ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL HEARS REPORTS ON TOBACCO, HAITI SUPPORT PROGRAMME, INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION IN INFORMATICS, COORDINATION PROGRAMMES

Press Release
ECOSOC/5921

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL HEARS REPORTS ON TOBACCO, HAITI SUPPORT PROGRAMME, INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION IN INFORMATICS, COORDINATION PROGRAMMES

Tobacco consumption was predicted to be the leading cause of premature death world wide by the 2020s, causing about one in eight premature deaths, Bill Kean, Department of External Cooperation and Partnership of the World Health Organization (WHO), told the Economic and Social Council this morning as it started its consideration of the coordination programme and other questions.

Increasingly, the burden of disease was borne by developing countries, said Dr. Kean. Since tobacco control policies would lead to changes in the need for tobacco gradually and over several decades, economic evidence suggested that the potential negative effects of tobacco control on employment had been overstated. Production of the substance represented only a small portion of most economies.

Echoing other tobacco-producing country delegates’ concerns, the representative of Zimbabwe replied that the draft Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) presented a serious economic and social threat to the future of his country, since tobacco was its largest foreign currency earner, representing 30 to 33 per cent of its total Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The statement in the Secretary-General's report to the effect that “the negative effects of tobacco control on employment have been greatly overstated” trivialized a very grave issue.

Malawi’s representative said it was premature to start negotiations on the FCTC before the results of proposed studies were known. In his country, a number of studies had been carried out on crop diversification, but none had come up with a crop that could replace tobacco. He strongly recommended that the final version of the Framework Convention should embrace his country’s concerns and unique problems as well as those of other countries in a similar situation.

As the Council turned to consideration of a long-term programme of support for Haiti, Alfredo Lopes Cabral, Representative of the Secretary-General in Haiti, made a presentation on the overall situation in that country and on the work of the United Nations International Civilian Mission there. He said the Mission's work in the field of police, human rights and justice fell into three broad categories: activities to strengthen capacities and institutional development; training activities and the development of human resources; and support to the democratic reform process. The Mission's capacity to support Haiti’s fledgling democratic institutions was, however, jeopardized by the present

Economic and Social Council - 1a - Press Release ECOSOC/5921 36th Meeting (AM) 24 July 2000

climate of political turmoil and intolerance, which exposed those institutions to pressures and threats.

Haiti’s representative said progress in his country had been not only blocked but turned back. Everything seemed to be focused on the elections held in May and June of this year as decreed by the Electoral Council, and under conditions deemed appropriate by the international community. He cautioned against being precipitous about the electoral process in Haiti and against suggesting that anomalies that occurred in the first round of voting posed a problem for the whole electoral process.

Also this morning, the Assistant-Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs, Patrizio Civili, introduced the annual overview report of the Administrative Committee on Coordination for 1999. Eduardo Blinder, Chief of Operation Service, Office of Central Support Services, introduced the Secretary-General’s report on the need to harmonize and improve the United Nations information system.

Frederick H. Weibgen, Representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), also spoke on the subject, as did Joy De Beyer, Human Development Network Vice President of the World Bank. Oscar Fernandez Taranco, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Representative and Resident Coordinator in Haiti, also made introductory remarks on the Haiti situation.

Representatives of France (on behalf of the European Union and associated States), Brazil, Bangladesh and Egypt also spoke.

The Council will meet again at 3 p.m.

Economic and Social Council - 3 - Press Release ECOSOC/5921 36th Meeting (AM) 24 July 2000

Council Work Programme

The Economic and Social Council met this morning to start its consideration of coordination programmes and other questions. It was expected to address reports of coordination bodies, the proposed medium-term plan for the period 2002-2005, the long-term programme of support for Haiti, tobacco or health and international cooperation in the field of informatics.

The Council had before it the annual overview report of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (document E/2000/53). The report outlines major trends in the work of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC) during 1999, focusing on inter-agency coordination efforts to enable the system to meet coherently and effectively the challenges of the twenty-first century, and on responses to specific requirements of intergovernmental bodies. It elaborates upon efforts to strengthen the dialogue between ACC and the central intergovernmental machinery, particularly the Council.

