SECRETARY-GENERAL'S STATEMENT TO GENERAL ASSEMBLY ON AFRICA INDUSTRIALIZATION DAY
Press Release
SG/SM/6110
SECRETARY-GENERAL'S STATEMENT TO GENERAL ASSEMBLY ON AFRICA INDUSTRIALIZATION DAY
19961120 Following is the text of Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali's statement to the General Assembly on the occasion of Africa Industrialization Day:As in previous years, I am pleased to join in today's celebration of Africa Industrialization Day.
Since the General Assembly first proclaimed this special observance seven years ago, the United Nations system has worked hard to raise global awareness and harness international support for Africa's industrial development.
Education. Training. Technology. Private sector development. Access to industrial and commercial information. Regional integration. These are among the essential ingredients of industrialization. Together, they can be a remedy for the acute economic ills that continue to plague the African continent.
The theme selected by the Conference of African Ministers of Industry for this year's celebration -- "Mobilization of financial resources for industry" -- is both timely and appropriate. Timely because of the pressing need to mobilize resources for Africa's development. And appropriate because the support of the international community remains crucial to economic recovery and development in Africa, particularly for the least developed countries.
Over the years, developing countries have registered remarkable economic progress. The share of developing countries in world industrial production, for instance, grew from 17 per cent in 1980 to almost 20 per cent in 1995.
But while the economic prospects of many countries in Africa have improved in recent years, Africa's overall industrial performance continued to lag behind other regions in the developing world. Africa's share of global industrial output declined from 0.85 per cent in 1980 to 0.74 per cent in 1995.
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This is a cause for great concern, especially when viewed against the backdrop of declining official development assistance, limited private capital flows, crippling debt burdens, widespread poverty, civil strife and political instability.
To address this situation, the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s has placed the mobilization of resources, including domestic and foreign direct investment, at the top of its priorities. Maximizing the use of existing resources and mobilizing new and additional resources are also major objectives of the System-wide Special Initiative on Africa.
I am also pleased to note the launch last month in Abidjan, by African heads of State and government, of the Alliance for Africa's Industrialization. This new initiative of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, undertaken in cooperation with the Economic Commission for Africa and the Organization of African Unity, attaches great importance to the mobilization of resources through partnerships between the public and private sectors at the national, regional and international levels.
But the larger part of the resources needed for Africa's development will come from domestic sources, in keeping with Africa's proclaimed commitment to the principle of self-reliance. This will require encouraging private savings, enhancing the efficiency of tax collection, rationalizing public expenditure, raising export earnings and attracting foreign direct investments.
The international community should undertake complementary efforts, in accordance with the principle of full partnership and shared responsibility. It should improve the level, scope and modalities of official development assistance. Extend and enlarge trade concessions and preferences to African countries, particularly the least developed countries. Take additional and decisive measures to alleviate Africa's external debt burden. Encourage and facilitate foreign direct investments. And further coordinate multi-donor assistance in accordance with Africa's development priorities.
In its endeavour to build a brighter future for itself, Africa deserves the unfailing support and encouragement of the international community. But while international support is essential, the fate and future of Africa lie, in the ultimate analysis, in Africa's hands. This, I believe, is the message of today's celebration of African Industrialization Day.
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