PANEL DISCUSSION IN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL FOCUS ON COUNTRY TEAM EFFORTS TO IMPLEMENT CONFERENCE GOALS

Press Release
ECOSOC/5905

PANEL DISCUSSION IN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL FOCUS ON COUNTRY TEAM EFFORTS TO IMPLEMENT CONFERENCE GOALS

The success of an alternative development project in Bolivia’s leading coca producing area could serve as a model for other regions, the representative of the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) in Bolivia told the Economic and Social Council this afternoon, while taking part in the first of two panel discussions on examples of integrated and coordinated support by United Nations country teams in implementing cross-cutting conference goals.

The panel discussions were part of the coordination segment of the Council’s 2000 session. The first panel focused on the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) in Bolivia. The second panel focused on poverty eradication in Ghana and the follow-up to the World Conference on Social Development in Madagascar.

Taking part in the first panel, in addition to the FAO representative, were the Vice-Minister of Alternative Development of Bolivia, as well as the representative of the UNDCP in Bolivia.

The FAO’s representative said the alternative development project in the Cochabamba tropics of Bolivia was so successful, a similar project was planned for the neighbouring La Paz tropics. The project was part of a national programme aimed at sustainable use of natural resources. It was coordinated with similar initiatives undertaken with FAO, the UNDCP and others. In its second phase, with its implementation cycle running from October 1997 to 2002, its budget had risen from $2 million to $9.4 due to increasing coca eradication rates. A horizontal cooperation structure, by way of FAO’s technical cooperation among developing countries (TCDC) programme, was enabling extension of the programme to alternative development in Colombia, Peru and Brazil.

During the second panel, addressing aspects of helping the Government with poverty eradication efforts in Ghana were the Minister of State of Planning and Regional Economic Cooperation of Ghana and the Deputy Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Representatives of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) also addressed that issue. Speaking on follow-up of the World Summit for Social Development in Madagascar were the Director of the Cabinet of the Prime Minister, UNDP’s Resident Coordinator and a representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

The Council will meet again at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, 13 July, to conclude its coordination segment and adopt the agreed conclusions on the cross-sector and sectoral theme. Council Work Prgramme

The Economic and Social Council met this afternoon to continue its coordination segment with two panel discussions on examples of integrated and coordinated support by United Nations country teams in implementing cross-cutting conference goals.

The first panel, focusing on Bolivia, will address collaborative action for drug control in the context of integrated conference follow-up. Participants are expected to be the Vice-Minister of Alternative Development of Bolivia; the representative in Bolivia of the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO); and the representative of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme in Bolivia.

The second panel will focus on experience in helping Ghana's Government work towards poverty eradication, as well as follow up in Madagascar to the World Summit for Social Development.

Panel on Bolivia

GERHARD PFANZELTER (Austria) Vice-President of the Council, in introducing the panelists, said many panelists and delegations had reiterated that the United Nations system, under the Government, should provide a well coordinated and integrated support to national strategies. The Council had recommended that Member States consider drug abuse a cross-cutting issue.

WALDO ADAN TELLERIA POLO, Vice-Minister of Alternative Development of Bolivia, said his country was surrounded by five countries. Peru produced coca leaves, and other countries were involved in the traffic in ingredients for cocaine production. In La Paz and Cochabamba were areas in which coca was grown. Bolivia recognized the existence of legal production, which was mainly done in the La Paz area. There was a larger area of production of illicit cultivation in Cochabamba.

Because of a growing international demand, there had been an increase of coca fields since the middle of the 1970s, he said. In 1989 there were 52,000 hectares devoted to the coca cultivation. That cultivation had an economic impact on the country. Cocaine exports represented 87.3 per cent of the total value of legal exports, while barely 1 per cent of the value of cocaine was legal.

In 1987, Bolivia had enacted a law on the regime of coca and controlled substances, he said. It defined legal and illegal production and recognized that coca producers must reduce growth voluntarily, economic compensation should be in cash and that eradication should be carried out manually, without the help of chemicals. One way of diminishing the economic effects of eradication would be alternative development. Compensation grew from $350 per hectare in 1987 to $2,500 in 1997. The result was the generation of a perverse process. It had enabled farmers to cultivate new coca fields. A greater number of hectares were cultivated vis-a-vis those that were eradicated.

