Economic and Social Council begins general debate on strengthening

Efforts to eradicate poverty, hunger

 

Speakers Call for Ownership of Strategies, Stronger

Development Partnerships, Commitment to Predictable, Untied Assistance

(Reissued as received.)

GENEVA, 4 July (UN Information Service) –- The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) this morning began its general debate on the theme of the Annual Ministerial Review: “strengthening efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger, including through the global partnership for development”, hearing from ministers and other high-level representatives, as well as the heads of specialized funds and agencies of the UN system and the Committee for Development Policy, a subsidiary body of the Economic and Social Council.

Ambassador Munir Akram of Pakistan, speaking on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, observed that the presentations yesterday in the framework of the Annual Ministerial Review had demonstrated that the developing countries were doing their part towards achieving development goals.  However, a similar commitment and alacrity in implementing development commitments had not been visible from their partners.

Joao Cravinho, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Portugal, speaking on behalf of the European Union said that the European Union remained committed to support developing countries in implementing comprehensive national strategies to achieve the internationally agreed development goals and objectives, including the Millennium Development Goals. 

Samuel Santos, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nicaragua, said in order to be more effective, there was a need for a development policy based on the developing countries.  In order to reduce poverty, wealth needed to be generated without subsidies which caused unfair competition between rich and poor countries. 

Romulo Neri, Secretary of Socio-Economic Planning and Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority of the Philippines, said the Philippines was on track in meeting most of the MDG targets by 2015.  However, addressing extreme poverty would require multi-stakeholder, sustained, innovative and prioritized efforts.

François-Xavier de Donnéa, Minister of State of Belgium, said Belgium had played a very active role in the work to modernize the Council, and it was important to use the new tools such as the Ministerial Review.  Belgium reiterated its commitment to the Millennium Development Goals.

Sid Ahmed Ould Rais, Minister for Commerce and Industry of Mauritania, said Mauritania had developed a national strategy to combat poverty, including acceleration of economic growth, anchoring the economic growth within the economic sphere of the poor, developing human resources and building good governance and capacity.

Elias Nyamlell Wakason, State Minister for International Cooperation of Sudan, said, despite global progress, sub-Saharan Africa remained off track in meeting the Millennium Development Goals.  Although social development was a national responsibility, it could not be achieved without a collective commitment and concerted efforts of the international community. 

Marcia Helena Carvalho Lopes, Vice-Minister of Social Development of Brazil, said microfinancing played a key role in decreasing economic disparities.  National programmes in Brazil had benefited some 11 million families and had improved their living conditions. 

Ricardo Ffrench-Davis, Chairman of the Committee for Development Policy, said many of the poorest countries were off track to meet the Millennium Development Goals.  The predictability of aid flows remained inadequate in many circumstances, making aid less effective in reducing poverty.  In addition, the release of funds by bilateral donors was tied to too many conditions. 

Aleksander V. Yakovenko, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Russia Federation, said that the progress made in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals should be the main focus of the high-level segment.  Russia was confident that the first Annual Ministerial Review would be an important landmark in enhancing international cooperation.

Emilio Gimenez, Vice-Minister for Economic and Integration Affairs of Paraguay, said there was a need for rational and sustainable programmes, and not just handouts.  Efforts to reverse the current situation should be made by all development partners, North and South, in cooperation with regional and international organizations, and aid should be targeted, without any ties or corporate interests attached. 

Yerzhan Kazykhanov, Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, said trade was an engine for development and contributed to sustainable growth, generation of employment and eradication of poverty.  Kazakhstan considered further liberalization of trade and membership to the World Trade Organization as key elements of the general development strategy of the country. 

George Gyan-Baffour, Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning of Ghana, said that the understanding of the global partnership for development was that international policies should complement national efforts to promote pro-poor growth.  Unfortunately, there had not been the desired progress in the Doha negotiations to achieve an equitable and development-oriented trading system, and that indeed represented a setback. 

Hugo Fernandez, Vice-Minister of External Relations of Bolivia, said the State should be the main actor in reducing poverty.  During the last few years, results had been achieved in Bolivia to that end, among others the renegotiation of oil contracts and a fiscal surplus.  The human rights of indigenous coca leaf producers – previously subjected to systematic human rights violations – had also continued to be respected. 

Pradap Pibulsonggram, Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, said one of the most effective ways the international community could help to meet the challenges of development was by promoting more trade and investment within the region; that could be accomplished by enhancing regional cooperation and integration. 

Walter Fust, Director-General of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, said that if economic growth was not accompanied by a set of pro-poor activities, it would never be sufficient to bring development in all its dimensions.

Helmut K. Angula, Director-General of the National Planning Commission of Namibia, said the need to enhance the voice and participation of developing countries in the process of policy-formulation and decision-making of international economic and financial institutions could not be overemphasized.

Victor Borges, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Communities of Cape Verde, said Cape Verde applauded the concept of debt forgiveness for the most indebted countries.  Also, the international community should bear in mind countries that took on debt carefully, when they had no natural resources, for example.  A comprehensive approach was needed.

Ruben Molina, Director for Multilateral Affairs of Venezuela, said the neo-capitalist model which had been imposed by international financial organizations had failed, and continued to create hunger, poverty, and backwardness.  A human model of socialism was possible, and it could – and did – eradicate poverty and hunger.

Vilma McNish, Under-Secretary of the Multilateral Affairs Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Jamaica, said an important aspect of Jamaica’s poverty reduction policy was to view the poor not only as the target market or consumers, but as creators of wealth, innovators and entrepreneurs. 

Surood H. Najib, Head of the Organizations and International Cooperation Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iraq, said Iraq’s experience was vital, and had showed that sustainable plans could only be achieved in a society based on democracy, peace and justice, with opportunities for all. 

