ASSEMBLY'S 2000 SPECIAL SESSION ON WORLD SOCIAL SUMMIT SHOULD LAY FOUNDATION FOR MORE JUST WORLD, DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TELLS PREPARATORY COMMITTEE
Press Release
DSG/SM/51
SOC/4500
ASSEMBLY'S 2000 SPECIAL SESSION ON WORLD SOCIAL SUMMIT SHOULD LAY FOUNDATION FOR MORE JUST WORLD, DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TELLS PREPARATORY COMMITTEE
19990517 Following is the statement by Deputy Secretary-General Louise Frechette to the first session of the Preparatory Committee for the Special Session of the General Assembly on the Implementation of the Outcome of the World Summit for Social Development and further initiatives, delivered in New York on 17 May:Let me start by saying how glad I am to be among you today. The issues which bring us here are crucial to the future of the peoples of the world and, like you, I am fully aware of the magnitude of the task ahead of us. It is therefore a privilege for me to open this important meeting.
In 1995 in Copenhagen, 117 heads of State and government, and representatives of a further 69 States, made a solemn pledge to create more just, harmonious and stable societies. Through 10 clear commitments, they affirmed that people's well-being must be at the centre of development and, accordingly, that the utmost priority must be given to eradicating poverty and promoting full employment and social integration.
Four years have elapsed since the adoption of the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action. When we set goals, it is a good idea to take stock at certain points and to ask ourselves, is the course we adopted still valid? Are we headed in the right direction? Have we made enough progress?
At your organizational session, you already decided that the special session to be held in the year 2000 would not renegotiate the Declaration and Programme of Action, but rather reaffirm their validity. So you have answered the first question and decided to stay on course. I congratulate you on this, for I believe firmly that the decisions taken at Copenhagen were the right ones. So that leaves you with the task of determining what results have been achieved thus far and precisely what further initiatives are needed to ensure the full implementation of the Copenhagen commitments.
Before you begin your work, I should like to say something about how the situation has evolved since Copenhagen and to share with you some thoughts about the efforts that remain to be made.
The Copenhagen Summit was the means whereby countries became collectively aware that, in order to achieve social development, national and international plans must be based on well thought out, well-defined policies. Since then, some 110 countries have taken action to fulfil the commitments made in Copenhagen and have redefined their national policies and strategies to incorporate the principles set forth in the Declaration.
Many countries have set themselves precise goals and time-frames for eradicating poverty. Many have overhauled their social welfare programmes to help bring into the labour market those who were hitherto excluded. National and regional forums on employment have been held. Efforts have been made to encourage local initiatives and to launch a genuine dialogue aimed at greater social cohesiveness.
The United Nations system has also taken a whole series of initiatives. Poverty reduction has been identified as one of its main priorities and mechanisms have been put in place for coordinating the efforts of the various agencies, funds and programmes in the field. New programmes have been launched in the areas of education, primary health care, the fight against AIDS, the rebuilding of countries affected by conflict, the provision of micro-credit to promote private initiative and employment for poor people in the context of globalization.
This was the first test of the seriousness of the international community's intentions and the results are conclusive; the commitments made at the Summit were not just empty words. But we all know that the hardest part is still to come -- putting the policies adopted at Copenhagen into practice and making tangible progress in the struggle against poverty, unemployment and social exclusion.
In four years, of course, we could not expect to see very marked changes in social development indicators. No one was expecting miracles, and there have been none. Progress has been made, but for much of the world's population the situation has, in fact, gotten significantly worse.
In 1995, the Declaration noted that there were a billion people in the world living in abject poverty. Since then, 300 million people have swelled the ranks of the most destitute. Moreover, in the developing countries, real per capita gross domestic product is increasing twice as slowly today as it was in 1995. Population is growing faster than available income, and poverty is steadily gaining ground. In some countries, especially in Africa, over 90 per cent of the population is living in abject poverty.
