As Istanbul Conference Opens, Secretary-General Urges Recognition of Least Developed Countries as ‘Vast Reservoirs of Untapped Potential’
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| Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York |
As Istanbul Conference Opens, Secretary-General Urges Recognition of Least
Developed Countries as ‘Vast Reservoirs of Untapped Potential’
New Vision Sought to Reverse Profound Poverty of People in World’s
48 Poorest Countries, Lay Firm Foundation for Integration in World Economy
(Received from a UN Information Officer.)
ISTANBUL, 9 May — As the Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries opened this morning, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, other senior international officials and Heads of State and Government called for a new vision to reverse the profound poverty of the people living in the world’s 48 poorest countries and lay a firm foundation for their integration into the world economy.
“Let us recognize these 48 countries as vast reservoirs of untapped potential,” Mr. Ban said, as he urged participants in the week-long Conference — which is charged with assessing progress since the 2001 Brussels Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2001-2010 and formulating the direction of assistance in the next 10 years — to be ambitious and forward-looking and to deliver a further plan of action that would help maximize the number of those countries able to “graduate” from that United Nations-identified category in the shortest time.
During the Conference, negotiators are looking to put measures in place for building infrastructure to enable least developed countries — 33 of which are in Africa, 14 in Asia and 1, Haiti, in the Western hemisphere — to attain economic self-sufficiency, push back poverty and create decent jobs. Such steps would include continued progress on economic reform, governance and tapping domestic resources.
“Investing in the LDCs is an opportunity for all,” said the Secretary-General, encouraging the Conference to be seen, not only as an opportunity to relieve misery, but also as a chance to make smart business investments and to increase cooperation and investment between developing countries, by providing the world’s rapidly emerging economies with both resources and markets. “I am not arguing for charity, but investment,” he said, stressing that “the returns can be profound — not just for people living in the LDCs, but for the global economy”.
“Eradicating poverty and reducing vulnerability in the least developed countries is a duty that we have towards the millions of people living in those countries,” United Nations General Assembly President Joseph Deiss said, stressing that meeting that commitment would make the world safer, more prosperous, more dynamic, more democratic and more united. “Today, maybe for the first time in history, we have the resources and the know-how to make this happen. We shall, then, act, without further ado, and my strong wish is that the Istanbul programme of action will help us in our endeavour,” he declared.
The President of Turkey, Abdullah Gül, following his election this morning as Conference President, welcomed participants and said that the high level of attendance demonstrated the priority given to the least developed countries in the United Nations development agenda.
Noting that those nations accounted for nearly 13 per cent of the world population but received only 1 per cent of its economic output, President Gül said that their marginalization was widening in terms of income, education, child mortality, agricultural productivity, export performance and a range of other measures. Indeed, the group had grown from 25 in number in 1971 to 48 today, and only three countries had ever been able to “graduate”.
“The situation is simply not sustainable,” he said, “not only in moral terms, but politically as well”. To overcome that dismal situation, it was important for the Conference to give a clear and strong message that full support would be extended to the least developed countries. “We should now renew the hopes in the minds of 900 million people that their aspirations will be realized,” through an Istanbul programme of action, followed up by a mid-term review conference, which he proposed holding in Istanbul in 2015.
The first representative of a least developed country to speak this morning was Boni Yayi, President of Benin, who said that since the Brussels Conference in 1981, nations such as his had been at the centre of the international community’s concerns and the countries themselves had made strong efforts to record gains in governance, human development, health and other areas. To accelerate progress, the Istanbul Conference must produce an ambitious, realistic action programme that would generate concrete results, he said.
Prominence should be given to productive investment and social promotion measures, he said, urging “more imagination, more pragmatism” to enable least developed countries to diversify their exports, gain access to markets and enhance their infrastructure.
The Istanbul Conference should be a “watershed event”, producing an outcome that ensured “renewed and robust global solidarity” to uplift least developed countries, asserted Jhala Nath Khanal, Prime Minister of Nepal and Chair of the Global Coordination Bureau of the Least Developed Countries. A “new dawn of hope” required reform of global institutions, including the United Nations, to make them more effective in meeting the expectations of the most needy.
