1.   Final Draft Version for written comments

19 December 01

Summary of Regional NGO Consultations

Assessment of progress in the implementation of the outcomes of UNCED

An NGO Contribution to the PrepCom 2 Multistakeholder Dialogue

The World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) takes place at a time of serious environmental, political, social, and economic crisis for the world.

African NGO Forum, 15-16 October, 2001

Introduction

This section of the NGO paper summarizes the outcomes of a number of NGO consultations made in connection with the regional PrepComs.  In some cases, additional information has been drawn from sub-regional fora, particularly where NGO participation in the regional events was limited or where the regional reports may not have adequately captured the richness of the NGO viewpoints put forward. 

There were difficulties with the selection process for and limited participation in some regional consultations, thereby influencing the outputs of those consultations.  This summary can therefore not be said to be comprehensive or fully representative of the views of NGOs otherwise engaged in the WSSD process.  In spite of this, it is possible to identify trends and commonalities in the various outputs.

Every effort has been made to remain true to the spirit and range of perspectives and ideas that emerged from the regional NGO consultations.  This paper does not represent an NGO consensus but is rather a compendium of views.  It was made broadly available to NGO networks for review prior to it being finalized for distribution. 

A more comprehensive review of progress was not possible due to time and funding constraints.  Another factor was that the regional NGO consultations (as was the case with sub-regional consultations) put much greater emphasis on identifying future directions than on assessing progress to date.

General progress since Rio

The regional NGO consultations acknowledged that some improvements related to democracy and peace have helped incorporate environment into development processes and prioritised people-centred sustainable development.  However, it was felt that this had not carried through from “principle” to “action”.  This, then, is the challenge for the WSSD. It will include dealing with such constraints to progress as lack of institutional and human capacity, political will and a sense of priority, as well as inadequate public awareness, monitoring and enforcement.

Other areas where progress was seen included the proliferation of national and local Agenda 21 initiatives, and the development of national sustainable development and cross-sectoral environmental strategies in some countries and regions.

A few specific positive developments were mentioned, notably the Declaration by the Council of Arab Ministers Responsible for Environment (CAMRE) in Abu-Dhabi in February 2001.  It recognizes the urgent need for poverty alleviation and improvement of living standards and economic conditions through environment and sustainable development programmers.

Obstacles and areas for further action

Ten years after UNCED, NGOs see that unsustainable development is still the norm in all regions.  NGO consultations clearly noted the failure to fulfil the Rio commitments and that this has exacerbated the socio-economic crisis, increased vulnerability and uncertainty, and made democracy in the world more fragile. As reported in the introduction to this paper, poverty is deepening, inequality and social marginalisation have resulted and human security is diminishing.  Pressure on ecosystems and natural resources is increasing, and the evidence of environmental degradation, unsustainable exploitation of natural resources and pollution is all around us.

There is a crisis of implementation of the sustainable development agenda. This crisis can be seen in negative trends involving a growing gap between the rich and the poor, displacement of peoples, erosion of cultural diversity, increases in refugees, violence, abuses of human rights, as well as deforestation, loss of biodiversity, destructive mining and oil exploration, adverse climate change and rising sea levels, depletion of fish stocks through industrial fishing practices, inappropriate land uses, bio-piracy, impacts of genetic engineering, destructive agric- and aqua-culture, unviable dams, water scarcity and decline in water quality, air pollution, urban sprawl, etc.

Failure in effective participation by civil society has been one of the package of obstacles to implementation. Other fundamental prerequisites to progress are equity, including gender equity, justice and recognition of ecological debt, and an ethical re-thinking the values and principles that guide human behaviour. NGOs drew attention to the fact that non-compliance with Agenda 21 in their regions was due to lack of government commitment.

Poverty, unsustainable consumption and  environmental degradation in a globalised world

A common feature of the NGO regional and subregional consultations was the emphasis given to the interlinked themes of poverty, unsustainable consumption - particularly in industrialized countries, and environmental degradation. Globalisation and trade liberalization were broadly seen as intensifying negative trends. These were the overarching themes that emerged from the NGO consultations.

In the Latin American consultations, these forces were seen as contributing to “vulnerability.”  The participants concluded that “(t)he persistence of poverty and social inequity in the region is the main factor in social, political and environmental vulnerability.  Social exclusion, ecosystem deterioration, the build-up of risks and natural disasters call for coordinated and joint national and regional activities.”