As a result, the confidence of the world community dropped during that period, resulting in low financing levels and the threat of no certification by the United States Government. There were internal problems, as well, as some democratic institutions were affected and representatives of coca producers were elected. In the national fight against coca, producers were seen as victims of the government.

In 1997 a new Government established a plan to pull the country out of the coca circle, with participation of all of civil society, he said. Compensation for eradication would be expressed through development projects. In 1999, 21,800 hectares were used for coca. Legal cultivation was increased by some 100 per cent. Bolivia had reduced illegal cultivation by 80 per cent, thereby recovering international credibility. There was now cooperation at the international level and support by the United Nations, the United States, Spain and others. The population was supporting the implementation of the plan and understood that drugs presented a problem to all Bolivians.

He said the plan had to be broadened. The contribution of coca production to the economy should be reduced to zero, as should the illegal exports. Alternative development was a tool in the struggle, but it could not be accomplished in one year. Additional economic effort was needed. Alternative development required approximately $223 million in rehabilitation alone.

EDUARD RENE BASTIAAANS, of the United Nations Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) in Bolivia, said the country had a national drug control strategy that was very ambitious, with goals and deadlines. The elimination of all illicit crops by 2001 was part of a broader, four point socio-economic development agenda: opportunity -- macroeconomic indicators; equity; “institutionality” -– the fight against corruption; and dignity -– the fight against drugs. Bolivia had approved its national drug control strategy in 1997, four months after a new government had taken office. The national strategy was based on the results of a national dialogue that was held in October 1997. The national consensus was that illicit coca cultivation hurt long-term development plans and Bolivia’s international image.

He said there was a comprehensive cocaine eradication programme underway in the country, and drug enforcement laws had been strengthened over the last five years. Last year the potential cocaine production was estimated at 70 tons. In that same year the Government seized 9.8 tons of the drug, which amounted to some 14 per cent. In 1998 production had been estimated at 150 tons with seizures running at 11.7 tons, around 8 per cent. What was important was the steadily growing number of farmers who were now involved in alternative development, something they had rejected 50 years ago. There were now growing demands for such development. “We are not in a position to address them since more funds and technical cooperation are needed”, he said.

He said there was a need to expand different activities to reach those farmers who were not yet participating in alternative development. Also, new challenges to the country would need more time to be addressed. Between 1992 and 1998 there was a tremendous increase in drug abuse among Bolivian youths. More programmes were needed to address that issue. More effective money laundering control strategies were also necessary. In relation to the hardcore elements of coca production that were still engaged in the trade, the Government reiterated the need for conflict resolution to address potential problems, which could arise in rural areas.

Late in 1997, UNDCP and the Bolivian Government had developed cooperation support for the dignity pillar. The first programme was alternative development. Two key activities had been prioritized in that respect: agro forestry and forestry production; and vocational training programmes in the non-agricultural sector. Institution-building was also another area. The UNDCP was supporting all key government institutions with a mandate for drug control. Another area of cooperation was drug abuse prevention. Cooperation also extended to social communication, where the population and international community were kept informed about what was going on. The success of drug control did not depend only on the technical soundness of projects, but also on support from the population.

He said UNDCP’s strategy in Bolivia was based on its overall mandate. It also sought sub-regional cooperation to complement national drug control efforts.

JOSE CARLOS TUBINO, representative of the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) in Bolivia, described the alternative development project in the Cochabamba tropics of Bolivia, the country’s leading coca leaf producing area. He said success was leading to a similar project in the neighbouring La Paz tropics. The project was part of a national programme aimed at sustainable use of natural resources. It was coordinated with similar initiatives undertaken with FAO, UNDCP and others. The project was in its second phase, its implementation cycle running from October 1997 to 2002. Its budget had risen from $2 million to $9.4 million in that time, due to increasing coca eradication rates.

