General Assembly Session 53 meeting 44

Mr. Sucharipa (Austria)

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union (EU). In addition, the Central and Eastern European countries associated with the European Union -- Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia -- and the associated country Cyprus align themselves with this statement.

The European Union welcomes the progress report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF), which should be considered in conjunction with the recommendations put forward by the Secretary-General in his report on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa. The European Union is actively participating in the follow-up to the Secretary-General's report and sees today's discussion as an integral part of this endeavour. The European Union, in this regard, commends the decision of the Economic and Social Council to aim at harmonizing the ongoing international initiatives at its next coordination segment and to examine the institutional framework for African development within the United Nations system.

Last year's Human Development Report indicated the main causes of poverty in Africa, affecting about 45 per cent of the population in sub-Saharan Africa: economic stagnation and slow employment growth; increasing income disparities; the lack of pro-poor economic growth; marginalization from global trade and financial flows; high fertility and the spread of HIV/AIDS; the degradation of natural resources; and the consequences of violent conflict, including increased displacement of people and violations of human rights. These are the issues we need to continue to address within the United Nations system, within regional efforts and at the country level.

Despite the fact that growth rates in sub-Saharan Africa have been relatively high in recent years and that African countries are increasingly putting in place sound macroeconomic policies, most African countries have not been able to benefit significantly from globalization. At the same time, African economies continue to depend largely on the export of commodities for their development. The recent fall in commodity prices represents a decline in the income of primary commodity producers, which has a significant effect on fiscal and trade balance in a number of African countries, since a large proportion of government revenues come from this source. The functioning of the markets for many of these commodities could be improved.

Through the Lomé Convention and its instruments providing compensation for the loss of export earnings for agricultural and many other products, the European Union is addressing this issue. The Union hopes that the agreement that is to replace the Lomé Convention after the year 2000 will contribute to the integration of African countries into the globalized world economy. We also emphasize the importance of the further diversification of the production and export structures, which is crucial.

Under the EU Lomé Convention with the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries and Mediterranean agreements with North African countries, the European Union provides favourable and preferential access to its market for African exports. For example, the Union provides tariff- and quota-free access to imports of textiles from African least developed countries. But, as the Secretary-General's Panel of High-level Personalities on African Development noted at its recent meeting, chaired by Mr. Poul Nielson, Minister for Development Cooperation of Denmark, there remains significant scope for addressing trade barriers to African exports in important markets. The European Union also agrees with the Panel's underscoring of the importance of building supply capacity to take advantage of new and existing market opportunities and making Africa more competitive.

External debt continues to be a serious impediment to sustainable development for many African countries. Unless the external debt is reduced to sustainable levels, especially for the poorest countries, the benefits of reform risk being swallowed up by increased debt services. On top of the financial debt relief already granted in the framework of the Paris Club and on a national basis -- inter alia, through the cancellation of official aid debt and debt-swap arrangements -- the European Union member States will fully participate in the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Debt (HIPC) Initiative in order to alleviate the debt burden for the poorest countries. Although the European Union is primarily a donor of grant aid and is only a small creditor to highly indebted poor countries, the Community has recently agreed to fully participate in the Initiative. The European Union will strengthen its support to highly indebted poor countries by targeting more of its resources to structural adjustment support and by reinforcing its support for debt management in accordance with the Lomé Convention.

In the ongoing negotiations regarding successor arrangements for the present Lomé Convention, the EU has made far-reaching proposals for a new global partnership with Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific, which include three components: political dialogue, support for development and economic and trade cooperation. Responsibility for the preservation of a political environment conducive to peace, security, respect for human rights, development and reducing poverty lies with each country. The European Union's role is to support those efforts. The objective of reducing and eradicating poverty has to be the central concern, to be achieved through more sustained development and greater competitiveness, as well as the development of the private sector and improved access to social services.

As regards trade and economic cooperation, the European Union's proposal aims at further developing our trade cooperation in a strengthened economic partnership. The main objective is to facilitate the progressive integration of ACP countries into the world economy. There is a clear link between development cooperation and the establishment of a regulatory framework favourable to trade development and investment. The search for stability and predictability in economic and trade policies is a key element in this approach.