Offering up another recipe for success was a representative of the private sector, Muhtar Kent, Chief Executive Officer of the Coca-Cola Company, who said that a “golden triangle” — business, Government and civil society — must work together to help create jobs and, among others, boost local sourcing of agricultural products. The private sector had to step up its investment in the least developed countries. It was at some $30 billion, which was nowhere near the amount that was commensurate with the opportunities existing in those countries.
Co-chair of the Group of Eminent Persons for the Conference and former President of the World Bank James Wolfensohn said that growth came with sufficiency of human capital, overcoming dependence on external commodities, increased exports and good governance. “They were true at the first Conference in 1971 and they remain true today.”
If there was one thing he learned at the Bank, he added, it was that the key issue to be addressed was of internal governance, coordination, accountability and corruption. “It gnaws at the effectiveness of what we do.” It had not been addressed this morning and he urged giving those issues thought.
Also speaking this morning were the President of the European Commission, First Lady of Qatar, Secretary General of the International Parliamentary Union, Director General of the World Trade Organization, Managing Director of the World Bank, Global Coordinator of the Civil Society Steering Committee, Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlement Programme, and the Under-Secretary-General for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women).
In other business, the Conference adopted its rules of procedure (document A/CONF.219/2), as well as its agenda and organization of work (documents A/CONF.219/1 and Add.1). It also established a Committee of the Whole. Elected by acclamation to chair that Committee was Jarmo Viinanen (Finland), Chairman of the Intergovernmental preparatory Committee. Also elected by acclamation was Jean-Francis Zinsou (Benin) to serve as Conference Rapporteur.
In addition, the Conference elected its Vice-Chairs: Afghanistan; Australia; Azerbaijan; Belgium; Chile; Ethiopia; Haiti; Hungary; Malawi; Nepal; Luxembourg; Slovenia; and Sudan. The remaining Vice-Presidents would be elected at a later time. Finally, Bahamas, China, Finland, Gabon, Guatemala, Kenya, Russian Federation, Singapore and the United States were elected to the Conference’s credential Committee.
The Conference will continue at 3 p.m. today, 9 May.
Background
The Fourth United Nations Conference for Least Developed Countries this morning opened its week-long meeting in Istanbul, Turkey. (For background, see Press Release DEV/2877 of 5 May.)
Statements
ABDULLAH GÜL, President of Turkey and President of the Conference, noted that the General Assembly had mandated the Conference to, inter alia, undertake a comprehensive appraisal of the implementation of the Brussels Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2001-2010, and, in light of that appraisal, to identify effective policies as well as new and emerging opportunities and challenges in regard to the world’s poorest countries, as well as the means to address them. The Conference was also mandated to reaffirm the global commitment to addressing the special needs of those countries and to mobilize additional international support measures and action in their favour.
Extending a warm welcome to participants, he said that the high level of attendance demonstrated the priority given to the least developed countries in the development agenda of the United Nations. Noting that those countries accounted for nearly 13 per cent of the world population but received only 1 per cent of its economic output, he said that the gap with the rest of the world was widening in terms of income, education, child mortality, agricultural productivity, export performance and in a range of other areas. In that light, the group had grown from 25 least developed countries on the United Nations list in 1971 to 48 today, with only three ever having been able to “graduate”.
“The situation is simply not sustainable,” President Gül continued, “not only in moral terms, but politically as well.” To overcome the dismal situation, it was important at the Conference to give yet another clear and strong message that full support would be extended to the least developed nations. “We should now renew the hopes in the minds of 900 million people that their aspirations will be realized.” As long as the increasing marginalization of those countries continued, no one could expect peace and security to prosper globally. With the least developed countries’ large populations and rich natural resources, investing in them was also a rewarding commercial choice.
A new vision to help the poorest countries should reflect both the fundamental parameters of the international development agenda and the development priorities of the countries themselves, he said. The anticipated outcome of the present Conference, or the Istanbul programme of action, should be able to make a difference in the daily lives of the people of those nations. Real added value and a new spirit for international development cooperation was needed, with both the least developed countries and the international community, particularly the major development partners, assuming greater ownership of the process by which pledges were delivered. The process must be expedited with ambitious yet realistic targets and a tangible set of commitments and deliverables.
