Go Between 75, June-July 1999 UN NEWS SECRETARY-GENERAL APPEALS TO G-8 The UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has appealed to the Group of 8 (G-8, the heads of state and government of the group of seven industrialized countries plus the Russian Federation) to adopt policies favouring more balanced patterns and higher levels of output growth, to consider additional steps to protect the international financial system against instability, to take quick action to reduce the debt of the poorest countries and to increase development aid. The actions are advocated in a letter sent to German Chancellor Gerhard Schroder, Chair of the G-8, in advance of the group's 18-20 June summit. Such measures are urgently needed, the Secretary-General said, because recent financial crises have reversed the economic and social gains of many decades in just months, impoverishing large sectors of the world's population and, in a period of low economic growth, threatening billions with perpetual misery. "The internationally agreed goals of poverty eradication and social progress in the developing countries are simply not achievable so long as world output continues to grow at its present sluggish rate," the Secretary-General said in his letter. In addition, the slowdown is "aggravating the imbalances in trade among the leading industrial Powers, thereby threatening the stability of the international financial system." Secretary-General Annan said that existing United Nations proposals for strengthening the international financial system "merit serious consideration," and urged that additional measures be taken "to prevent the recurrence of devastating crises like those of 1997-98." The United Nations position paper on financial architecture, issued in January, called for making greater liquidity available to fight off financial contagions, the creation of regional reserve funds, the establishment of debt standstill mechanisms and closer oversight of capital markets, while defending the right of developing countries to determine their own capital control and exchange rate policies (a copy of the paper is available online at www.un.org/esa/coordination/ifa.htm). In his letter, Secretary-General Annan welcomed the emerging consensus that bold measures should be taken quickly to relieve the debt burden of the poorest countries, but said that further action is needed. He cautioned that such relief should not come at the expense of official development assistance (ODA). He also called for a commitment to reverse the decline in ODA and to explore innovative ways to mobilize additional resources for development. "There is a grave risk that the bulk of the world's population will be left on the margin of today's liberalized global economy, living in abject poverty," the Secretary-General warned. "It is the responsibility of all of us to redouble our efforts to ensure that this does not happen." Contact: Tim Wall, Development and Human Rights Section, United Nations Department of Public Information, United Nations, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/963 5851, e-mail , website (www.un.org). NEW UNDP HEAD: MARK MALLOCH BROWN The UN General Assembly has confirmed Mark Malloch Brown of the United Kingdom as the next Administrator of the UN Development Programme (UNDP). He replaces James Gustave Speth, who has been named Dean of Yale University's School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. "The problems of poverty and inequality persist. We need to find new weapons to fight old wars," said Mr Malloch Brown. "Let me also say I am very proud to take on where Gus Speth is leaving off. He leaves me a strong platform, based on the extensive managerial changes and new focus he has introduced into the organization, and I am deeply grateful to him." Mr Malloch Brown founded the The Economist Development Report on the aid community and political economy of development. He has also worked as a Washington-based public relations consultant, and has been Vice-President for External Affairs/United Nations Affairs at the World Bank since 1996. He is credited with having helped the World Bank enhance its outreach, expand its partnerships with other UN agencies and NGOs, build stronger links with client and donor countries, and strengthen its media outreach and strategic communications worldwide. His appointment is also widely seen as a sign of the increasingly close relationship between UNDP and the World Bank. Mr Malloch Brown assumes his new post on 1 July. Contact: UNDP, 1 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/906 5324, fax +1-212/906 5364, website (www.undp.org). SG MEETS WITH MAJOR GLOBAL THINK TANKS On 4 May, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan met with 30 directors of independent research institutes from 22 countries, seeking to improve cooperation between the United Nations and major global "think tanks." The day-long conference, which took place at UN headquarters, reviewed both UN research needs and the resources the UN has to offer the international research community. The discussion focused on several areas of possible collaboration, including peace and security, globalization and development, and relations with civil society. Special attention was given to the creative use of the Internet as a medium of research, communication and exchange. In opening remarks, Mr Annan underscored the importance of research organizations and public policy centres in promoting discussion and debate on social, political and economic problems, and in helping to identify the dimensions that have changed the world. He also told those gathered that the UN needed to forge stronger links with research analysts and organizations in the South. "I often say that the biggest gap between North and South is the knowledge gap' --and I can think of no better way to bridge it than by fostering truly cooperative research network," he said. AIDS FUNDING LAGS BEHIND EPIDEMIC Financial support by donor countries for the international fight against AIDS is being vastly outpaced by the epidemic, according to a recent report from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). Donor nations provide approximately US$350 million a year for an epidemic that has already infected 47 million people. There are nearly 6 million new infections annually. The report examines donor spending on national, regional and international efforts to fight HIV/AIDS, and national HIV/AIDS spending in developing countries for the years 1996 and 1997. According to the report, the United States is the largest funder of international AIDS programming among industrialized countries, contributing US$135.2 million in 1997. But when AIDS funding is broken down as a proportion of gross national product (GNP), Norway and the Netherlands rank first and second, respectively. The report indicates that although AIDS funding has not suffered the same declines as overall development assistance (ODA) during the past few years, the amount allocated for HIV/AIDS is still less than 1% of donor countries' annual ODA budgets. "Donor nations must realize that their substantial investments toward improving conditions in developing countries will be effectively obliterated unless more is invested in fighting AIDS--the single greatest threat to global development today," said Peter Piot, Executive Director of UNAIDS. According to the organization, 95% of people living with HIV/AIDS are in developing countries. In many sub-Saharan African countries, where the majority of people with HIV/AIDS live, AIDS is reducing life expectancy and increasing child mortality to rates not seen since the 1950s. The report also uses available historical data from a group of countries comprising 75% of ODA funding to look at global spending trends from 1987 to 1997. After a quick influx of donor support, AIDS funding began to level off in 1990. Between 1990 and 1997, when the number of people living with HIV more than tripled, HIV/AIDS funding rose only from US$165 million to US$273 million. "Twenty years into the epidemic, it is alarming that AIDS is expanding three times faster than the funding to control it," said Dr Piot. National spending estimates in 64 developing countries provide some insights. Nearly US$280 million of the US$548.5 million total was reported by Brazil and Thailand alone. Only US$140 million of the country-level spending was reported by the sub-Saharan African countries included in the report. Uganda, where a strong national effort has succeeded in turning the tide of the epidemic, reported