Mark Lowcock, Director-General of the Department for International Development of the United Kingdom, said, on trade, successful completion of the Doha round was essential.  The United Kingdom was also committed to country ownership by working through country-led approaches and by increasing the proportion of bilateral assistance that was channelled through country systems.

Koichiro Mastuura, Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said UNESCO’s most important contribution to efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger was through education.  Stepping up international support was only part of the equation: strong national commitment to, and investment in education was the key to success. 

Lennart Bage, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), speaking also on behalf of the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP), said IFAD, FAO and WFP were standing fully ready to achieve the goal of reducing hunger and poverty by 2015.

Assane Diop, Executive Director of the International Labour Organization, said macroeconomic, social and structural policies, including environmental policies, needed to move in close harness to maximize the opportunities for increased decent work opportunities for all, especially the working poor.

At the end of the morning meeting, the Council heard statements from a number of non-governmental organizations, including the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations (CONGO), Third World Network, Zenab for Women in Development, Action Aid, and the World Organization of the Scout Movement, speaking on behalf of the CONGO Youth Committee in Geneva.

The next meeting of the Council will be at 3 p.m. this afternoon, when it will continue its general debate on the theme of the Annual Ministerial Review.  Starting at 4.30 p.m., the Council will hold two parallel round tables on "ending the cycle of food crises: a home-grown green revolution in Africa"; and "poverty eradication: making it happen".  At the end of the afternoon, the Council will conclude its Annual Ministerial Review with the adoption of a Ministerial Declaration.

General Discussion on Theme of Annual Ministerial Review

MUNIR AKRAM (Pakistan), speaking on behalf of the “Group of 77” developing countries and China, said a full statement by the Group of 77 and China would be distributed later in written form.  This session of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) was an important one, it would not only hold the first Annual Ministerial Review, but it would also launch the first Development Cooperation Forum under ECOSOC.  The proceedings in the Council during the first days had shown that ECOSOC could be revitalized and become an active player in international relations.  It had become clear that commitments that had been undertaken under the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and other internationally agreed development goals remained the Achilles heel of the development agenda.  The presentations yesterday had demonstrated that the developing countries were doing their part towards achieving those goals, including through introducing economic reforms and reforms to achieve good governance.  However, a similar commitment and alacrity in implementing the MDGs and international development commitments had not been visible from their partners.  Yesterday, that had been very visible in the restricted participation from partners in the discussions that had taken place.  It was to be hoped that next year, presentations would be made by both developing and developed countries.

There were some indicators to measure progress with regard to the first seven MDGs.  But specific benchmarks and targets were not yet available to measure Goal 8, on international partnerships for development, or on other international development goals.  The Group of 77 was calling on the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and others to facilitate the implementation of MDG 8 and the other international development goals.  As a first step, a comprehensive matrix should be prepared, setting out the specific commitments undertaken by countries under those objectives.  Then, benchmarks could be elaborated.  The purpose of the Annual Ministerial Review, in addition to reviewing the status of implementation of various commitments, should also be to identify the gaps, shortcomings and omissions both at the national and international level by development partners and to formulate recommendations to assist in development.  It was to be hoped that the final document of the Review would contain both an assessment and recommendations in that regard.

JOAO CRAVINHO, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Portugal, speaking on behalf of the European Union, said that the Annual Ministerial Review was an important step towards the full realization of the global partnership for development.  The objective of the meeting was to provide a global high-level forum where a systematic review of progress was made in the implementation of the United Nations development agenda and to offer a platform for an exchange of lessons learned and successful practices and approaches.  The European Union reaffirmed its strong commitment to the Millennium Development Goals, recognizing that development, peace, security and human rights were interlinked and mutually reinforcing.  The European Union remained committed to support developing countries in implementing comprehensive national strategies to achieve the internationally agreed development goals and objectives, including the Millennium Development Goals.  Poverty eradication was a goal that could only be achieved if other objectives were also accomplished, and vice versa.  The European Union was committed to the eradication of poverty and hunger and looked to the comprehensive approach to eradicate poverty as laid out in the Copenhagen Programme of Action as a solid basis on how to move forward. 

Economic growth was a driving force in poverty reduction.  However, income growth in itself was insufficient to ensure poverty eradication.  Experience showed that good governance, and pro-poor choices and protecting the environment were a prerequisite to reducing poverty.  A sound strategy to ensure environmental sustainability needed to be part of a poverty-focused development strategy.  Eradicating poverty was also dependent upon improved health systems, especially for the achievement of the goal of universal access to reproductive health by 2015 and the goal of universal access to comprehensive HIV/AIDS prevention programmes, treatment, care and support by 2010.  Dealing with poverty also meant taking into consideration the area of education.  The goals of productive employment and decent work for all were also essential.  Hunger was one of the most troubling dimensions of poverty.  A Food and Agriculture Organization report in 2006 revealed that hunger was much more concentrated in rural areas and was one of the causes of rural exodus.  To achieve the Millennium Development Goals, namely MDG, all needed to work together, recipient and donor countries as well as the international community at large, to implement global partnership.       

SAMUEL SANTOS, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nicaragua, said seven years ago, with the Millennium Declaration, a commitment had been entered into to try to eliminate extreme poverty in the world over the next 15 years.  Halfway down the road, the situation was not what had been hoped, and in some areas it was worse.  There was a need to reaffirm the commitment to these goals.  In order to be more effective, there was a need for a development policy based on the developing countries.  In order to reduce poverty, wealth needed to be generated without subsidies which caused unfair competition between rich and poor countries. 

The Government of Nicaragua sought to tap the potential of the poor, to ensure that they contributed to the development of the country.  There should be a more productive approach, aiming to increase income.  The Government had a Plan of National Solidarity.  As part of its comprehensive efforts, it had launched a programme called Hunger Zero.  The Government had in front of it a heavy agenda if it was going to move forward in implementing the Millennium Development Goals, but if it were to move forward in this regard it needed the solidarity of international organizations.  Nicaragua was strengthening its commitment to the strengthening of human rights at the national and international level. 