He noted that some least developed countries had recently been able to achieve strong growth due to high commodity prices, however, more than half experienced moderate or negative growth during the period. The gloomy picture had further deteriorated due to civil strife and conflict, global economic crisis, climate change, epidemics, and rising food and fuel prices. To that end, he reiterated his call for a “global rapid reaction capability” to tackle natural and ecological disasters, food shortages and epidemics. In addition, enhancing productive capacities in agriculture, manufacturing and services was essential in overcoming supply constraints and diversifying the economies. The Istanbul action programme should create a new momentum for accelerated, sustained, inclusive and equitable economic development.
Official Development Assistance (ODA) continued to play a critical role, he said, but he stressed that the Conference was not only about mobilizing financial resources; breakthroughs must be made in productive capacity-building and diversification, for which the private sector was crucial. A conducive environment for investment was needed, for which innovative initiative was crucial. Access of the least developed countries to the latest technologies, education, health, food security and nutrition, and progress for women and youth, were also critical.
South-South cooperation had a vital role, he said, noting that his country was a strong supporter of that relationship as a member of the “Group of 20” (G‑20) and an accession country to the European Union. Turkey had increased ODA in recent years, with overall assistance nearing $2 billion annually.
He said the success of the Conference would not be based on immediate outcomes only; a systematic monitoring and follow-up mechanism was needed. He pledged his country’s active involvement in that effort, proposing that it host a mid-term review conference of the Istanbul programme in 2015. Istanbul had come to be known as the meeting point of continents and the cradle of civilizations, but nothing would make his country more proud than if the city came to be remembered as the place where the misfortune of almost a billion people had taken a positive turn.
BAN KI-MOON, United Nations Secretary-General, thanked President Gül for the hospitality shown and affirmed the situation of least developed countries described by the President, adding: “We risk a splintered world economy, a widening gap between haves and have-nots, between those who have hope and those who do not. This cannot continue”. Calling for a change of mindset, he said “Instead of seeing LDCs as poor and weak, let us recognize these 48 countries as vast reservoirs of untapped potential”.
“Investing in the LDCs is an opportunity for all,” he said. It was an opportunity to relieve misery, to make smart business investments, and to increase South-South cooperation and investment, thereby providing the world’s rapidly emerging economies with both resources and markets. He urged participants at the Conference to be ambitious and forward-looking and to deliver a programme of action that would help the maximum number of least developed countries graduate from that category in the shortest time.
For that purpose, he stressed the need for enhanced productive capacity, through an educated population and a dynamic engagement of the business community. Noting that ODA to least developed nations had nearly tripled in the past decade, he said, however, that it remained below agreed targets. Acknowledging the present austerity, he stressed that assistance to the poorest countries was not charity, but a sound investment. The prevailing view was that current aid placed too little emphasis on economic infrastructure and productive sectors, and he urged lenders to also revisit the debt burdens of those countries. Investment was needed in agriculture, in basic social protection, protection of ecosystems and the building of food security. Amid international failure to follow through on the global commitments made in the Monterrey Consensus and the Doha Declaration on Financing for Development, he called again for a successful conclusion to the Doha development round.
“Let me emphasize again,” he said, “I am not arguing for charity, but investment. The returns can be profound — not just for people living in the LDCs, but for the global economy. Success for the LDCs is ultimately success for all.”
In his opening remarks, JOSEPH DEISS, President of the General Assembly, urged the Conference participants to acknowledge that those countries needed a “special effort” to ensure their sustainable development. “I am convinced that for doing so, framework conditions conducive to investment, to value addition and job creation are a must. Economic growth will drive and sustain development in the least developed countries.” Those countries, often described as the poorest, weakest and most vulnerable segment of the international community, faced significant structural problems and had been particularly hard-hit by the recent parallel food, economic and energy crises, the sharp increase in oil prices, and the effects of climate change.
At the same time, he said, it was important to acknowledge that before the crises, many of those countries had registered record growth, due largely to their efforts, along with those of their development partners, towards implementation of the framework set out in the 2001 Brussels Programme of Action. Yet, that growth remained fragile, mainly driven by extractive industries and commodities — sectors with few links to the rest of the domestic economy, little space for job creation and high exposure to external shocks.
“To pave the way for sustained, inclusive and equitable growth in the least developed countries, it is essential to strengthen productive capacities and diversify economic activities,” he said, adding that the Conference offered the opportunity to make a real difference to that end. “We — the international community — must reaffirm our commitment to the development of the least developed countries, and we must base this commitment on a renewed and strengthened partnership for development,” he said, stressing that the Istanbul programme of action would be instrumental in that regard.