the highest spending in this region--US$37 million in 1996. In comparison, Nigeria, where the epidemic is increasing at an alarming rate, reported less than US$4 million for 1996. The report, Level and Flow of National and International Resources for the Response to HIV/AIDS, 1996-1997, was prepared by UNAIDS and the Fran‡ois-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights at the Harvard School of Public Health in the United States. Contact: Lisa Jacobs, Press Officer, Communication and Public Information, UNAIDS, 20 avenue Appia, CH-1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/791 3387, fax +41-22/791 4187, e-mail , website (www.unaids.org). ASIAN ECONOMIC CRISIS INTENSIFIES HIV RISK "The Asian AIDS epidemic is building momentum. Of the 7.2 million people living with HIV/AIDS in the region, one-fifth were infected in the last year alone," said Peter Piot, Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) at a press conference in Bangkok on 2 April, hosted by the Thai Red Cross Society. On an official visit after assessing the AIDS situation in Cambodia and Vietnam, Dr Piot noted that more than half of all new infections in the region are occurring among those under 25 years of age, with the Asian economic crisis increasing the HIV burden of the younger population. Of the estimated 1.2 million new infections in 1998 in South and South-East Asia, approximately 700,000 were children and young people. According to Dr Piot, in recent years, economic expansion in the region has encouraged many young people to leave their rural homes for cities where they encounter high HIV and sexually-transmitted disease (STD) rates. The current economic decline has put many of these young adults out of work, with large numbers now returning to their rural districts and introducing HIV into previously unaffected areas. In addition, as the economic hard times hit, many schools have experienced falling enrolments and higher drop-out rates. This has reduced the opportunity to reach children and young people with HIV/AIDS education in the few communities that provide sexual health education in schools. Also, the number of young people entering adulthood lack employable skills, which makes them much more likely to drift into risky behaviour such as drug use and prostitution. The highest enrolment decline in different Asian countries is consistently among young girls. Through coercion, trafficking or economic need, many young unemployed women have wound up in the sex trade. "Families must be supported to keep their children in school, and communities must give children and young people the support, skills and information they need in order to avoid or cope with situations that will make them vulnerable to HIV infection," said Dr Piot. "Governments in Asia must compensate for lost revenue, but the great danger is that health and education programmes will be sacrificed. This would be a tragic mistake." Care and counselling for people with HIV/AIDS is also a major issue, especially in countries with mature epidemics. WHO representative to Thailand Brian Doberstyn noted that governments, non-governmental organizations and the private sector are seriously challenged to provide adequate and compassionate counselling and care. "This is an especially daunting problem in these days of economic crisis," he said. Contact: UNAIDS, 20 avenue Appia, CH-1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/791 4577, fax +41-22/791 4179, e-mail , website (www.unaids.org). DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS STALLING, SAYS WORLD BANK Efforts to improve human development may be grinding to a halt as the end of the millennium nears, according to World Development Indicators 1999, a World Bank report released in April. The report said slow growth in Asia and Latin America, uncertain prospects for economies in transition, and the spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa will make it increasingly difficult for the development community to achieve its goals. The bad news comes on the heels of a generation of declining poverty, longer lives, and better health for millions of the world's poorest. The report said 5.3% growth in developing countries (excluding the former Soviet Union) between 1991-1997 fueled expectations that living standards would continue to rise. The Asian-led financial crisis ended these hopes and may even reverse the gains of people whose lot had improved, especially in Eastern Europe and former Soviet Union countries. In 1989, 14 million people in these countries were living below a poverty line of US$4 a day; by the mid-1990s the figure had shot up to 147 million, or one person in three. In sub-Saharan Africa, improvements in life expectancy have been wiped out by HIV/AIDS, and population growth is outstripping school attendance. To make matters worse foreign aid is at its lowest in almost 50 years. The report said water supplies are down 30% from 25 years ago, adult mortality rates are up in Africa and the former Soviet Union, inequality is on the rise in countries once ruled by Communist regimes, and all developing regions have lost momentum in reducing poverty. But the report also carried some good news. India and China, which account for 38% of the world's population, have avoided the Asian financial crisis. Botswana's economy has been growing by 11.4% a year, followed by Oman (9.7%), China (8.5%), Singapore (8.3%) and South Korea (8.2%). Other good news according to the report: girls' school enrolment caught up with that of boys in most high-income countries in Latin America, the Caribbean and Eastern Europe; trade continues to grow; and access to computers and the Internet is rising. Contact: World Bank, PO Box 960, Herndon VA 20172-0960, United States, telephone +1-800/645 7247, fax +1-703/661 1501, e-mail , website (www.worldbank.org). FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT: UPDATE The ad hoc working group of the General Assembly on Financing for Development met in May to negotiate final recommendations on the scope, agenda and form of the 2001 High-Level International Intergovernmental Forum on Financing for Development. The report of the working group will be presented to the 54th session of the General Assembly for action in October (see Go Between 74). During the 54th session, delegates will discuss further how the preparatory process can effectively engage all relevant stakeholders and how to maintain the dynamic, open intergovernmental process. On 30 April the working group held the second in a series of dialogues with NGOs accredited to the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). Interventions were made by the NGO Finance, Investment and Trade Caucus of the NGO Steering Committee for Sustainable Development; the Quaker UN Office; the International Centre for Policy and Resources for Indigenous Peoples; and the International Federation for Human Rights. NGOs suggested that finance and trade were integral to the follow-up of UN conferences, and should take place in a democratic forum. They urged that the proposed Millennium Round of trade negotiations through the WTO should not take place before the Financing for Development conference. They asked for stronger relations between the UN and the WTO in integrating agendas. "The right to trade at any cost regardless of the consequences will ultimately destroy the very foundation that trade is based upon: the people who produce the goods and the ecosystems that supply the raw materials," the NGO caucus said. Regarding the global financial architecture, the NGO caucus proposed that these discussions include a more comprehensive analysis of the impact of trade and investment liberalization on the ability to achieve ecologically sound, and socially and environmentally just sustainable development. On 4 May the working group held its third informal session with statements from 31 delegations. In preparation, the Vice-Chairpersons circulated a summary of the status of work to date, including an overview of discussions and a consolidated paper to assist in further consideration of the scope of the event. On 12-14 May the working group held informal meetings, during which the Vice-Chairs circulated a draft of the final report to the GA. The Vice-Chairs asked Libran Cabactualan (Philippines) to facilitate negotiations on the agenda and scope sections for the draft report in working sessions from 20-25 May. The working group then met on 27-28 May to review progress and finalized its report. Among the recommendations of the working group