DIALOGUE ON IMPACT OF GLOBALIZATION TO BE HELD IN 1997, BY TERMS OF SECOND COMMITTEE DRAFT TEXT

12 November 1996

Press Release
GA/EF/2752

DIALOGUE ON IMPACT OF GLOBALIZATION TO BE HELD IN 1997, BY TERMS OF SECOND COMMITTEE DRAFT TEXT

19961112 Other Texts Introduced Concern Cairo Population Conference, World Commission on Culture and Development, Communication for Development

The General Assembly would defer the holding of the first high-level dialogue on the social and economic impact of globalization and interdependence and its policy implications to the early part of its fifty- second session in 1997, by the terms of a draft resolution introduced in the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) this afternoon. Under the provisions of the draft text, one of four introduced by the representative of Costa Rica, on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, the date, procedures and focus of the two-day discussions would be decided by the President of the General Assembly through consultation with Member States not later than February 1997. Another draft text would have the Assembly urge all countries to consider making additional contributions to the implementation of the Programme of Action adopted at the International Conference on Population and Development (Cairo, 1994). The Assembly would emphasize the importance of international cooperation for the full implementation of the recommendations adopted at the Conference and would call upon the international community to continue to provide, both bilaterally and multilaterally, adequate and substantial support and assistance for population and development activities in developing countries. A draft text on the report of the World Commission on Culture and Development would have the Assembly request the Secretary-General to cooperate with the Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to further stimulate international debate on the subject. The UNESCO would be encouraged to pursue its ongoing task of promoting throughout the United Nations system a greater awareness of the crucial relationship between culture and development, taking account of cultural, religious and other areas of diversity. Under the provision of a draft text on communication for development programmes of the United Nations system, the Assembly would reaffirm the paramount importance of financial cooperation and the transfer of technology in that context. It would call upon the international community and the organizations of the United Nations system to assist governments in introducing technologies and innovative methods to enhance communication for development. The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m., Monday, 18 November.

Drafts Introduced

A draft on the renewal of dialogue on strengthening international economic cooperation for development through partnership (document A/C.2/51/L.21) would have the General Assembly agree to defer the holding of the first high-level dialogue, scheduled for a period of two days, to the early part of the fifty-second session of the General Assembly. The theme of the dialogue would be the social and economic impact of globalization and interdependence and their policy implications. The date, procedures and focus of the discussion would be decided by the President of the General Assembly through consultation with Member States not later than February 1997. The Secretary-General would be requested, in close cooperation with governments, regional commissions, relevant organizations and other development actors, to make initial preparations for the dialogue.

The Secretary-General would be requested to submit further recommendations for enhancing the dialogue, taking into consideration the agreed conclusions of the Economic and Social Council on coordinated follow-up by the United Nations system and implementation of the results of the major international conferences organized by the United Nations in the economic, social and related fields, and the outcome of the ongoing discussions in the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on an Agenda for Development.

By the terms of the draft, the Assembly would reaffirm the need to encourage constructive dialogue and partnership based on mutual interests and benefits, genuine interdependence, shared responsibility and the partnership for achieving sustained economic growth and sustainable development, as well as improving the international economic environment conducive to such development.

The Assembly would also reaffirm the need to place development at the centre of United Nations activities and that the United Nations had a central role to play in promoting and revitalizing international economic cooperation for development through increased partnership among and between countries. It would also reaffirm the importance of the dialogue on economic and development issues between the developed and developing countries, including the dialogue being conducted between the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries and the Group of Seven, as well as the consultations involving developed countries and the Group of 77.

The Secretary-General would be requested to submit to the General Assembly at its fifty-second session, recommendations on possible future themes for dialogue, including the issues of globalization, regional integration and new information technology. The Secretary-General would be further requested to elaborate his proposals to convene special sessions of the General Assembly on major issues relevant to the dialogue on international

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economic cooperation for development, including those identified in an Agenda for Development.

The Assembly would decide to include in the provisional agenda of its fifty-second session an item entitled "Renewal of the dialogue on strengthening international cooperation for development through partnership". Further, the Secretary-General would be requested to submit to the General Assembly at its fifty-second session a report on the implementation of the resolution.

By the draft resolution on Communications for Development Programmes in the United Nations system (document A/C.2/51/L.23) the Assembly would note the Secretary-General's report on communication for development, as well as the report prepared by UNESCO on the sixth Inter-Agency Round Table on Communication for Development, held in Harare, Zimbabwe from 2 to 5 September, 1996.