That programme must empower those countries to transform their economies and societies, by helping to create an enabling national and international environment for social and economic development, and by enhancing productive capacities, he said. To be credible, it must acknowledge the tremendous changes in the nature of the actors, opportunities and challenges of today’s global economy. While there was no “one size fits all” model for enhancing productive capacities at the national level, particularly since the least developed countries were so diverse, there were some prerequisites, whose importance had been highlighted by the experiences of other countries.
In particular, he noted, the quality of institutions and polices at the national and regional levels mattered: “Rule of law, respect for human rights and democracy must be strengthened,” and the fight against corruption must be intensified. Further, fundamental rights, including property rights, must be guaranteed, and sound market structures must be put in place to enhance investment, foster productive capacities and create jobs. He was also convinced that “a green economy offers many opportunities for job creation and improved living conditions in the least developed countries”, and he called for the appropriate national and international conditions to be put in place.
As for ensuring the necessary international environment in support of the least developed countries, he said the Istanbul action programme must be seen in the context of a renewed and strengthened development partnership. “The international community must rally behind the least developed countries that are committed to undertaking the necessary reforms,” he said, noting that ODA, which remained a major financing source for many of those countries, must support national development strategies and strengthen private sector development, investment and trade. The trends of declining ODA and engagement of traditional development partners in some cases must be reversed, while taking into account new trends and realities.
The potential of emerging economies must be harnessed to benefit the development of the poorest, he said. South-South cooperation, which should be encouraged in the Istanbul action plan, had already greatly contributed to stimulating investment, creating jobs and mobilizing domestic resources in the least developed countries. “We must also ensure, with a view to fostering policy coherence for development, that the international environment for trade, investment, and technology transfers is conducive to the diversification of economies in the least developed countries,” he said, calling specifically for the successful conclusion of the Doha development round, the extension of preferences for duty- and quota-free access for all products from those countries, and the adoption of investment agreements.
“Eradicating poverty and reducing vulnerability in the least developed countries is a duty that we have towards the millions of people living in those countries,” he said, stressing that meeting that commitment would make the world safer, more prosperous, more dynamic, more democratic and more united. “Today, maybe for the first time in history, we have the resources and the know-how to make this happen. We shall, then, act, without further ado, and my strong wish is that the Istanbul programme of action will help us in our endeavour,” he declared.
BONI YAYI, President of Benin, said he was pleased that, since the first United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries in 1981, those nations had been at the centre of the international community’s concerns. For its part, Benin had made strong efforts to reach established objectives, having taken the initiative to organize in Cotonou several ministerial meetings on the subject, first in 2002 and later in 2006, making it possible to devise strategies for implementing the Brussels Programme of Action.
But despite efforts to make progress in governance, human development, health and other areas, he said, least developed countries in Africa faced numerous challenges. Their share of international trade had not increased, despite preferential access to markets, and in the social domain, school attendance for girls remained low. Programmes to combat HIV and AIDS and malaria were slow, leaving the Millennium Development Goals far from being achieved by 2015, while the environmental and food crises had exposed those countries to economic shocks, a situation further undermined by climate change.
Against that backdrop, the Istanbul Conference was extremely important and must produce an ambitious, realistic action programme that would generate concrete results, he said. The experience of the first three action programmes should ensure that more importance was given to productive investment and social promotion measures. “We need more imagination, more pragmatism,” he said,so that least developed countries could diversify their exports, gain access to markets and enhance infrastructure.
Strategies to attain those objectives must be supported by the mobilization of additional resources to promote wealth-creating investments, he said, noting that new support mechanisms also must be created to surmount the difficulties. Indeed, cyclical difficulties — which characterized the current economic situation — should not prevent States from having a clear view of the planet’s future. The conclusion of the Doha multilateral trade round and appropriate “aid for development” initiatives would provide more trade opportunities for least developed countries.
Indeed, acceleration of least developed country development would help re-launch the world economy and ensure achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, he said, urging development partners to fulfil their obligations and commit to additional resources. Before concluding, he called for special attention to earthquake-ravaged Haiti, which could provide an opportunity for donors and partners to participate in triangular cooperation.
