FULL EMPLOYMENT IS DESIRABLE, ACHIEVABLE GOAL, SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION TOLD

Press Release
SOC/4414

FULL EMPLOYMENT IS DESIRABLE, ACHIEVABLE GOAL, SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION TOLD

Full employment should remain a central objective of public policy, the Commission for Social Development was told this morning as it began its thirty-fifth session under the priority theme "productive employment and sustainable livelihoods".

Nitin Desai, Under-Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, said that the Commission should determine how full employment could be achieved in the context of government commitments to manage inflation and eliminate poverty. Employment was a crucial element of social development, because citizens acquired entitlements and social rights chiefly through their employment.

Presenting a report on the priority theme, a representative of the Employment and Training Department of the International Labour Organization (ILO) said that the time had come to debunk the notion that full employment was neither desirable nor possible. The ILO had studied the subject and had concluded that with political will, full employment was both desirable and achievable. He stressed that economic growth was essential to the creation of new jobs without declines in productivity. A high-growth economy required both properly designed policies and the institutions to support them.

Also introducing reports this morning were the Director of the Division for Social Policy and Development of the Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, John Langmore, and the Officer-in-Charge of the Macroeconomic and Social Analysis Division of the Department for Economic and Social Information and Policy Analysis, Albrecht Horn.

In addition, the Special Rapporteur on disability, Bengt Lindqvist, reported that the international acceptance of the United Nations Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities had served to guide policy development in many countries around the world. During an exchange of views with the Special Rapporteur, several speakers expressed support for the renewal of his mandate.

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Further this morning, the Commission was briefed on the activities of the Support Group on Ageing, including those related to the preparations for the observance of the International Year of Older Persons (1999).

At the outset of the meeting, the Commission elected Ion Gorita (Romania) as Chairman of the thirty-fifth session. Speaking after his election, the new Chairman called for "action-oriented recommendations" to make the work of the session more productive.

In further action, Seyed H. Resvani (Iran), Santiago A. Franco (Guatemala) and Aurelio Fernandez (Spain) were elected Vice-Chairmen. The election of the Rapporteur was postponed. The Commission also adopted its agenda and the organization of its work.

The Commission will meet again at 3 p.m. today to hold a dialogue with representatives of the Inter-agency Task Forces of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC), moderated by the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), James Gustave Speth.

Commission Work Programme

The Commission for Social Development met this morning to begin its thirty-fifth session, which will discuss as a priority theme "productive employment and sustainable livelihoods", as it continues its review of progress made in the implementation of the 1995 World Summit for Social Development.

The report of the Secretary-General on the follow-up to the Social Summit (document E/CN.5/1997/2), recalls that in its resolution 1996/7 the Economic and Social Council vested the Commission with primary responsibility for the follow-up to the Social Summit. It further recalls that the Council decided in the same resolution on a multi-year programme of work for the consideration of priority subjects, and also that the Commission should consider every year issues related to an enabling environment for social development.

Reviewed recent action by the General Assembly related to the Commission, the report draws attention to resolution 51/202, on implementation of the outcome of the Social Summit, which stressed the importance of national action and international cooperation for social development. The Assembly also endorsed Council resolution 1996/48 on new and innovative ideas for generating funds, in which the Council decided that funds generated by new and innovative ideas should not substitute for official development assistance (ODA), should be distinct from funding of the regular and peace-keeping budgets of the United Nations, should be part of a global partnership and interdependence, and that the role of private investment in financing development should be stressed.

By other terms of that resolution, the Council also invited governments to support the work of the Commission, including through the participation of high-level representatives on social development issues and policies, and established arrangements for the special session of the Assembly in the year 2000 for an overall review and appraisal of the implementation of the outcome of the Summit.

