RAPID URBANIZATION AND MEGACITIES AN UNPRECEDENTED CHALLENGE, SINGAPORE TELLS SECOND COMMITTEE

Press Release
GA/EF/2840

RAPID URBANIZATION AND MEGACITIES AN UNPRECEDENTED CHALLENGE, SINGAPORE TELLS SECOND COMMITTEE

Rapid urbanization and the emergence of megacities represented an unprecedented challenge for the international community, the representative of Singapore told the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) as it concluded its consideration of sustainable development and international economic cooperation.

Across the world, the influx of migrants to urban centres was making greater demands on city infrastructures, he added. That was becoming particularly problematic for developing countries with scarce resources. The coming years would be especially crucial for city planners, when prudent and hard decisions might have to be made in allocating resources to support rapid urbanization.

On the situation of countries in transition, the representative of the Ukraine said that, in view of the specific population problems facing those countries, it was expedient to extend the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) activities in the region of Central and Eastern Europe. On implementing the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), he said countries should have at their disposal the reliable statistical data which could be obtained through population censuses. The results of such censuses would serve as a good basis for further analytical activities for development.

Speaking on the Habitat II Conference, the representative of Madagascar said that the lack of jobs and falling incomes due to the economic crisis reduced the chances of people to find adequate housing. The situation could breed crime and gut moral values. The international community must define and coordinate international programs in order to turn the Habitat programme into reality.

Statements were also made by the representatives of: the United Arab Emirates, Kenya, Trinidad and Tobago, Japan, Croatia, and Romania.

__________ * Pages 2 through 10 of this Press Release should indicate the 28th meeting.

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A statement was also made by the representative of the observer mission of Switzerland.

Also this afternoon, Rubens Ricupero, Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), made an introductory statement on macroeconomic policy questions.

A special presentation was also given by Joseph Chamie, Director of the Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. on Friday 30 October, to consider macroeconomic policy questions.

Committee Work Programme

The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) met this afternoon to continue its consideration of sustainable development and international cooperation. (For background information on that topic see Press Release GA/EF/2839 of this morning.) The Committee will also take up macroeconomic policy questions. Under that general heading it will discuss trade and development issues.

Before the Committee is a report of the Trade and Development Board on its sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth executive sessions held in Geneva. The report was submitted by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) (documents A/53/15 parts I, II, III).

At its sixteenth executive session, held on 16 February, the Board adopted decisions on: the implementation by UNCTAD of the outcome of the high-level meeting on integrated initiatives for least developed countries' trade development; guidelines on the efficiency and functioning of the UNCTAD intergovernmental machinery; UNCTAD's publication policy; and savings resulting from improved overall cost effectiveness.

At the Board's seventeenth executive session, held on 8 May, it adopted decisions on: UNCTAD's publication policy; and a trust fund to enhance participation of developing countries' experts in UNCTAD meetings. During the eighteenth executive session, held on 10 July, a text was adopted on the outcome of the mid-term review.

That mid-term review was initiated by the Board during its sixteenth executive session. It purpose was to determine to what extent UNCTAD's mandate in terms of work programmes and institutional reforms had been implemented. The review found that, among other things, UNCTAD's contribution should be made through its analytical function and by linking research, action, analysis and policies. The UNCTAD's programmes should be evaluated with that linkage in mind. Links should be reflected in the consensus- building process in the intergovernmental machinery and in UNCTAD's operational activities, as well as through enhanced partnerships with civil society.

Also before the Committee was a note by Secretary General on follow-up to agreed conclusions 1997/1 of the Economic and Social Council (A/53/510).

It states that during the high-level segment of its substantive session of 1997, the Economic and Social Council carried out a comprehensive review of the theme: fostering an enabling environment for development: financial flows, including capital flows, investment and trade. It adopted agreed conclusions 1997/1, which contained a framework for international cooperation and national policies and covered policy issues as they related to policy coherence, marginalization, official development assistance, external debt,

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volatility and vulnerability, foreign direct investment, and trade and commodities.