JOSÉ MANUEL BARROSO, President of the European Commission, recalling that the Commission had hosted the Third United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries in Brussels, said the world was coming together to address the needs of the poorest members of the international community. The least developed countries were the epicentre of a continuing development emergency and the Conference was dedicated to making concerted efforts to address their plight. Although those countries had logged economic growth over the past decade, that progress had been uneven, and considerable work remained to be done. All stakeholders should undertake specific measures, in sub-Saharan Africa in particular, to address the situation.
He said that the political commitment of the least developed countries to make the necessary changes towards promoting their own development was strong. Nevertheless, they needed the wider international community to live up to their part of the bargain struck at earlier major United Nations conferences. Building on the achievement of those meetings, he said that three main issues should be addressed in Istanbul: identifying ways and means to combat the vulnerability and fragility of least developed countries; creating a favourable environment for enhancing their productive capacity; and promoting economic development of those countries. Meanwhile, the least developed countries must continue to make strides in areas such as protecting human rights and promoting good governance.
Continuing, he that the European Union had always led the effort to support the least developed countries, and he called on the wider international community to scale up its assistance. At the same time, it would not be enough to merely provide more aid; the quality of that assistance also must be improved. The European Union had been fulfilling its commitments in that regard, including by ensuring duty- and quota-free exports from the least developed countries. That had proved to be one of the most concrete and decisive ways of fighting poverty.
He reported that the European Union’s share of global aid — some 50 per cent — far overshot its share of the global economy, and he called upon all countries, including emerging economies, to match that initiative and provide their fair share of assistance to least developed countries. “We can always do more and do better. We can address challenges together,” he said, stressing that the goal was common sustainable development. He underscored the Union’s hope for a balanced and action-oriented Istanbul action plan, which set out goals and objectives that were realistic and pragmatic.
JHALA NATH KHANAL, Prime Minister of Nepal and Chair of the Global Coordination Bureau of the Least Developed Countries, said that as States looked forward to a new dawn of hope, they should not be oblivious to the fact that the political and economic order must be transformed to properly address poverty. Reform of global institutions, including the United Nations, must be undertaken to make them more effective in meeting the expectations of the most needy. That the number of least developed countries had grown from 25 in 1971 to 48 today suggested there were flaws in the development paradigm, and serious attention was needed to address such inequities.
He said that for the first time in history, the means and tools were available to free the world from absolute poverty — a goal that could be achieved with strong collective will. Yet, more than a billion people continued to live below the poverty line, most of them in least developed countries. The challenge was to match expectations with genuine commitment. The Conference, in his view, was entirely about making that happen for the larger welfare of humanity. It should chart an ambitious yet realistic vision with a result-oriented action plan.
Since the Brussels Conference, least developed countries had made progress in the areas of human and social development, he said, citing gender empowerment, education and health, in particular. Pro-poor development strategies had been devised with an appropriate focus on macroeconomic stability and equity. But, there was a long way to go, as the Brussels Programme of Action remained an “unfinished agenda”. Least developed countries were off-track in meeting the Millennium Goals and simply lacked basic services taken for granted in other parts of the world. The compound impacts of the global crises of finance, fuel and food had made life untenable.
Today, inequality among countries was at the highest level than at any other time in history, he said, calling for urgent action to build resilience. Least developed countries were diverse. Many were landlocked, small island and coastal States, arid or semi-arid countries, or countries in or emerging from conflict. As such, support measures must be coherent and sustained. The vision was to create inclusive and sustained economic growth, which would be achieved only with strong productive capacity and economic infrastructure.
With that in mind, he called for, among other things, more resources for investing in productive sectors, more ODA, meaningful market access for all least-developed country products and removal of tariff and non-tariff barriers. Further, the voice of least developed countries should be ensured in all international forums. The Istanbul Conference should be a “watershed event”, producing an outcome that ensured “renewed and robust global solidarity” to uplift least developed countries. Bold initiatives of the highest order were needed so that by 2021, the number of least developed countries would be halved. “This is certainly not an unreasonable expectation,” he said.
Pascal Lamy, Director-General of the World Trade Organization, citing progress, said that least developed country growth rates of 7 per cent were higher than average global growth levels, and trade had increased by two thirds. Indeed, trade had grown two times faster than in other countries. Nepal and Cape Verde had become members of the World Trade Organization, while Vanuatu would join in a few weeks. Least developed countries received almost half of the technical assistance volume.
