Secretary-General: "Ultimately, the success of our work is measured by the difference it makes to the poor in developing countries"
UNCTAD´s governing board began its annual two-week review of trade and development concerns today, with Ministers and other high-level government officials debating how to ensure that current impressive global economic growth includes all countries and the world´s many remaining poor.
Opening the 54th session of the Trade and Development Board, UNCTAD Secretary-General Supachai Panitchpakdi told delegates that "Ultimately, the success of our work is measured by the difference it makes to the poor in developing countries."
Discussions today and throughout the Board session that will conclude on 11 October have been framed around the upcoming UNCTAD XII, scheduled for 20-25 April 2008 in Accra, Ghana. The theme of that quadrennial conference, which sets the direction of the organization and responds to trends in trade and the global economy, is "addressing the opportunities and challenges of globalization for development."
Mr. Supachai said the foundations of trade and the world economy are shifting: between 1990 and 2006, the share of developing countries in world exports rose from 24% to 37%; the inward foreign direct investment to such nations doubled; and their outward investment tripled. The financial reserves of developing countries climbed from US$300 billion in 1990 to $2.5 trillion in 2005.
Yet poverty remains a concern. "Many of the world´s poorest countries continue to be left out of growth," Mr. Supachai cautioned, adding that poverty also persists in many middle-income nations and in the "transition" economies of central and eastern Europe. He said the economic progress being made by the South, led by several Asian nations, must be studied so that it can be further nurtured and made more inclusive. The current heavy reliance among many least developed countries (LDCs) on the export of a limited number of commodities or raw materials must be transformed into broader economic growth, he said, and climate change and the security of energy supplies must be addressed.
Mr. Supachai also warned that while the global economy is growing, it is important to remain alert to potential financial crises. These include a possible disorderly unrolling of current accounts imbalances. There should be "a multilateral approach to dealing with this problem, similar to the one existing in the trade field," he said.
The afternoon´s "high-level segment" - so-called because it features the participation of prominent officials - focused on the topic of "globalization and inclusive development," which Mr. Supachai termed "a crucial moral and political imperative. . . We must urgently find ways to ensure that even the poorest see tangible benefits from globalization, and that truly all countries are included in its momentum."
Leading the discussion from the podium were Kim Campbell, former Prime Minister of Canada and founding member of the Club of Madrid; Joe Baidoe-Ansah, Minister of Trade, Industry and Private Sector Development & Private Sector Investment of Ghana; and Richard Samans, Managing Director of the World Economic Forum.
Ms. Campbell reviewed the Club of Madrid´s efforts to promote access to energy as a way of reducing poverty while also facing up to the problem of climate change. The Club´s 68 members are former democratic Heads of State and government. Energy is vital for alleviating poverty, she said - and lack of reliable access to it imposes severe limits on development. The climate-change dilemma complicates the challenge of easing energy shortages.
Mr. Baidoe-Ansah said high prices for commodities are now aiding many developing countries, but even with recent consistent growth in sub-Saharan Africa, the number of people living on less than US$1 per day in the region is increasing. "We don´t need any lengthy discussions about development objectives and targets," he said. "What we need now is commitment and action." He said developing countries must improve the skills of their populations, have better access to technology, and improve the internal linkages of their economies. They also need help to upgrade roads, electricity generation, and other infrastructure. And attention must be paid to climate change in a way that does not jeopardize development.
Mr. Samans told the meeting that the foundations of global growth must be broadened and diversified, and the benefits of that growth spread much more widely. Help with economic-institution building that could distribute the benefits more equitably within developing countries would be one way to approach these difficulties; international financial institutions could contribute more to infrastructure improvements than they do currently. And energy and climate change are a huge challenge: no successful global climate strategy would work unless it had a financial assistance component to help countries afford more efficient and climate-friendly energy production.
Discussion from the floor centred on such topics as helping developing countries to diversify their economies; market access for exports; the effect of developed-country agricultural subsidies on farm exports from the developing world; and biofuels.
Elected President of this year´s Trade and Development Board was Ambassador Petko Draganov of Bulgaria, who called in brief introductory remarks for a spirit of "partnership and good old common sense." Nine of the Board´s 10 Vice-Presidents were appointed: they were Alberto Dumont of Argentina; Mabel Gomez Oliver of Mexico; Roger Julien Menga of the Republic of the Congo; Mohamed Siad-Douale of Djibouti; Juan Antonio March of Spain; Franciscos Verros of Greece; Iouri Afanassiev of the Russian Federation; Lisa Carle of the United States; and Chen Jiang Ping of China. Zarie Zare of Iran was elected Rapporteur.
And Estonia was unanimously elected to the Board and became UNCTAD´s newest - and its 151st - member State.