NGOs were dismayed by what continuing widespread acceptance of an unsustainable development paradigm. The current model of development has neither ensured nor can it deliver sustainable development.  The NGO consultations concluded that this model does not adequately take into consideration the needs of people and communities, including for employment creation.  It was also stated that no one model of development is suited to all countries and regions with diverse populations and circumstances. Inappropriate development policies and practices are increasing the vulnerability of people and ecosystems.  The NGO consultations recommended:

·        A paradigm shift to ensure that development models better reflect human needs, including for sound and productive ecosystems.

Poverty and livelihood security - Agenda 21 Chapter 3

NGO regional consultations determined that there has been too little progress on the elimination of poverty since 1992.  As stated in the Southeast Asia Subregional Civil Society Report: “(p)overty...is both a cause and consequence of environment degradation.  The poor are immediately dependent on threatened fisheries, forests and other natural resource systems for their livelihoods.  The health effects of declining air and water quality especially impact on urban poor who lack access to clean water and adequate sanitation.  Traditional fishers and their communities are most at risk to over-fishing and the competition from commercial operations.  These communities are usually poverty stricken and do not have alternative means to earn income to sustain their livelihoods.”

The UNECE NGO Declaration emphasized that “(t)here has been too little progress on eradicating poverty since 1992.  New issues have emerged, notably new forms of poverty in the CEE and NIS nations, while poverty in the poorest nations worldwide has increased.  The relationship between poverty and sustainable development is a complex one, but it is clear that poor people are more vulnerable to and affected by environmental degradation. 

Urgent action was called for to eradicate poverty.  Some components of an action plan were identified:

·        Equitable and sustainable access to and distribution of resources

·        Securing environmental and social rights

·        Review and reform of development finance (see also finance for sustainable development below)

·        Programmes to achieve International Development Targets.

* * * * * * * * * *

Consumption and production - Agenda 21 Chapter 4

The UNECE NGO Declaration stated that: “(o)ver-consumption by wealthy groups is often a cause of such degradation and can exacerbate poverty.”  Resource use has not been within sustainable limits or the carrying capacity of the Earth.  Over-consumption by wealthy people and nations undermines sustainable development and can exacerbate poverty. 

Most developed governments failed to take up the lead after the Earth Summit emphasized the need for sustainable production and consumption. The ecological debt of the industrialized countries toward developing countries requires radical changes in lifestyles.  Part of the problem has been promotion of consumerism.  Some areas in which progress has been inadequate and further action is needed are:

·        Green government procurement policies

·        Promotion of informed consumer choice and options (see also information for decision-making below)

·        Sustainable and GMO-free agriculture, guaranteeing food safety and security and sustainable livelihoods

·        Reductions of CO2 emissions

·        Energy conservation and increasing reliance on environmentally sound renewable energy.

Globalisation - Agenda 21 Chapters 2, 30, 33, 34

There was widespread concern about the adverse effects of globalisation.  For example, the African NGO forum recognized that: “(t)he forces of globalization that have shaped the world and our continent in the last decade have deepened and entrenched poverty, marginalized peoples and nations, and accelerated ecological disintegration.”

The Asia-Pacific Peoples’ Forum on Sustainable Development concluded that:”...sustainable development can never be achieved in the present context of globalization with its ‘free market’ driven liberalization...The Asian Crisis was a wake-up call to the real nature of globalization where financial liberalization created a very unstable international financial system - unregulated capital flows and speculation.”

The multistakeholder Round Table in Western Asia identified major obstacles to sustainable development (including access to resources, peace and security and ineffective government) and added that “(t)he situation at the regional level is also aggravated by the social and cultural impact of globalization on societies, including uneven distribution of the benefits of development, the rapid pace of technological change and the information revolution.”

The impacts of economic globalisation have been deepened and entrenched poverty, marginalized peoples and nations, uneven distribution of the benefits of development, and accelerated ecological destruction.  Serious concerns were raised about the failure or inability of governments to effectively challenge or limit the damaging effects of globalisation.  Further progress related to trade, corporate accountability, financing for sustainable development and technology transfer was proposed in relation to globalisation.

Trade, investment and incentives - Agenda 21 Chapters 2 and 34

Inequities and imbalances in the trade regime, including unequal trade terms, are obstacles to sustainable development.  Experience shows that trade alone is not going to secure sustainable development.  Perverse incentives and unsustainable trade and investment policies are contributing to destruction of forests and other ecosystems in different regions of the world.   During the consultations, a number of NGOs expressed grave concern over the decisions taken at the recent WTO ministerial conference in Doha, particularly with respect to launching negotiations on “new issues” (investment, transparency in government procurement, etc.).  This concern was based on a belief that unbridled liberalization and deregulation - especially in developing countries - would further undermine sustainable development efforts.  Other NGOs participating in the consultations were more favourably disposed toward the WTO ministerial conference results. The NGO consultations also noted the lack of measures  to promote technology transfer from developed to developing countries.