On policy issues, the Council noted that, with the accelerating integration of the world economy, the interaction between the macroeconomic, structural, trade, financial and development aspects of economic policy-making had increased and is likely to intensify further. In the current economic environment, the question of policy coherence had thus emerged as a critical one for all participants in the global economy. The Council also agreed that many developing countries were not able to benefit from the globalization of the world economy over the past decade. Effective measures were called for to assist in their integration into the world economy.

In the intergovernmental context of UNCTAD, primary attention is paid to the question of how to reverse the marginalization of some countries and to facilitate their integration into the world economy. Such countries have been unable to diversify their economies to any significant extent over the past two decades and thus continued to experience very high commodity dependence. The declining importance of primary commodities in world trade, combined with the loss of market share in world primary-commodity markets suffered by those countries, had put them in a weak position to benefit from globalization.

The report concludes that a number of events, reports and actions have been undertaken over the past year by the United Nations which have had a direct bearing on the implementation of agreed conclusions of the Council. In that context, issues relating to the rapidly increasing economic interdependence of countries that has characterized the globalization phenomenon over the past decade, have been under continuous consideration by the Trade and Development Board.

Further actions, both under the auspices of the General Assembly and of the Council, are to be expected, most notably the working group of the General Assembly on the possible convening of the international conference on the financing of development, as well as the possible convening of a special meeting of the Council proximate to the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. It is to be expected that those gatherings, as well as the current debate in the General Assembly, would provide further impetus to the follow-up of agreed conclusions 1997/1 of the Council.

Another report before the Committee from the Secretary-General dealt with the transit environment in landlocked states in Central Asia and their transit neighbours (document A/53/331). The report was requested by the General Assembly when it adopted resolution 51/168 on 16 December 1996. It was prepared by UNCTAD.

The report says that trade to or through Central Asia was hampered by prohibitive transport costs. It describes current measures to expand rail,

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truck, pipeline and other forms of transportation and recommends measures to further expand transit.

The UNCTAD has had a role in facilitating the expansion of transportation links. Since a review of the difficulties facing landlocked countries of Central Asia was completed in 1996, the region's economic outlook had ameliorated. Foreign direct investment was expected to play a major role in development efforts, with the energy sector claiming the lion's share of foreign direct investment; the bulk of that investment has gone to Kazakhstan.

Alternative transport and pipelines would improve the efficiency of delivering those resources, and minimizing the cost of transport would enable them to make an even greater contribution to trade expansion, the report said. Central Asia's resolve to open up trade and investment has been matched by international support, in terms of credit for maintenance and development of transport infrastructure and technical assistance to increase efficiency.

As a landlocked region, the report says, Central Asia needed access to and from the sea, passing through the territories of transit countries; its geographic position could also enable it to become an important gateway to Asia from Europe and the Middle East.

New pipeline projects for gas and oil held considerable potential. Though transporting oil by rail was neither cost-effective, nor safe, the report said. Therefore, serious commercial exploitation of Central Asia's oil and gas reserves, would only begin with the construction of new pipelines.

Summary of Draft Resolutions

The Committee will hear the introduction of a draft resolution on the special session of the General Assembly for an overall review and appraisal of the implementation of the Habitat Agenda (document A/C.2/53/L.19). The draft resolution was sponsored by Indonesia on behalf of the Group of 77 developing countries and China.

By the text, the General Assembly would decide that the special session will be held in June 2001 for five working days. It would designate the Commission on Human Settlements as the preparatory committee and would decide that the Commission, meeting as the preparatory committee should be open-ended and allow full participation of Member States.

It would also invite representatives of local authorities and other Habitat agenda partners and relevant actors of civil society, particularly the private sector and non-governmental organizations in the field of adequate shelter for all and sustainable human settlements development, to contribute to the preparatory process.

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The Assembly would establish a schedule for the substantive sessions of the preparatory committee for the first and the second in 2001 to be held April to May 2000 at Nairobi.