The project aimed to sustainably generate legal income as a substitute in a cocaine-distorted economy, he said. It included such areas as environmental management, efficient production, institution-building, participatory processes and human development, with equal opportunities for women and youth. Since both the coca trade and traditional subsistence agriculture had damaged the primary forest environment, much of the project involved agro forestry. Seventy-two per cent of the budget went directly into income-generating activities. Better environmental conditions had resulted and income potential had risen to $235 per month. That was far from the level generated by illegal coca, but it was above the $120 monthly poverty line within which 94 per cent of the rural poor lived.

Overall, he said the project had strengthened the institutional capacity of local farmer associations, municipalities, non-governmental organizations, private enterprises and other development actors. To compensate for rapid coca eradication, alternative development activities had to expand and be linked with long-term sustainable development. A Forestry Programme for the Cochabamba Tropics under UNDCP auspices had been proposed at a financial level of $49 million. Objectives included expanding alternative crops in combination with conservation practices and creating legal employment.

Finally, he said, the project had a horizontal cooperation structure through the mechanism of FAO’s technical cooperation among developing countries (TCDC). That was being extended to alternative development with Colombia, Peru and Brazil. The model could be applied to other regions.

Panel on Ghana, Madagascar

The Panel’s Chair, ALFRED SALLIA FARUWUNDU, United Nations Resident Coordinator, introduced the panelists.

KWAMENA AHWOI, Minister of State of Planning and Regional Economic Cooperation of Ghana, said since 1996 Ghana had been pursuing its development agenda within the context of its long-term development planning framework spanning the period 1996 to 2020, called "Ghana: Vision 2020". The socio-economic development objectives enumerated in Vision 2020 included such considerations as gender equality and equity; access to basic social services, including education and quality health care; population management; full employment; and sustainable livelihoods.

The first step of Vision 2020 spanned the period 1996 to 2000, he said. The second step, from 2001 to 2005, was currently under preparation. Both exercises had been in collaboration with the development partners, including all the United Nations agencies. That had been achieved through the membership of the eight thematic cross-sectoral planning groups set up for the purpose, as well as funding support that some of them had provided for the process, he said.

AGNES GUIMBA-OUEDRAOGO, Deputy Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), said within the context of Vision 2020 the focus of Ghana’s development was the reduction of poverty, targeting the year 2020 for Ghana to become a middle-income country. In support of that, the joint collaborative United Nations System’s objective was supporting national efforts in reducing absolute poverty at policy, institutional and programme levels through concerted strategies.

At the policy level, the United Nations system and other bilateral and multilateral partners assisted the Government towards formulating the national poverty reduction programme. The need for capacity-building at district levels was identified and highlighted, as well as the necessity to address issues of regional and gender disparities and to accelerate and reinforce actions related to prevention and fighting HIV/AIDS.

She said assistance to building and strengthening institutional mechanism to support the poverty reduction agenda included assistance and support to a number of national bodies such as the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Poverty Reduction and the National Development Planning Commission. A Social Investment Fund had also been established in cooperation with the African Development Bank, providing small credits to groups with no access to credit. There had been a significant shift in the poverty situation in both absolute poverty (measured by calorie intake per day) and the situation related to poverty (measured by population living on one dollar a day), she added.

MARTIN MANDARA, Representative of the World Health Organization (WHO), said the Plan of Action of the World Summit for Social Development (Copenhagen 1995), reinforced the Ghanaian Government in developing Vision 2020 -- Ghana’s goal to become a middle-income country by the year 2020. Based on Vision 2020, the Ministry of Health further developed the Medium Health Strategy, on which the health sector reform process was anchored. A target of infant mortality had been set at 50 per 1,000 live births by the year 2001. That target coincided with the goals of the Social Summit.

The United Nations system, including the Bretton Woods institutions, provided policy and strategic support to the Ministry of Health in the development and implementation of health sector reform using the wide-sector approach, he continued. The system advocated and supported joint annual planning, monitoring and evaluation of health programmes in collaboration with bilaterals and non- governmental organizations. The United Nations also advocated and provided financial support for specific programmes, including the expanded programmes on immunization, diarrhoea control and the provision of safe water.

