ASSEMBLY COMMEMORATES TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF BUENOS AIRES PLAN OF ACTION TO PROMOTE TECHNICAL COOPERATION AMONG DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Press Release
GA/9471

ASSEMBLY COMMEMORATES TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF BUENOS AIRES PLAN OF ACTION TO PROMOTE TECHNICAL COOPERATION AMONG DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

South-South cooperation was more valid and relevant than ever, Deputy Secretary-General Louise Fréchette told the General Assembly this morning as it commemorated the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action for Promoting and Implementing Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries.

Two decades later, she said, developing countries still shared common economic needs, including: the need for external capital and development assistance; access to export markets and foreign exchange; the need for new technologies; and a fair and stable external environment. Those shared needs established a new rationale for South-South cooperation, requiring them to pool their human and material resources for a just and equitable international economic system. Developing countries also needed a more effective voice in international forums.

The representative of Nigeria, speaking on behalf of the African States, said that South-South cooperation was no longer an option, but an imperative in the age of globalization. However, for the international trading system to support the efforts of developing countries, that system must be made more equitable, secure, non-discriminatory and predictable in its rules.

The representative of Indonesia, speaking on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, proposed that the Assembly declare a United Nations day for South-South cooperation. Noting that technical cooperations projects must provide mutual benefits for developing countries and should be economically viable, he said the Group of 77 would promote research studies on the issue, with the support of the United Nations.

The representative of Austria, speaking on behalf of the European Union and associated States, said technical cooperation characterized by North-South relations remained an important factor in promoting sustainable human development. Technical cooperation between developing nations should not be

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treated as a special programme in the Organization, but should be integrated into its overall operational activities. Decentralization within the Organization would enhance South-South cooperation as a tool for development programming and development cooperation.

The President of the Assembly, Didier Opertti (Uruguay), spoke this morning.

Also, statements were made by the representatives of Nepal, on behalf of the Asian States; Poland, on behalf of the Eastern European States; Dominican Republic, on behalf of the Latin American and Caribbean States; Andorra, on behalf of the Western European and Other States; and South Africa, for the Non-Aligned Movement. The representative of the United States made a statement as the host country, and the representative of Japan addressed the Assembly.

The Assembly will meet again at 3 p.m. to continue its review of national and international efforts to achieve the goals set at the 1995 World Summit for Social Development, and to act on recommendations of its Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary).

Assembly Work Programme

The General Assembly meets this morning to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action -- an international framework to support technical cooperation among developing countries.

The Buenos Aires Plan of Action, adopted in 1978 during a United Nations conference focusing on ways to promote technical cooperations among developing countries, outlines ways of enhancing such links between countries of the South, encouraging them to assist one another to achieve equitable partnerships in global development. The action plan works to complement North-South development cooperation by outlining ways countries of the North and international bodies can support South-South development.

During this time of rapid globalization of markets and production structures, the Plan of Action serves as an indispensable tool for ensuring equal participation of all countries in the global economy -- with South-South cooperation providing a framework for collective action on the national, subregional, interregional and global levels. The Assembly commemoration will focus on the theme: "Towards a Global Partnership for South-South Cooperation".

Statements

DIDIER OPERTTI (Uruguay), President of the General Assembly, said the United Nations conference in Buenos Aires in 1978 was a milestone in efforts of the United Nations to foster international cooperation for development. The Buenos Aires Plan of Action attempted to increase the technical and scientific capacities of developing countries as part of socio-economic development in the South. The Plan set forth a number of technical cooperation objectives to enhance developing countries' technological capacities for development by pooling and sharing human and technical resources in all spheres of development; increasing the quality and quantity of international cooperation; and improving and expanding communication among them at national, subregional, regional and interregional levels. In the wake of recent trends towards globalization, technical cooperation among developing countries (TCDC) had become increasingly important in enabling countries of the South to participate in the global order.