It would also, among other things, invite the Economic and Social Council to devote its high level segment in 2000 to human settlements issues and the implementation of the Habitat agenda. It would also invite the regional commissions, within their mandates and in cooperation with regional intergovernmental organizations, as well as banks, to consider convening high level meetings to review the progress made in implementing the outcome of the Conference and to report the results of their review to the Economic and Social Council. The Secretary-General would be requested to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-fourth session.

The Committee also heard the introduction of a draft resolution on the special session of the General Assembly on the role of the United Nations in promoting development in the context of globalization and interdependence (document A/C.2/53/L.20). The draft resolution was introduced by Indonesia, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. By the text, the General Assembly would decide to hold a two-day, high level, resume fifty-third session of the General Assembly in the first half of 1999, to discuss ways and means to optimize the benefits and minimize the negative consequences of globalization and interdependence, in particular for developing countries.

Among other things, the Assembly would urge the international community including the World Trade Organization (WTO), to grant a more concessional treatment to developing countries. It would underline the importance of market access, increase in official development assistance, conversion of official debts into grants, liberalization of Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Debt Initiative and foreign direct investment flows, as well as the need to reform the international financial architecture.

The Assembly would also request the Secretary-General to prepare an analytical report in collaboration with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and in consultation with relevant organizations, in particular the WTO, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) the World Bank, and the regional commissions, to be submitted to the General Assembly at its high- level resumed session. It should examine the complex interrelated issues in order to facilitate better understanding of globalization and make recommendations on: the role of the United Nations in promoting development in the context of globalization and interdependence, promoting coherence, and coordination in economic policy-making at the global level; and ensuring coherent policies at various levels for optimizing the benefits and limiting the consequences of globalization and interdependence; It would also decide to include in the agenda of the fifty-fourth session an item entitled "globalization and interdependence".

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Introduction of Draft Resolutions

MOCHAMAD HIDAYAT (Indonesia), on behalf of the Group of 77 developing countries and China, introduced the draft resolution on the special session of the General Assembly on the role of the United Nations in promoting development in the context of globalization and interdependence (document A/C.2/53/L.20).

Mr. HIDAYAT also introduced the draft resolution on the special session of the General Assembly for an overall review and appraisal of the implementation of the Habitat agenda (document A/C.2/53/L.19).

Statements

SALEM AL-SHAMSI (United Arab Emirates) said a billion people in the world were living without adequate shelter and in poverty. That had led to violence, drug trafficking and terrorism. Those problems must be tackled at the national level. Construction of more sustainable human settlements for people must also be a priority for countries. The growing populations of urban environments required the elaboration of general strategies for creating sustainable living conditions.

He added that more attention should be given to the coercive displacement encountered by many people. Especially in regard to the displacement of the Palestinian people, there was need for enhanced efforts to establish more international mechanisms to address the causes of displacement and to return people to their homelands. The Israeli Government should cease the illegal settlement of Jewish settlers on Arab lands. Palestinian refugees should be able to return to their homeland and enjoy their inalienable rights.

MARY D. ODINGA (Kenya) said her country welcomed the changes in the Habitat agenda that would ensure that it functioned more effectively, by providing sufficient human and financial resources within the regular budget of the United Nations. Her country also recognized the need for ongoing reform within the United Nations system.

ROSLYN KHAN-CUMMINGS (Trinidad and Tobago) said that the population issue and the effects of urbanization are now being integrated into development and environment policies, plans and programmes in her country. They must, however, be complemented by effective information, education and communications strategies about the links between population and environment and sustainable development. That was particularly so for small island developing States with a large portion of their populations living in coastal zones and in urban areas.

FAIZAL YAHYA (Singapore) said that urbanization in both speed and scale represented an unprecedented challenge. At the heart of that challenge was

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the emergence of the megacity, which was characterized by urban centres with populations of more than 10 million. The United Nations estimated that there would be 15 megacities by 2010. Across the world, the influx of migrants to those urban centres were making greater demands on city infrastructures. That was becoming particularly problematic for developing countries with scarce resources. The coming years would be especially crucial for city planners when prudent and hard decisions might have to be made in allocating scarce resources to support rapid urbanization.