The European Union is proposing to negotiate economic partnership agreements covering free-trade areas and an enhanced cooperation in trade-related matters with such groupings which are engaged in a regional integration process. Appropriate transition periods will have to be defined, and development programmes will assist the process of restructuring and reform. Those agreements will have to be negotiated pragmatically, taking account of the economic and social constraints of each country. The Union is proposing to manage the process with a maximum of flexibility, in relation to the coverage of liberalization, the duration of the implementation period and the degree of asymmetry in the process of tariff dismantlement. The Union is also ready to undertake commitments to protect infant industries and to look at the application of World Trade Organization (WTO) rules to take into account the special economic and social needs of ACP countries, particularly with respect to safeguards.

The level of development of each partner country is obviously important. That is why the current non-reciprocal trade regulations will be maintained with least developed countries that are not members of a regional group entering into an economic partnership agreement with the European Union. All least developed countries will see their market access regime improving from the year 2000 in such a way that by 2005 they will benefit from duty-free access to the European Community market for, essentially, all products. For those ACP countries not in a position to enter into economic partnerships, the European Union will consider ways of providing them with a framework for trade which is equivalent to that which they currently enjoy. The Union will examine all alternative possibilities in order to provide these countries with a new framework for trade between them and the European Union which is equivalent to their existing situation under the Lomé Convention and in conformity with WTO rules. In particular, the European Union will take into account their interests in the review of the Generalized System of Preferences in the year 2004, making use of the differentiation permitted by WTO rules.

Women play a key role in the African economy, accounting for 60 per cent of the output in the informal sector and 70 per cent in the agricultural sector, but they have only very restricted access to material production factors and services. Still, not enough support is given to local economies or to encouraging innovative entrepreneurial attitudes in which women are frequently key players. It is therefore imperative that women be involved in all development measures on an equal basis, as they frequently have more practical knowledge in, for instance, agriculture, street trading and food production. Gender discrimination needs to be eliminated in social, political and economic contexts, and women have to be given equal access to education and economic resources, and in particular to credit, inheritance and ownership.

Africa's development is closely linked to peace, security and stability. As part of its efforts to secure global security, including in the situation on the African continent, the European Union has called for a ban on the use of landmines, a code of conduct on arms exports and a limitation of military budgets to 1 per cent of gross national product. The European Union commends efforts by African States and regional and subregional organizations, in particular the Organization of African Unity (OAU), to resolve conflicts by peaceful means. Under its common position on conflict prevention and resolution in Africa, the European Union is ready to assist in building capacities for conflict prevention in Africa, particularly through the OAU and African subregional organizations.

The Union reiterates that protecting all human rights and fundamental freedoms, promoting transparency and accountability in public administration and fighting corruption are crucial and necessary steps in building peace and promoting development. In this respect, development cooperation has to play an important role.

The Union is the world's leading source of development assistance to Africa, providing more than two thirds of total official development assistance flows to sub-Saharan Africa. Development assistance remains a vital component to the policies pursued by the African countries. This particularly concerns the least developed countries, three quarters of which are in Africa. In line with the Treaty on European Union, we are actively committed to improving the operational coordination of development cooperation among ourselves and with partner Governments and other international development actors, such as the United Nations family. Also of crucial importance is an enhanced coherence between our development policy and other policies which are likely to affect developing countries.

UN-NADAF underwent an evaluation of its implementation and a mid-term review in 1996. It is critical that we keep the Agenda, which includes the implementation of the United Nations System-wide Special Initiative on Africa, under constant review to maximize its outcome, which is to be appraised in 2002. The recent recommendations of the Secretary-General are an important element in this process.

The international community has taken a wide range of initiatives in support of African efforts. Overlap and duplication limit their impact on African development. As the recent meeting of the Secretary-General's Panel of High-level Personalities on African Development recommended, African countries and their partners should identify and rank priorities, define respective responsibilities and agree on realistic, measurable targets in priority areas. Let me conclude by repeating the closing remarks of Minister Nielson at that meeting of the Panel. He said that the risks of reversal of recent gains, as well as the threat of further marginalization of Africa are high and that we need to keep the issues confronting Africa at the forefront of the international agenda.