was that the high-level intergovernmental event in the year 2001 address national, international and systemic issues relating to financing for development in a holistic manner in the context of globalization and interdependence. The group's view was that by doing so the event would also address development through the perspective of finance. Contact: Harris Gleckman, Development Policy Analysis Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Room DC2-2162, United Nations, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/963 4690, fax +1-212/963 1061, e-mail , website (www.un.org/esa/analysis/ffd.htm) or the NGLS office in New York. HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE MEETS The Human Rights Committee held its 65th session at UN headquarters from 22 March-9 April. Chaired by Cecilia Medina Quiroga (Chile), the 18-member monitoring body considered reports submitted by the governments of Canada, Chile, Costa Rica and Lesotho on their compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The reports of Cambodia and Cameroon were deferred until the committee's July session in Geneva. Concerning the report of Canada, the committee noted that the situation of the aboriginal peoples was "the most pressing human rights issue facing Canadians." It recommended that decisive and urgent action be taken towards the full implementation of the recommendations of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples on land and resource allocation. Other recommendations included revising Canada's policy of removing aliens to countries where they might face torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment; and eliminating increasingly intrusive measures that affect the right to privacy of people who rely on social assistance. Regarding Chile, the committee noted that the constitutional arrangements, made as part of the political agreement that had facilitated the transition from military dictatorship to democracy, hindered full implementation of the covenant. It said that the Amnesty Decree Law, under which persons who committed offenses between September 1973 and March 1978 are granted amnesty, was generally incompatible with the duty of the state to investigate human rights violations, to guarantee freedoms from such violations and to ensure that similar violations did not occur. The committee also called for amendments to the law criminalizing abortions in Chile so as to introduce exceptions to the general prohibition of all abortions and to protect the confidentiality of medical information. The committee welcomed the establishment of an interim political authority in Lesotho to facilitate and promote, with legislative and executive structures, preparations for general elections in 18 months. However it expressed concern over the discrimination against women that was still being practised in the country and over the fact that both common and customary law permitted discrimination by treating women as minors. The committee recommended that the state either repeal or amend those discriminatory laws and eradicate discriminatory practices that were violations of the covenant. The committee regretted that Costa Rica's report did not sufficiently address the practical implementation of human rights in the country. The scope and effect of the remedy of amparo, the avenue for seeking redress as provided for by law, remained unclear, and the committee asked Costa Rica to give examples from both private and public agencies of the application of amparo in its next report. The committee noted the danger to life involved in clandestine abortions due to the continued criminalization of the practice and recommended that the law be amended to introduce exceptions to the general prohibitions of all abortions. It was also concerned about the high incidence of commercial sexual exploitation of children, often related to tourism, and the increase in child labour and school dropouts. The committee noted that no effective remedies had been put in place to combat these practices. The committee also completed its consideration of the first draft of a general comment on Article 12 of the covenant that deals with liberty of movement, freedom to choose residence and freedom to leave any country. The draft comment notes that liberty of movement is an essential element of any open society. It is an indispensable condition for the free development of a person and a necessary basis for the enjoyment of other human rights, such as the right to receive information, to present opinions, to worship at a certain place, to assemble or to associate with others or to see family members elsewhere. LINKING HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEVELOPMENT A new programme entitled Human Rights Strengthening (HURIST) will help developing countries and countries in transition to better promote human rights and to integrate human rights into development. The programme is a joint effort by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and will help integrate human rights concerns into sustainable human development work. Country-level activities will focus on strengthening public institutions such as parliaments, judiciaries and human rights commissions and will involve civil society, NGOs, the private sector, media and the academic community. "In the ongoing reform of the United Nations, the UN Secretary-General expects all UN agencies and programmes to contribute to the promotion of human rights," said Zephirin Diabre, UNDP Associate Administrator. "Through this partnership with OHCHR, UNDP will help developing countries integrate human rights concerns into national development activities. At the same time the initiative will reinforce UNDP's policy objectives, namely poverty eradication, sustainable livelihoods, gender equality, environmental protection and promotion of good governance." The programme will, among other things: -- support national human rights plans of action based on the 1993 Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action in five pilot countries (one in each region); -- integrate human rights into existing programmes of five pilot UNDP country offices (one in each region); -- promote the ratification of existing treaties and removal of reservations thereto, through the holding of regional/sub-regional/national workshops; and -- facilitate dialogue on human rights and globalization. Contact: Sylvie Saddier, Research and Right to Development Branch, OHCHR, Palais des Nations, CH-1210 Geneva 10, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/917 9331, fax +41-22/917 9010, e-mail , website (www.unhchr.ch) or Sid Kane, UNDP, 1 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/906 5324, fax +1-212/906 5001, website (www.undp.org). ILO: OVER ONE MILLION DIE AT WORK ANNUALLY Over one million work-related deaths occur annually and hundreds of millions of workers suffer from workplace accidents and occupational exposure to hazardous substances worldwide, according to Jukka Takala, Chief of the Health and Safety Programme of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Dr Takala was speaking at the opening of the ILO's 15th World Congress on Occupational Safety and Health, held in April in S o Paulo (Brazil). Dr Takala said that more people die at work than from road accidents, war, violence and HIV/AIDS. Approximately a quarter of the deaths are from exposure to hazardous substances that cause cardiovascular, respiratory and nervous disorders, and cancer. He warned that work-related diseases are expected to double by 2020. Working children are particularly affected by accidents in the workplace: 12 million children have an accident at the workplace each year; of these, around 12,000 are fatal. Industrializing countries are hit harder because of the large number of workers in hazardous jobs such as agriculture, logging, fishing and mining. In industrialized countries, on the other hand, serious injuries have decreased due to structural changes in the nature of work and efforts to make the workplace healthier and safer. However the introduction of new technologies has brought with it new occupational hazards: these include musculo-skeletal problems, stress, allergic reactions, and problems caused by exposure to hazardous and carcinogenic agents such as asbestos, radiation and chemicals. The economic costs of occupational and work-related injuries and diseases are rapidly increasing. ILO says that "while it is impossible to place a value on human life, compensation figures indicate that approximately 4% of the