He said Ghana managed to bring infant mortality down to 56 per 1,000 live births between 1993 and 1998. The key factors which contributing to that were: the increase in the use of oral re-hydration; the increase in the rate of exclusive breastfeeding of children under six months; increased access to safe water for rural communities; and increased coverage of fully immunized infants. The challenges being faced by Ghana related to infant mortality were: high maternal mortality; high under-five mortality of 107 per 1,000 live births; stagnation in child malnutrition rates; and pronounced geographical variation.

BRUNO LEFEVRE, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said boys’ enrollment in primary education in Ghana increased from 76.5 per cent in the academic year 1991-1992 to 85.5 per cent in 1998 to 1999. For girls, those ratios had proposed from 71.5 per cent to 82.4 per cent in the same period, showing a slightly more rapid improvement than for boys. That was hopeful sign for the future. During the same time span, adult literacy increased from 60 to 64 per cent, still leaving more than 35 per cent of the population of Ghana illiterate. That evolution represented a considerable improvement since 1990, if one considered that the population had increased substantially.

The first challenge facing Ghana in the future was the enhancement of the management of education, he stated. A lot of work had to be done there. The second was to equalize education opportunities for boys and girls, as well as those offered to the “missing children” -– those who were out of school, and living as either street kids or shepherd boys. The third challenge was to raise the quality of education, which was still low. The fourth concerned expanding access at secondary and tertiary levels.

Finally, he said, one of the central challenges faced by Ghana was the need to find sustainable financing solutions to meet the needs of the country in the field of education. The Government’s determination to address that issue was based on its realization that the twenty-first century would require more and more educated human resources than ever before.

Mr. FARUWUNDU said that the goals set out by the United Nations global conferences were fully consistent with Ghana’s own vision of socio-economic development. United Nations agencies in Ghana had operated within a national established strategy, which had guaranteed national ownership of the coordination efforts. Ghana was an experience on which one could draw to advance the cause, he said.

Turning to the follow-up of the World Summit for Social Development in Madagascar, RAMISANDRAZANA RAKOTORISEHENO, Director of the Cabinet of the Prime Minister of Madagascar, said her Government had set up a policy for the struggle against poverty for the last five years, based primarily on health care for all, education for all, food security and the rehabilitation of minor infra-structural units. A programme for support of neighbourhood initiatives, aimed at strengthening community policies, had also been established.

In the area of good governance, her Government was trying to bring about legal reforms of the public service. In a decentralization effort, autonomous provinces were being established. Over the last 10 years Madagascar had already developed a national policy on the environment.

Ad hoc structures and committees had been set up in which the United Nations system could help in the struggle against national catastrophes, she said. In the economic field, efforts had been made to reduce inflation through monetary management, and to reduce the national deficit. Her country was promoting direct foreign investment and had opened up her economy. There was also an effort to strengthen the state of law through reform of legislation.

ADAMA GUINDO, Resident coordinator for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Madagascar, said that this afternoon’s panel would focus on efforts by the United Nations in Madagascar in support of the Government’s follow- up to the Copenhagen social summit. It was important to note that Madagascar was a low-income country and also one with a low-level of human development. The situation regarding human development was linked to progressive economic development and presented challenges to the Government and its partners.

The United Nations had supported the Government in other sectors of social follow-up, he continued. A national secretariat for the promotion of development in 1999 -- an institution to help the government fight poverty -– had been established. The United Nations had also supported other programmes and efforts in poverty reduction, in accordance with the recommendations of the Copenhagen Social Summit. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the FAO, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), UNDP and UNESCO, were all bodies of the Organizations system that were presently involved in activities in Madagascar.

He said it was also important to note that the Government of Madagascar and the United Nations system had set up a common database for follow-up. That base was a reference point for the Organization, the Government and development partners.

BERNARD COQUELIN, Representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said the results of a 20/20 initiative study had convinced the Government of Madagascar to increase its contribution to development. Today, there were specific results of the teamwork regarding the 20/20 initiative.

Mr. GUINDO, in his closing remarks, said teamwork had characterized and underlined everything being done in Madagascar. It was clear that the United Nations could come together and support governments. The process had two elements. One element was political will, something which the Government had clearly demonstrated. The other element was the participatory process that had taken place, putting together organizations from civil society, donors, government and United Nations agencies, a process that had started in 1998 and concluded in 1999.

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