Mr. Soeprapto (Indonesia)

Let me begin by expressing, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, our appreciation to the Secretary-General for the informative reports on this most important issue facing the international community.

It is now seven years since the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF) was launched as a political compact between the African States and the international community for the promotion of the continent's development, one of the major development challenges in the post-cold-war era. Two years ago, the mid-term review of UN-NADAF took place. It was designed to evaluate the progress achieved in reaching the goals of the New Agenda and to agree on further measures to ensure their attainment. At that time the Assembly recorded its disappointment with the progress registered. During the review, the international community reiterated its support for the efforts of the African economies to reach their objectives.

In the two years since the mid-term review of the New Agenda, two significant and revealing trends have clearly emerged. First, the two-decade-long decline in per capita income was reversed in 1995, and the upturn was maintained up to last year. Though the recovery is not robust enough to reverse marginalization and economies have remained very vulnerable to the external environment, the improved performance, including a positive trend in domestic savings, clearly indicates that the commitments undertaken in the New Agenda, as well as in other institutions, were having a positive impact and that the continent was back on the path of sustained development. While these trends are encouraging, the multiplicity of constraints confronting the African economies makes such progress difficult to maintain, and it is particularly difficult to reach the target levels necessary to achieve the objectives of the Agenda under current external conditions.

These conditions result from the second major trend: globalization and the global financial crisis, and they do not bode well for the vulnerable economies and fragile situation in Africa. Coupled with such factors as conflicts, disease and the effects of El Niño, the darkening external environment is again exacting a heavy toll and is severely hampering prospects for the rehabilitation and development of the African continent. It is also true that the major adjustments undertaken by the economies of Africa have not yielded the desired outcome. These profound challenges to the successful implementation of UN-NADAF are of deep concern to the Group of 77 and China, and they call for concerted support from the international community.

As a result, a major dilemma looms for Africa, particularly in the wake of the Asian crisis. While the need for growth and development requires economies to increase their integration into the global market places, the exposure of vulnerable and unprepared economies to the unfettered forces of the market can increase their risk of marginalization and even collapse. Thus, we agree with the report of the Secretary-General that globalization tends to intensify the marginalization of those countries that do not have the capacity to increase exports or to attract investment rapidly. The reality of Africa's exports is that they are narrowly based on commodities, and with the recent plunge in commodity prices, an already difficult situation has been further compounded. More ominously, as pointed out in the report, while the benefits accruing to non-Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries from the Uruguay Round are expected to be between $30 billion and $90 billion in 2002, Africa is expected to lose $1.2 billion each year. In response, it is critical that the international community seek to halt and reverse this haemorrhaging. In this context, it is vitally important that international markets be opened to African exports and that their share of the global market, which currently accounts for only 2 per cent of world trade, be increased. Moreover, the international community should strive to help the African economies diversify into non-traditional exports, particularly in such areas as manufacturing and to help them promote industrialization.

One of the most critical constraints facing development in Africa continues to be the severe shortage in financial resources. In the current situation, and given the general level of development, it is increasingly difficult to generate domestic savings for development. Moreover, the magnitude of the debt and debt-servicing burdens in Africa constitutes a significant drain on domestic savings in these economies. Thus, there is no doubt that such savings must be supplemented by additional resources from the outside. At the same time the reality is that, in this era of globalization, it is difficult to attract sound investment in economies in the early stages of development. Moreover, the official development assistance that many economies in Africa have come to depend upon has also declined. This decline in official development assistance obviously reflects a regrettable trend resulting from the globalization process: donor countries have begun to rely more on private capital to meet the resource requirements of the developing countries. It is rather paradoxical, however, that at a time when Africa was succeeding in its recovery, the additional resources of external funding virtually dried up. It is imperative, therefore, that the international community not squander this unique opportunity to help Africa maintain its new-found growth and development. Therefore, we sincerely urge that Africa's efforts to implement the New Agenda be fully supported.