It was urgent to ensure that it was the same countries that played an active role in monitoring the resources intended to assist with development.  All world leaders and peoples, and nations of the North and South should move forward in equity and solidarity with a single awareness and vision that would speed up the implementation of the fight against extreme poverty and the fulfilment of the Millennium Development Goals.

ROMULO NERI, Secretary of Socio-Economic Planning, Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority of the Philippines, said that the Millennium Development Goals targets were aligned with a major objective of development: creating opportunities that expanded human choices.  The Philippines was on track in meeting most of the targets by 2015.  National figures indicated that the country would most likely achieve by 2015 the targets on poverty, dietary energy requirements and nutrition.  There was also high probability of attaining the targets on infant mortality rates, HIV/AIDS and malaria and access to safe drinking water.  As of 2003, 24.4 per cent of Filipino families (or 30.4 per cent of the population) were considered income poor compared to 27.5 per cent of families (or 33 per cent of the population) in 2000.  Poverty reduction efforts for 2000-2006 had been boosted by the confluence of some facilitating factors.  To better identify who and where the poor were and their needs, the Government had stepped up its poverty monitoring systems tools.

Addressing extreme poverty would require multistakeholder, sustained, innovative and prioritised efforts, Mr. Neri said.  The Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition 2005-2010 and the recently formulated Accelerated Hunger Mitigation Plan contained interventions to alleviate hunger and malnutrition, both on the demand and supply side.  Both would be a big help in keeping a high probability of attaining the target by 2015.  However, budget allocation at the local level should be increased to effect a much desired result in nutrition improvement.  Achieving the Millennium Development Goals required a huge amount of financing from both public and private sources.  The Philippine Government was aware that to realize the Millennium Development Goals and its targets, partnerships with local government units and the private sector, broadly defined to include civil society, were essential.  Civil society had shown that it could monitor and exercise effective checks on Government officials so that any negative effect that the latter’s actions may cause on constituents were avoided.      

FRANÇOIS-XAVIER DE DONNEA, Minister of State of Belgium, said Belgium had played a very active role in the work to modernise the Council, and it was important to use the new tools such as the Ministerial Review in this regard.  The report of the Secretary-General stated that the next Annual Review would focus on specific elements of the United Nations development agenda.  On sustainable development, Belgium had been a member of the Commission on Sustainable Development since its inception, but believed that there were still ways to review its working methods to achieve true sustainable development. 

On migration and development, Belgium would soon host a forum on this, and hoped to achieve a real partnership, better identifying the opportunities and challenges offered by migration.  Hopefully, conclusions would be identified that were as operational as possible.  A partnership meant that all stakeholders and partners were aware of their duties and responsibilities, and Belgium was committed to achieving its targets on official development aid (ODA).  It was committed to multilateral donorship, and had a programme to increase its ODA.  However, other partners should truly understand and shoulder the principles of Government ownership.  Only partners could install the rule of law and combat impunity.

The private sector also had a role to play, as did civil society.  There was true interest in the latter to support good governance, particularly with regards to natural resources.  The Council had a key role to step up progress in this area, and the Operational Sector should give sufficient time to this issue.  The tools to combat poverty were linked, and should be used in parallel.  It was no longer time for promises, but to move to action - common commitments to the Millennium Development Goals were the basis of the work of all nations, and Belgium wished to reiterate its commitment to those goals.

SID AHMED OULD RAIS, Minister for Commerce and Industry of Mauritania, said that it was sure that the Economic and Social Council would play the role of a catalyst.  The theme chosen of the eradication of poverty was a theme that was key and of public concern in Mauritania.  The country was just emerging from a transition phase.  For the first time, the separation of powers had been established in Mauritania.  Poverty was a complex issue and multidimensional.  Only equitable policies combined with targeted programmes would contribute to confine its evolution.  Poverty reduction programmes and achieving the Millennium Development Goals encountered a number of obstacles in Mauritania, such as mobilizing financial resources and absorbing them, for example. 

Mauritania had developed a national strategy to combat poverty, including the acceleration of economic growth, anchoring the economic growth within the economic sphere of the poor, developing human resources and having good governance and capacity building.  The efficiency of public investment should be improved to stimulate private investment.  Accelerating economic growth would be based on more efficient policies by making use of other strategic sectors of the economy.  It also involved deep reform of the financial system and strengthening of the economic and spacious infrastructure.  The growth was oriented to benefit the poor.  Sustainability of growth was not possible if highly qualified human resources were not available.  All of these actions would take place in the context of a vision whose objective was to organize and structure the nation in order to create the necessary conditions for sustainable economic and social development. 

ELIAS NYAMLELL WAKASON, State Minister for International Cooperation of the Sudan, said Sudan was fully committed to working together for a more strengthened ECOSOC which would be more effective in carrying out its mandate of coordination, policy review and policy dialogue on issues of social and economic development and the implementation of the international development goals of major conferences and summits.  The Annual Ministerial Review was a forum for all stakeholders to assess progress in the overall implementation and examine results, and a mechanism for sharing experiences and best practices.  It was hoped that today’s deliberations would pave the way forward as all reflected on the status of the global development partnership, and its role in the eradication of poverty. 

Twelve years had elapsed since the World Summit for Social Development adopted the Copenhagen Declaration and Plan of Action, which placed the human being at the centre of development.  Despite progress achieved globally, the state of poverty and human deprivation still remained of wide concern in many regions, especially sub-Saharan Africa, which remained off-track in meeting the Millennium Development Goals.  Poverty indicators in many African countries revealed that human deprivation was prevalent with higher mortality and morbidity rates. 