The NGO consultations concluded that there is a need for further progress in a number of areas, including:

·        Democratic mechanisms to assess the social, economic and environmental (sustainability) impacts prior to the negotiation of any new trade and investment agreements (including the new round of liberalization)

·        Abolishing all environmentally perverse subsidies

·        Implementing economic instruments based on the polluter pays principle

·        Developing global rules governing publicly financed investment, e.g. through export credit agencies, within a sustainable development framework.

Corporate accountability - Agenda 21 Chapter 30

Existing voluntary corporate social responsibility mechanisms are insufficient because they fail to raise the standards of companies.  NGO consultations concluded that a major weakness of UNCED was the dismantling of the UN machinery concerned with regulating the private sector (i.e. UN Code on TNCs, Code of Conduct on Transfer of Technology, UN Centre on TNCs).  In other words, governments have failed since UNCED to balance the power of corporations with the rights of citizens and labour forces, and to help deliver effective compliance with multilateral environmental and social agreements.  Strong concerns were expressed about the weakening of political leaders in many countries combined with the increasing influence of the private sector.  For these reasons, it was recommended that progress be made on:

·        Exploring regulatory approaches for TNCs, particularly under the auspices of the UN.

Financing for sustainable development - Agenda 21 Chapter 33

The burden of debt and debt servicing and the need for sufficient and predictable financial resources were recognized by the NGO consultations.  As the regional preparatory process moved forward, there was increasing attention given to the Financing for Development (FfD) conference.  In addition, consideration was given to the role of speculative capital flows and unsustainable investment patterns by the private and public sectors in contributing to unsustainable  trends, particularly in developing countries and economies in transition. 

The consultations underscored the need for:

·        Debt relief or cancellation for highly indebted developing countries

·        Strengthening and consolidation of multilateral financing mechanisms

·        Assessment of the Global Environmental Facility in order to reformulate the mechanisms for access, as well as the need for local capacity building and the financing of local sustainability agendas

·        Achievement of the O.7% of GNP for ODA target

·        Support for the GEF

·        Reallocation of budgets from military spending to poverty eradication and sustainable development

·        Regulation of financial markets, controls on the movement of capital, and other mechanisms to ensure that financial markets contribute to sustainable development, e.g. the Tobin tax or other global taxes.

* * * * *

Ecosystems, biodiversity and natural resources - Agenda 21 Chapters 9 - 22

Protection of the environment and rational exploitation of natural resources were seen in some consultations as fundamental principles in sustainable development programmes in view of the need to combat poverty and improve living and economic conditions.  The NGO consultations concluded that life on Earth is threatened and called for concerted actions by governments with the involvement of civil society to maintain and restore the ecological balance needed to support life on Earth.  They noted that the quality of biodiversity and a clean and healthy environment had not been maintained.  Few countries have developed plans or frameworks for achieving sustainable production and consumption patterns. No country has successfully decoupled economic growth from its ecological footprint and very few have prioritised this effort. They prioritised issues to be tackled, including the severe shortage of water resources, competition from different land uses, unsustainable consumption of natural resources such as forests and fisheries, deterioration of the sea and coastal environment.  Inadequate progress has been made in a number of areas, including:

·        Policies and programmes to protect and restore ecosystems with the  involvement of civil society

·        Policies linking biodiversity conservation with poverty eradication, especially in local communities that live around protected areas, through sustainable use of natural resources

·        Tackling underlying causes of deforestation and forest degradation

·        Integrated water resource management

·        Participatory land use planning

·        Application of the precautionary approach

·        Assessment of the risks inherent in including plantations in the Clean Development Mechanism

·        Entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol

·        Climate change mitigation strategies

·        Policies recognizing the links between environment and health

·        Ratification of the chemicals conventions.

Governance

Democracy and power relationships

A number of regional consultations highlighted the impacts of conflicts and wars, and of corrupt and oppressive regimes, on prospects for sustainable development.   They called for the following types of progress to be made at different levels of governance:

All levels

·        Promotion of participatory democracies and regimes conducive to popular participation

·        Elimination of corruption and greater transparency and accountability in government affairs

·        Resolution of conflicts

Local

·        Empowerment of communities as well as greater integration between different tiers of government

·        Decentralisation and considerable transfers of state resources to the municipalities

Regional and National

·        Formation of coalitions and networks of southern groups and countries to define policy proposals and obtain increased influence in international negotiations

·        Decisions favouring sustainable development at the highest political levels

·        Arrangements to foster dialogue between different stakeholders

Global

·        Greater democracy in global decision-making processes and international agencies.