Closely related to the mobilization of financial resources is the question of crippling external indebtedness. As reported in this year's Trade and Development Report, there is ample evidence to show that Africa's external debt burden is in fact having a severe adverse effect on both public and private investment and renewed growth. Taken as a proportion of exports and gross domestic product, the external debt of Africa is the highest of any developing region. To redress this, a number of initiatives have been launched over the years, yet none have succeeded in resolving this stubborn, perennial question. One initiative that is showing promise, however, is the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Debt Initiative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. It provides a more comprehensive and equitable debt strategy that includes debt reduction so that these countries can bring their debt burden down to sustainable levels. This is a welcome initiative, but there is still room for further revision so as to enhance its effectiveness, sustainability and scope to cover other such countries. We believe that the eligibility criteria should be more flexible, and there is an urgent need for increased resources to ensure speedier implementation.

Before concluding, let me briefly refer to one other critical issue that needs to be further addressed if the New Agenda is to be successfully implemented: the need for improved coordination and feedback between the global political process and the operational levels in the field.

But at present, as stated in the report, there seems to be little feedback between these global and national entities. There is therefore an urgent need for the System-wide Special Initiative on Africa, which is responsible for such coordination, to seek greater involvement of the recipient countries at the field level. We support the assessment in the report favouring the establishment of a mechanism so that direct input on needs and constraints can be provided by Governments and national experts.

In conclusion, the Group of 77 and China believe that the international community should support the initiatives of African countries by seeking to remove remaining constraints on and obstacles to capital migration and the liberalization of markets to allow free entry for African exports. And where private capital is unlikely to flow, such as to the social and infrastructure sectors, official assistance must be strengthened. In addition, while, as outlined in the report, the organizations of the United Nations have accomplished much to advance the New Agenda, there is still a need for those organizations and all other parties concerned to relaunch their efforts to build on the positive results achieved so far and to strive vigorously to bring the New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s to full fruition in the new millennium.

Mr. Chowdhury (Bangladesh)

The indomitable spirit of Africa has energized us always. It is in the perspective of our commitment to the development and prosperity of Africa as a developing region that Bangladesh is honoured to participate in the General Assembly's discussion of progress in the implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF), including measures and recommendations agreed upon at its mid-term review.

With the establishment of Africa as one of the five priorities of the United Nations in the 1990s, intergovernmental mechanisms needed to be created that would give new direction for the much needed international support in favour of African countries. The General Assembly unanimously decided at its forty-sixth session to launch the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, with great expectations of change for the better. It may be recalled that the new initiative was based on the recommendation of the United Nations Programme of Action for African Economic Recovery and Development 1986-1990. The first goal of the New Agenda was to stop and reverse the continuing deterioration of the socio-economic situation of African countries and to renew the commitment of the international community to supporting Africa's own efforts to achieve sustained economic growth and sustainable development. Priority was given to the accelerated transformation, integration, diversification and growth of African economies in order to integrate them with the world economy, reduce their vulnerability to external shocks, increase their dynamism, internalize the process of development and enhance self-reliance. An average real growth rate of 6 per cent per annum in gross national product was set in the New Agenda. UN-NADAF reiterated that the development of Africa was the responsibility of the Africans. However, it also accepted the principle of shared responsibility and the full partnership of the international community in the development of Africa.

Mr. Chowdhury (Bangladesh)

Seven years have passed since UN-NADAF was adopted. During this period we have, of course, seen promising economic trends in many African countries. The Secretary-General's progress report observes in paragraph 11 that compared to the early 1990s, twice as many countries -- 40 -- recorded growth rates of 3 per cent or more. However, we have seen severe setbacks in many of the African countries, and the target of 6 per cent growth has not yet been achieved by a large number of African countries.

While globalization and liberalization usher in economic dynamism, their negative consequences take a heavy toll on the economies of the least developed countries, 33 of which belonging to Africa. In the name of better economic prospects, they are being marginalized. Their economies can hardly absorb the shocks of the fast changes, as they are unable to increase exports and attract investment within a short span of time.

