3^rd Conference on LDCs

General Statement by Commissioner Nielson,

EUROPEAN COMMISSION (DEVELOPMENT AND HUMANITARIAN AID)

18 May 2001, 11.00 A.M

(check against delivery)

Draft General Statement

This will be at least my fifth statement during this Conference and probably not the last. For you, for the audience, it is one of the dozens of statements you have been listening to in the last few days. Therefore, I will keep it short and as clear as possible, even if some may say that traditional diplomatic courtesy may suffer. As usual, I prefer to be clear, rather than to be nice.

This is an important Conference. It takes place at a moment when there is a strong political will in the EU to refocus our development co-operation on the need to address the problems of the poorest peoples in the world. We must recognize that in recent years development co-operation has gone through a crisis, clearly shown by the decrease in ODA flows. Today, the international community shows a new interest for the problems of development. We have to seize this new momentum to fight against the scourge of poverty and to address widely shared problems such as environmental degradation, spread of communicable diseases and migration.

We are therefore happy to see such an important global meeting hosted by the EU. The European Commission has been closely involved in the preparatory phase at country, regional and global level and has supported the Conference both logistically and financially.

For us, this Conference is an opportunity to confirm our strong commitment to poverty reduction and to addressing the specific problems of the least developed countries. As one of the worlds largest aid donors, the EC plays a vital part in the efforts to eradicate poverty.

This Conference represents a real effort to open a constructive dialogue between the institutional players and the civil society. Civil society is one of the key pillars of development and close cooperation with it is essential to ensure the widest possible participation of all sectors of society to provide the conditions for greater equity and inclusion of the poor in the benefits of economic growth,

I would like to say a few words on the Programme of Action currently negotiated at the Conference, by which the LDCs and their international partners define together the general framework of their sustainable development. We must ensure that this Conference produces an operational outcome that will make a real difference to peoples' lives in LDCs.

I hope that, in the course of negotiations, two principles remain clearly visible: ownership and good governance.

To be effective, development strategies must be fully owned by the governments and civil societies of LDCs. It must be based on a commitment to good governance in all its aspects and on the creation of an enabling domestic environment.

In particular, there is a need for an active, comprehensive and integrated policy of peace-building and conflict prevention, as armed conflicts destroy in days the efforts made over several years.

Poverty has multiple dimensions. For that reason, actions should not only address the sheer economic aspects of the problems of LDCs, but also the social, human and environmental dimensions. Economic development, social development and environmental protection are interdependent and mutually reinforcing components of sustainable development, which is the framework for any effort to achieve a higher quality of life for all people.

Development efforts have to include gender issues, as gender inequality hinders growth, poverty reduction and progress in health and education. Gender equality needs therefore to be mainstreamed in all areas.

Co-ordination is essential. The implementation of the Programme of Action should be linked to existing development co-ordination and planning processes at country level in LDCs that aim at mobilising actors and resources behind nationally owned policies for poverty eradication. I am thinking in particular of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs), which are the appropriate instruments to link trade, development, and poverty at the national level. The EC has decided to use the PRSPs as a major tool for the programming of its development cooperation,

These instruments should have a key role in the implementation of the Programme of Action.

Finally, I am happy to note that the interactive thematic sessions have been an important tool to identify concrete initiatives that can be immediately implemented. They have brought to this Conference an innovative and successful element.

For the EU, a successful outcome of the Conference will finally depend on the acceptance by the international community of the fact that the complexity of the problems faced by the LDCs requires a common effort by all partners and by both developed and developing countries. We are convinced that we will only be able to call the Conference a success if in the implementation of its results a real development impact can be seen.

This conference too will add to the number of internationally agreed targets. It strikes me that most of these targets have to be reached in 2015. So we have 14 more years to go. But what is 14 years compared with the huge challenges that rise up behind the targets? If we do not draw up logical frameworks, or should I say war plans, we will see the hopes of today gradually change into dreams and finally nightmares. The international community cannot afford, nor allow, this to happen.

The European Commission will certainly do its part in this endeavour of bringing about a positive and real impact. The challenge is to turn today’s least developed countries into tomorrow’s successfully developing countries. This is the true test of whether we have an international society or only an international market. It is doable – so let us do it.