world's gross domestic product disappears with the cost of diseases through absences from work, sickness treatment, disability and survivor benefits." The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) lost in work-related injuries and diseases is more than the total GDP of Africa, the Arab States and South Asia and more than all the aid to developing countries. The ILO says that different countries need different strategies. For industrialized countries, priorities need to focus on psychological factors linked to poor workplace relations and management, the mental and physical consequences of repetitive, highly technical tasks, and information on handling new technologies and substances, including chemicals. In industrializing countries, priorities need to focus on improving safety and health practices in primary industries, preventing industrial accidents including fires and leaks of hazardous substances, and preventing accidents and diseases including those in informal workshops and home-based industries. Contact: Bureau of Public Information, ILO, 4 route des Morillons, CH-1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/799 7940, fax +41-22/799 8577, website (www.ilo.org). CONDITIONS WORSEN IN SMALL-SCALE MINING People who work in small-scale mines in developing countries have a death rate up to 90% higher than their counterparts in the industrial world, said a new report by the International Labour Organization (ILO). Small-scale mining is expanding rapidly, the report said, and employs many women and children in dangerous conditions. The report said small-scale mining in 35 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America grew by about 20% in the past five years and that growth is expected to continue. The profession is seen as dirty, dangerous and damaging and pays mostly subsistence-level wages, but it provides work for up to 13 million people and livelihoods for as many as 80-100 million worldwide. Of these, as many as four million are women, and hundreds of thousands more are children. They face hazards that include flooding, cave-ins, tuberculosis, dust, mercury and other chemicals. Despite efforts to suppress small-scale mining, economic need stands in the way. For poor countries, mining promises cash and an extra hope--like holding a lottery ticket--that a miner could strike it rich. This reinforces a vicious circle of appalling working conditions, environmental damage, and poverty. The report, Social and Labour Issues in Small-Scale Mines, does not call for an end to small-scale mining, but an improvement in working conditions and environmental protection. Contact: Bureau of Public Information, ILO, 4 route des Morillons, CH-1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/799 7940, fax +41-22/799 8577, website (www.ilo.org). WETLANDS AT CENTRE STAGE Efforts to mainstream' the protection of wetlands as a key issue for governments and civil society received wide support at the Seventh Conference of the Parties (COP) of the Convention on Wetlands, known as Ramsar. The conference was held from 10-18 May in San Jose, Costa Rica. The convention's Secretary-General, Delmar Blasco, said before the meeting that a freshwater crisis combined with cross-border water disputes made it imperative to put wetlands protection at center stage. Participants saw the meeting as a successful effort to both raise Ramsar's political profile and to broaden its scope. Until now the convention had focused on protecting wetlands as a habitat for waterfowl. Now it wants to move into the wider arena of sustainable development. As the global water crisis worsens, wetlands and their key ecological role will become increasingly important, making wetlands protection an increasingly political issue. The meeting also tackled the difficult issue of international watercourses, which is expected to become more delicate as Ramsar spreads its wings and becomes a more important player in the world water debate. During the meeting other resolutions were passed, including one to establish a network of 2000 Wetlands of International Importance by COP-9 in 2005, another to boost the number of wetlands sites with management plans, and a decision to improve outreach to policy makers and the public about wetlands. In spite of Ramsar's broadened scope no new money for secretariat funding was approved, raising concerns that the convention's small secretariat will be hard pressed to live up to the wider expectations of contracting parties. Ramsar has 116 contracting parties and protects 977 wetlands worldwide by including them on its Ramsar List of Wetlands Considered of International Importance. Contact: The Ramsar Convention Bureau, 28 rue Mauverney, CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/999 0170, fax +41-22/999 0169, e-mail , website (www.iucn.org/themes/ramsar/). CLIMATE CHANGE: BONN TALKS The tenth session of the subsidiary bodies of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC) took place in Bonn (Germany) from 31 May to 11 June. The work of the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) and the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technical Advice (SBSTA) focused on strengthening the implementation of the FCCC and preparing for the entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol (see E&D File, Vol. III, No. 16) in line with the Buenos Aires Plan of Action adopted at the Fourth Conference of the Parties (COP-4) in November 1998 (see E&D File, Vol. III, No. 18). Among the topics discussed in Bonn were communications and methodologies, development and transfer of technology, the Kyoto Protocol mechanisms, activities implemented jointly, compliance, and administrative and financial matters. While progress was made, many issues remain to be clarified and resolved and will be taken up at COP-5, to be held in Bonn from 25 October to 5 November 1999. Some 1,500 participants representing 147 governments and 152 multilateral, non-governmental and other organizations attended the meetings of the subsidiary bodies. The proceedings were disrupted three times by bomb scares. Contact: FCCC Secretariat, PO Box 260124, D-53153 Bonn, Germany, telephone +49-228/815 1000, fax +49-228/815 1999, e-mail , website (www.unfccc.de). In another development, the US-based World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development in Geneva hosted in mid-June the launch of a partnership between business, governmental and environmental organizations to develop an international protocol for measuring and reporting greenhouse gas emissions from business. The protocol, which seeks to improve the credibility, comparability and usefulness of reporting on emissions, is seen by the group's members as an important step towards responding to global climate change and reducing emissions. The group welcomes new partners to join the effort. Contact: WRI, 10 G Street NE, Suite 800, Washington DC 20002, United States, telephone +1-202/729 7600, fax +1-202/729 7610, website (www.wri.org). UNEP: PHASING OUT ODS The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has launched a major initiative to help developing countries phase out ozone-depleting substances (ODS). The initiative, launched in Montreal at the 27th meeting of the Executive Committee of the Multilateral Fund of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, defines steps that will significantly reduce the use of cholorofluorocarbons (CFCs) worldwide. The committee unanimously approved UNEP's US$7 million plan to assist developing countries to meet their obligations under the Montreal Protocol. It also agreed to give US$30 million to CFC-reduction projects in developing countries. To date, more than US$900 million has been allocated to such projects. The grace period given to developing countries to start phasing out CFCs comes to an end this year. The committee also approved the closure of all CFC-producing facilities in China over the next 10 years; China is the largest producer of CFCs in the world. Projects were also approved for the Bahamas, Malaysia and Thailand, which are preparing to phase out ODS before the Montreal Protocol deadline. Programmes in countries with low volume consumption (LVC) need to be strengthened. Plans for licensing, legislation and regulation systems are being implemented by LVCs with the participation of governments, technicians and consumers. UNEP is assisting more than 25 countries in preparing and implementing such plans. Contact: Madhava Sharma, Executive Secretary, Ozone Secretariat, PO Box 30552, Nairobi, Kenya, telephone +254-2/623885, fax +254-2/623913, e-mail or Rajendra Shende, Chief, Energy and OzonAction, UNEP Trade, Industry and Environment, Tour Mirabeau, 39-43 Quai Andre-Citro‰n, F-75739 Paris Cedex 15, France, telephone +33-1/44 37 14 59, fax +33-1/44 37 14 74, e-mail , website (www.unep.ch/ozone/home.htm). REGIONAL POPS WORKSHOP HELD IN HANOI A regional workshop was held to help Asian and Pacific nations manage persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and reduce or eliminate their release into the atmosphere. POPs are chemical substances that persist in the environment, accumulate through the food web, and can harm human health. Talks have been underway to agree on a legally binding global agreement on POPs by 2000. The workshop, organized by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), discussed the use of alternatives to POPs in industry, agriculture, and disease vector control, and action at the national level on a range of issues. These included: applying integrated pest management; managing unwanted stockpiles of pesticides; identifying and addressing releases of dioxins and furans; dealing with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs); and pursuing alternatives to DDT for malaria control while fully protecting public health. Participants discussed alternatives to POP pesticides. They said wider use of strategies for integrated pest and vector management in agriculture and public health protection would reduce reliance on toxic chemicals. Participants said that consistency and coherence was needed on the part of governments in addressing POP problems, and that the impact of POPs on biodiversity should be a key criterion when selecting pest and vector control components. Major problems associated with PCBs include identification, management, and environmentally sound disposal (see article below). Participants said that pilot projects to evaluate management strategies and technological processes should be made available for broader application. The third round of negotiations towards an international treaty on POPs is scheduled in Geneva in September. The proposed treaty would deal initially with 12 specific POPs: aldrin, dieldrin, DDT, endrin, heptachlor, chlordane, mirex, toxaphene, polychlorinated biphenyls, hexachlorobenzene, dioxins and furans. The treaty also features criteria and a procedure for identifying other pollutants for inclusion. Earlier negotiating sessions took place in June-July 1998 and January 1999. The regional workshop was organized in Hanoi from 16-19 March by UNEP in cooperation with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, and the National Environment Agency of Vietnam. Contact: Jim Willis, Director, UNEP Chemicals, Geneva Executive Centre, 11-13 chemin des Anemones, CH-1219 Chƒtelaine (Geneva), Switzerland, telephone +41-22/917 8183, fax +41-22/797 3460, e-mail , website (www.chem.unep.ch/pops/). FIRST GLOBAL INVENTORY OF PCB DISPOSAL CAPACITY The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has issued the first global inventory of disposal capacity of highly toxic polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in wastes and other forms. The Inventory of World-Wide PCB Destruction Capacity is designed to fill strategic data gaps in chemicals management. Countries are acting on PCB releases as part of a legally- binding international agreement now being negotiated through UNEP on persistent organic pollutants (POPs). The third round of negotiations to reach an international treaty to reduce and/or eliminate releases of POPs will take place in Geneva in September (see article above). PCBs, once used as coolants and insulation, are usually destroyed in special incinerators at very high temperatures because insufficient heat can release highly toxic dioxins and furans into the atmosphere. PCBs are also stored in chemical waste landfills or broken down through other non-incineration technologies. The survey says that the key problem worldwide in dealing with PCBs is identifying waste inventories in some countries and financing their destruction. Among the problems in disposing of PCBs are poor management or lack of treatment, little knowledge of the risks, unsafe transport of equipment containing PCBs, and widespread presence of this equipment in urban areas. People are mainly exposed to PCBs through skin contact, drinking water, and food such as fish and shellfish. Infants are especially vulnerable through breast milk. PCBs cause cancer, interfere with reproduction and development, impair the immune function, and damage the central nervous system and liver. Even trace amounts can have identifiable consequences, and those at highest risk are children. Governments were asked to provide information on the type and capacity of available facilities for the disposal of PCBs and PCB-containing wastes and waste equipment. According to the survey there is considerable capacity in Europe and in Asia and the Pacific but few options in Africa and South America. The inventory was prepared by UNEP Chemicals in cooperation with the Secretariat of the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal. It presents options for PCB destruction worldwide, and provides a guide for evaluating disposal options and identifying suitable facilities. Contact: Jim Willis, Director, UNEP Chemicals, Geneva Executive Centre, 11-13 chemin des Anemones, CH-1219 Chƒtelaine (Geneva), Switzerland, telephone +41-22/917 8183, fax +41-22/797 3460, e-mail , website (www.chem.unep.ch). TOXIC PESTICIDES TICKING TIME BOMB, FAO SAYS Huge stocks of old pesticides in Africa and the Middle East will remain dangerous until 2030 unless more funds from government and business are made available for waste disposal, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned. There are several hundred thousand tonnes of obsolete pesticide stocks worldwide and more than 100,000 tonnes in developing countries, including 20,000 in Africa. The situation is particularly dangerous in Poland (65,000) and the Ukraine (23,000). Pesticides are stored in metal drums which leak and corrode, FAO said, and accidents are widespread. "Often drums are stored in the open, next to food stores or markets and easily accessible to children," said FAO expert Alemayehu Wodageneh. "Deadly chemicals are contaminating the soils, ground water, irrigation and drinking water. These forgotten stocks' are a serious risk, they could cause an environmental tragedy." Many pesticides have been donated by aid agencies or governments; they are more than 30 years old and unusable because they are banned or too old. They include such toxic products as aldrin, DDT, dieldrin, endrin, HCH, lindane, malathion, and parthion. So far US$24.4 million have been spent to get rid of these pesticides but FAO estimates it would cost US$80-$100 million to clean all obsolete pesticides in Africa alone. FAO has called upon governments and industry to weigh in with more money. Industry support is crucial because aid money is not enough, FAO said. BASEL CONVENTION TALKS MOVE FORWARD Three preparatory meetings to the Basel Convention's fifth Conference of the Parties (COP-5) have advanced significantly on several issues. The meetings took place in Geneva in April. The Ad Hoc Working Group improved the draft protocol on liability and compensation from damage caused by transboundary waste movements and disposal. While the protocol was not adopted as expected, the working group is optimistic adoption will take place at COP-5. This would make Basel the first global environmental agreement to include liability and compensation. Delegates agreed on the type of damage which would be compensated, and decided liability would extend from the moment waste is loaded to complete disposal. Issues to be resolved include how to assign strict liability, whether a financial limit should be set for damage claims, emergency measures after an accident, and whether to establish international clean-up procedures, which would kick in until the liable party is identified. The Technical Working Group agreed on draft guidelines to manage plastics and tyres, and made progress on guidelines for biomedical and health wastes. The group also moved forward on hazard characterization,' or developing indicators used to assess the risks of hazardous wastes. Delegates also discussed the dismantling of old ships, which can contain large quantities of asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and other hazardous wastes. Finally, the second joint meeting of the Technical Working Group and the