Africa's external debt burden is the highest among developing countries in terms of the ratio of external debt to gross domestic product and in terms of debt servicing. Debt servicing takes away a large portion of the national income of African States. The recent advance in the international strategy to relieve the debt burden of highly indebted poor countries will have some effect, but more needs to be done, not only for Africa's low-income countries but also for its highly indebted middle-income countries. Bangladesh strongly supports the proposal made by the Secretary-General in his 1998 report on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa (A/52/871) for conversion of all the remaining official debt of the poorest African countries into grants by the creditor countries.

We have noted that during the last few years African countries have undertaken a wide range of measures to encourage private sector participation and attract foreign investment. Many countries of Africa have managed to make progress in macroeconomic reform and in liberalization of the external sector. The Secretary-General's report states that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has launched an important initiative for a total of $9 million to provide a regional framework for facilitating and coordinating support activities for small and medium-sized enterprises in Africa. Africa has also reaffirmed the emerging role of non-governmental organizations as development partners. Adoption of the African Charter for Popular Participation in Development and Transformation is clear evidence of Africa's commitment in this regard. Despite this, Africa as a whole has attracted only paltry sums of private capital flows, and these are again concentrated in a handful of countries.

Since the mid-term review of UN-NADAF, significant progress has been made in the African countries in the area of human development. Improvements in health care have led to a decrease in mortality rates. National population policies have in most cases been successfully put in place. Literacy and gender parity in access to education have increased. Women have been playing an increasingly important role in the development of the continent. To make greater progress in these areas, the mid-term review recommended that African countries should endeavour to increase resource allocations in the priority areas of basic education, primary health care, enhancing scientific and technical capacities and creating productive employment and income opportunities. It also recommended the adoption of the 20/20 concept of mutual commitment for basic social programmes by recipients and by donors alike.

We find that poverty eradication was not treated by the mid-term review as a key area, but rather as a cross-cutting issue dealt with within the context of economic reforms, environment and development and the human dimension. In this connection, we are pleased that the Secretary-General's report contained in document A/53/390 recognizes that since the mid-term review, emphasis has been put on microcredit as a means to empower the poor and that this has prompted the United Nations system to devote particular attention to the subject. Bangladesh would like to underline the important role that microcredit can and has been playing in the eradication of poverty and the empowerment of women in particular. We have also noted that the early 1998 study on poverty eradication in Africa done by the United Nations Office of the Special Coordinator for Africa and the Least Developed Countries (OSCAL) has recognized the existence of the vast inherent potential in Africa for people-centred development.

The effective mobilization of financial resources continues to be a critical development issue for the African region. We recall that the Secretary-General's report to us in 1991 estimated that there was a need for at least $30 billion in net transfers of official development assistance for 1992 and that a subsequent annual increase of 4 per cent was necessary to achieve the objective of a 6 per cent growth rate. Today, development experts claim that the African economy needs to grow at the rate of 8 to 10 per cent annually in order to significantly reduce poverty. This would require a level of resource flows much higher than what was mentioned by the 1991 report covering the decade of 1990s. We ask the international community to address this issue with all seriousness.

No domestic efforts can be successful in the developing countries, including African countries, unless they are matched by equally robust and positive international support. In this context, we urge the international community to spend at least 50 per cent of donor aid to Africa in that continent. It may be recalled that the Secretary-General called for this in his earlier report on the causes of conflict and sustainable development in Africa, which was also discussed in this body a few weeks ago.

We support the Secretary-General's call to the Bretton Woods institutions to provide peace-friendly structural adjustment programmes. Bangladesh welcomes the outcome of the second Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD II) -- which was hosted by Japan last week -- as it identified critical development issues in Africa, specified goals and objectives and called upon the international community to come forward to support the efforts of the African countries.

We are confident that with the judicious and collaborative support of the international community, Africa will overcome its economic problems and reduce dependence. Africa is faced with many problems, but it also has a large inherent potential, both material and human, for growth and development. Africa has demonstrated these potentials during the last seven years of the implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s. With the support and solidarity of us all, the United Nations can contribute substantially to Africa's own efforts through full and effective implementation of the New Agenda.

Mr. Konishi (Japan)

With the adoption of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF) by the General Assembly in 1991, African countries reaffirmed their primary responsibility for their development, and the international community committed itself to supporting the efforts of African countries on the basis of the principles of partnership and shared responsibility.