The Secretary-General's report on the priority theme, productive employment and sustainable livelihoods (document E/CN.5/1997/3), states that the people of the world have paid a price for the overriding concern of policy-makers with controlling inflation and reducing public deficits, and the relative neglect of measures to combat unemployment. In western Europe, unemployment is reaching the highest levels since the Great Depression. Resulting pressures threaten to undermine the achievement of greater integration within the European Union, while fuelling persecution of minority groups and immigrants and exacerbating social tensions.

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In countries like the United States and Japan, unemployment is not so severe, but feelings of job insecurity are more prevalent than at any time since the Second World War, the report states.

Job creation in developing countries overall is lagging behind an increase in the labour force averaging about 2 per cent per annum, the report notes, adding that so widespread unemployment and underemployment remain primary impediments to poverty eradication. While rapid economic growth in east and south-east Asia has brought about a high rate of job creation over the past two decades, overall employment growth in Latin America and the Caribbean declined sharply during the 1980s. Limited data available on Africa and west Asia indicate slumping employment opportunities in these regions.

Countries with economies in transition suffered major job losses during the post-1989 period, although employment losses have been moderate in relation to output reduction, says the report. Certainly, improved employment opportunities in countries where employment was once taken for granted will be a key element in maintaining the economic, social and political transformation that is under way, it adds.

Stressing that "high and productive levels of employment ... are fundamental means of combating poverty, of ensuring equity, of meeting peoples' aspirations for participation in economic and social life, and for preserving social cohesion", the report reviews employment policy issues from countries and regions around the world and presents policy recommendations.

Highlights of the findings include the following:

-- Economic growth rates need to be pushed higher in order to increase the rate of employment growth;

-- Political and social stability are as essential to economic progress as is macroeconomic stability;

-- Consensual approaches to income determination can be an additional instrument for increasing employment and stabilizing prices;

-- The excessive rigours of structural adjustment policies in indebted poor countries need to be moderated;

-- In some countries, "a more gradual and selective approach to trade liberalization may be warranted"; and

-- Government action to initiate growth, such as incentives to new investment, are needed to offset shortcomings in pure market mechanisms.

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Also before the Commission is the 1997 Report on the World Social Situation (document E/CN.5/1997/8 - Parts I and II, the latter to be issued). That study, issued every four years, provides a detailed assessment of global social issues and policy options. The 1997 edition is intended as a comprehensive analytical tool for policy-makers, experts and citizens involved in developing strategies to implement the agreements reached at the Social Summit, the first such global meeting to focus on social development issues.

The report consists of two major parts. Part I provides an overview of social issues, with an emphasis on living conditions. It starts with a presentation of economic patterns at the global and regional levels. It further appraises population trends both globally and regionally along with the demographic components of fertility, mortality and international migration that determine those trends.

Part II of the report addresses the core themes of the 1995 Social Summit Programme of Action: eradication of poverty; expansion of productive employment; and social integration. Each chapter discusses policy issues and options, domestic approaches and international instruments. The chapter on poverty examines major trends in absolute and relative poverty worldwide and its relationship to world economic growth. The chapter on employment and unemployment assesses the situation in developing, transitional and developed economies. The chapter on discrimination focuses on the structure and patterns of gender and minority discrimination.

On employment, the report notes that solving the problem of unemployment appears more difficult today than it did 50 years ago. Policy-makers confront the difficulty of devising policies that address equity concerns, while simultaneously preserving the structure of incentives needed to obtain efficient outcomes. The report describes in detail the structural changes in labour markets (in particular the segments of women and youth) and the employment situations and policies of developed, developing and transitional economies.

Despite the re-emergence of unemployment as a policy focus, the report concludes that the world economy is absorbing the bulk of a rapidly rising global labour force, which is better educated, possesses greater skills and is more mobile than ever before. As a result, it proposes employment policies that conform with rapid changes in economic conditions.

Statements

NITIN DESAI, Under-Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, said the Secretary-General had urged that the Commission's discussion on employment should examine conditions in all areas of the world, particularly in Africa. In addition, it should concentrate on the role of micro-entrepreneurs, traders, subsistence farmers and women. The

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Secretary-General was also concerned with the employment situation of people with specific needs -- youth, older persons, women and disabled persons.