* * *

Environmental and social rights, including to information for decision-making -  Rio Declaration Principle 10 and Agenda 21 Chapters 23-32

The lack of a rights-based approach to achieving global sustainability was noted.  This requires recognition that human rights include the right to a healthy environment, including social rights, equitable access to resources, and the right of access to justice.  This also includes the right to participate in decision-making and to have access to information.   Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration states that “at the national level, each individual shall have appropriate access to information concerning the environment that is held by public authorities, including...information on how to participate in decision-making processes.  States shall facilitate and encourage public awareness and participation by making information widely available.  Effective access to judicial and administrative proceedings, including redress and remedy, shall be provided.” Inadequate progress has been made in entrenching such rights in binding agreements and programmes.  The NGO regional consultations saw a need for progress on:

All levels

·        Programmes to enhance the integration of environmental and human rights

Regional and/or National

·        Regional instruments based on the model provided by the Aarhus Convention on Environmental Information and Public Participation

·        Development of sustainable development indicators.

Global

·        Participatory negotiation of a global convention, building on Rio Principle 10, to implement these rights

* *

Capacity building - Agenda 21 Chapter 37

Inadequate progress has also been made in developing local, national and regional capacities and strengthening institutions to promote integration of environmental, social and economic policies. In particular, the NGO consultations called for:

Local, Regional and National

·        Capacity-building to increase consensus between governments and civil society

·        Improved capacity to implement, monitor and enforce international agreements and to obtain minimum consensus for the Rio Principles

Institutions and instruments - Agenda 21 Chapters 38 - 39

Despite promised made at UNCED, strong governance structures to support sustainable development still have not been put in place.  Good governance should be based on accountability, transparency, subsidiarity and the participation of civil society.  In addition to the review of progress needed on the role of NGOs (see above), the regional NGO consultations called for further progress on:

All levels

·        Multi-sector and multi-stakeholder institutional arrangements

Global

·        Adequate global institutions to provide leadership, responsibility, compliance and enforcement

·        Credible mechanisms to monitor and enforce sustainable development commitments

* *

Ratification of relevant multilateral environment and sustainable development conventions, including particularly the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, the Convention to Combat Desertification and the ILO conventions

·        Reform of the IMF, World Bank and WTO based on more appropriate and democratic governance.

Global Deal

The notion of the WSSD producing a new “Global Deal” was considered by the UNECE NGO consultation as a result of suggestions made previously by the South African and Danish governments, among others.  Its objective would be to bridge North/South differences on key elements, including:

·        Equity - eradicating poverty through equitable and sustainable access to resources

·        Rights - securing environmental and social rights

·        Limits - reducing resource use to within sustainable limits

·        Justice - recognition of ecological debts and cancellation of financial debts

·        Democracy - ensuring access to information and public participation

·        Ethics - rethinking the values and principles that guide human behaviour.

NGOs as partners for sustainable development - Chapter 27

Agenda 21 states that “non-governmental organizations play a vital role in the shaping and implementation of participatory democracy....(they) possess well-established and diverse experience, expertise and capacity in fields which will be of particular importance to the implementation and review of environmentally sound and socially responsible sustainable development, as envisaged throughout Agenda 21.  The community of non-governmental organizations, therefore, offers a global network that should be tapped, enabled and strengthened in support of efforts to achieve these common goals.”

The regional NGO forums acknowledged that the participation of civil society in decision-making processes increased as a result of UNCED, though not to the necessary levels.  They identified a need to review the commitments of governments and international bodies to NGOs and to make further progress in a number of areas, including strengthening the role of civil society through effective involvement in sustainable development decision-making and implementation processes, as well as access to information and awareness-raising.  Some specific areas in which inadequate progress has been made were noted:

·        Civil society participation, particularly women and indigenous people

·        Involvement of young people in sustainable development initiatives

·        Recognition of legitimate civil society organizations and their participation in all phases and levels of sustainable development

·        Establishment of participatory National Councils for Sustainable Development and other participation mechanisms agreed in Agenda 21

·        Increased cooperation between NGOs and the private sector.

The second section of this paper,  [insert title of TWN/ELCI paper] addresses chapter 27 more specifically.