Since the adoption of the New Agenda, awareness of the serious plight and urgent needs of African countries has grown; and in supporting African development, a wide range of multilateral and bilateral initiatives have been proposed. All those initiatives are significant, but it is imperative that they be implemented in a coordinated manner in order to have a real and durable impact on African development.

While some progress has been made in implementing the New Agenda, much remains to be done. What has been achieved thus far and what is left to be done should be fully analysed, and ways and means of acting on the problems that remain should be vigorously pursued. In this context, collaboration among the development partners concerned has acquired critical importance. We also hope that the recent report by the Secretary-General on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa will provide strong impetus for accelerating the implementation of UN-NADAF.

Japan has been trying to realize the goals and objectives of UN-NADAF through the process of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD). TICAD has much in common with UN-NADAF. Both stress economic transformation, integration, diversification and growth. The primary theme of TICAD II is poverty reduction through accelerated economic growth and sustainable development and effective integration of African economies into the global economy. This is also the main objective of UN-NADAF. Therefore, allow me to take this opportunity to explain what TICAD II has achieved in this regard.

Last week, together with the United Nations and the Global Coalition for Africa, Japan organized TICAD II, which was attended by the Secretary-General and a number of heads of State or Government of African countries and international organizations. The Conference concluded with the adoption of the Tokyo Agenda for Action, which articulates the critical issues in African development and the need for increased support from development partners.

The principal approach of the Tokyo Agenda for Action is output-oriented. We believe that an output-oriented approach based on common goals and objectives and measurable indicators should be pursued by all development actors to enhance the impact of development efforts. For this purpose, all -- including the Bretton Woods institutions, the private sector and civil society -- should engage in active collaboration and take joint action in promoting African development. Development actors need to define the expected outcome of development activities at the beginning and then monitor and evaluate performance against benchmarks and indicators. The results should be fed back into new activities so that lessons learned today contribute to the enhancement of activities tomorrow. We believe that such a cycle in a collaborative output-oriented approach will undoubtedly increase the impact of development efforts in African countries.

The Tokyo Agenda for Action singled out three areas as critical development issues: social development, economic development and basic foundation for development. In the area of social development, education, health and population and other measures to assist the poor are stressed as a means of promoting human resources development. In the area of economic development, the focus is on the private sector, industry, agriculture and external debt. Good governance and conflict prevention and post-conflict development are identified as a key to a basic foundation for development.

The Tokyo Agenda for Action not only delineates the critical development issues in Africa, it also enunciates the goals and objectives to be pursued and the action to be taken by African countries and their development partners. In order to attain the goals and objectives that are set forth, three concrete approaches are laid out. They are: strengthening coordination, promoting regional cooperation and integration, and expanding South-South cooperation. At the same time, emphasis is placed on capacity-building, gender mainstreaming and environmental management as cross-cutting themes to be incorporated in all activities undertaken within the framework of the Tokyo Agenda for Action.

It is very important that this Tokyo Agenda for Action be followed up and translated into the development policies and programmes of the participants. Without appropriate follow-up, the Tokyo Agenda for Action is pie in the sky. In order to assist participants in translating their commitments into concrete action, an illustrative list of programmes and projects was distributed to the participants at the conference which contains successful examples and model cases of ongoing development efforts of countries and organizations. The review meetings are to be held periodically to monitor progress towards the goals and objectives using appropriate indicators.

In line with the Tokyo Agenda for Action of TICAD II, Japan is determined to play a leading role in development cooperation in Africa. Prime Minister Obuchi stated at TICAD II that Japan will strengthen its future actions as follows.

First, it will devote greater attention to basic human needs, including, most importantly, primary education, health and medical care, and the supply of clean and safe water.

Secondly, Japan will pursue human resources development, especially through South-South cooperation. It will provide financial and technical assistance to enable 2,000 nationals from African countries to receive training over the next five years in Asia and North Africa.

Thirdly, in order to foster the growth of the private sector in Africa, particularly through the promotion of trade and investment from Asia, Japan will assist in establishing an African investment information service centre in an Asian country. In addition, it will support the organization of an Asia-Africa business forum within the next year in order to help explore business opportunities for Asian and African enterprises.

