at the forefront of trade liberalization. Conditions must be created to enable others to join that process.

At the forthcoming first World Trade Organization ministerial meeting, he continued, the implementation of the Uruguay Round agreements should be reviewed, concentrating on areas of export interest to developing countries. The meeting should not be used to "smuggle in new and unacceptable ideas" to the world trade agenda which respond to the concerns of only some countries. New trade opportunities could lead to rapid growth for developing countries. That growth was likely to become the most dynamic factor in the overall development of international trade and finance. That would benefit not only the developing countries but also sustain growth and employment in the developed world.

BACHARD ISSOUFOU (Niger) congratulated the Secretary-General of UNCTAD on his report and on the Midrand Declaration. The report indicated that challenges remained at the national and international level. It was important that economic and social disparities between and within nations be tackled.

In 1992, UNCTAD had stated the need for a new approach to development and the need for a partnership for development, he said. That partnership was significant in cooperation between developed and developing countries, in the mobilization of human resources and the participation of women in development. However, the developing countries faced obstacles. They had been bogged down by poverty and excluded from the world financial system. The developing countries which had supposedly "taken off" were nothing but a geographical extension of the developed world. He expressed concern at inequitable globalization and said the United Nations system, UNCTAD and the World Trade Organization must be mobilized against negative globalization.

H. ASBAIE (Libya) stressed the need for cooperation between UNCTAD and the World Trade Organization to ensure that developing countries fully integrate into the international trading system. Developing countries, particularly the least developed, were becoming consuming rather than manufacturing States. Efforts should be undertaken within the framework of international economic cooperation and on an equitable basis to help them improve their situation.

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He called for elimination of tariff barriers, the release of frozen assets, and the lifting of embargoes and coercive measures. Despite many United Nations resolutions, measures taken against Libya remained. The freezing of its assets abroad violated its sovereign rights. Stressing that the United Nations was the appropriate forum for dialogue on promoting international economic cooperation, he said developed countries should help the sustainable development efforts of the developing countries.

MUHAMMAD ALI SORCAR (Bangladesh) called upon donors, and other countries in a position to do so, to make a generous contribution to the Trust Fund for the Least Developed Countries. The Fund, which could provide the necessary underpinning to UNCTAD's country-level programmes, should not be used as a substitute for the traditional technical cooperation resources for the least developed countries. The share of those countries in UNCTAD's technical cooperation activities should be increased. He also called for continuing UNCTAD support to delegations from least developed countries in Geneva and New York.

The forthcoming World Trade Organization meeting in Singapore should give attention to the problems of least developed countries, he continued. A plan of action should be adopted by the meeting with concrete measures to help those countries gain market access and eliminate tariff and non-tariff measures on their exports.

MESSIE AMOAH (Ghana) said increasing globalization and integration of the international economy had enhanced global interdependence. Because trade was an important factor in the economic welfare of any country, a global system was needed to ensure the participation of all countries, and a fair distribution of the gains. Such a system would require macroeconomic policy coordination, and a transparent, rule-based, non-discriminatory and multilateral arrangement to ensure the full integration of developing countries.

He said many developing countries had undertaken reforms to enhance their integration into the international trading system. Such reforms had not yielded great results, however, because there was continued hostility in the international economic environment, characterized by protectionist tendencies and worsening terms of trade. With the replacement of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) by the World Trade Organization, developing countries had hoped to benefit from a rule-based trading regime providing dispute-settlement mechanisms. Instead, new and non-economic forms of protectionist measures had been introduced which hindered the integration of developing countries into the international trading system. The erosion of preferences for countries in the framework of the Generalized System of Preferences would particularly affect African countries.

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World trade was by-passing the economically beleaguered African continent, he said. Africa's share in world development had declined by 30 per cent between 1990 and 1995. That was attributed, in part, to its continued dependence on primary commodities and its related "failure to diversify and graduate to secondary and tertiary commodities". The international community had the responsibility to assist commodity producers by promoting diversification, value addition, training and fundamental reforms in trading mechanisms. The international community should further adopt policies to ensure indigenous technological capacity-building in developing countries.

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