Monterrey summit ends without specific goals

No concrete or quantifiable commitments to fund the development process in the South came out of a recent international summit convened precisely to address the problem. Instead, general promises and “mere words” were the order of the day at the 18-22 March UN Conference on Financing for Development held in Monterrey, Mexico.

by Diego Cevallos

MONTERREY (MEXICO): Promises in general terms, but without specific targets or deadlines, reigned at the UN Conference on Financing for Development, which concluded here on 22 March, while the concrete proposals of governments, experts and activists were left pending.

Nobody knows whether initiatives for creating an Economic Security Council and a World Environment Organization, promoted by France, or an International Humanitarian Fund, suggested by Venezuela, will someday become reality.

There were no decisions taken on the disbursement of half of development aid in the form of donations instead of loans, proposed by the US, on the elimination of trade barriers in the industrialized North, nor on solutions aimed at easing poor countries’ foreign debt burden.

The application of a tax on international financial transactions, known as the “Tobin tax” (as it was initially proposed by US Nobel Prize-winning economist, James Tobin), but as a means of raising funds for development assistance, was another initiative that did not stir up many comments at the UN-sponsored conference in Monterrey.

The host government, Mexico, like others such as the US and Spain, saw the conference as a resounding success that marked the beginning of a process of changes that would benefit developing countries.

But representatives of the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) participating in the five-day event stated that it was a failure because it did not produce a single concrete or quantifiable initiative.

The “Monterrey Consensus”, the summit’s final document signed by the heads of state and government here on 22 March, should only be considered a staking of position, “a beginning,” said French President Jacques Chirac.

His US counterpart, George W. Bush, stated that the fact that the International Conference on Financing for Development took place opens an era of “new hope.”

“What is true and concrete is that in Monterrey nothing was decided. Everything was left as mere words, there were only general promises,” Hugo Vera, a delegate from Nicaragua’s civil society movement who took part in the conference, told IPS.

No hard targets

The Monterrey Consensus, which was drafted prior to the conference in a series of preparatory meetings, is long on intentions, but includes no quantifiable goals or deadlines.

The signatories commit themselves to increasing development aid and there is mention of easing the foreign debt burden of poor countries, facilitating trade and other matters, all stated in general terms.

The UN-organized conference drew representatives from more than 170 countries, including more than 50 heads of state, as well as executives of multilateral organizations, NGO delegates, business leaders and development experts.

In spite of the large turnout, the meeting did not produce even one specific commitment related to financing for development that included target figures or timelines, in spite of being the principal motive behind the event.

[Even ahead of the conference, as the price for US participation, the policies of the Bretton Woods institutions (IMF and World Bank) and the World Trade Organization were kept out of the purview of the meeting. And the UN secretariat brought in the protagonists of the Washington Consensus for drawing up the documents and papers.]

The Monterrey Consensus urges the countries of the industrialized North to earmark 0.7% of their gross national product (GNP) for international development assistance, but that target is an old one, adopted by the UN General Assembly three decades ago.

Bush told the conference in Monterrey that assistance to poor countries is important, but stated that “arbitrary levels” of aid - like the 0.7% of GNP - should not be imposed. Official development assistance from the US is the equivalent of just 0.1% of its GNP.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned that the world will have failed to take advantage of a valuable opportunity if the Monterrey Consensus is not implemented.

We need actions, not words, stated Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez, as he urged governments to honour their promises.

The commitments made 18 months ago at the special UN General Assembly, the Millennium Summit, held in New York, were mere words, Chavez said. The world’s governments agreed at that meeting to make concerted efforts to cut global poverty in half by the year 2015.

The official delegations from Belgium, Cuba, Venezuela and several African countries agreed in their criticism that the Monterrey Consensus does not represent a true commitment to fight poverty.

However, Cuba was alone in announcing that it would not sign the final document. President Fidel Castro said it had been “imposed by the masters of the world.”

According to governments like Chile and France, the international community should create an Economic Security Council that would administer funds aimed at dealing with crises and support countries suffering financial problems. Another proposal formulated here and backed by several governments was the creation of a World Environment Organization to be the hub of all environmentally related international agencies.

Venezuela suggested creating a development support fund with the money from the foreign debt forgiveness efforts benefiting poor countries, which could be called the International Humanitarian Fund. Chavez agreed with other heads of state that international financial transactions should be taxed. (IPS)       

From TWE No 277 (16-31 March 2002)