Consultative Subgroup of Legal and Technical Experts discussed illegal traffic over international borders and the need to improve monitoring through cooperation with Interpol, the World Customs Organization and others. It also worked on a monitoring and compliance regime. The Basel Convention was adopted in 1989 and entered in into force in 1992. It has 123 parties. COP-5 will take place in Basel (Switzerland) from 6-10 December. Contact: Secretariat of the Basel Convention, Geneva Executive Center, 15 chemin des Anemones, CH-1219 Chƒtelaine (Geneva), Switzerland, telephone +41-22/979 1111, fax +41-22/797 3454, e-mail , website (www.unep.ch/basel/). IFF-3 POSTPONES DECISIONS TO IFF-4 The third session of the Intergovernmental Forum on Forests (IFF-3), held from 3-14 May in Geneva, ended after drawn-out discussions on a wide range of issues but little agreement. Instead it forwarded a number of proposals for action to IFF-4, tentatively scheduled for 31 January-11 February 2000 in New York. Support for a binding forest convention, which has been under discussion since the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio, has faded. Efforts to start negotiating a treaty came to a standstill, with proposed solutions to forest conservation ranging from a greater input from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to more use of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Discussions on the transfer of environmentally-sound technology reflected long-time mindsets on the divisions between developed and developing countries, with developing countries calling for commitments on new technology before signing away their resources to northern industries. They faced opposition from some developed countries with significant biotechnology industries. Along similar lines, discussions on pirating traditional forest-related knowledge (TFRK) centered on commitments to financial resources prior to the exporting of such knowledge by indigenous communities. In contrast to the muted approach to other issues, the only heated debates at IFF-3 were about trade and environment. They reflected the issues being discussed under the World Trade Organization and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation. Debate focused on tariffs and on the sustainable management of forests. In their closing remarks, the G-77/China said the unwillingness of wealthier countries to commit financial resources to pressing forest issues demonstrated a desire to maintain the status quo. What decisions could not be reached were remanded to IFF-4, which will have to deal with large amounts of bracketed text. Contact: Jaime Hurtubia, Principal Environment Officer, IFF Secretariat, Division for Sustainable Development, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, 2 UN Plaza, Room DC2-1254, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/963 4219, fax +1-212/963 3463. WORLD FOREST COMMISSION FINAL REPORT Changing the way forests are valued and managed means the world can have both development and forests, according to the recently-released final report of the World Commission on Forests and Sustainable Development (WCFSD). The commission, launched by a coalition of former world leaders, concluded the world can satisfy its material needs from forests without jeopardizing their ecological services. Forests are now being exploited faster than they can reproduce, the report said. Nearly three-quarters of West Africa's forests have disappeared since 1950, and Thailand lost a third of its forests in ten years. World population is expected to grow 50% in the next half-century, and there will be more pressure on what forests are left. The commission wants to involve people at all levels in forest decisions through a ForesTrust.' The plan would include a Forest Watch network to connect ordinary people and decision makers, a Forest Management Council to certify products as sustainable, a Forest Ombudsman to identify and rule on corruption and abuse, and a Forest Award to promote sustainable management of forests. The report also challenged the few countries with the most forests to lead the way with a Forest Security Council, similar to the G-8 summits but also involving the science, business and NGO communities. The report, called Our Forests...Our Future, also suggested a Forest Capital Index to measure the role and content of forests. This would allow decision makers to evaluate progress in conserving forest capital and help place a value on the ecosystem services provided by forests. The index would measure the contribution of forests to clean drinking water, soil conservation, wildlife conservation and climate regulation. It could also be a basis to calculate compensation for developing countries whose forests provide these services. Public hearings were held on five continents to incorporate views of those living in, near or making a living from forests. Contact: Robert Bisset, Press Officer, Communications and Public Relations, UNEP, PO Box 30552, Nairobi, Kenya, telephone +254-2/623084, fax +254-2/623692, e-mail , website (www.unep.org). INLAND FISHERIES UNDER THREAT Freshwater fish, a major source of food and protein, are increasingly threatened worldwide by environmental degradation, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). According to preliminary FAO estimates, over 7.7 million tonnes of fish were caught in lakes, rivers, swamps, marshes, water reservoirs and ponds in 1997, or 6% of the world's total fish production of 122 million tonnes. Yields may be much higher since data from subsistence fisheries are greatly under-reported. Most inland fish is consumed locally, marketed domestically, and often contributes to the subsistence and livelihood of poor people. It contributes significantly to animal protein supplies in many rural areas. FAO says that industrialization, urbanization, deforestation, mining, and agricultural land and water use degrade aquatic environments and threaten inland fish production. Fishery resources are being affected by destruction of aquatic habitats and by aquatic pollution, from the release of industrial and urban effluents and run-off of agro-chemicals. Land and forest degradation, loss of biodiversity, scarcity and pollution of freshwater are all increasing in Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean. Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Baltic States are also losing biodiversity and habitat. Pressures on Asian watersheds are intensifying, which is a matter of concern because they are also the most important areas of inland fish production globally. Many policy makers in other sectors are not aware of the importance of inland fish production for food supplies and income generation, FAO said. Most inland fish producers suffer from few or poor rights and support, which makes it difficult for them to obtain credit, information, training and extension. FAO recommends better integration of inland fisheries into water and land management at farm, community and national levels. Contact: Erwin Northoff, Media Officer, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, I-00100 Rome, Italy, telephone +39-06/5705 3105, fax +39-06/5705 4975, e-mail , website (www.fao.org). WHO/EU MEETING ON MENTAL HEALTH Achieving good mental health is a combination of promotion and care, and both approaches are essential, concluded a joint meeting of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Union, which took place in Brussels on 22-24 April. The meeting was held to address the challenge of growing mental health problems. WHO said mental health problems can affect everything from economic security to productivity and childhood development. Half the leading causes of disability worldwide are mental health problems, and mental health is lagging behind physical health. "In contrast to the dramatic improvements in physical health in most countries over the course of the current century--in particular, unprecedented improvements in mortality rates--the mental component of health has in many places not improved," Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland, WHO's Director-General, told participants. The meeting said greater awareness and outreach are needed, and that psychiatric patients should be treated by the community, not by large institutions. Communities need the means to deal with mental health problems, however. Participants identified nine key principles central to both promotion and care: personal autonomy, sustainability, effectiveness, accessibility, comprehensiveness, equity, accountability, coordination, and