G-77: LEADERS FINALISE REPORT ON SOUTH COORDINATING BODY

Leaders of Nigeria, Algeria, Jamaica and Malaysia - members of the G-77 South Summit’s Implementation Group - at a meeting in London recently are said to have finalised a report on establishing a South Coordination Commission.

by Chakravarthi Raghavan

Geneva, 28 Aug 2000 - Leaders of Nigeria, Algeria, Jamaica and Malaysia - members of the G-77 South Summit’s Implementation Group - at a meeting in London last week are reported to have finalised a report on establishing a South Coordination Commission.

The report is to be presented to heads of Government/State of the Group of 77 at a special meeting to be held in New York at the time of the Millennium Assembly of the United Nations in September.

The four leaders - Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Jamaican Prime Minister P.J. Patterson and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad—are members of the Implementation Group named at the South Summit of the Group of 77 held in Havana in April. The fifth member of the group is South African President Thabo Mbeki.

Presidents Obasanjo and Bouteflika, Prime Ministers Patterson and Mahathir met in London at the residence of the Nigerian High Commissioner to discuss and finalise plans for setting up a coordinating body for the South to enhance South-South cooperation as well as strengthen its negotiating position in relation to the North.  Mbeki could not be present, and was represented by Ms Cheryl Carolus, South Africa’s High Commissioner in London.

The group of five leaders, led by Obasanjo, who had presided over the South Summit, had been charged by the Summit with the task of establishing a Coordinating Commission to coordinate the implementation of the Summit’s Programme of Action.

That Programme contains dozens of proposals for strengthening the South’s bargaining position vis-a-vis the rich industrialized North countries in areas such as globalisation, debt, global financial reform, trade and negotiations at the World Trade Organisation. The Programme also has proposals on enhancing South-South cooperation in economic and social areas.

The idea of setting up a high-level Coordinating Council made up of heads of government or state of developing countries was first mooted during a closed-door “interactive session” of the political heads during the South Summit.

Later, at the closing session, the Summit decided that a Coordinating Commission, with a Coordinator, would be set up, made up of a G77 Council chaired by the South Summit President (Obasanjo), the G77 Coordinator, the chairperson of the Non-Aligned Movement, and the chairpersons of regional bodies of the South such as ASEAN, CARICOM, OAU and the Arab League.

The five leaders were charged with the responsibility of establishing the Council on behalf of the Summit and to give a report to the G77 as a whole within six months.

At the end of their meeting, held on 23-24 August, the four leaders issued a statement announcing the finalisation of their report to be submitted to the Special Meeting of the G-77 Heads in New York.

The statement also said that the Heads took the opportunity to exchange views on a number of issues of pressing importance to developing countries, including “a review of the globalisation process, specific issues of trade and the WTO, global financial reforms, debt and debt relief, access to technology and environmental issues.”

The four added: “Their discussion on all these matters reinforced the need acknowledged at Havana for the South to be more effectively organised at the technical level on both South-South and North-South issues.”

The statement issued by President Obasanjo at the end of the meeting on 24 August said:

“On 11-14 April 2000, the first ever Summit Meeting of the G77 was held in Havana, Cuba under the Chairmanship of President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria. The G-77 is the longest standing grouping of developing countries concerned essentially with development issues at both the South-South and North-South levels. The Havana meeting brought together representatives of the 132 members of the G77, plus China and was open to observers from many developed countries."

“Among other conclusions reached by the Summit was the decision to establish more effective coordination machinery for the countries of the South, particularly in the context of current global challenges."

“The Summit agreed specifically that the South should establish a South Coordination Commission headed by a Council of Heads of State or Government representative of the several regions of the developing world, and a Coordinator who would superintend the enhanced process of cooperation between developing countries, as well as the revitalisation of the existing South Centre in Geneva which was established in furtherance of the 1990 Report of the South Commission chaired by the late President Julius Nyerere entitled ‘The Challenge to the South’."

“The Havana Summit appointed a group of five Heads of State or Government to be responsible for the implementation of this decision.

They are as follows:

1.   President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, President of the G77 Summit (Chairman)

2.   President Abdelaziz Bouteflika of Algeria

3.   President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa

4.   Prime Minister P.J. Patterson of Jamaica

5.   Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia

“The Implementation Group, under the Chairmanship of President Obasanjo, has just concluded a Special Meeting in London at which it finalised its Report on the establishment of the South Coordination Commission. South Africa was represented by the High Commissioner Ms Cheryl Carolus in the unavoidable absence of President Mbeki. This Report of the Group  will be submitted to a Special Meeting of G77 Heads of State and Government assembled in New York at the time of the Millennium Assembly."

“At the Special Meeting, the Heads took the opportunity to exchange views on a number of substantive issues of pressing importance to developing countries, including a review of the globalisation process, specific issues of trade and the WTO, global financial reforms, debt and debt relief, access to technology and environmental issues. Their discussion on all these matters reinforced the need acknowledged at Havana for the South to be more effectively organised at the technical level on both South-South and North-South issues.

“In concluding their Report, the Implementation Group underlined the historic importance of this development at a most critical time for the developing countries as the global economy enters into a new and largely unchartered area with challenges of immense proportions for the countries of the South."

“The meeting emphasized the critical significance of the establishment of the South Coordination Commission in furtherance of the vision of the late President Julius Nyerere, both generally and in pursuance of the Report of the South Commission." - SUNS4728

The above article first appeared in the South-North Development Monitor (SUNS) of which Chakravarthi Raghavan is the Chief Editor.

© 2000, SUNS - All rights reserved. May not be reproduced, reprinted or posted to any system or service without specific permission from SUNS. This limitation includes incorporation into a database, distribution via Usenet News, bulletin board systems, mailing lists, print media or broadcast. For information about reproduction or multi-user subscriptions please e-mail <suns@igc.org >