The report stresses that poverty eradication and the promotion of equity and equality, at both the national and international levels, should continue to be the overarching goals that guide ACC in contributing to the development of a focused global agenda. The promotion of peace and sustainable development in Africa continued to be a major theme in the work of ACC during 1999. The report also provides information on assistance to countries invoking Article 50 of the United Nations Charter and addresses administrative questions focusing on staff security and safety concerns. [Article 50 gives any State economically effected by preventive or enforcement measures against any other State “the right to consult the Security Council with regard to a solution of those problems”.]

The Council had before it a report of the Secretary-General on elaboration and implementation of the long-term programme of support for Haiti (document E/2000/63), which is submitted pursuant to the Council's resolution 1999/11, requesting an integrated synthesis report on implementation of the support programme for Haiti, including observations and recommendations on the work of the relevant United Nations bodies in their respective areas of competence. It covers progress achieved and constraints faced by the international community, including United Nations bodies from August 1999 to May 2000, and complements recent progress reports of the United Nations Police Mission in Haiti (MIPONUH) and the joint United Nations/Organization of American States International Civilian Mission (MICIVIH).

The report concludes that it remains difficult to lay out a precise timetable for the elaboration of a coherent long-term programme of support, considering the key role that a duly constituted Government and elected Parliament would have to play in creating a conducive policy environment. Nonetheless, the groundwork for such a programme is presently being laid through the ongoing Common Country Assessment (CCA), the planned formulation by the interim Government of a medium-term development strategy and the formulation by the United Nations system in Haiti of a United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) in 2001.

According to the report, a key requirement in the formulation of the international community's programme of support will be the availability of credible statistics on the social sectors. The information to be generated by surveys currently carried out by the United Nations system will provide the baseline data needed by the Government to formulate a long-term poverty reduction strategy, along the lines set out by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank within the Framework of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP).

The Council also had before it a report of the Secretary-General on the Ad Hoc Inter-Agency Task Force on Tobacco Control (document E/2000/63). The Task Force which reports on the implementation of multisectoral collaboration on tobacco or health, with particular emphasis on the development of appropriate strategies to address the social and economic implications of the impact of tobacco or health initiatives, as requested in Economic and Social Council resolution 1999/56 of 30 July 1999.

The report states that an estimated 4 million deaths per year are caused by tobacco, and that the figure is expected to rise to about 10 million in 2030. Seventy per cent of those deaths will occur in developing countries, where cigarette smoking was once rare. Most people begin using tobacco before age 18.

New inter-agency partnerships focusing on the economics of tobacco control, and supply and production issues, have been initiated. Priority areas for future inter-agency collaboration have been identified. The negotiation of a framework convention on tobacco control will require increased collaboration among United Nations organizations, to provide technical support for the development and eventual implementation of the proposed convention and its related protocols. The United Nations resident coordinator system could play an invaluable role in enhancing global tobacco control activities at the country level.

Also before the Council was a report of the Secretary-General on international cooperation in the field of informatics (document E/2000/21), which summarizes actions taken by the Secretariat, funds and programmes following Economic and Social Council resolution 1999/58.

The report describes activities of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on the need to harmonize and improve United Nations information systems for optimal utilization and accessibility by all States; actions taken by the Secretariat in response to issues raised in the Working Group; and actions taken by offices away from Headquarters, funds and programmes in response to issues raised in the Working Group.

The report concludes that the Working Group has continued to improve and expand the electronic information services provided to Member States and permanent missions, and to assure that the technologies employed are abreast of technological development. Departments of the Secretariat, funds and programmes have intensified their efforts to make information available in electronic form to Governments and the general public, to promote Internet connectivity and to use information technology to facilitate the sharing of information, knowledge and expertise.

Introduction of Reports

PATRIZIO CIVILI, Assistant-Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Interagency Affairs, introduced the annual overview report of the ACC for 1999 (document E/2000/53). He said the report was self-explanatory but it had some notable aspects. In line with new practices instituted in 1998, the Council would be informed after each meeting of the ACC, using the annual report as a basis. The report outlined the two main sessions of the ACC during 1999, not on a chronological basis but rather on an issue-by-issue basis. That approach made it possible to demonstrate developments in the agencies. The introduction described a new phase in the ACC’s approach to coordination.