Poverty was a multidimensional global challenge that could only be eradicated by a holistic approach to development, and combined measures aimed at achieving economic growth, revival of agriculture, the provision of social services, combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, the empowerment of women, encouraging the private sector, and the provision of decent and productive employment.  Although social development was a national responsibility, it could not be successfully achieved without a collective commitment and concerted efforts of the international community and through strengthening global partnership. 

MARCIA HELENA CARVALHO LOPES, Vice-Minister of Social Development of Brazil, said that she was honoured to share this discussion.  Initially, Brazil wanted to mention the main programmes of the region and their implementation in Brazil.  The issue of the Annual Ministerial Review of the Economic and Social Council and strengthening efforts to eradicate poverty was of particular interest to Brazil and the entire region.  Brazil possessed abundant natural resources, although a high number of poor were living there.  New sources of financing to complement traditional sources were sought.  The exchange of best practices on a South-South base became more important.  The volume of initiatives in the region had been very important and had been geared to building joint strategies to coordinate social policies and to achieve results.  Civil society and non-governmental organizations had also participated in a relevant manner in the activities of undertaking social responsibilities.  Governments had worked together to provide a framework for micro credit parties.  Among Latin America and the Caribbean people, micro credit had an important dimension. 

Micro financing played a key role in decreasing economic disparities, the Vice-Minister said.  National programmes benefited some 11 million families and improved their living conditions.  A 44 per cent decrease of poverty in Latin America had been achieved in only four years.  But if current conditions were maintained, malnutrition would still affect a lot of people in the years to come.  In recent years, international assistance was below the goal agreed upon with donor countries.  It was thus necessary to intensify the experience and improve cooperation.  The region should act in a more efficient way, where cooperation and investment between the countries should especially be increased.  The Economic and Social Council played a vital role in developing strategies.  Brazil had an understanding that the social agenda was linked with economic development.  Without investment in the citizens, sustainable growth could not be achieved for the whole population.  Quality education for all was the model endorsed by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.  The geopolitical, ethnic and gender diversity in the country was high, thus increased participation and cooperation between all involved partners was important. 

RICARDO FFRENCH-DAVIS, Chairman of the Committee for Development Policy, said since adopting the Millennium Declaration, the international community had achieved a number of steps towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals.  Many countries had made progress towards reducing poverty, but developments had not been positive on all fronts - there were still a number of important donors who were below the target for official development aid.  Many of the poorest countries were off track to meet the Millennium Development Goals.  Against this background, the Committee for Development Policy had examined the existing framework, and noted that the global partnership for development had been strengthened in a number of areas.  Substantial debt release had been granted, and the global partnership had been strengthened by the Paris Declaration.  However, there were still some problems. 

The predictability of aid flows remained inadequate in many circumstances, Mr. Ffrench-Davis said.  The Committee emphasised that less-predictable flows were likely to make aid less effective in reducing poverty.  The global community needed to address a lack of Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers.  In addition, the release of funds by bilateral donors was tied to too many conditions.  There was an urgent need to revitalise the global partnership for the eradication of poverty and hunger.  There should also be efforts to reduce HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. 

The international community should turn the existing notion of an effective partnership to reality by effectively reducing policy conditionality.  Renewed efforts were necessary to put the Doha Round negotiations back on track, and speed up the efforts stemming there from.   Development assistance should be made more effective, and the Council should urge all Member States to ensure that the global environment was made more conducive for developing countries.  The Council could monitor the fulfilment of the commitments made in the Paris Declaration, and could give greater prominence to climate change, which created additional challenges for developing countries. 

ALEXSANDER V. YAKOVENKO, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, said that the progress made in the implementation of the goals should be the main focus of ECOSOC’s high-level segment.  Russia noted that the first ever Annual Ministerial Review was dedicated to the eradication of hunger and poverty, which was one of the most pressing issues today.  This was primarily the responsibility of the respective countries.  The level of poverty had been halved in Russia.  A key role in the fight against poverty was the global partnership.  International measures should take into account national specificities for the practical implementation of all the commitments made.  The global partnership was a crucial issue.  Many developing countries were still off track in meeting the Millennium Development Goals.  Special attention should be paid to the needs of Africa. 

Over many decades, the Russian Federation, driven by the principle of solidarity, had provided assistance to countries and people, which shared a common history with Russia, Mr. Yakovenko said.  International development assistance had been advanced.  Apart from debt relief, Russian development assistance had doubled as compared to the level in 2003 and 2004.  Over 2006, the contributions to United Nations funds had been doubled.  On the regional level, targeted assistance was provided.  During Russia’s presidency at the G8 in 2006, an initiative was taken to fight infectious diseases.  Russia defined ways to show effective development assistance.  Russia was confident that the first Annual Ministerial Review would be an important landmark to enhance international cooperation.       

EMILIO GIMENEZ, Vice-Minister for Economic and Integration Affairs of Paraguay, said effective contributions to optimise the Council’s debates and resolutions should be made during the session.  The first Annual Ministerial Review was a perfect opportunity to consider trends in international development cooperation, as well as the implementation of the commitments which had been entered into to stimulate sustained economic growth for the poor.  Poverty was not the result of natural determinism, nor the result of historic destiny, but was a clearly constructed phenomenon with regards to the distribution of wealth.  Despite economic growth at the global and regional levels, these last years had witnessed a period of serious threats of deterioration of quality of life for enormous segments of the population. 

Worldwide economic growth had not been attended by an equivalent degree of growth in job creation, but had undermined the credibility of the democratic system.  The creation of productive and decent jobs changed patterns of consumption into sustainable ones, which combated poverty and hunger.  There was a need for rational and sustainable programmes, and not just handouts.   The actions to reverse the situation should be made by all development partners, between North and South, and with the cooperation of regional and institutional organizations.  Aid should be targeted, without any ties or corporate interests. 