Fourthly, to deal with African debt issues, Japan to date has extended approximately 30 billion yen to African countries in debt-relief grant aid and is giving serious consideration to increasing the number of eligible countries and expanding the scope of the designated debt. In order to improve debt-management capacity, it will launch debt-management training as part of its technical cooperation programmes.

We believe that Africa has a bright future, if the necessary political will is demonstrated on the part of Africa and on the part of the international community as a whole, and if all the initiatives are implemented in synergy and with the collaboration of development actors.

In concluding my statement, I should like to express my delegation's hope that by working together, we will be able to promote implementation of the goals and objectives contained in the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s.

Mr. Rubadiri (Malawi)

We should like to associate ourselves with the statement made by Indonesia on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. We would like to add our voice as one that comes from the African soil itself.

Two years ago, the international community conducted a mid-term review of the implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF), a programme which was set up to address the socio-economic ills of the African continent. The review re-emphasized, among other issues, the two basic components of the New Agenda: ownership by the African States themselves and global partnership, which calls for a concerted international effort.

The Malawi delegation welcomes the progress report by the Secretary-General on the implementation of UN-NADAF (A/53/390). My Government fully associates itself with the New Agenda as an integral part of its national effort aimed at the eradication of poverty and a general transformation of the economic well-being of its citizenry.

We note the linkage established between the New Agenda and the United Nations System-wide Special Initiative on Africa, and we welcome the designation of the latter as the implementation arm of the former. My delegation would further like to acknowledge the relevance to the New Agenda of the Secretary-General's report on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa (A/52/871).

My delegation would like to register its satisfaction at the commendable effort which the United Nations system has made towards the implementation of the New Agenda since the mid-term review. In addition, Malawi would like to pay tribute to the Government of Japan for its commitment to the promotion of development in Africa through the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) process.

We further welcome the number of initiatives taken by the United Nations system in support of promotion of the private sector and foreign direct investment in Africa. It is observed in the progress report that since the mid-term review, certain countries in the continent have encouraged privatization as an instrument for the mobilization of resources, while others have created a more enabling environment for attracting foreign direct investment.

The international community cannot make meaningful progress with the New Agenda in the absence of economic reforms which should, of necessity, embrace efforts towards effective mobilization and efficient utilization of domestic resources. Legislation, taxation and export diversification are some of the areas we in Africa are looking into. The continued participation in this endeavour of the Bretton Woods institutions is a matter which I think my delegation also will fully acknowledge.

The mid-term review recommended, among other things, that African countries intensify efforts to improve governance and continue to broaden popular participation.

It is at this juncture that I find some kind of contradiction. For how indeed can one achieve the dream of good governance while in poverty? Poverty by itself poses the danger of bad governance. It facilitates political gerrymandering and manoeuvres -- for who with an empty stomach will vote for democracy when the stomach asks for bread? In this sense, democracy will continue to breed what we all abhor: the dictator, because he knows how to use words and can also use a gun.

Broadening popular participation should include strengthening the role of women in development and in the decision-making process. The progress report outlines the notable work that is being carried out by the African countries, supported by the United Nations system, in the democratization process, in strengthening civil society and in the search for a lasting solution to conflicts and civil strife in the continent.

The problem of external debt faced by many African countries is a well-known impediment to the implementation of the New Agenda. The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Debt Initiative, though a move in the right direction, has proved to be seriously inadequate. Malawi therefore fully associates itself with the call made by the Organization of African Unity for an international agreement that would clear the entire debt stock of the continent's poorest countries.

A few days ago I was at the great Columbia University, here in New York, and a very distinguished American lady who impressed us enormously was trying to address the assembled audience on this same problem. Following the African oral tradition, she told a story. The story was extremely pertinent and beautiful. But like all stories, it ended up by simply hinting that maybe my uncle and I are still scratching our bottoms and sleeping on our backs waiting for the banana to fall in our mouths.

I stood up and told another story. The story may also be pertinent and may also reinforce what the speaker was trying to say. I chose the style of the New Testament.