He added that Singapore's approach to managing urban development was through forward and integrated land-use planning. By putting the necessary environmental infrastructure and systems in place early, his country was able to meet its housing, recreation and industrial needs in a sustainable manner, while safeguarding the environment.

WATARU NISHIGAHIRO (Japan) said it was two years since the international community had concluded the gathering on human settlements in Istanbul. Since that time, Japan had continued to focus on human resources development, consideration of the environment, and activities at the grass-roots level. While his country encouraged the Secretariat to continue to devote its attention to this matter, he said he would also call for close communication between all the concerned parties in Nairobi and New York, with respect to the preparations for the special session of the General Assembly on review of the implementation of Habitat II in the year 2001.

MONIKA RUHL BURZI (Switzerland) said her country deemed the evaluation of the Cairo Population Conference to be of great importance and intended to be actively involved in that process. It was crucial that the Cairo Plan of Action not be renegotiated. Instead it must be the basis for discussions on how to continue in the years ahead. Since that Conference, there had been a greater awareness in the world for such issues as equality among men and women, integrating foreigners, and fighting racism. Greater attention had also been paid to consumption patterns and the environmental impact of demographic trends. In the process leading up to the evaluation, her country had analyzed its own activities in that regard and that analysis would be published as a complete report next year. Switzerland would continue its commitment to official development assistance and reaffirmed its intention to step up its contribution to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

MICHELLE BAHOLISOLO (Madagascar) said that during the economic crisis, with a lack of jobs and falling incomes, the chance of finding adequate housing was poor. The situation could breed crime and gut moral values. The international community must define and coordinate international programs in order to turn the Habitat programme into reality.

The Government of Madagascar builds many housing units every year, she said, and was involved in setting up a real estate pool, building infrastructure for real estate, and establishing controls to ensure clear

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title of ownership. Moreover, her Government was constructing new cities of a rural style, and was carrying out the work of the Istanbul conference involving community-level participation in the development process, in addition to involving unions and NGO's.

SERHIY REVA (Ukraine) said that, in view of the specific population problems existing in the countries with economies in transition, it was expedient to extend the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) activities in the region of Central and Eastern Europe, in particular, through the implementation of concrete regional projects. To fulfil the task of implementing the Cairo Population Conference, countries should have at their disposal reliable statistical data, which could be obtained by conducting population censuses. The results of such censuses would serve as a good basis for further analytical activities in order to work out specific recommendations to governments.

He added that the scope and complexity of the tasks set forth in the Habitat II Agenda required concerted international efforts in giving technical and financial support to national efforts for practical realization. In that respect, Bretton Woods institutions could enhance their role through extending special credit lines to finance national housing construction programmes facilitating the utilization of ecologically sound construction technologies.

IVAN NIMAC (Croatia) said a crucial part of the comprehensive review of the Cairo Programme of Action should be the analysis of experience related to the implementation of the Programme at a country level. His country attached particular importance to the linkage between population changes, including migration, and economic and social conditions. In the period between 1991 and 1995, the rate of growth of the Croatian population became negative, due to conditions of war and occupation. In the last three years, the situation had improved, although the rate remained insufficient to ensure a renewal of the population. In response to that situation, the Government had developed a plan for balanced renewal. The plan was consistent with the Programme of Action and, most importantly, it encapsulated the principles of gender equality, and the right of couples to decide freely on their number of children.

SORIN TANASESCU (Romania) said that priority should be given to the critical problems of developing countries and especially of the least developed ones. In the view of his country, changes in the field of population growth in developed countries, including health-specific problems, and problems of youth, were important and relevant for all countries. His country wished to emphasize the need for cooperation and partnership between the Division of Population and the United Nations Population Fund in the preparatory process of the special session of the Assembly.