The prime responsibility for overcoming poverty and hunger belonged to the nations themselves.  The commitments made at the various summits had not yet been implemented, and they should be.  It was hoped the strengthening of the Council, with the new Review, would begin at this session, and that it would not have a new tool for assessing and contributing to the situation.  The Council should support work to solve the problem of developing land-locked countries to ensure they were better incorporated in the system of international trade, and it was hoped this would be included in the Ministerial Declaration. 

YERZHAN KAZYKHANOV, Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, said that freedom from poverty and hunger was an objective towards which mankind had been striving for generations.  Extreme poverty was a stark reality for more than one billion people who lived on less than one dollar a day and every day suffered from hunger and malnutrition.  Moreover, hunger, poverty and social injustice created a threat to the security of states and the entire regions of the world.  Kazakhstan believed that timely and full realization of the development goals and objectives, including the Millennium Development Goals, was possible only through a firm commitment by United Nations Member States to global partnership for development at the international and regional levels.  National efforts should be accompanied by actions to create a favourable international environment.  Trade was an engine for development and contributed to sustainable growth, generation of employment and eradication of poverty. 

Kazakhstan considered further liberalization of trade and membership of the World Trade Organization as key elements of the general development strategy of the country.  Kazakhstan was in the final stage of accession to the World Trade Organization.  By joining the organization, the country aimed to create a conducive environment for sustainable economic growth, through external trade and complete restructuring of domestic goods and services.  The issue of poverty and hunger eradication should be addressed through determined and consistent implementation of policies by the international community.  Transportation infrastructure was a key factor for successful economic development.  As a member of the Group of Landlocked Countries, Kazakhstan stood for taking into account, fully and consistently, the interests of that group of countries in the process of decision-making in the area of economic development, international trade and interregional cooperation.  The United Nations should continue to play a critical role in ensuring steady progress towards global partnership for development and implementation of the outcomes of global fora.  

GEORGE GYAN-BAFFOUR, Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning of Ghana, said the globalized world was confronted with acute and increasing social and economic inequalities.  The income gap between developed and developing countries was widening, while divergence in wealth was also growing among the developing countries.  To overcome these imbalances and achieve global economic stability and prosperity would therefore require strengthening collective efforts, and remaining committed to the ideals expressed in the Millennium Development Goals and the wider internationally-agreed development goals.  It was in this light that the United Nations was seen as an indispensable force in mobilising support for global partnership towards achieving development objectives. 

Mr. Gyan-Baffour said an appreciable number of developing countries were making tremendous strides towards achieving the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals.  In the globalized and interdependent world, external conditions and policies had a direct bearing on the effectiveness and policy space available for designing a country’s development strategies.  The understanding of the global partnership for development was that international policies should complement national efforts to promote pro-poor growth.  Unfortunately, the substantive issues that had the potential to propel developing countries towards achieving their development objectives had not been given much attention.  There had not been the desired progress in the Doha negotiations to achieve an equitable and development-oriented trading system, and this indeed represented a setback with respect to the commitment to an open and rule-based trading system. 

The decline in official development aid had been a great concern to developing countries, which hoped that the need to scale up aid flows would be considered seriously, while addressing also the problem of aid predictability.  Thus, cooperation efforts in the areas of official development aid, technical assistance and commitments in multilateral trade negotiations should be designed to benefit the specific needs of the vulnerable and poor countries, especially those in Africa.  The deliberations of the Review should remind the international community that it was halfway to 2015, and it was important to move the development agenda forward at a faster pace. 

HUGO FERNANDEZ, Vice-Minister of External Relations of Bolivia, said that a structural adjustment programme had been implemented by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Bolivia.  Public services had been privatised in the two main cities.  The first programme was concluded in the years 2001 and Bolivia had been declared to be a model country.  In Bolivia, there were 36 indigenous ethnic groups, making up 62 per cent of the population of the country.  Unfortunately the poverty reduction programme did not take that situation into account enough.  There was a division between the descendants of the white immigrants and the descendants of the indigenous people.  Privileges in Bolivia were given only to the group of the descendants of the white immigrants.  Coca was one essential crop for the poor people in Bolivia.  In contrast to other countries, the coca leaf was a product of daily consumption but it was not considered to be an illegal plant.  However, the processing of the coca leaf into its derivative product cocaine was considered illegal by the country. 

New general elections were held in 2005 and Evo Morales, a producer of coca leafs, won, and gave a rise to the movement of indigenous coca producers, Mr. Fernandez said.  The policies put forward by his party were reversing the processes of privatisation concerning natural gas and water.  A constitual assembly ensuring the rights of the indigenous people should be set up.  A new strategy to combat drug trafficking was to be implemented.  Another idea was to undertake a worldwide campaign to assess the rights of the indigenous people growing the coca plant.  The state should be the main actor in reducing poverty.  During the last years, results had been achieved, among others the renegotiation of oil contracts and a fiscal surplus, with which Bolivia came up for the first time since years.  The human rights of coca leaf producers, previously subjected to systematic human rights violations, continued to be respected.  This process of structural transformation had been resisted by some sectors.  This was even going to the extent that the country could be divided to achieve this goal.  Problems should be resolved through democratic debate and discussions.  But at no time would jeopardizing the unity of the country be accepted. 

PRADAP PIBULSONGGRAM, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, said union gave strength, and there was a need for unity among the global community members to tackle the development challenge.  The global partnership for development was the key.  The international community should take a role in tackling the development challenge.  Achieving the development challenge was a shared responsibility between developed and developing countries.  The latter had to begin with helping themselves first, but the international community could do more to help them to help themselves.  Developed countries could help by creating a sound global economic environment, particularly in trade negotiations. 