There was an African country that woke up with a lot of disease -- malaria in the blood system. On the way to find somebody who would help -- and we can substitute "cash", "money" or "aid" for the word "blood" -- he found somebody who had gained many virtues by having been to his own malaria-stricken country and having made use of all the technical aid and vast resources of the continent. For indeed, as somebody said, when God got tired of decorating countries, especially India, in his hand he had all the riches with which to decorate other countries. But instead he said, "Why don't we just throw them on this huge question-mark continent?" And all of them fell in the Congo. As indeed we all know, the Congo helped win the Second World War by providing the heavy water that made that bomb that we all know too well.

But as my uncle, or my country, was told, "There are people somewhere called the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Why don't you go and ask them to give you a blood transfusion, to give you help?"

My uncle said, "But how can I walk there. I can barely even stand up? All the blood I had seems to have gone somewhere, to this Bank, I am told."

He was told, "Don't worry, we'll fly you there first class via London."

And indeed he was flown first class via London and arrived at the World Bank in Washington. And then he was told, "Do you know, you need a blood transfusion."

And he said, "Yes, indeed, that is what has brought me here."

The Bank said, "But do you remember that I lent you three pints of blood a couple of years ago?"

He said, "Yes, I do remember indeed, and I thank you and everybody for lending me three pints of blood."

The Bank said, "Well, all you need is two pints of blood, but until you pay for the first three pints of blood, I am sorry, I cannot lend you the two pints."

At this moment, he died in front of the World Bank.

Here I am trying to express in a rather absurd manner the meaning of the word "globalization".

The progress report paints a bleak picture of the situation of Africa in international trade. With only a miserable 2 per cent of world trade, Africa's share of the global market remains dauntingly low, and it continues to rely on a single commodity for more than three quarters of its total exports. Ongoing efforts by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and the World Trade Organization to promote trade facilitation and to improve market access by African countries deserve the strong support of the international community.

Malawi is not standing idle in all this. The Government is actively engaged in the implementation of the various aspects of the New Agenda. In governance, for instance -- good governance -- the strengthening of civil society, the advent of a multiparty system of government -- all this has paved the way for popular participation and the continued consolidation of the new political arrangement. Women and young people are increasingly being integrated into the decision-making process.

All these are perhaps words that might have pleased that great man Thomas Jefferson. But at what moment can one achieve good governance when all this really concerns is mere trade and the sheer interest of the globalization of trade power?

The Government has instituted bold macroeconomic reforms, for instance, which include the structural adjustment programme of the IMF. Reforms undertaken in legislation, taxation and the banking system, among other areas, have created a climate that is conducive to foreign investment. Malawi is pursuing a steady programme of privatization, through the National Privatization Commission, in recognition of the role of the private sector as an engine of economic growth.

But we note that despite an exceptional growth rate of 5.2 per cent in 1996 for African agricultural production, growth declined to 1.7 per cent in 1997 -- in the period of a year -- with the food sector recording a devastating 10.5 per cent drop in cereals production. Malawi was not spared the decline. Recurrent drought affecting the southern Africa subregion has largely accounted for this. My Government therefore welcomes the launching in 1994 by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the Special Programme for Food Security. Malawi is committed to the Programme, which is linked to its Presidential Commission on Land Reform, an undertaking being supported by the FAO.

The progress report observes that globalization -- a word which has now overtaken the word "village-ization" -- has tended to marginalize countries which lack the capacity to increase exports or to attract investment. In this regard, the African continent is said to have been significantly marginalized in the short term, as exports remain narrowly based on primary commodities.

It is distressing to learn that Africa is expected to lose $1.2 billion every year -- which is barely the pocket money that a rich gentleman in this country gave last year to the United Nations -- while benefits accruing to non-member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development from the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations are expected to be between $30 billion and $90 billion in 2002.

We therefore call on the international community to address squarely the critical areas identified in the progress report in order to move further ahead with the implementation of the New Agenda. There is a need to address issues of the debt overhang, declining official development assistance flows, market access and the general mobilization of financial resources for African countries.

Before concluding, I would like to compliment the representative of Malaysia on a great statement, for here indeed is a country which, after this globalization, had been pulled down, but then stood up and made a statement which gives us hope.