* * * * * *

Specific recommendations on participation in WSSD process

NGOs experienced many difficulties in the regional preparatory process. These related to a number of factors, including UNEP invitation procedures, exclusion of some NGOs, relegation of NGOs to side events, lack of input into the agendas for the meetings, etc. The format for the PrepCom 4 and Summit Multistakeholder Dialogues will be determined at PrepCom2.  It will be important to avoid the mistakes made in the regional preparatory process.  The difficult experiences with NGO participation in the regional PrepComs gave rise to suggestions for ensuring the full integration of NGOs in the remainder of the WSSD process.  These included:

·        Informal consultations during PrepCom 2 between the WSSD Secretariat, Bureau and NGO networks (including those who participated in sub-regional preparatory processes) on modalities for PrepComs 3, 4 and the Summit

·        Mechanisms for enabling NGO participation in core events and discussions, e.g. plenary and working group sessions, not only in side events

* *

Provision of financial and logistical support for NGOs to participate

·        Inclusion of NGOs on delegations.

Annex A

Source documents

Africa

African Civil Society Position of the African NGO Forum to the African Ministerial PrepCom, 15-16 October 2001, Nairobi, Kenya

Earth Negotiations Bulletin, Vol. 22, No. 05, 22 October 2001, Summary of the African Preparatory Conference, Nairobi, Kenya

Latin America

Statement of NGOs for Meeting of Latin American and Caribbean Networks, (English translation), 20 October 2001, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Earth Negotiations Bulletin, Volume 22, No. 06, 27 October 2001, Summary of the ECLAC Regional Preparatory Conference, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Latin America Preparatory Conference for Earth Summit 2002, Independent review, undated Liliana Hisas, Fundacion Ecologica Universal, Argentina

West Asia

Earth Negotiations Bulletin, Vol. 22, No. 07, 29 October 2001, Summary of the West Asia Preparatory Committee Meeting, Cairo, Egypt

Report, Thematic Round Table for Western Asia Region, 9-11 April 2001, Beirut, Lebanon

Abu-Dhabi Declaration, 4 February 2001

Asia-Pacific

Statement of the Asia-Pacific People’s Forum on Sustainable Development, 25-26 November 2001, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

CSE PrepCom Report, Asia Pacific High Level Regional Meeting, 27-29 November, 2001, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Earth Negotiations Bulletin, Vol. 22, No. 08, 3 December 2001, Summary of the Asia-Pacific Roundtable on Sustainable Development and High Level Regional Meeting, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Civil society subregional report for the WSSD, Preliminary report for the Southeast Asia Subregional Preparatory Meeting, 14 October, 2001, Manila, Philippines

UNECE

NGO Declaration, UNECE Regional Meeting for the WSSD, 22-23 September 2001, Geneva, Switzerland

Background documents

World Development Report 2000/2001: Attacking Poverty, World Bank

Living Planet Report 2000, World Wide Fund for Nature

Making Sustainable Commitments: AN Environmental Strategy for the World Bank, World Bank

Annex B

Background information about poverty and environment

The preparations for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) take place before a gloomy backdrop.  The World Bank Development Report 2000-2001: Attacking Poverty states that “(t)he World has deep poverty amid plenty.  Of the world’s 6 billion people, 2.8 billion - almost half - live on less than $2 a day, and 1.2 billion - a fifth - live on less than $1 a day, with 44 per cent living in South Asia...The average income of the richest 20 countries is 37 times the average in the poorest 20 - a gap that has doubled in the past 40 years.”

The World Bank Environment Strategy concludes that: “(e)conomic development ...(g)ains have been unevenly distributed, and a large part of the world’s population remains desperately poor.  At the same time, environmental factors such as indoor and outdoor air pollution, waterborne diseases, and exposure to toxic chemicals threaten the health of millions of people, and natural resources - land, water, and forests - are being degraded at alarming rates in many countries...The economic costs of environmental degradation have been estimated at 4 to 8 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) annually in may developing countries.”

The Living Planet Report, produced by WWF and partners, found that in 1996 the Ecological Footprint of people exceeded “the existing biologically productive space per person by about 30%, or more if some space is reserved exclusively for other species. In other words, humanity’s Ecological Footprint was at least 30% larger than the area available. This overshoot leads to a gradual depletion of the earth’s natural capital stock, as reflected by the decline in the Living Planet Index.”  A great many assessments of the state of the world and trends since Rio are being prepared for the WSSD; these are expected to demonstrate continuing negative trends.