The population in developing countries was growing, which meant that labour markets in those countries were increasingly competitive.  To enhance employment opportunities, there was a need to deal both with the supply and demand sides to ensure that employment and decent work for all could be generated.  Developing countries needed to have a real sense of ownership: development cooperation projects should be demand-driven, with partner countries involved in all aspects of decision-making from the very beginning. 

One of the most effective ways the international community could help to meet the challenges of development was by promoting more trade and investment within the region; this could be accomplished by enhancing regional cooperation and integration.  In helping developing countries achieve their respective Millennium Development Goals, there should be cooperation between both developed and developing countries.  It was also important to find the right approach and the right partners to formulate effective partnership, for if the Millennium Development Goals were to be achieved, all needed to contribute and cooperate, working closely and effectively with each other.

WALTER FUST, Director-General of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, welcomed the fact that the theme of the first Annual Ministerial Review established a clear link between the objective of eradicating poverty and hunger as encapsulated in the first Millennium Development Goal (MDG), and the flagship idea of the eighth MDG, the establishment of a global partnership for development.  Switzerland supported the general idea put forward in the Secretary-General’s report that the fight against poverty and hunger was multidimensional and the first MDG, if it was to be achieved, required progress in a wide-ranging array of interlinked areas like health, education and gender equality.  Switzerland believed that regional aggregates should be handled with caution.  Development indicators greatly differed within the same region.  Sub-Saharan Africa, often being labelled as a region being off the track, experienced great levels of disparities in development indicators between countries.  Even within a single country, regions showed disparities.  Unless disaggregated data was used, there was a risk of getting a biased picture of the real situation.  If growth was not accompanied by a set of pro-poor activities, economic growth could never be sufficient to being development in all its dimensions.

Entrepreneurship and job creation through investments were driving forces of sustainable development.  The quality and sustainability of the investments was more important than their quantity.  Not only the economic implications but also the social and environmental impact should be taken into consideration.  A balance should be created between investors’ rights and a country’s policies.  Millennium Development Goal 8 enshrining the principle of a global partnership was about the need of reinforcing mutually cooperation.  It was about shared responsibility and mutual accountability for success or failure.  Developing countries bore the responsibility for their development.  Domestic fiscal systems must be strengthened.  The importance of good governance could never be overestimated.  Solid economic policies responsive to the need of the people were the basis for sustained economic growth.  This partnership also included a joint fight against corruption. 

HELMUT K. ANGULA, Director-General of the National Planning Commission of Namibia, said the theme of the Annual Ministerial Review could not have been chosen at a more opportune time than now, since there was less than eight years to the Millennium Development Goal targets of halving extreme poverty and hunger by 2015.  It was disheartening to learn that of all major regions, sub-Saharan Africa remained the only one still lagging far behind, and was unlikely to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.  However, studies showed that all hope was not lost, as there was still time to make progress, but only if concerted efforts were made by both African countries and the international community. 

Each country was primarily responsible for its own development.  Economic interdependence was also a fact of life.  The pace of social and economic progress in society was partly influenced by factors beyond individual control.  Furthermore, it was equally true that the international community had a moral obligation to support the efforts of the developing countries.  This was consistent with the spirit of the Monterrey Consensus and the eighth Millennium Development Goal.  International trade, especially market access by developing countries, remained one of the major potential means of eradicating poverty, however, with the stalemate in the Doha Development Round, the contribution of international trade to the eradication of poverty remained illusive.  It was therefore of paramount importance for all to exercise flexibility in order to conclude the Round without further delay. 

The need to enhance the voice and participation of developing countries in the process of policy-formulation and decision-making of international economic and financial institutions could not be overemphasised.  The Council, as the main United Nations body charged with the coordination of the development agenda, needed to be strengthened in order to perform its duties.  Least developed countries (LDCs) would require greater assistance from the international community if they were to meet the Millennium Development Goals.  The poverty level in may of the so-called middle-income countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, was similar to that of the LDCs; it was therefore important that these countries were given international assistance, commensurate with their needs, if they were not to lapse back to the status of LDCs, and fail to achieve the internationally agreed development goals. 

VICTOR BORGES, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Communities of Cape Verde, said that the Annual Ministerial Review offered an opportunity to share thoughts and experiences for the goal of eradicating hunger and fighting poverty.  Relating to the limits of the Voluntary National Presentation presented by Cape Verde yesterday, one could note diversity, but the positive impact of national efforts combined with international efforts should also be highlighted.  The reports were voluntary and no conclusions should be drawn about other developing countries.  When presenting a summary, one could think that one knew everything.  It was important to underscore that there were many challenges left.  He wished to underscore firstly, the importance of national commitment and management; and secondly, the urgency of the implementation of the international community’s commitments.  There was no automatic link between growth and poverty eradication.  Draft decisions and specific approaches should be taken. 

On Cape Verde, three items were to be noted, Mr. Borges said. First, it was a small island. This insularity implicated costs.  Another aspect was graduation and shared responsibility.  The role of the United Nations system and of the Economic and Social Council in particular was underscored as to the follow up of the graduation process.  Proper management of the process was important and the Economic and Social Council had an obligation to provide a follow up.  Concerning the declaration of the transition support group, it was not possible to continue with old rules and procedures.  On debt relief, Cape Verde’s position was that it applauded debt forgiveness for the most indebted countries.  The international community should bear in mind countries that took on debt carefully, when they had no natural resources for example.  A comprehensive approach was thus needed.  

RUBEN MOLINA, Director for Multilateral Affairs of Venezuela, said this session showed that the vision on how to overcome poverty continued to be inadequate.  The Secretary-General’s report emphasised economic growth over what should be a focus on the dignity of the human being in a comprehensive manner.  Eradicating poverty and hunger should be tackled in a comprehensive manner, and go beyond the strictly economic approach.  Based on Venezuela’s enormous natural resources and the efforts of the people of the country, Venezuela was making progress.  The basic challenge was to build democracy, include the poor, and create a socio-economic vision to build society.  Investment in the poor would result in the creation of just societies without conflict.