To realize the full potential of TCDC and live up to the expectations of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action, all Member States -- developed and developing -- had to seize the current momentum and build on past achievements, he said. The potential of TCDC must be more widely understood. Also, efforts were needed to strengthen the effectiveness of national policies which guided TCDC at the national level; and to promote information sharing among developing countries. Also, the international community must be more forthcoming in financing TCDC activities.

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Deputy Secretary-General LOUISE FRÉCHETTE said the Buenos Aires Plan of Action had narrowed the gap between North and South and offered a new South- South solution. The technical and economic cooperation between the developing countries it envisioned enabled the South to promote self-reliance and to participate effectively in the international economic system.

The Plan accelerated the development of production structures across national boundaries, she continued. New developments had underscored the futility of unilateral action in an interdependent world. The United Nations had supported networking and infrastructure development, as well as regional institutional capacity-building, networking and informational systems for South-South cooperation.

Many developed countries had supported technical cooperation activities initiated by the developing countries, she said. In light of the declining trend in official developing assistance (ODA) and resources available to United Nations agencies, increased contributions to the Trust Fund for South- South cooperation were needed. Today, South-South cooperation was more valid and relevant than ever. Developing countries still shared common economic needs, including: the need for external capital and development assistance; access to export markets and foreign exchange; the need for new technologies; and a fair and stable external environment. Those shared needs established a new rationale for South-South cooperation, requiring them to pool their human and material resources for a just and equitable international economic system.

Developing countries needed a more effective voice in the international forums, she said. United Nations system and the international community must adjust to the demands of the new development context, and the United Nations agencies should promote joint cooperative arrangements. Regional commissions should play a supportive role for subregional and regional groupings. It was critically important to build new partnerships and to help foster effective participation of the private sector in the cooperation. The goals of the South-South cooperation called for a coordinated approach on the part of the United Nations. New policies should be implemented, taking into account new approaches to development.

GABRIEL SAM AKUNWAFOR (Nigeria), speaking for the African Group, said that the commemoration should be a time of sober reflection on achievements future challenges. For developing countries, TCDC and South-South cooperation were no longer options, but imperatives in the age of globalization.

He noted that, through the Special Unit for Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) had helped raise awareness of the importance of TCDC and the development needs of the developing countries. The Special Unit had been a reliable catalyst and active partner of governments and the United Nations system in promoting and monitoring the global application of TCDC, namely, through: sponsorship of

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TCDC activities-based studies and assessments, enhancement of national capacities for the management of TCDC, and matching capacities with needs. He also acknowledged gathering support for the promotion of South-South trade and finance on the part of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the Non-Aligned Movement and the "Group of 77" developing countries.

He said areas where efforts to assist developing countries had fallen short, including: the provision of ODA to support critical infrastructural and social-sector development; the failure to alleviate the debt burdens of the 40 least developed countries, especially the highly indebted poor countries; and the lack of market access for developing countries to developed markets. The current international trading system would better assist developing countries, especially those producing commodities, if, and only if, the system was made multilaterally equitable, secure, non-discriminatory and predictable in its rules.

NARENDRA BIKRAM SHAH (Nepal), speaking on behalf of the Asian States, said today was an occasion to reaffirm the continued relevance of South-South cooperation to build a more equitable global partnership for development and peace. It was also an occasion for everyone to review, not only the achievements of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action, but, more importantly, the lessons learned from its implementation.

In the 20 years since the adoption of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action, profound changes had taken place in international relations, he said. Greater interdependence in the world brought about by globalization and economic liberalization was posing new challenges and risks, but it also provided a new impetus and a new rationale for closer cooperation among nations. The Asian States believed that further strengthening of South-South cooperation was an essential instrument for ensuring the equitable participation of developing countries in the emerging global economy.