efficiency. They also outlined a number of common goals and strategies. These and other issues will be discussed further at the European conference on mental health promotion in Tampere (Finland) in October 1999. Contact: Gregory Hartl, Health Communications and Public Relations, WHO, 20 avenue Appia, CH-1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/791 4458, fax +41-22/791 4858, e-mail , website (www.who.int). CHILD ABUSE A MAJOR PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEM Child abuse has become a major public health problem worldwide, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). A recent estimate from WHO shows that 40 million children under 14 around the world suffer from abuse and neglect and need health and social care. According to studies in 19 countries, 7-34% of girls and 3-29% of boys are sexually abused. "Abused children suffer a wide variety of physical, emotional and developmental problems which can hamper their ability to live healthy and productive lives. In addition to health consequences, abused children have difficulty in school, problems with substance abuse and problems with the law. It is a public health issue of vital importance for WHO, and it represents a challenge for the next millennium," said Dr Bj”rn Thylefors, Director of WHO's Division on Disability, Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation. The cost from ill health caused by injury in financial terms and in socioeconomic development is staggering. For example, a study from the United States shows that the costs for 2 million child abuse victims is US$12.4 billion for one year. Programmes in some countries have reduced child abuse by training parents in parenting skills before and after birth. These programmes work best if they are child-centred, family-focused and community-based and if they include positive aspects of the local culture. A WHO meeting brought together experts in violence and injury prevention, medicine, social science, public health, psychiatry, psychology and law to discuss child abuse. The experts recommended a range of initiatives for the international community including: -- worldwide collection of data on child abuse and impact on public health and related costs; -- sharing successful interventions and best practices to prevent child abuse and neglect; -- continuing evaluation and research on child abuse prevention; and -- developing national programmes to prevent child abuse, and programmes that provide social support to victims and families. Contact: Adelene Loo, Secretariat for Mental Health, WHO, 20 avenue Appia, CH-1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/791 3917, fax +41-22/791 0746, website (www.who.int). UNEP, UNFPA AGREE TO STRENGTHEN COOPERATION The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) have signed an agreement to collaborate on population and environment issues. The areas of cooperation covered by the agreement fall under three broad categories: technical guidance and research; advocacy, public awareness, education and training; and strengthened coordination within the various UN inter-agency mechanisms. With the global population reaching 6 billion by October 1999, and the continued stress on the planet from unsustainable consumption patterns, rural-urban migration and rapid urbanization, it is crucial that the UN's two principal programmes in population and environment collaborate and reinforce each other's activities. The agreement, signed by Klaus T”pfer, Executive Director of UNEP, and Nafis Sadik, Executive Director of UNFPA, is designed to address issues dealing with the relationship between population, natural resources and the environment, and human well-being. Contact: Maaike Jansen, Programme Officer, UNEP, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/963 8151, e-mail or Corrie Shanahan, Senior Information Officer, UNFPA, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/297 5023, e-mail . ESCAP REPORTS ON IMPACT OF ECONOMIC CRISIS The economic crisis that began in Asia in 1997 has been longer, more widespread and deeper than had been foreseen, causing severe social problems with unemployment and poverty increasing rapidly in several countries. This is the key conclusion of the 1999 Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific, published by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). The survey said that in 1998 growth in Asian and Pacific developing countries as a group was dismal. Gross domestic product (GDP) growth fell from 5.8% in 1997 to 0.2% in 1998, with the forecast of 3.6% for 1999. In South and South-West Asia, GDP growth increased from 4.6% to 5.3% in 1998 and is expected to grow to 5.6%. In South-East Asia, GDP growth fell sharply from 4.3% in 1997 to -6.2% in 1998 and is expected to rise to only 0.4% in 1999. In East and North-East Asia, GDP plummeted from 7% in 1997 to 1.5% in 1998, but is expected to reach 4.4% in 1999. Overall economic prospects remain uncertain, according to the survey. World financial markets have displayed increased volatility, commodity prices have weakened, and international capital flows to developing countries, especially debt flows, have declined. The survey also found that "Governments' ability to address social problems has been constrained by reduced revenues and, in some cases, by the conditionalities of the bailout packages." Among the Pacific countries, the survey found that with the exception of Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and to a lesser extent Fiji, which have substantial trading links with Asian developing countries, the Asian crisis has not had a direct impact on Pacific island developing economies. They have been indirectly affected, however, because of the impact of the crisis on Australia, Japan and New Zealand, which absorb a sizeable portion of Pacific exports. Pacific countries have also had to contend with the drought brought on by the El Ni¤o weather phenomenon, which, according to ESCAP, was largely responsible for their poor economic performance. The survey said that there are positive signs in the Pacific region: current accounts have shown major improvements; foreign exchange reserves have been substantially rebuilt; exchange rates and stock markets have noticeably recovered; interest rates have declined; and inflationary pressures have generally remained subdued. Among the policy recommendations made by the ESCAP survey are the need, at the national level, to restructure the corporate and financial structures; establish more effective institutional arrangements for financial sector governance; and establish greater transparency in corporate affairs. At the regional level, the survey recommended greater cooperation in financial sector supervision and establishment of common prudential standards; and the development of early warning systems. At the international level, the survey recommended improvements in emergency assistance; better supervision of capital flows; and a more equitable delineation of the roles of foreign creditors and debtors in situations of debt-servicing difficulties. Lastly, the survey examined the issue of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), noting that ICT investment in the ESCAP region grew at 15% per year from 1992-97. Contact: ESCAP, United Nations Building, Rajadamnern Avenue, Bangkok 10200, Thailand, telephone +66-2/288 1234, fax +66-2/288 1000, website (www.unescap.org). FDI IN ASIA CONTINUES DESPITE CRISIS The Asian economic crisis has not significantly affected foreign direct investment (FDI) in developing countries in Asia, according to new figures from the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Regional FDI in 1998 was US$78 billion, compared with US$84 billion in 1997. The figure remains well above the US$44 billion average recorded in 1991-1995. The modest 7% decline in 1998 affected mostly Indonesia and Taiwan. Had it not been for lower investment flows into these two countries, FDI would have remained at its 1997 level. According to UNCTAD, efforts to attract FDI intensified in an effort to forestall declines in 1999, but the trend in the first quarter of this year is pointing downward. FDI is expected to continue above average for the decade, however, and UNCTAD believes its growth will resume in the long run. Contact: James X. Zhan, Economist, Division on Investment, Technology and Enterprise Development, UNCTAD, Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/917 5797, fax +41-22/917 0498, e-mail , website (www.unctad.org). WORLD