To eradicate poverty and hunger in the world, it was necessary to go beyond the individual view, and to base programmes on cooperation and solidarity, creating and promoting a balanced international system in which democracy, plurality and multiculturalism prevailed.   The rights of the poor were protected in Venezuela, as was its democracy.

Eradication of poverty was in the Constitution of the country, directly linked to the right to life.  National production ensured food sovereignty, and Venezuela was undertaking reforms in this regard, and had set up a democratic and proactive system for the benefit of future generations.  The Government had been implementing successful programmes to ensure food security for all, particularly in the most vulnerable sectors.  Some one million people, from the poorest sections of the population, now had access to food.  The neo-capitalist model which had been imposed by international financial organizations had failed, and continued to create hunger, poverty, and backwardness.  A human model of socialism was possible and it could and did eradicate poverty and hunger.

VILMA MCNISH, Under-Secretary of the Multilateral Affairs Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Jamaica, said that the interrelationship between economic growth and poverty reduction was indisputable.  However, empirical evidence showed that this linkage was at best tenuous unless there was a broad-based approach that promoted pro-poor sustained economic growth.  The report of the Secretary-General confirmed that even as there had been global progress in the various dimensions of poverty, the rate of improvement was insufficient to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.  It was estimated that 800 million people still lived on less than 1 USD per day.  The fact was that even as there had been strong growth performance in the world economy, this had been uneven and many developing countries had not been able to reap the benefits of globalization and trade liberalization.  In order to combat inequality, employment generation and decent work must become a higher national policy priority and further progress in mainstreaming equity across public sector policies was critical. 

The Government of Jamaica was committed to providing the necessary resources for the implementation of programmes to combat poverty and enable the empowerment of vulnerable groups in pursuit of the first Millennium Development Goal.  The main target groups of such programmes were children, women, persons with disability and the elderly.  An important aspect of the country’s poverty reduction policy was to view the poor not only as the target market or consumers but as creators of wealth, innovators and entrepreneurs.  Jamaica was on target to meet the first Millennium Development Goal.  But this could be easily jeopardized as a result of the challenges and constraints to poverty reduction.  The vulnerability of small island states such as Jamaica was also a factor, which could have a deleterious effect on sustained poverty reduction efforts.  Other challenges such as HIV/AIDS, the energy crisis, and the brain drain all demanded priority attention if developing countries were to successfully meet the target of halving poverty by the target date. 

SUROOD H. NAJIB, Head of the Organizations and International Cooperation Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iraq, said the indicators of poverty and disease were included in the Secretary-General’s report.  Iraq’s experience over past years had shown that sustainable plans could only be achieved in the presence of an active civil society based on democracy, justice, equal opportunities for all and in a secure and stable environment.  Terrorism, which reflected the horrendous picture of the use of force had become a danger which hovered not only in Iraq but in all bodies, and its impact had regional dimensions unless there was international unification to put an end to this extremism. 

The Council, based on the use of appropriate tools, had set down appropriate mechanisms to activate its role, in a framework that would guarantee the achievement of sustainable development goals.  It was important to strengthen the follow-up in an appropriate time frame.  The donor countries were called upon to give poor and developing countries help in order to help with their stability.  The Iraqi people had been helped by many neighbouring and other countries, and Iraq wished to go forward in creating a country that was based on prosperity.  At the economic level, the Government was rebuilding the country, and had allocated the greatest budget to lift the living standards of the citizens. 

Despite all the challenges, it was up to the Government and people of Iraq to do all they could to make sure that they produced the right tools to be able to implement policies to achieve the development objectives.  The Government had worked to tackle the issue of weapons of mass destruction, and had signed a range of Conventions, in line with the Government’s policies to adopt what improved the life of the citizens.  Women had a crucial role to play in development, and should participate in political and economic life, and in all parts of society.

MARK LOWCOCK, Director-General of the Department for International Development of the United Kingdom, said that the United Kingdom supported the views expressed by the European Union.  The United Kingdom hoped that the reviews would be meaningful and productive.  It was grateful for the report of the Secretary-General.  The Secretary-General was right that one should be optimistic but not complacent.  On trade, successful completion of the Doha Round was essential.  The United Kingdom was taking care that the position of marginalized countries was addressed there.  The cost of the compromise needed was small and the benefits for all countries were enormous.  Rich countries needed to respect the commitments made.  The United Kingdom was committed to country ownership by working through country-led approaches and to increase the proportion of the bilateral assistance that was channelled through country systems.  The six national voluntary presentations from yesterday were welcomed. 

Resources should be used for real poverty reduction, Mr. Lowcock said.  It was important to look at what was happening on the ground.  It was exciting how the Government of Mozambique was holding its donors to account on each of their performances.  The United Kingdom recognized that there was room to improve the process.  Donors as well as receiving countries should present their strategies.  The United Kingdom hoped that particular attention would be paid on the empowerment of women.  Ultimately, there was a collective responsibility to deliver the Millennium Development Goals for the poorest people in the world.  The Economic and Social Council could play a constructive role.  It was time to turn a global partnership into fact.

KOICHIRO MATSUURA, Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said UNESCO’s most important contribution to efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger was through education.  Helping countries reach the six Dakar Goals had been the Organization’s principal priority.  Two of the Dakar Goals had also been adopted as Millennium Development Goals: achieving universal primary education, and eliminating gender disparities in primary and secondary education.  A broad and holistic approach was essential to providing quality education for all. 