Speaking on behalf of the Eastern European States, EUGENIUSZ WYZNER (Poland) said that the Buenos Aires conference had established a new type of international relations based on closer regional exchange of experiences between developing countries. Noting the growing economic potential of the South, he said that special credit should be given to the UNDP for incorporating new practices in its programmes and for establishing a trust fund which supported South-South cooperation. Several other entities of the United Nations system, including the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO), and some of the regional economic commissions, had also intensified their efforts to include TCDC in the mainstream of their activities.

The United Nations system should continue its efforts to strengthen South-South cooperation, he said. There was a considerable unexplored

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potential for forming new partnership among the countries of the South and the Eastern European countries. Such links must be extended beyond the old division of South and North, or East and West.

CRISTINA AGUIAR (Dominican Republic), speaking on behalf of the Latin American and Caribbean States, said since the Buenos Aires Plan of Action was adopted in 1978 it had given new form to South-South cooperation and allowed developing countries to find their own means of economic development. Those countries had been able to use their collective capacity and share experiences to enhance international cooperation through the pooling of resources, transfer of skills and expertise. The form, content and goals of South-South cooperation had undergone significant changes -- in an environment affected by globalization -- that influenced national economies, production systems and traditional mechanisms of social solidarity. The General Assembly, through its resolutions, had endorsed the action Plan as an important instrument for strengthening cooperation among developing countries.

Given that, in many cases, the laws of the market prevailed, countries in her region had to cope with the challenges by altering planned strategies, she said. For successful South-South cooperation, there must be a better distribution of resources and more market efficiency. The principles of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action -- solidarity and brotherhood to achieve common goals without conditions -- continued to be as valid today as they were back in 1978. However, the shortage of resources posed a major obstacle to the achievement of those goals. States must promote the flow of capital into developing regions and promote technical cooperation among countries. The Assembly commemoration spoke eloquently of advancements during the past 20 years in the field of international cooperation. Bold approaches were needed to deal with the problems of landlocked and small island States.

JULI MINOVES-TRIQUELL (Andorra), speaking on behalf of the Western European and Other States, said the past two decades had shown the importance of South-South trade. Developing countries could now control technology exchanges among themselves, as they worked to achieve complementary goals. Developing economies must remain steady so they could take full advantage of global communication and cooperation activities. Strengthening South-South development cooperation called for a multidimensional approach and efforts to enhance the existing relationship between rich and poor countries.

The proliferation of South-South cooperation following the adoption of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action had many benefits, he continued. Cooperation between Asia and Africa, the recent cooperation between Latin America and Eastern Europe and development cooperation between small island developing States, were testimony to that progress. Clearly, technical and economic cooperation between developing countries were supports for North-South relations, and not substitutes for them. Better coordination between the two, however, would be necessary. It was the duty of the United Nations, in the

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coming months, to determine the best formula for further cooperation between Southern countries and to create strategies for North-South cooperation. A new model for cooperation would require a mixture of solidarity and responsibility in a triangle of North-South/ South-South action. The international community must also encourage the progress and uncover possibilities for mutual interests between developing countries.

HOWARD SQUADRON (United States), speaking as the host country, said the Buenos Aires Plan of Action was intended to encourage the concepts of self-reliance and mutual support among the developing countries through the exchange of technical information. Those concepts were still as valid today as when the plan was first adopted. His country agreed with the Secretary-General's view that South-South cooperation must be more than a slogan and the principles of the TCDC must be included in many of its bilateral development assistance programmes.

The United States believed that the TCDC fit well within the broader efforts to promote coordination, cooperation and reform at the United Nations, he said. The best way forward was to increase the effectiveness of existing TCDC systems. It was critically important to continue the work of developing programme effectiveness indicators for TCDC programmes. Developing good feedback mechanisms that measured the ability of those programmes benefited not only the funders of the programmes but the beneficiaries as well.

He said if beneficiary countries contributed to and received reports on which programmes worked the best, those countries would be in a better position to disseminate best-practices information to other potential beneficiaries. Good reporting on programmes also assisted beneficiary countries by enhancing the credibility of those efforts and justifying funding decisions.