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Macroeconomic Policy Questions

RUBENS RICUPERO, Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), made an introductory statement on macroeconomic policy questions. He said UNCTAD would meet in Bangkok in the beginning of the year 2000 to hold UNCTAD 10. The symbolic impact of that place at that time would provide impetus for UNCTAD to review its progress and map out the road ahead. UNCTAD 10 would reflect on development and start from a more comprehensive and integrated vision of development issues.

He added that there was a need to take into consideration the impact of new technologies, particularly communications technology. In that regard, UNCTAD needed to adapt to changing circumstances and to focus on the needs of developing countries. That did not mean UNCTAD would change its mandate, however. It was more a matter of defining and redefining in aspects of the mandate it had been given by member States. That refining would give UNCTAD a clear set of priorities. It was imperative that its work be geared towards helping developing countries, to understand their interests and articulate those interests through forward-looking proposals.

On financial issues, he said UNCTAD's work stemmed from its role as the focal point within the United Nations for the integrated treatment of development and related issues in the area of trade, finance, technology, investment and sustainable development. The current financial crisis had graphically demonstrated the strong interlinkages between finance, trade and investment. It had also shown how international financial movements could influence decisively the course and the chances of success of national development efforts.

He added that there were some important factors to be kept in mind in today's globalized financial system. Economies that relied too heavily on international markets to finance their fiscal deficits, would always risk sudden changes in market opinion. Also, the normal reaction for a country facing a decline in income due to an external shock would be to allow the automatic stabilizing features of government budgets to soften the impact. However, any softening of the budget stance could quickly bring about higher risk and reduced financial inflows. Lastly, with increasingly globalized cross-boarder financing, sharp shifts in risk and liquidity could quickly fuel financial crises. Such crises involved a rush of investors and creditors to safer havens, and consequential panic.

Presentation by Population Division Director

JOSEPH CHAMIE, Director of the Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said the world's population today was about 5.9 billion and it would reach 6 billion next year. It was worth noting that from the year 1804, when the world passed the 1 billion mark, it took

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123 years to reach 2 billion people in 1927, 33 years to attain 3 billion in 1960, 14 years to reach 4 billion in 1974, 13 years to attain 5 billion in 1987, and 12 years to reach 6 billion in 1999. Of the net addition of 78 million people per year, India's contribution was about 21 per cent. India was followed by China, with a 15 per cent contribution. India, China, Pakistan, Indonesia, and Nigeria accounted for almost 50 per cent of world growth.

With some notable exceptions in some important regions, such as sub- Saharan Africa and Eastern Europe, mortality had continued to decline; lower death rates and longer life for the majority of countries has been observed. Infant mortality and adult mortality have declined over the last several decades. The ageing of the world population means a very different age structure and a different world socially and economically. By 2050, for the world as a whole, the number of older persons will, for the first time in the history of humanity, outnumber the number of children. Mr. Chamie noted also that fertility was continuing to decline globally. He also called attention to international migration, which continued to have a significant impact for most countries in coming decades.

Continuing, he said there were important exceptions to the general global improvements in mortality. In Eastern Europe, fewer were observed during the decade, especially among males. That troubling situation needed to monitored carefully, to assess the impact of those unfortunate trends, and take the necessary steps to reduce death rates. Another notable area of concern related to the devastating mortality impact of the AIDS epidemic, especially in sub-saharan Africa. Life expectancy was dropping substantially and growth rates declining greatly.

Although the future was uncertain, future population trends were considerably less uncertain than other future developments, such as economic trends or weather forecasts. In the area of population, what was done today would greatly affect what would happen in the coming years and decades. For the last 50 years, the United Nations had the foresight, courage and leadership to address population issues. It was vital that the United Nations continue to do so.

In response to a question on decreasing fertility rates, Mr. Chamie said increasing education of women, availability to contraception, and other factors affected fertility rates greatly. In respect to AIDS, he said that, while there were treatments, there were no vaccines available now and there were none planned for the future. On the population capacity of the world, he said no one was sure how many people the globe could hold. It depended on technology, on the level of consumption and production, and other factors. According to long range projections, the global population would reach stabilization sometime in the twenty-third Century.

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