UNESCO was also working to address education needs at the secondary and higher levels, which was critical to the sustainability of education development and vital to the creation of a skilled workforce.  Education should be addressed through an integrated and sector-wide approach.  Beyond global coordination, UNESCO also provided direct assistance to countries to develop and implement sound education policies, and was focusing in particular on sub-Saharan Africa, least developed countries and small island developing States.  Stepping up international support was only part of the equation: strong national commitment to, and investment in education was the key to success. 

Models of development had evolved significantly, and continued to do so.  Too often, the contribution of culture and the role of cultural heritage, tangible and intangible alike, was not recognised, especially with regards to their potential for poverty alleviation.  Cultural and creative industries were capable of yielding real results both socially and economically, and should be integrated into international and local development strategies.  Science was also fundamental to poverty eradication.  UNESCO placed great importance on building partnerships for development.  The multi-stakeholder approach was essential to eradicating world poverty and hunger, a task so complex and immense that it could only be met by concerted action across the international community.  Partnership was the very key to success. 

LENNART BAGE, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), speaking on behalf of IFAD, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP), said that this report focused for the first time on nutritional issues.  Among the biggest challenges was the challenge of climate change.  It was already happening.  The already high vulnerability of poor people had increased even more.  In Lesotho, farmland had decreased, triggering a severe food crisis.  The global demand for food was growing throughout the world.  Also the demand for bio fuels was increasing.   There may be a new era of increasing commodity prices.  Special care was needed to ensure that additional energy production did not lead to shortages in food production.  Agencies had been working together to reduce hunger.  Fighting hunger required direct action to alleviate it now, and longer-term agriculture and rural development programmes to alleviate the root causes of it.  IFAD reached a 100 million poor people in rural areas.

The key aim was to enable rural people to lead their own development, Mr. Bage said.  Delivering as one was important.  The question was how to accelerate the actions in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.  The focus should be on small farmers and rural producers.  Hunger reduction strategies needed to be designed and implemented stronger.  Pro-poor responses needed to be developed.  Measures such as an increase in investment and ensuring accountability were also of importance.  The capacity of national programmes should be strengthened.  The organizations were standing fully ready to achieve the goal of reducing hunger and poverty by 2015.   

ASSANE DIOP, Executive Director of the International Labour Organization (ILO), said ILO fully supported the conclusion on applying macro-economic policies that led to broad-based and sustained growth, which was essential for employment creation, poverty reduction and the achievement of the internationally agreed goals for sustainable development.  This entailed an inclusive strategy in which the incomes of the poorest grew steadily through decent and productive employment and effective social protection.  This generated increased consumption, which was central to sustaining overall growth. 

Macroeconomic, social and structural policies, including environmental policies, thus needed to move in close harness to maximise the opportunities for increased decent work opportunities for all, especially the working poor.  Dialogue between Governments and key actors such as employers’ organizations and trade unions and between countries and their international partners was key to sustained growth.  Such dialogue was also vital for the improvement in productivity which enabled an increase in living standards of the poorest, and for investing in the sustainability of growth, through education, health, essential infrastructure and productive enterprises. 

Since the adoption of the Ministerial Declaration at the 2006 High-Level Segment, ILO had developed with partner agencies in the United Nations system a Toolkit for Mainstreaming Productive Employment and Decent Work.  The objective was to develop a reflex in the system that ensured that the goal of decent work was reflected across the spectrum of development policies.  This approach would help the Council to maintain and further enhance its coordinating role in the pursuit of the internationally agreed development goals.

RENATA BLUM, of Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations (CONGO), said that a central objective of the Civil Society Development Forum: Countdown to 2015, held on 28 to 30 June, consisted in providing a venue for an in-depth discussion on the themes of this high-level segment on poverty eradication and pro-poor grew and joined civil society’s voice to the launching of its two new mechanisms: the Annual Ministerial Review and the Development Cooperation Forum.  The new approach needed to be multidimensional in order to eradicate poverty and hunger, realize the right to food, achieve full and productive employment and decent work, and accomplish social security.  She was pleased to have some voices in the room who would address different segments of the discussions.

MARTIN KHOR, of Third World Network, said that on the issue of aid, it was disappointed by the falling aid.  The countries of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development were asked to live up to their promises.  In relation to trade, what had happened at the World Trade Organization was disappointing.  There was a concern about proposals to liberalize the trade of some countries faster than they could.  Another concern was on provisions of free trade agreements.  On the macroeconomic national policies, a broader view had to be seen.  A review of the international financial institutions needed to take place. 

FATIMA AHMED, of Zenab for Women in Development, said that in Sudan women in particular were affected and suffered more.  As a grass roots organization working directly with women, the organization had a lot of recommendations to improve the situation of women, including enhancing the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals in post-conflict areas.  The mechanism of the relationship between the Council and non-governmental organizations should be enhanced through various means. 

COLIN O CUARACHAIN, of Action Aid, said that the absolute number of people living in hunger had increased every year since the Millennium Declaration.  Progress was falling far short of the commitments that had been set out.  The right to food should become an increasingly important framework for Governments’ policies and programmes as a response to hunger.  At the international level, the process towards finalizing a strong Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights was an essential next step.  The issue of women’s right to land was central to addressing hunger.

SALMA ABBASI, speaking about the Workshop on Gender Equality Architecture Reform in the United Nations and the Annual Ministerial Review on 30 June, said that a paradigm shift should take place.  Knowledge transfer was important, enabling sustainable development and economic growth.  Her recommendations were that governments should include women in their process and to ensure that there was sufficient funding to ensure that women in the region were empowered and supported.

ARTURO ROMBOLI, of World Organization of the Scout Movement, speaking on behalf of the CONGO Youth Committee in Geneva, said that young people were especially affected by poverty.  Governments, civil society and the private sector must work together.  United Nations agencies and governments must give support for youth led programmes, especially in the developing world where there were few youth ministries.  The United Nations agencies also needed to coordinate global youth processes. 

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For information media • not an official record