The global conferences of the 1990s had initiated a new phase for coordination, he continued. The approach taken in the review process had illuminated a number of flaws. The objectives had often been too broadly defined and the reviews tended to focus on negative issues. Once the agency governing bodies looked closely at their work, they had realized they were overcommitted. The ACC’s coordination role had then changed from a procedural to a substantive involvement.

The new phase of the ACC’s coordination work had been brought about by the need for an effective response to the challenges of globalizing, he said. The new approach had helped to assess progress in two ways. It had given agencies a heightened sense of their role in the United Nations process and of their strategic position with regard to the new programmes being developed. Secondly, it had conveyed to the agencies a sense that the overarching goals could not be addressed by any single agency, that no agency could attain its goal without the contribution of others.

Through the ACC, he said, the agency executive heads had looked at the components of a task and had seen what they needed to do. That had impacted on the Council’s dialogue with ACC, which needed increasingly to be more diversified as agencies recognized the mutually reinforcing nature of their work. The ACC annual reports, therefore, presented not only the results of ACC’s collective work but also that of agencies in theme areas.

The new approach, he concluded, was helping to counter the complaint that the ACC was not transparent enough. The real goal, it must be remembered, was “policy relevance”. Both the Council and the ACC were aiming for maximum impact on the work of the United Nations system.

FELIX MBAYU (Cameroon), the President of the general segment of the Council’s 2000 substantive session, said this year’s report was more dynamic and analytical than it had been in previous years. It was an analysis of system-wide coordination and collaboration efforts for achieving the goals established by inter-governmental processes. Like the Council itself, the ACC had focused on the process of globalization. The report conveyed a strong awareness within the ACC that by working together and taking concerted advantage of negotiating instruments and outreach mechanisms, the organizations of the system could make globalization work for the people of the world.

ALFREDO LOPES CABRAL, Representative of the Secretary-General in Haiti, made a presentation on the overall situation in that country as well as on the work of the United Nations International Civilian Mission in Haiti (MICAH).

He said it had been hoped that the holding of legislative and municipal elections in the country would provide a solution to the political crisis. After three postponements, the elections were finally held on 21 May with an unexpectedly high turnout of more than 50 per cent of the 4 million newly registered voters. Thankfully there was very little violence on the date, and relatively few cases of fraud were reported. Opposition leaders declared the process illegitimate and charged that there had been massive fraud. Accusations, however, were not backed up with concrete evidence.

He went on to say that as the first results were released, an anomaly was discovered in the method used to calculate the percentage in the Senate contest. As a result, the two leading candidates for two seats in each electoral department were automatically accorded an absolute majority in the first round, obviating any second-round runoff. The Organization of American States (OAS) Observation Mission called the procedure a “grave error”. Haitian officials acknowledged that their method of calculation did not adhere to electoral law. They argued, however, that the electoral law did not provide for circumstances in which more than one senate seat was elected in a single departmental race. They also claimed their method had been used in previous elections -– which until now had not been documented. They also defended their procedure as more expedient, as it avoided the need for costly runoffs.

The President of the Electoral Council had fled the country on June 18, saying that he had been pressured to sign results he considered invalid. The OAS, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, the Secretary-General, the President of the Security Council and others took up calls for recalculation of the Senate results. The stalemated process was preempted by a Presidential decree convoking second–round runoffs on 9 July for the Chamber of Deputies only, and not for the disputed Senate seats. Neither the OAS nor the umbrella organization of Haitian observers observed the second round, citing the Electoral Council’s failure to revise the Senate results. The OAS mission withdrew the day after the election. Virtually all the opposition parties boycotted the second round while voter turnout was low.

Mr. Lopes Cabral said the international community continued to insist on the need for the Electoral Council and the authorities to address the method of calculation of Senate results. The response of the Haitian authorities continued to insist that they cannot intervene on the issue on the grounds of the Electoral Council’s constitutional independence. The experience of the last few weeks, however, had cast serious doubts on the reality of that independence.

He said the work of MICAH in its police, human rights and justice pillars fell into three broad categories: activities to strengthen capacities and institutional development; training activities and the development of human resources; and support to the democratic reform process. The Mission's capacity to support Haiti’s fledgling democratic institutions was, however, jeopardized by the present climate of political turmoil and intolerance, which exposed those institutions to pressures and threats. The security situation was also of concern, and might place significant constraints on the ability of the Mission’s advisers to do their work.

