Leocadia Bongben
9 May 2008
As the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, UNCTAD XII closed it doors, it underscored the importance of countries to diversify economies, ensure access to basic services and strengthen the legal and regulatory frameworks and institutions.
The recommendation of UNCTAD was a follow up of the Ghana Accord signed by the 193 members of UNCTAD. It hammered the on the urgency of tailoring policies to the needs of individual countries while at the same time respecting international laws.
The conference equally highlighted the growing trade and investment links with the developing world spurred by the emergence of dynamic developing economies such as China, Brazil and India. It called for such ties to be encouraged and reinforced particularly through regional integration and the reduction of barriers to South-South trade.
The conference also called for the strengthening of UNCTAD's role on economic, trade and development issues, especially in climate change, energy, security and international migration. Addressing the press, UNCTAD Secretary General, Supachai Panitchpakdi, laid emphasis on good governance as a platform to attract major investors to Africa.
He said in the new dispensation, states have to turn away from their past attitude of laissez-faire to mainstream trade, investment, infrastructure and agriculture.He said the international community should do everything to help Africa in the process of economic integration, with more encompassing solutions in logistics, transportation amongst others.
Meanwhile, Supachai said UNCTAD's role is limited to sensitization and raising awareness on the issue of global food crisis.He maintained that the UN has created a task force to address the crisis and will help coordinate various activities. He said the issue would feature in the ECOSOC summit and in the Food summit in June.
He said UNCTAD would work with the private sector to attract foreign direct investment to Africa and request the UN for a full programme on commodity. He said there is need for a better coherence in the financial, health care, education, gender and other sectors with a south -south negotiations enhanced by the GSTP.
He hinted on the intentions of Brazil to set up agricultural institutions to work with Africa in the areas of technology and research.He said though the conference did not put in place a globalisation commission, it is not an issue as globalization cuts across board.
The implementation of UNCTAD resolutions however is not compulsory for the World Trade Organization.Though trade is at the heart of UNCTAD, and has provided a framework for the negotiation of trade agreements, it is not a trade agreement.
UNCTAD is an international organisation that belongs to the United Nations and has organised quadrennial conferences and has three main pillars, research, consensus building and technical cooperation. After South Africa in 1996, Bangkok in 2000, Soa Paulo in 2004, and Ghana in 2008, Qartar would host UNCTAD XII.
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