The Commission derived its authority from the United Nations Charter, but its authority had been reiterated by the high-level commitments of the Social Summit, he said. The traditional view of social development was as a programme of social welfare for vulnerable groups. Another traditional view was of social development as an enabling framework of institutions allowing society to interact. An important product of the Copenhagen Summit had been the articulation of social development as a central element of development. That was why the Copenhagen outcome had included commitments in the areas of poverty and employment. Copenhagen had placed social development at the centre of economic policy, and the Commission had been charged with following up on commitments reached there.

Noting that the present session would focus on employment, he said that topic was a crucial element of social development, because citizens acquired their entitlements and social rights chiefly through their employment. Over the past decade and a half concerns over inflation had tended to downgrade commitment to full employment. But full employment remained a central objective of public policy. The Commission should determine how full employment could be achieved in the context of government commitments to manage inflation and eliminate poverty. The Commission should determine what could be done at the level of international policy formulation to achieve full employment.

JOHN LANGMORE, Director, Division for Social Policy and Development, Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, introduced the report on the follow-up to the Social Summit. He said that the Commission was beginning a new era in which its work had been enhanced by the Social Summit, and by the commitment of the Economic and Social Council to its enlargement and more frequent meetings. The Secretariat had responded by making Commission documents more action-oriented, he added.

The extent and nature of implementation of the commitments and recommendations of the Social Summit had differed among countries, he said. One hundred seven countries had replied to letters of the Secretary-General asking about implementation. The Secretary-General had responded by tabling a report in the framework of the Summit follow-up discussing emerging issues, trends and new approaches, and programme activities of the Secretariat relating to the social development of specific groups -- youth, the aging, disabled persons and families.

EDDY LEE, representative of the Employment and Training Department of the International Labour Organization (ILO), introduced the report on productive employment and sustainable livelihoods. He said the topic of the report was very broad, but had had to be treated in a concise manner. Full

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employment required a broad range of policies, but it was also important to bear in mind the interrelationships between the policies and the approaches to realizing them. To begin with, it was necessary to come to debunk the arguments of those who said that the objective of full employment was neither desirable nor possible. He cited a comprehensive report issued by the ILO last year that had studied the subject and concluded that given the political will, full employment was both a desirable and an achievable goal. A steady increase in the demand for labour was important to the achievement of full employment.

He stressed that economic growth was crucial to full employment, noting that without growth, new jobs could be created only with declining productivity. To achieve high growth required properly designed policies, but also institutions to support them. He further stressed that the most important factor was the political will to carry out policies aimed at addressing the various areas of the problem.

ALBRECHT HORN, Officer-in-Charge, Macroeconomic and Social Analysis Division, Department for Economic and Social Information and Policy Analysis, presented the 1997 report on the World Social Situation. He said that many social development problems were global in nature and had to be addressed at that level. The support and collective efforts of the international community were essential to achieving the goals of the Social Summit.

Improvement in social development indicators could only be achieved with equitable economic growth, he said. Economic growth should seek to reduce poverty and provide employment. The rate of growth alone was not enough; growth distribution should be a policy priority. The phenomenon of globalization had important social implications, particularly as regards employment and poverty reduction. Globalization had its benefits, but also its costs -- particularly social costs.

The 1997 report had revealed that different economies were impacted by globalization in different ways, he said. Developed economies were seeing high levels of unemployment, an ageing population and increased health costs. A restructuring of social security and pension schemes seemed inevitable. A proper balance should be sought between fighting inflation and the creation of adequate levels of employment. In past, policies had shifted too far in the direction of fighting inflation, which had resulted in high levels of unemployment.