He noted that progress also had been seen in the provision of ODA to promote the trade capacity of least developed countries. “Overall, we see we are on the right path”. In terms of market access, even if it had improved, the duty-free access of least developed countries was still not guaranteed within the World Trade Organization, 10 years after Brussels. Regarding the simplification of its rules of origin, the situation was an obstacle for least developed country exports.
He urged accelerated accession to that organization by Ethiopia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Syria and Yemen. As for ODA in the area of trade, he said “we’re talking about keeping the pace to ensure better distribution of trade”, as two thirds of assistance now focused on 10 least developed countries. Indeed, there was great potential to be tapped and urgent decisions were needed. In sum, he expressed hope that the Conference would relate to the impact of trade on development.
NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA, Managing Director of the World Bank, said that the world was going through a very difficult transition, with growth gradually recovering. Least developed countries were performing well, but their growth was fragile due to vulnerability to climate change, natural disasters, political conflict, rising food prices and a population bulge among youth. To achieve a more stable situation, those countries must continue to watch inflation. Stimulation programmes could serve them well, but the main challenge was rebuilding fiscal space. Tax and customs administrations offices must be rationalized, and economic and fiscal buffers must be buffered to withstand further crises.
In those efforts, she said, least developed countries should look to Turkey as an example. The country had risen from the crisis of 2001 through a strong programme of comprehensive reform, which produced job-creating growth. Such reform should help build capacity to take advantage of investment flows. It was important to increase agricultural production in particular, also creating markets and producing jobs. Growth in agriculture produced four times the jobs of growth in other sectors. Trade and trade agreements were equally important. In those areas, access to markets was important, but countries must be able to seize the opportunities that were provided, using their comparative advantage. In all areas, education was crucial for building capacity. Aside from increasing enrolment, quality and kind of education should be addressed. Reducing the risk of disasters and the effects of climate change was also important.
The international community could help if it focused in all those areas, she said. In that effort, the World Bank had been able to mobilize more than $49 billion for the next three years to support the poorest countries in the world, with a particular focus on post-conflict countries. The Bank intended to increase its attention to the least developed countries and to strengthen its assistance in all relevant areas, from food security to gender-based concerns.
Her Highness SHEIKHA MOZA BINT NASSER, First Lady of Qatar, and member of the Millennium Development Goals Advisory Group of Eminent persons, said delegations had gathered in Istanbul in the belief that human development should be at the forefront of the international community’s interests. Indeed, unlike mere growth, sustainable development increased the ability of societies to achieve peace and justice and make people aware of their rights. All stakeholders must press for action — beyond words and towards full implementation of the Brussels programme. “We have before us some thorny issues [including] widespread abject poverty, ignorance, difficult living conditions and ever increasing unemployment,” she said, stressing that those ills, which included an inability to address blatant violations of the environment, were divisive among human beings.
She said that that ever widening gap was spreading inequality and depravation. The challenges were formidable and, frankly, placed the international community in a critical situation. Future generations were at risk as “we stumble in translating the [Millennium Declaration] into living reality”. While she was not belittling what had been accomplished over the past 11 years, she believed that stakeholders could do more to come up with viable solutions to address key remaining challenges. With four years remaining until the deadline for reaching the Millennium Development Goals, it was clear that nations such as the least developed countries and those emerging from conflict, faced specific and complex challenges.
“The Millennium Goals did not offer answers or solutions for [such challenges]; therefore we must raise the ceiling of our commitments to make them more realistic,” she said, calling for an approach that was based on shared responsibility. A main focus should be on education, which was the key to attaining the Goals. Ensuring the right to primary education and gender equality must be supported by policies that promoted citizens’ awareness, good governance, justice and fairness. Such a comprehensive approach was especially necessary in the context of the changes that were sweeping the Arab world, where the desire for a life of freedom and dignity was transcending borders and cultures. That new reality reaffirmed that “living societies” were those rich in the potential of their educated youth. It was incumbent upon all stakeholders to maintain the constructive spirit that had brought the international community together to launch creative partnerships to follow-up any conclusions that would be reached here. All efforts should include the participation of civil society groups and the social movement.
ANDERS B. JOHNSSON, Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, said the purpose of the parliamentary track was to ensure that the views of parliamentarians were heard, as 10 years ago at the Brussels Conference, “there was not a word on parliaments”. For most of the last decade, parliaments had been seen as marginal to the implementation of the Brussels commitments. Today, he was pleased that the latest draft of the programme of action referred to the role of parliaments in debating and monitoring development plans. The underlying problem of development was political, and not economic, relating more to “who gets a place at the table where decisions are made”.