OSCAR FERNANDEZ TARANCO, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Representative and Resident Coordinator in Haiti, introduced the report of the Secretary-General on the elaboration and implementation of the long-term programme of support for the country (document E/2000/63).

He said there were 10 resident agencies in Haiti. Coordination had improved dramatically as a result of the re-launching of thematic groups and cooperation between peacekeeping and humanitarian agencies. The follow-up to major conferences was also being promoted. There were serious attempts to harmonize the programming cycles.

He said the CCA process was launched in August last year, and that would hopefully lead to the establishment of the UNDAF. What was interesting was that extensive consultations were performed with all the development actors, and it was decided that the CCA would be as inclusive and as participatory as possible. It was also decided that the Haitian Government and the United Nations would perform a baseline study on human rights to establish parameters for a country strategy that would be incorporated into a national development policy. There was no such policy at the moment, he said.

BILL KEAN, Department of External Cooperation and Partnership of the World Health Organization (WHO), introduced the report of the Secretary-General on progress made by the Ad Hoc Inter-Agency Task Force on Tobacco Control (document E/2000/21), entitled “Coordination Programme and Other Questions: Tobacco or Health”. He said the size and scope of the tobacco epidemic and, consequently, the critical importance of support for efforts to control the substance were not widely understood. If current trends continued, it was predicted to be the leading cause of premature death world wide by the 2020s, causing about one in eight premature deaths. Increasingly, the burden of disease was borne by developing countries.

Since tobacco control policies would lead to changes in the need for tobacco gradually and over several decades, economic evidence suggested that the potential negative effects of tobacco control on employment had been overstated. Production of the substance represented only a small portion of most economies. Effective tobacco control would lead to no net loss of jobs if consumption fell. Empirical studies also showed that tobacco use among women, particularly young women, was rising in many parts of the world. The negative impact on their health is apparent in countries such as the United States, where lung cancer death rates had overtaken breast cancer.

Dr. Kean went on to say that the rising epidemic of tobacco use among women was associated with aggressive marketing practices. The same tactics used in developed countries now threatened women in the developing world. The Task Force had met twice during its first year. The establishment of that body had significantly expanded opportunities for multi-sectoral collaboration across the United Nations system. New areas of cooperation had emerged, and prospects for partnership existed in a number of areas. The World Bank, for example, was involved in work on tobacco in close collaboration with the WHO, the IMF and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

He said the Bank was established as the lead agency on the economies of tobacco control. Its work was focused on various aspects, including taxation, the socio-economic impact of tobacco measures, and the cost effectiveness of interventions. The accumulated experience over the last years showed that the Task Force was providing an important mechanism for catalyzing United Nations system cooperation across a wide range of tobacco-related issues.

EDUARDO BLINDER, Chief of Operation Service, Office of Central Support Services, introduced the Secretary-General’s report on the need to harmonize and improve the United Nations information system (document E/2000/94). He said meetings of the technical sub-group described in the report had become increasingly substantive in recent years. Much of the report dealt with preparations for the Y2K problem. Measures had focused on progressive testing of systems in a process that had led to a successful rollover on 1 January of the new millennium.

He described progress made in informatics throughout the United Nations system. Each mission, for example, had been made accessible to electronic mail. The Department of Public Information (DPI) had taken numerous steps to improve its technical capability for disseminating information. Objectives at the country level included promoting access to Web sites and providing empowerment through technology. The UNDP had developed “knowledge-broker” Web sites to make information available in electronic form to developing countries.

Overall, he said, country offices had been electronically linked and those had been electronically linked to Headquarters. The system, moreover, was committed to coordinating and supporting electronic linkages on national, regional and subregional levels so as to make information universally available in electronic form.

Statements

YVES DOUTRIAUX (France), speaking on behalf of the European Union and associated Eastern and Central European countries, as well as other associated States, said the ACC report was comprehensive. However, it did not contain information on this year’s activities despite the fact that it had been requested. The continued revitalization of ACC was essential, and the strengthened dialogue between ACC and the Council was a progressive development.

He said he supported the ACC programme for the coming year, including its activities related to trade and the follow-up to conferences and summits. He also welcomed information on the Committee for Programme and Coordination (CPC), the subsidiary body that set out a general policy directive and medium-term objectives for the Council. The new presentation of the medium-term plan was particularly successful in its unified communication of the information.