Turning to employment, some countries have been able to reduce unemployment while continuing to provide a genuine social safety net. However, for the developed countries as a whole, the average rate of
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unemployment has remained close to 7 per cent. In the developing counties, unemployment has in fact decreased since 1995, but the gains made in this area are being threatened by the financial crisis, local and regional conflicts and the fall in commodity prices.
Besides, for many of the world's destitute, the problem is not so much unemployment as the miserably low income they receive from unproductive jobs in the informal sector. So what matters is not just achieving full employment, but ensuring that existing jobs are productive and reasonably well-paid.
And what about social integration? Already, in 1995, it was clear that globalization could be a powerful factor in bringing people and countries closer together, but that there would inevitably be those who would lose out and become increasingly marginalized. The risks are even clearer today, after the first crisis of the globalized economy.
Inequalities are growing both within and between countries. Recession and restructuring tend to widen the gap, and financial turbulence has certainly not helped. In any case, achieving economic growth is not necessarily synonymous with rolling back poverty. We still need to adopt and implement policies that will bring about greater equity, not only in incomes, but also in access to basic social services.
Clearly, much remains to be done, and the special session will provide an opportunity to propose specific initiatives in priority areas. The Secretary-General's report which you have before you will, I hope, provide you with food for thought. Without taking up too much of your time, I should like to comment on a number of points which I think are important.
First of all, I should like to emphasize that political will, the will to make human well-being the absolute priority, remains an essential parameter. All States, industrialized and developing, are having to contend, to varying degrees, with the problems of poverty, unemployment and social exclusion, so they must all have the courage to confront the human misery that is in their midst and to put into practice the principles to which they subscribed in Copenhagen.
This will require States to strengthen their national social security systems, but also, and above all, to rethink their macroeconomic policies to include social goals, as well as economic ones. However, as the recent financial crisis once again demonstrated, achieving social goals does not depend only on national policies. It also requires what the Copenhagen Declaration called a "supportive external economic environment".
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The decline in the volume of official development assistance (ODA) is a trend that must be reversed at all costs. Never in the past 50 years has it been as low as it is today. It is worth remembering that ODA is not just a way of assisting the world's most disadvantaged people. Provided that it is put to good use -- something which more and more recipient countries are able and willing to do -- it is also a sound investment. Investing in social development is the best way of tapping available human and financial resources. Helping to support programmes which increase social justice would pay real dividends in terms of sustainable development.
There is another problem which is closely linked to the one I just mentioned: indebtedness. Some of the most highly indebted countries devote as much as 60 per cent of their annual budget to debt servicing. What does that leave for investing in education, health and anti-poverty programmes? Very little, especially since it is often the poorest and most vulnerable groups that are the first to suffer from the choices that have to be made when resources are inadequate.
The supportive environment that I mentioned also includes the international financial system. We are all aware now of the social ravages which may ensue when that system malfunctions, so we must do our utmost to prevent crises like the recent one from recurring, and to prevent local disruptions from spreading and spinning out of control. It is also vital that we find ways of lessening the social impact of the crises which may nevertheless occur, and that we take steps to ensure that the social investments already made are not reduced to nothing, wiping out years of development efforts.
Lastly, if the international financial system is to benefit not only the global economy, but also, and above all, humankind, it must be based on sound and fair principles. I believe that the formulation of such principles should feature prominently among the initiatives proposed at the special session.
Poverty and exclusion must concern all of us, for they threaten to destabilize societies and even to undermine peace. Yet, with the end of the twentieth century only months away, we are forced to acknowledge that they are still rampant everywhere. In the field of social development there cannot be two camps -- one of generous donors and one of grateful recipients. There can be only citizens of the world, united in the belief that every human being has a right to dignity.
The notions of solidarity and international social responsibility must underpin the debates of the special session. Social development is our common goal and our common responsibility. In Geneva in June 2000, we will have the chance to lay the foundations of a more just and more humane world in the twenty-first century. I hope with all my heart that we will seize that opportunity.
I thank you for your attention and wish you every success in your work.
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