SECOND COMMITTEE APPROVES TEXT ON HIGH-LEVEL FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT EVENT

Press Release
GA/EF/2946

SECOND COMMITTEE APPROVES TEXT ON HIGH-LEVEL FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT EVENT

The General Assembly would decide that the High-level International Intergovernmental Event on Financing for Development should be scheduled for the first quarter of 2002, and extend its invitation to interested countries to consider hosting or confirming existing offers to host the Event, by a draft resolution approved this afternoon in the Second Committee (Economic and Financial).

The text on preparations for the substantive preparatory process and the Event would also have the Assembly decide that the Preparatory Committee should hold a final substantive session from 14 to 25 February 2002, on the understanding that the second substantive session will be held from 12 to 23 February 2001 and the third substantive session from 30 April to 11 May 2001.

The Assembly would also request the Secretary-General to address a letter to all governments further sensitizing them to the high-profile and high-level participation that the substantive preparatory process and the event on financing for development deserve.

During the discussion which preceded the text’s approval, and marked the end of the Committee’s discussion of high-level international intergovernmental consideration of financing for development, the representative of Guyana, speaking on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), said that financing for development was critical to the meaningful advancement of the development agenda. It was of great significance to small States, particularly the small economies and the small island developing States of the Caribbean, which faced enormous development challenges given their inherent vulnerabilities and an increasingly hostile global economic environment.

Speaking on behalf of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) countries, the representative of Togo said Africa had great hopes for the Event, whose results and full implementation would strengthen the capacity of the developing world in fighting poverty. The Event’s success would depend on the mobilization and contribution of all Member States and all parties. The active participation of the Bretton Woods institutions and the World Trade Organization (WTO) in both the preparatory process and the Event itself was crucial.

The representative of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, speaking on behalf of the Group of Landlocked Developing Countries, said that trade remained an important source of financing for development for regional groups. Every

Second Committee - 1a - Press Release GA/EF/2946 39th Meeting (PM) 29 November 2000

effort should be made in the context of the forthcoming Event to find the necessary sources of financing to ensure the full implementation of the global framework on transit transport cooperation between the landlocked and transit developing countries and the donor community.

Statements were also made by the representatives of Nigeria (on behalf of the “Group of 77” developing countries and China), China, Mongolia, Republic of Korea and Nepal.

The Committee will meet again on Friday, 1 December to take action on a number of draft resolutions.

Second Committee - 3 - Press Release GA/EF/2946 39th Meeting (PM) 29 November 2000

Committee Work Programme

The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) met this afternoon to conclude its discussion of financing for development. It was also expected to take action on a draft resolution on preparations for the substantive preparatory process and the high-level international intergovernmental event (document A/C.2/55/L.45).

The text would have the Assembly decide that the high-level international intergovernmental event should be scheduled for the first quarter of 2002, at a date to be agreed upon, and extends its invitation to interested countries to consider hosting or confirming existing offers to host the high-level international intergovernmental event.

Also, it would have the Assembly decide that the Preparatory Committee should hold a final substantive session from 14 to 25 February 2002, on the understanding that the second substantive session will be held from 12 to 23 February 2001 and the third substantive session will be held from 30 April to 11 May 2001. It requests the Secretary-General to address a letter to all governments further sensitizing them to the high-profile and high-level participation that the substantive preparatory process and the High-level International Intergovernmental Event on Financing for Development deserve.

Statements

ETANOMARE OSIO (Nigeria), speaking on behalf of the “Group of 77” developing countries and China, said that financing for development was a subject of fundamental importance to developing countries. The Group was happy to note that, this year, a substantive and holistic agenda had been agreed upon for the process and the High-level International Intergovernmental Event on Financing for Development. The regional consultative meetings already held in Jakarta, Beirut, Bogota and Addis Ababa as well as the forthcoming one in Geneva were most welcome. The importance of the consultations with major institutional stakeholders, particularly the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF), as well as the World Trade Organization (WTO) could not be over-emphasized.