MAKARIM WIBISONO (Indonesia), on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, said in view of the increased liberalization and openness of the economies of developing countries and the substantial efforts to reform their trade policies, it was imperative that the Generalized System of Trade Preferences (GSTP) be further strengthened. There was a need to consider giving new impetus to GSTP negotiations by adjusting past concessions being applied to current tariffs and import measures.

He proposed that the General Assembly proclaim a United Nations day for South-South cooperation. The Organization and the international community should focus on strengthening the Caracas Programme of Action, on technical exchange, and the Buenos Aires Programme. While implementation of those two programmes had yielded some results, much more needed to be done.

He said that related projects must provide mutual benefits to developing countries and should be economically viable. In that context, the Group of 77

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would soon begin research on South-South cooperation with the support of United Nations bodies. Appropriate organizational modalities were needed to tap resources to support South-South cooperation activities and programmes. A common strategy was needed to foster international support for the regional and subregional economic groups of developing countries, as well as to encourage mutual links and cooperation between them.

ERNST SUCHARIPA (Austria) -- speaking on behalf of the European Union and Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, the associated country of Cyprus as well as Iceland and Norway -- said today was an opportunity to reflect on the lessons and accomplishments in promoting technical cooperation among developing countries. It was a time to recognize the changing global partnerships in the era of globalization. South-South cooperation was a principal strategy in support of national and international development efforts, and an indispensable mechanism for ensuring participation of nations in the global economy. Technical cooperation characterized by North-South relations remained an important factor in promoting sustainable human development. Interdependence among nations provided new impetus, new opportunities and new rationale for closer cooperation, as well as new challenges for States. What needed to be explored today was the role and relevance of technical and economic cooperation among developing countries in an increasingly interdependent world.

Technical cooperation among developing countries (TCDC) was a useful tool for and among developing countries, but donor countries needed to foster an increased use of the TCDC modality in development cooperation, he said. The United Nations should promote South-South cooperation. In that context, TCDC should not be treated as a special programme, but as part of operational activities of the United Nations. Decentralization of the United Nations would further enhance TCDC as a tool for development programming and development cooperation. The revised guidelines for the review of policies and procedures concerning TCDC had accentuated the validity and relevance of TCDC in the emerging global environment. With those tools in place, the European Union hoped South-South cooperation could prosper in the next millennium.

KHIPHUSIZI J. JELE (South Africa), speaking for the Non-Aligned Movement, said that South-South cooperation provided developing countries, through their own means, a way to extricate themselves from the mire of underdevelopment. The advances made so far through the Buenos Aires Plan of Action, bridging cooperation between South-South countries, united and consolidated national, regional, subregional and interregional efforts through various bodies and delivery systems. He said that technical cooperation among developing countries helped ensure equitable participation of developing countries in the global economy and was a key component of poverty eradication strategy. International efforts should be directed at strengthening and

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accelerating technology transfer, skills, knowledge and information dissemination in the framework of South-South cooperation.

The commemoration of today helped to increase South-South cooperation, he said. Resources for capacity-building must be provided on a continuous, secure and incremental basis.

MASAKI KONISHI (Japan) said that South-South cooperation had been widely accepted as an effective modality of development cooperation in the spirit of "sharing the experiences". Moreover, a new modality of triangular cooperation, involving the dimension of cooperation between the North and South had emerged.

Reviewing Japan's active support for South-South cooperation and its efforts to provide useful assistance tailored to the specific needs of developing countries, he said that developing countries themselves must fully accept the idea of South-South cooperation. Although such cooperation was not a substitute but a complement to North-South cooperation, it did enable the developing countries to take advantage of exchange of technologies and know-how more appropriate to the actual conditions in particular countries. It was essential to develop and strengthen the human resources necessary for the implementation of South-South cooperation.

He said developed countries, in their turn, should support the efforts of developing countries through triangular cooperation, involving the private sector and the non-governmental organizations. Easy access to information on successful examples of development cooperation was needed.

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