The Assembly would recognize the importance of strengthening the intergovernmental process within the United Nations system in the field of communication and development. The Assembly would also stress the need to support participatory communication for development as an important process for increasing people's participation, encouraging dialogue and the ownership of development efforts by their beneficiaries, and contributing to the empowerment of people for development. Moreover, it would recognize the relevance for policy makers and decision makers at all levels to give increased priority to communication for development.

The Assembly would recommend that the next informal round table be held in the Latin American and Caribbean region to build upon the meetings held in Asia and Africa, so as to be close to the reality and needs of developing countries. Moreover, it would invite Member States to cooperate with relevant agencies, organizations, funds and programmes of the United Nations system in the regular convening of informal round tables on communication for development, with the full participation of international financial institutions at the country level.

In addition, the Assembly would reaffirm the paramount importance of financial cooperation and the transfer of technology in the context of communication for development programmes and projects. It would call upon the international community and the organizations of the United Nations system to assist governments in introducing technologies and innovative methods for enhancing communication for development.

The Assembly would also stress that resource mobilization remained an important objective for capacity-building in the area of communication for development and would request the Secretary-General, in consultation with the

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Director-General of UNESCO, to report to it at its fifty-third session on the implementation of the present resolution.

A draft resolution on the Implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference On Population and Development (document A/C.2/51/L.19) which took place in Cairo in 1994, would have the Assembly emphasize that international cooperation was essential for the full implementation of the recommendations adopted at the Conference.

The Assembly would call upon the international community to continue to provide, both bilaterally and multilaterally, adequate and substantial support and assistance for population and development activities in all developing countries and regions, including through the United Nations Population Fund (UNPFA) and other organs and organizations of the United Nations system that would be involved in implementation of the Programme of Action.

The Assembly would urge all countries to consider, among other things, their current spending and to make additional contributions in line with national priorities for the implementation of the Programme of Action. In so doing, countries should take into account the provisions of chapters XIII and XIV of the Programme of Action and the economic constraints faced by developing countries, in particular the least developed among them.

The Assembly would reiterate the importance of South-South cooperation for the successful implementation of the Programme of Action, and would invite all Governments, relevant United Nations organizations, including specialized agencies, the business community, the private sector and non-governmental organizations, to continue to support South-South cooperation activities undertaken by the developing countries.

The Assembly would emphasize the importance of the identification and allocation of financial resources by the international community, including regional financial institutions, to enable them to fulfil their commitments to the implementation of the Programme of Action. In addition, it would reiterate that the Commission on Population and Development, as a functional commission of the Economic and Social Council, had the primary responsibility for the follow-up to the International Conference on Population and Development and review of the implementation of the Programme of Action.

The Assembly would decide that the Task Force on Basic Social Services for All of the Administrative Committee on Coordination shall inform the Commission and the Economic and Social Council of the progress of its work, for the purpose of system-wide coordination. The Task Force would be requested to coordinate the development of appropriate indicators, taking into account relevant research, so that progress in addressing reproductive health needs by individual countries could be assessed on a reliable basis.

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The Assembly would also decide that its special session, to be convened from 23 to 27 June 1997 for the purpose of an overall review and appraisal of the implementation of Agenda 21 adopted at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, should give due attention to the issue of population in the context of sustainable development. It would note the actions taken so far by governments and the international community and would encourage them to strengthen their efforts and fully implement all chapters of the Programme of Action.

The Assembly would also decide to include in the agenda of its fifty- second session, within existing clusters, the item entitled "Implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development". The Secretary-General would be requested to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-second session on the implementation of the present resolution.

A draft resolution on the World Commission on Culture and Development (document A/C.2/51/L.22) would have the Assembly request the Secretary-General to cooperate with the Director-General of UNESCO to further stimulate international debate on culture and development. The Assembly would encourage UNESCO's General Conference to discuss the report of the World Commission on Culture and Development further, taking into account the views, comments and proposals submitted by Member States and to include the same in the report to the next UNESCO General Conference in 1997.

By other terms of the text, the Assembly would encourage UNESCO to pursue its ongoing task of promoting throughout the United Nations system a greater awareness of the crucial relationship between culture and development, taking into account cultural, religious and other areas of diversity. The Secretary-General, in cooperation with UNESCO's Director-General, would be requested to compile a report taking into account the views, comments and proposals expressed by States and the relevant intergovernmental organizations.

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