The Group hoped that a developing country would host this crucial Event in the first quarter of 2002, he said. It looked forward to regular briefings by the Preparatory Committee in order to advance clarity on the progress made. It hoped that such clarity in the months ahead would further enable the adoption of a proper name for this crucial high-level Event. Little success could be achieved if the name of the Event remained in doubt. The Group hoped that this avoidable doubt would be removed by the next substantive session of the Preparatory Committee.

ROLAND Y. KPOTSRA (Togo), speaking on behalf of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) countries, said that the General Assembly, at its fifty- fourth session, had decided to convene an intergovernmental meeting to coordinate strategies to eliminate the obstacles facing developing countries in mobilizing the necessary resources for financing development. Almost 12 months after its creation, the Preparatory Committee for the Event had just completed its first substantive session. While it did not settle the questions of venue, name and form, it had achieved other results with regard to the substantive preparatory process.

He hoped the deferment of one year of the actual Event would ensure participation of all actors and better organization of the Event itself, he said. The coming sessions of the Preparatory Committee would be decisive in that they would have to answer the questions left pending. The Event should take the form of an intergovernmental conference, which would include all relevant actors. He welcomed the adoption by the Preparatory Committee of a provisional agenda for the Event and looked forward to the report of the Secretary-General, which would contain his recommendations for the meeting.

He said that the Event’s success would depend on the mobilization and contribution of all Member States and all parties. He would never cease calling for the active participation of the Bretton Woods institutions and the WTO in both the preparatory process and the Event itself. He welcomed the hearings with representatives of the non-governmental organization (NGO) and business communities. Africa had great hopes in the event, whose results and full implementation would strengthen the capacity of the developing world in fighting poverty. The OAU Summit in Lome had invited the developed countries to take stronger initiatives for debt relief and to ensure that globalization benefited all countries.

LIU JING TAO (China) said that, since its establishment, the Preparatory Committee for the Event had been working in an effective way. China supported the proposal to postpone the Event to 2002. In the meantime, the continuity of the work had to be maintained so as to provide more and better input. The Event should be in the form of an international conference and should be held in a developing country. The United Nations should play a leading role in this process.

The Event, he said, should conduct comprehensive and in-depth discussions on financing for development issues leading to an action-oriented result. China regretted that despite the efforts of various parties, the preparatory work was still in the stage of procedural issues. The substantive preparations must begin at the second session of the Preparatory Committee.

He said that his delegation welcomed the participation of the NGOs in the work of the preparatory process. In view of the fact that the Event had been postponed, China would not object to the proposal that the deadline for applications by NGOs be extended. At the same time, it was necessary to have a new deadline, which should be set in the second session of the Preparatory Committee.

GEORGE TALBOT (Guyana), speaking on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), said that financing for development was a foundation critical to the meaningful advancement of the development agenda. It was the key missing link in the development agenda without which implementation could not proceed. Financing for development was of great significance to small States, particularly the small economies and the small island developing States of the Caribbean that faced enormous development challenges given their inherent weaknesses and vulnerabilities and an increasingly hostile global economic environment.

Trade, he said, remained one of the major contributors of development financing for many developing countries, including small States in the Caribbean. For most developing countries, the loss of revenues due to trade restrictions was estimated to be much larger than the flows of external finance coming into those countries. Opening developed country markets to exports from developing countries was as critical as the provision of external financing. The two must go together. He reiterated that the special concerns of the smaller members of the international community be adequately addressed in the financing for development process, particularly special efforts to offset terms of trade losses.

The crippling debt of developing countries was another major obstacle diverting urgently needed financing for development from developing countries to developed countries, he noted. A strong call needed to be made for the cancellation of the debt of the poor to give them a chance to develop and benefit from the global economy.

P. NARANGUA (Mongolia) expressed her delegation’s appreciation for the work that had been carried out by the Preparatory Committee since its establishment. Her delegation believed that too much time had been spent agreeing on the timing, venue and modalities for participation of relevant stakeholders. As the question of financing deserved very careful consideration, more attention should be focused on the substantive issues that would be discussed during the Event. Without properly addressing the problems of financing, it would be difficult to expect the practical implementation of the decisions and recommendations of most of the United Nations conferences.