Regarding the long-term programme for Haiti, he said the report was a good portrayal of the situation in that country. Of particular note were the steps taken to increase coordination. The financial difficulties associated with the United Nations Mission were regrettable. Stable financing should be provided to avoid the negative effects of unpredictability. Concerning the recent elections, he recalled the commitment of Member States to fundamental democracy and the rule of law. As a member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Haiti’s refusal to address concerns of the observation mission was serious. The European Union would have to reassess its development programmes in Haiti if the democratic process was brought into question. The European Union wanted to work closely with the regional organizations.

On tobacco, he recalled the negative effects of the substance, including on health and on youth. He said the age for starting smoking was continually dropping, and the least favoured segments of society were the ones brought into the use of tobacco. The European Union had been stressing the ill effects of smoking for years. It was harmonizing efforts to discourage tobacco use and to educate people by addressing the issues of tar content, labelling and advertising. Differences in national standards on regulating those components should be narrowed. Measures to reduce the maximum tar content and to maximize the impact of warning labels should be initiated.

The European Union was ready to support a standard-setting framework protocol which should confine itself to those basic principles on which all could agree. Cooperation to counter the use of tobacco at the world level should be intensified. Programmes to diversify crops should be considered and encouraged.

ANTONIO RICARDO FERNANDES CAVALCANTE (Brazil), speaking on long-term support for Haiti, said his Government strongly believed that it was important to actively pursue, in consultation with the Haitian Government, the establishment of a long- term national development strategy. Such a strategy should focus, among other things, on education, poverty, social integration, sustainable development, institutional strengthening and capacity-building.

ANWARUL KARIM CHOWDHURY (Bangladesh) said a system-wide response in the United Nations for tobacco control was needed. The public health dimension itself was sufficient reason to combine synergies of different institutions for working towards a tobacco-free world. The formation of the Inter-Agency Task Force had considerably expanded the opportunity of collaboration across the United Nations. Within a short period after establishment, the World Bank’s work on the economics of tobacco control measures, including the impact on the poor had attracted much attention. The work of different agencies would also be a valuable contribution in dealing with different aspects of tobacco production and consumption.

His delegation also supported the principal themes for future work by the Task Force. Tobacco was a global health problem with significant socio-economic dimensions. There was a need to extend support to the work of the Task Force in encouraging multisectoral collaboration on tobacco or health, establishing national bodies to facilitate actions to address the tobacco epidemic in the developing countries, and encouraging the dissemination of the Task Force’s work to national policy makers.

B.G. CHIDYAUSIKU (Zimbabwe) said tobacco was the largest foreign currency earner for his country, contributing more than $663 million of national export earnings in 1999, representing 30 to 33 per cent of total Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and being the nation's largest employer. The draft Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) presented a serious economic and social threat to the future of Zimbabwe. Paragraph 19 of the Secretary-General’s report, where it stated that “the negative effects of tobacco control on employment have been greatly overstated”, trivialized a very grave issue.

The FCTC should go beyond pure health matters. The FAO was conducting country case studies on the impacts of various factors and policies on global tobacco production and consumption, and the three initial components of the FAO study would be completed in 2001. It would be logical to wait for the results of those cases before considering promulgation of any legally-binding conventions.

A convention such as the FCTC required the full sanction of all Member States in order for its implementation to be practicable, he said. The issue of consensus was, therefore, of paramount importance. There appeared to be no compelling reasons for urgent ratification of the FCTC. Careful and thorough attention should be given to long-term possible impacts, to research on the feasibility of any switch to alternatives to tobacco, to appropriate guarantees for agrarian-led economies affected, to specific guarantees on funding to compensate for material and other losses likely to be incurred. Care must also be taken to ensure that the FCTC conformed to or did not conflict with other Conventions that governments might be signatories to.

YUSUF M. JUWAYEYI (Malawi) said that although “transparency and involvement of all stakeholders” were key words in the formulation of the proposed FCTC, there had not been full consultations with all stakeholders in the process of formulating the Framework. Even though tobacco-related diseases were a cause of death of millions of people, that fact should not be overstated in relation to other equally -- if not more -- devastating epidemics, such as HIV/AIDS and malaria. The employment aspect in tobacco industry was grossly understated in the report.

