8:35 AM Feb 21, 1995

G77 MOVE AHEAD ON UNCTAD-9 PREPARATIONS

Geneva 21 Feb (TWN) -- Unfazed by some recent calls for winding up UNCTAD, the Group of 77, in consultation with other groups and countries, is moving ahead to prepare for the Ninth Session of the UN Conference on Trade and Development to be held in 1996 in Africa.

In announcing the preparatory process, the Chairman of the Group Amb. Guillermo Alberto Gonzalez of Colombia and three of his colleagues in the Group, stressed the complimentary roles of UNCTAD and the newly established World Trade Organization and the importance attached by the developing countries to the continuance and reinvigoration of UNCTAD to support the developing countries in development.

Gonzalez was accompanied by Amb. Gilberto Vergne Saboia of Brezil, who is heading the G77's preparatory committee for UNCTAD-9, Amb. Daniel D.C.Don Nanjira of Kenya and Amb. Haron Siraj of Malaysia, the two vice-chairman of that preparatory committee.

In outlining the preparatory work under way, Saboia responded indirectly to the recent report of the Commission on Global Governance (which suggested the winding up of UNCTAD and UNIDO, and the establishment of the Economic Security Council at the UN) and the remarks (in a German media interview) of Karl-Theodor Paschke of Germany, head of the new UN Office for Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) who also called for a reassessment of UNCTAD's role in view the WTO's establishment.

Saboia suggested that the report of the Global Governance Commission had to be examined as a whole and not seen selectively in terms of UNCTAD and the eradication of the subject of development out of the international debate. Proposals for the overall reform of the UN and "global governance" went beyond the issues of particular institutions and deserved serious consideration. It involved issues of ceding of sovereignty by all countries, and reform of the United Nations and other bodies, including the permanent members of the security council, on global issues.

"It is not hence appropriate to focus only on UNCTAD," Saboia said. "If there is a thorough-going reform of the international system, it remains to be seen what could be the particular role there of UNCTAD and what attitude we should adopt to specific parts of the international system. But we cannot rush to implement a few specific and selective approaches. We have to keep a balance between issues promoted by some groups and those promoted by others".

Earlier Saboya said that as a result of preliminary discussions within the Group of 77 and other interested countries, there was an emerging consensus on the main theme of the next UNCTAD Session and the secretariat would be preparing papers for the conference. The regional groups would be holding ministerial meetings towards the end of the year and this would lead to the consideration at the conference of development issues.

Gonzalez and his three colleagues were at pains to stress the importance of not having any confrontations at UNCTAD and the increasing phenomenon of globalization and liberalisation, and the importance attached by the developing countries in this context to the role of UNCTAD and the assistance it could provide to the developing countries.

Both Siraj and Nanjira complained of 'development' disappearing from the UN and international agenda, while peace and security and political and civil rights were occupying the stage.

Saboia said that while development was being seen as the responsibility of the individual States and the need for economic reforms and structural adjustment to realities "we also think it is necessary to keep development as the main focus of international debate".

Siraj said while there was a tendency to think of World Bank in regard to development and the WTO for trade, trade and development was central to the role of UNCTAD. Unfortunately, the UN system seemed to be neglecting economics. There was need to work out some amount of coherence. He also praised the role of UNCTAD in providing assistance to the developing countries.