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Op-eds and articles by the Executive Secretary |
| Will Doha be the Milestone for Changing the Path of Development? The recent international conference in Doha, Qatar on Financing and Development held from 29 November to 2 December was the scenario for making a balance of the 2002 Monterrey Consensus. The meeting gathered the highest government officials of 160 nations, including 40 Heads of State. The response of developed countries in this period has been insufficient, above all because the minimum goals of cooperation for development were not met. In contrast, countries such as Brazil, Chile, Spain and France have taken on the task of developing innovative sources. Today it is more urgent than ever to meet the Millennium Goals by 2015. In light of the crisis, international cooperation funds should be countercyclical and ensure support networks to the most vulnerable countries and poorest communities. There was strong consensus among all countries, developed and developing, around preventing the current economic crisis from becoming an obstacle to complying with the Monterrey Declaration agreements. They emphasized that the costs of this crisis be distributed in a fair and equal manner among all countries. This was reflected in the commitment to deepen and strengthen the development agenda established in Monterrey, which, as United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pointed out, implies a new era of North-South cooperation. The conference was marked by the challenges faced by the international community and particularly by the poorest and most affected by global crises, such as rising food insecurity, the volatility of energy and food prices, climate change and the current financial crisis. Delegates considered that an effective and timely implementation of the Monterrey agenda requires maintaining and deepening agreements on Official Development Assistance, despite the restrictions imposed today by the financial crisis. This implies paying attention to both the volume of resources as well as their allocation. Regarding the former, although since Monterrey 2002 there has been a real increase in official development assistance -nearly 40%-, it has slowed down since 2005, and so it is imperative for developed countries to fulfill their pledge of allocating 0.7% of Gross Domestic Product to support developing countries by 2015. Conference delegates also warned that increasing the volume of official development assistance should be accompanied by significant changes in the criteria and mechanisms for allocating these resources, which so far have been used largely to diminish national debt and for humanitarian assistance. Heightening the efficiency and effectiveness of the use of this assistance is also one of the main future challenges posed in Doha. There are several established steps to comply with the agreed goals: advance in a consensual participation of developed and developing countries in defining the goals of official development assistance; allocate resources to countries in such a way that allows them to broaden their independence of action to apply public policies compatible with their situation; ensure the stability and security of official assistance flows, which should be accompanied by the implementation of monitoring and evaluation mechanisms in recipient countries so as to improve the ability to assess the impact of these resources. In terms of the current financial crisis, delegates considered that, along with stressing the need to advance in deep reforms of the mechanisms and institutions that govern the global financial system, developing economies should have a greater participation in the discussion. This would facilitate even greater consensus and the adoption of measures to strengthen and improve the functioning of the international economic system. This new international financial architecture should not only respond to the current demands of developing countries, but also to their historical demands and, above all, with a forward-looking approach. This requires further reflection on new development paradigms, revising global and regional multilateral institutions. This includes the United Nations and even Bretton Woods. In particular, the Latin American and Caribbean region has a window of opportunity to reclaim its history and from there reinstate development with equality and sustainability. New international instances for dialogue and cooperation are needed to improve countercyclical financing mechanisms and to help developing countries strengthen crisis prevention instruments. This includes establishing a global regulatory framework designed from a regional perspective that may consider the needs and realities of developing economies. We hope the International Conference that the General Assembly will convene the next semester in 2009. These old and new challenges faced by the region and so vital for regional development will continue to be a central part of ECLAC reflection. The events of the last five years have opened new avenues for economic, social and environmental debate, which until recently was dominated by dogmas whose validity has not been confirmed by the facts. This opening for discussion should be viewed, therefore, as one of the positive aspects of this crisis because it is a reaction to demands for change that have become evident among politicians and citizens in general. The region's capability to begin a new phase of economic growth with equality, social cohesion and environmental sustainability depends on our ability to respond to these new demands. Crises always provide an opportunity to reflect and, if necessary, correct the course. Alicia Bárcena, |