He said that in his country tobacco was grown out of necessity, and the tobacco industry employed 18 per cent of the national population. Tobacco exports generated 41 per cent of GDP, and the industry provided 23 per cent of national tax revenue. It was premature and hasty to start negotiations on the Framework in October, before the results of proposed studies were known.

A number of studies had already been carried out in his country on crop diversification, but none had come up with a crop that could replace tobacco, he said. In developing alternative crops or industries, there was a need to look critically at issues such as market potential, production bottlenecks, the establishment of a critical mass of export production groups and extension services or production techniques at enterprise level. He strongly recommended that the final version of the Framework Convention should embrace his country’s concerns and unique problems, as well as those of other countries in a similar situation.

IHAB GAMALELDIN (Egypt) spoke on the annual overview report of the ACC. He encouraged that body to conduct regular briefings with Members States on the status of its activities. He also emphasized the importance of holding formal meetings on indicators. His delegation supported the recommendation for a collaborative approach by the United Nations in its assistance activities for Africa. That would avoid duplication. He also warned against using international multilateral trade negotiations to try to strengthen elements that could otherwise be addressed in their own appropriate forums.

PIERRE LELONG (Haiti) said progress in Haiti had been not only blocked but turned back. Everything seemed to be focused on elections held in May and June of this year, as decreed by the Electoral Council and under conditions deemed appropriate by the international community. Following the first round, the OAS had noted an error in the methods used to calculate the percentages of those elected. He cautioned against precipitous judgement of the electoral process in Haiti and against the suggestion that what happened in the first round posed a problem for the whole electoral process. The error noted by the OAS was pertinent only to the first round of voting.

On 30 June, the Electoral Council gave an explanation about the calculating method used in round one. On the basis of that explanation, the Electoral Committee -- and not the Government -- concluded the investigation. The Electoral Council was the sole authority with the power to apply the electoral law. It also sought methods as close as possible to the spirit of the law. His Government was not defending the counting method used in the first round. But he did not see how the responsibility for an autonomous decision by an independent authority of the State could be attributed to the Haitian Government.

FREDERICK H. WEIBGEN, Representative of the FAO, said that his organization and the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) were currently funding an FAO-managed study on the underlying economic and social factors affecting tobacco production and consumption. The study also focused on the impact of various measures and policies to reduce tobacco consumption and production on economic growth, employment in both manufacturing and agricultural sectors, household income, government revenue, options for diversifying from tobacco production and the corresponding adjustment processes based on country-specific conditions.

He said the effort would provide policy makers, particularly in developing countries, with information on longer-term prospects as well as on the implications for economic growth and employment of alternative tobacco policy options. There were countries in the developing world that were highly dependent on tobacco. Opportunities for shifting to other crops were often limited by economic constraints, including those related to the availability of investment capital, market opportunities, technology and information.

The conditions in many developing countries were very different from those in high-income countries where farmers had more opportunities to move into alternative activities, he said. It was therefore important to take account of any special issues and concerns as they affected tobacco-dependent countries and the food security of rural families, and to promote appropriate national and international adjustment measures.

JOY DE BEYER, Human Development Network Vice President of the World Bank, said the Bank’s work focused on economic issues related to tobacco and its control. New analyses had been undertaken so that discussion could go forward on the basis of reason and not fear. Research summaries were made available in all languages. They indicated that a whole set of concerns needed to be taken into account when discussing tobacco and its use.

There were more than one billion smokers world wide, she said. Even the most aggressive efforts would not make a dent in reducing that number significantly for many years to come. Deterrent actions simply would not succeed. Therefore, it was important to look at all the complex issues and factors involved in tobacco use, including its impact on health but also on economies and trade, the whole set of concerns needing to be taken into account for both global and national efforts centred on tobacco. The Bank would remain part of a task force studying the matter.

Mr. Civili, the Assistant-Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs, explained that the ACC report lacked a description of this year’s activities because the report was issued very early in the year to give time for a CPC review. However, an information note about activities during the first part of this year would be sent.

The Council President then announced that the Council’s 2000 substantive session would end on 28 July.

The representative of Nigeria, speaking on behalf of the “Group of 77” developing countries and China, as well as for Egypt and Cuba, made several procedural observations on the number of meetings and the intensity of the Council’s work programme.

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