The debt burden fell heavily on the budget of the developing countries, she said. It was becoming clear that that development and prosperity could not be achieved without partnerships involving governments, international organizations, the business community and civil society. There was also an urgent need to reform the international financial institutions in order to make them more transparent, accountable and participatory. The international community needed to make a fresh attempt to assist the landlocked developing countries in gaining access to world markets.

Her delegation supported the decision adopted by the Preparatory Committee to hold the Event in the first quarter of 2002, she said. It expected that regional consultations and hearings on civil society that had been held in recent months would positively contribute to the decisions of the Event. Her delegation hoped that further preparatory work would continue in a spirit of openness and mutual understanding.

DAE-WON SUH (Republic of Korea) said that the success of the financing for development Event would depend largely on the proper inputs from stakeholders of civil society and the private sector, as well as from key institutional stakeholders such as the World Bank, the IMF and the WTO. The declaration produced at the Event should be concise, while expressing the strong political will for concerted actions. The format and content of the Millennium Declaration was one of the most appropriate models to be followed in that regard.

Also, he said, it was vital that firm commitment be made for enhancing policy coherence among all stakeholders. In addition, the outcome of the Event and its follow-up process should not be dealt with in isolation, but as an integral part of the implementation of the Millennium Declaration.

In view of the complexity of issues and actors involved, it had become increasingly important to ensure proper information sharing and efficient communication on every development, he said. The Secretariat, in its coordinating role, had performed a good job in continuously updating all new developments on the financing for development Web site. He hoped that new ways and means would be found for developing countries to enhance access to that information center and to allow for a more balanced participation of NGOs from developing countries in hearings and other events.

ALOUNKEO KITTIKHOUN (Lao People’s Democratic Republic), speaking on behalf of the Group of Landlocked Developing Countries, said that the Group attached great importance to the Event. Given the importance of the issue of financing for development, the Group supported the decision to postpone the Event to the first quarter of 2002. It also was of the view that the Event should be held in a developing country and that participation should be at the highest level possible. The involvement of all relevant stakeholders including international financial and trade organizations, the private sector and NGOs in the process and the Event would ensure the success of the entire exercise.

Trade remained an important source of financing for development for regional groups, he said. The landlocked developing countries continued to suffer from the very high transport costs and poor facilitation environments. These countries would require special analysis in the discussion of the potential for trade for financing for development in order to bring them to a condition of equality with other developing countries. Every effort should be made in the context of the forthcoming Event to find the necessary sources of financing to ensure the full implementation of the global framework on transit transport cooperation.

TAPAS ADHIKARI (Nepal) said that the recently held NGO hearings were a welcome step in involving civil society in the preparatory process. The private sector hearings, scheduled for next month, were sure to contribute to further enriching the process and promoting partnership between governments and the private sector. Such partnerships would be fundamental to the success of the Event itself and, more importantly, for the successful implementation of the outcome of the Event. The participation of civil society in the preparatory process should be further widened to include women, trade unions, media and key opinion-makers from the developing and developed countries alike. Since the Event was more important for developing countries, it made sense to hold it in one.

The challenges ahead were three-fold, he said. First, it was necessary to enhance the mobilization of internal resources so that the developing countries did not need to rely on foreign aid for their development in the long-run. Second, the developed countries must find a way to abide by their pledge to provide official development assistance and meet the set target levels. Third, the developing countries should be assisted in integrating their economies into the global economy through improved access for their products to the markets of developed countries.

Action on Draft Resolution

With regard to programme budget implications for the draft resolution contained in document A/C.2/55/L.45, Committee Secretary MARGARET KELLY said that the second and third substantive sessions of the Preparatory Committee were scheduled to be held in January and May 2001 and the Event in June 2001. Should the Assembly adopt the resolution, holding the final session of the Preparatory Committee and the Event in 2002, assuming it was held in New York, would result in an additional cost of $666,000. It was not anticipated that the adoption of the draft would require additional resources for the programme budget for the biennium 2002-2003.

The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.

Committee Chairman Alexandru Niculescu (Romania) informed the Committee that Uzbekistan had joined as a co-sponsor to the draft resolution on integration of the economies in transition into the world economy (A/C.2/55/L.4).

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