He said that if rural economies in least developed countries were jump-started, women should be given the same rights as men to buy land, take out loans and participate equally in politics. If people were to benefit from their countries’ natural resources, exploitation of those rights should not be undersold to foreign concerns in corrupt deals, and taxes should be collected to support social programmes. At the same time, political institutions must be strengthened to help people to invest in small businesses and further their children’s education.
Among other measures, he urged ensuring that all aid was subjected to parliamentary scrutiny in donor and recipient countries alike, that an international investment regime protected small industries, and that the trade regime was not unfairly tilted towards wealthy countries. Above all, governance was essential and all parliaments must review their institutional processes to help mainstream the commitments of this Conference. To resolve all issues affecting least developed countries, however, stronger partnerships among all stakeholders were needed. With that in mind, the Union yesterday finalized an implementation plan for the Istanbul programme of action that built on its cooperation with the Office of the High Representative, among others, to support parliaments.
MUHTAR KENT, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Coca-Cola Company, representing the Conference’s private sector track, said his company was keenly aware of the major steps that needed to be taken on behalf of the least developed countries. He was convinced that the only way the international community could make concrete efforts towards improving the livelihoods of those countries and ensure that half of them graduated from the United Nations-identified list of least developed countries was for businesses, private-sector actors, civil society and Governments to pool their actions and work together.
Above all, he said, the private sector needed to step up its investment in the least developed countries. Presently, such investment stood at some $30 billion, which was nowhere near the amount that was commensurate with the opportunities that existed in those countries. Coca-cola was counting on the rise of the countries; scaling up its investments, not as charity work, but betting on their potential and their proven ability to spur economic growth.
Governments, for their part, needed to promote a better environment for development, ensure a level playing field and investor-friendly forums in the least developed countries, he said. The “golden triangle” — business, Government and civil society — should continue to cooperate to develop sustainable communities in those countries, working in tandem to create jobs and, among other things, boost local sourcing of agricultural products. He called on all members and sectors of the international community to join forces to identify lasting solutions. “We have the power to change lives, improve livelihoods, grow and sustain economies and businesses everywhere. We can do this.”
JAMES WOLFENSOHN, Co-Chair of the Group of Eminent Persons for the Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries and former President of the World Bank, said the Compact for Inclusive Growth and Prosperity report, which his team prepared, focused on such issues as the sufficiency of human capital, dependence — 70 per cent of which was on agriculture — as well as ways to increase exports and improve poor governance. Those elements were essential to growth. “They were true at the first Conference in 1981 and they remain true today,” he said.
Citing two other issues that related not to the partnership with the rich world, but to what least developed countries themselves could do, he said “no one talks adequately about governance”. It was always assumed that donors would offer 5 per cent or 6 per cent more in assistance. “That is not victory,” he said. Governance determined how effectively money was used, especially in addressing poverty. It also related to how well development institutions worked together.
He went on to say that his 10-year experience in development had led him to conclude that there was very little coordination among civil society organizations and a natural competition in the private sector. While there was a plethora of good will, there were far too many initiatives and a great deal of waste.
The second issue was corruption, to which the entire development field was subjected, he said. The common thinking was that all work diminished between 5 per cent and 35 per cent due to corruption. “If I could get away with 5 per cent, I thought it was pretty good,” he said. While that spoke to the core of effectiveness, no one discussed it. Governance, coordination and corruption were singularly and importantly in the hands of least developed countries themselves. And they must do something about it to make resources effective, which meant training young people, building management and being accountable — all of which must be addressed if the next decade were to see more countries at the level of viability that everyone sought.
If there was one thing he learned at the Bank, it was that the key issue to be addressed was of internal governance, coordination, accountability and corruption, he said, adding, “it gnaws at the effectiveness of what we do”. It had not been addressed this morning and he urged giving those issues thought.
ARJUN KARKI, Global Coordinator of the Civil Society Steering Committee for the Conference, representing the civil society track, said delegations in Istanbul were “in the final days of a long journey to craft a sustainable development agenda for the least developed countries”. Civil society had an ambitious agenda; grass roots groups believed that no country should be left to the fate of being “least developed”. No human potential should be wasted. Civil society had been intensely listening to the voices of people in Africa, Asia and the Pacific. It had been actively working with Governments in Europe, Latin America and the United States to ensure that the needs of least developed countries were adequately addressed.