Poverty reduction was a critical issue at the global policy, level, he said. The report had found that adequate macroeconomic policies were essential to maintaining adequate economic growth. Public spending should be reprioritized so as to target expenditures on the poor. Micro-economic policies should be developed which gave the poor access to capital and employment. Adequate social safety nets for the poor were also essential.

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Discriminatory social policies still lingered in many countries, he said. Specific minority groups, including women, still suffered economic and social discrimination in many countries. National institutions were crucial for sustainable and equitable economic growth, and for devising policies to address issues of discrimination.

AURELIO FERNANDEZ (Spain), presenting an oral report on activities of the Support Group on Ageing, said that the Group had developed important activities and had been holding meetings concerning the International Year of Older Persons. Those meetings also enabled the Department of Policy Coordination and Social Development to inform countries of the status and activities of the work of the Commission. The Department had played an important role in the work of the Group. In February, the Group identified employment as a priority issue in the discussion of ageing. The coordinators of the Group had held meetings with representatives of various groups on that issue. He also said that the Group had made diplomats in New York more aware of an area that they had not focused on before. He felt that the informal nature of the Group had enhanced its work. He recommended that more bodies and agencies should be made more aware of its work, the need to support it and to help in identifying areas relating to the International Year.

BEN LINDQVIST, Special Rapporteur on disability, speaking on the monitoring of the implementation of the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities, drew attention to the conditions under which the majority of persons with disabilities lived.

In the poor countries, extreme poverty, bad health conditions, lack of education and social isolation were still prevalent, he said. Although the situation in the more affluent countries of the world was better, many obstacles still existed in the path of full participation. The situation was particularly serious in the field of employment, with unacceptably low employment rates for persons with disabilities. He pointed out that one serious problem common to the whole world was that the needs of people having disabilities from mental illness were being neglected or not dealt with properly.

On the impact of the United Nations Standard Rules in the three years of its existence, he pointed out that the monitors had seen growing awareness among governments. There had been policy development on the basis of the Rules in many countries, and in all regions there were examples of new national legislation built on them. In several countries, action plans had been adopted, based on, or inspired by, one or many of the Rules. The report of the monitors' second survey of governments, as well as of non-governmental organizations, would be published later. The most important information from it was that a "pattern of cooperation", which had been advocated by the United Nations since the International Year of Disabled Persons in 1981, was

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definitely getting established. Drawing attention to the important work being done by the various agencies within the United Nations system concerning education, rehabilitation, employment, disabled children and women, he recommended that efforts be strengthened and better coordinated.

Exchange of Views on Disability

The representative of the Netherlands, speaking on behalf of the European Union and associated States, said that United Nations agencies should strengthen cooperation with non-governmental organizations in the field of disability. Monitoring and implementation of the standard rules were essential to the emancipation of persons with disabilities. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur should be reaffirmed.

The representative of Norway said that without cooperation between the United Nations and non-governmental organizations, the Standard Rules for Persons with Disabilities would never have come about. The Rules had led to policy shifts in many countries designed to secure the full participation and human rights of disabled persons.

The representative of China asked whether implementation of the Rules could be made compatible with regional initiatives such as the Asia-Pacific Decade of the Disabled (1986-1996). China supported that initiative and urged collaboration which would coordinate regional and international efforts.

The representative of the United States said that his Government agreed that no country, not even the most advanced, had yet fully implemented the Standard Rules. The United States had achieved the legislative recommendations of those Rules, but wished to urgently address the issues of lack of participation and equality. The current Rules were inadequate in the area of housing, he said, adding that language adopted in that regard by the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) (Istanbul, 1996) should be supported.

The representative of Ireland supported the statement of the Netherlands on behalf of the European Union. He noted the conclusions of the Special Rapporteur on disability and asked if he would return to them and enlighten the Commission on specifics. He believed there was a great need for governments to promote employment for people with disabilities, a subject on which his Government had recently reached some agreement with the private sector. On the future of the monitoring exercise, he supported its continuation.