He said that despite repeated commitments by the international community, there had been little change in the lives and livelihoods for the marginalized people in the least developed countries. Indeed, those countries bore the brunt of all the recent crises, including the economic downturn and the sharp rise in food and oil prices. Some 900 million people were suffering hardship for conditions that they had not created. At the same time, the least developed countries had massive potential. With opportunity, and even minimal support from Governments and the international community, they were poised for giant leaps forward.
Yet, he acknowledged that they all suffered from a lack of productive capacity. There had been repeated commitments to reform the rules that frustrated their development, but implementation had been inadequate. In fact, polices of the past had actually increased the number of least developed countries from 25 to 48. Moreover, only three countries had graduated since the category had been created. “We ask you to raise your vision,” he said, calling on development partners to ensure that the Istanbul action plan, not only shaped the targets for reducing the number of those countries by half, but was a step towards eliminating the category altogether. “Our aim is to make the term ‘LDC’ history. We should accept nothing less,” he said.
He called on the Conference to craft an international development architecture that lifted the people of those countries out of poverty and “put people and the planet before profit”. He was very concerned that in the negotiations on the outcome, specific commitments for most of the targets being discussed had not yet been agreed. He urged Governments to identify time-bound deliverables that could be measured and monitored. He also called for a process that resulted in new debt cancellation without inappropriate conditions, as that would help the least developed countries enhance their productive capacities. It was time for leaders to coalesce around a vision of sustainable development for the least developed countries. The Istanbul declaration could provide the inspiration for such a vision.
MICHELLE BACHELET, Under-Secretary-General for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), saidthe ratio of girls to boys enrolled in primary schools in least developed countries was .7 to 1.1, while female literacy rates had increased by almost 10 per cent in the last decade — which was important progress upon which to build. But progress also was needed to address the fact that 80 per cent of the 800 million people in those nations lived on less than $2 a day, most of whom were women and girls.
Further, infant and child mortality rates were high, she said. Women in sub-Saharan Africa were eight times more likely to be HIV-positive than men. Rural areas lagged far behind in terms of all Millennium Development Goal indicators, especially those related to gender equality. That issue was particularly important for least developed countries, as 70 per cent of their populations lived in those areas.
Another key area requiring more attention concerned reducing women’s unpaid care work, she said, noting that labour-saving technologies and alternative energy sources had been effective in reducing women’s work time from hours to minutes. Rural women and men alike were challenged by a lack of critical services such as energy and water supply. Solar energy, for example, could provide entire villages with lighting to generate water and preserve medicines and food.
Continuing, she said least developed countries, due to their high dependence on food imports, had been heavily impacted by high food prices. Women comprised half of the agricultural labour force and their increased access to financial services could have positive impacts on development. If they had the same access to productive resources as men, for example, farm productivity could increase by 20 to 30 per cent.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimates showed that only 5.6 per cent of aid for the agricultural sector was dedicated to gender equality. More must be done in that regard. UN Women, for its part, would identify solutions to reduce the burden of unpaid care work on women and promote rural women’s access to productive and financial resources.
Apart from agriculture, increased provision of a social protection floor was needed to provide employment guarantees, she said, underscoring the importance of increasing informal workers’ access to services like health, water, housing and sanitation. “Social protection should be considered an investment, not a cost,” as that would help women participate more fully in economic life. “Women-friendly” markets also should be created to overcome barriers. UN Women stood ready to support graduation from the least developed country list by making women a subject of positive action.
JOAN CLOS, Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) said that development could not be separated from urbanization, which presented its own challenges. However, the city, if minimally well managed, could become an asset to development. Economic value in the city came both from rising land values and the benefits of economies of organization and scale. The increased growth of the next decade must be managed through good planning to avoid greater problems of conflict and sanitation.
He urged the formulation of new urban planning for that reason, which meant the increased attention of Governments to the organization process, including advanced planning, planning to scale, precise planning with 30 per cent of land for streets, affordable water and energy sources, and no building on slopes of over 7 per cent or on wetlands. His organization had much planning experience and it was willing to share the details to improve urban life in the least developed countries in the next 10 years.
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For information media • not an official record