The representative of the Philippines hoped that the report of the Special Rapporteur would help deal with the problems of people with disability, particularly children. That, she said, was because of their tender age, and because they had their entire lives ahead of them.

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Unfortunately, she continued, whenever the subject was being discussed, there was hardly ever any mention of children. She asked the Special Rapporteur how he would "remedy this sorry situation" should he be re- appointed. Secondly, had he, in his monitoring activities, been able to make use of the indicators on disability which were adopted last year?

The representative of South Africa said that his young democracy had been interested in that subject from the beginning, and policies had been put in place in such departments as welfare and labour. Specific appointments had been made and there was a department in the Deputy President's office on the status of the disabled. Much more needed to be done, however, and he called for the reappointment of the Special Rapporteur and for the monitoring to be continued.

The representative of Cuba shared the comments of others to renew the mandate of the Special Rapporteur, but stressed that some priorities must be identified. In his country, he said, the Rules had been very useful at the national level. He stressed that appropriate attention must be paid to the situation of disabled people throughout the world. He also supported the view that the situation of disabled children should receive special attention. The United Nations should determine regional and international priorities and be more involved in channelling international cooperation and mobilizing new resources for the disabled, particularly in the developing countries.

A representative of the ILO expressed "wholehearted support" for the work of the Special Rapporteur, as well as its continuation. Citing the various problems of the disabled, she said that to bring about change much more needed to be done. She advised sharing the know-how accumulated by all.

The representative of the Republic of Korea said that the Rules had compelled many countries to re-examine their attitudes and priorities towards the disabled. He supported the renewal of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur to continue his work. He pointed out that last year, his country had received the Roosevelt Disability Award for its work. He believed that the achievement was on account of the country's efforts towards its many disabled. His Government had continued to do a lot to expand the programmes for the disabled, he continued, noting that in September, it would host an Asian meeting on the matter.

A representative of Inclusion International, speaking on behalf of the World Federation of the Deaf and the World Blind Union, supported the work of the Special Rapporteur, noting that sufficient resources were required for the assignment. He asked governments to provide the necessary financial support for the various related issues, including dialogue among non-governmental organization and agencies on the issue. He further asked the Special Rapporteur to work on the question of including the disabled on the various issues on the agenda.

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A representative of Rehabilitation International complimented the Special Rapporteur on his work. He recalled that at its last session, the Commission expressed support for monitoring the Rules implementation, noting that the assignment consumed a lot of time. He advised States to work together to achieve more. The work of the Special Rapporteur was to be encouraged, and he asked for a renewal of the mandate for a further three-year term.

The representative of Disabled People International said that they were founded during the International Year of the Disabled in 1981. She said that the Rules were a definitive international regulation on what must be done for people with disabilities. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur deserved to be extended and her group would help press for implementation. She sought support for training in the Standard Rules.

She stressed that the implementation of the Rules needed to be operated systematically and in-depth, recalling that 1997 was the year for the Commission to follow up on the issue of disability to achieve the goal of equal opportunities. Referring to children with disabilities, there was a qualitative difference that had to be addressed. A disabled child would become a disabled adult, and it was important for them to be trained.

The representative of Costa Rica supported the delegate of the Philippines who had stated that disabled children required special support.

In response to delegations, Mr. LINDQVIST, the Special Rapporteur, said that were he to be re-appointed, the issues of gender, children and housing would be his priorities. He would also urge the mainstreaming of measures aimed at disabled persons into development planning. He would also urge close cooperation between non-governmental organizations working with the disabled and the various international human rights bodies. National capacities for monitoring and evaluation should be emphasized, he said, expressing the hope that the Statistical Division of the United Nations could be of assistance in that regard.

The Standard Rules had not emphasized children because the rules had been developed in the "shadow" of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. A convention was more significant than a set of rules, he noted.

To questions on coordination between regional and international initiatives, he said that the efforts of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) on disabled persons could gain a great deal by employing the Standard Rules.

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