BANK GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT FINANCE REPORT The financial crisis in emerging markets is likely to be more extensive and longer-lasting than previously predicted, according to this year's Global Development Finance, a World Bank publication that tracks the annual movement of international capital flows to developing countries. The report predicts that average gross domestic product (GDP) growth in developing and transition countries may fall to 1.5% in 1999, down from 1.9% in 1998 and 4.8% in 1997, making it the lowest growth rate since 1982. The report projects a modest recovery in the range of 3.6% by the year 2000, but growth will not be restored to 4.5-5% until 2001, according to the Bank. "This sobering forecast reflects declining trade growth, slumping commodity prices, and tightened long-term financing, which have hurt most developing countries," explained World Bank Chief Economist and Senior Vice-President Joseph Stiglitz. World trade growth slowed to 4.6% last year, compared with 10% in 1997, oil prices are down 32% and other primary commodities garnered less than 16% on world markets than they did in 1997. The report shows that flows to developing countries from international capital markets plunged to US$72 billion in 1998 compared with US$136 billion in 1997, as investors in bonds, portfolio equity, and long-term bank loans retreated from emerging markets. By contrast, foreign direct investment (FDI) was more resilient, falling by less than 5% despite the decline in global output and trade growth. The report notes that low-income countries have suffered disproportionately, as aid flows remained depressed while the prices of commodity exports plummeted. Commodity prices are likely to remain low in 1999 and well into 2000, according to the report, due to sagging demand and oversupply of some products, a reflection of technological improvements as well as currency depreciation in major exporting countries. External finance will remain tight, the report says, with access largely restricted and at much higher interest rates, forcing many developing countries to pursue restrictive policies to adjust their reduced ability to import. The financial crisis has also greatly increased investors' perceptions of the risks in emerging markets. The report finds that net flows from international capital markets fell in 1998 to most of the major developing country borrowers. According to Uri Dadush, Director of the World Bank's Development Prospects Group, "Many developing countries are trying to borrow more to compensate for falling exports, but even though world liquidity is abundant, the supply of funds to the countries is constrained by risk perceptions. This situation is unlikely to change quickly." Despite the positive agreements among donors on funding for the International Development Association and the African Development Bank, and some progress in reducing the debt burden of the most heavily indebted poor countries, the prospects for aid remain bleak, according to the report. Official development assistance from the OECD countries has fallen to only 0.22% of their combined gross national product (GNP), compared to 0.35% in 1990. "The decline in aid is particularly unfortunate at a time when policy improvements in several low-income countries are strengthening their ability to use aid effectively," according to William Shaw, Task Manager for the report. Contact: World Bank, PO Box 960, Herndon VA 20172-0960, United States, telephone +1-800/645 7247, fax +1-703/661 1501, e-mail , website (www.worldbank.org/prospects/gdf99). TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION CONGRESS The workplace is changing; in future most people will be self-employed and only a few will hold a regular job. In the light of these changes, a UNESCO congress has called for the revitalization of technical and vocational education (TVE). The Second International Congress on Technical and Vocational Education called for "a new holistic approach" that would integrate general and vocational education and encourage lifelong training "with the ultimate goal of creating a learning society." According to UNESCO, technical and vocational education has been treated as the "poor relation" of general education. However, with the changes taking place in the work environment, TVE is becoming increasingly important because general education is unable to provide workers with skills needed in the job market. The congress said that education should use new information technologies and find new ways to share information among learners. Participants at the congress stressed the need to include marginalized groups and said that it was important to provide individual career counselling for young people and adults. They also said that it was necessary to diversify technical and vocational education funding. The congress adopted recommendations calling for increased international cooperation in technical and vocational education, both among states and between intergovernmental organizations. The recommendations reflect the concern of participants to ensure wide access to TVE to promote economic growth, environmentally sound sustainable development, social cohesion and individual empowerment. The recommendations included input from official representatives of UNESCO member states as well as from NGOs. The First International Congress on Technical and Vocational Education, held in 1987, focused on the role of TVE in national development, implementation strategies and international cooperation. An international project on technical and vocational education was created as a result of the congress. This in turn led to the establishment of a network of ministerial departments and institutions involved in education, training, planning, research and development. The network now links 185 institutions in 126 countries. The Second International Congress on Technical and Vocational Education was held in Seoul (Republic of Korea) from 26-30 April. The congress was attended by over 700 participants, including government ministers, and intergovernmental, governmental and non-governmental organizations. Contact: Q. Tang, Director, Sector for Technical and Vocational Education, UNESCO, 7 place de Fontenoy, F-75700 Paris, France, telephone +33-1/45 68 08 31, fax +33-1/45 68 56 30 , website (www.unesco.org/opi/seoul/tve.htm). FAO: MULTILATERAL SYSTEM AGREED FOR PGR A legally-binding international agreement regulating access to plant genetic materials was discussed at a meeting of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA-8) of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The 161-member commission met in April in Rome, and its most important task was to press ahead with negotiations towards the legally-binding International Undertaking on Plant Genetic Resources. Plant genetic resources are the basis of both modern and traditional agriculture. The undertaking will regulate access to these resources, while ensuring a fair and equitable sharing of the benefits. Negotiating governments have now agreed that a multilateral system of access and benefit-sharing should be established for key crops. Farmers and breeders must have access to genetic resources if they are to continue making improvements in plant productivity and sustainable agriculture in the drive towards food security. More effective use of plant genetic resource diversity is essential, including the production of varieties adapted to the extreme and highly variable environments of low-productivity or marginal areas, the reduction of the use of agrochemicals, and more efficient use of water and soil. Conserving and sustainably using as wide a range of plant genetic resources as possible is also a safety net for unforeseen disasters. More than once in recent history, extensive crop production has been saved from devastation by a pest or disease by genetic material found in traditional farmers' varieties. An international agreement facilitating access to this germplasm is a vital complement to work toward conserving it. The negotiators also envisage mechanisms for sharing the benefits derived from the use of plant genetic resources, such as a financial strategy. CGRFA-8 also negotiated a key article on farmers' rights in the undertaking. The article recognizes the enormous contribution of local and indigenous communities and farmers in conserving and developing plant genetic resources that are the basis of food and agriculture production throughout the world. It stipulates that farmers' rights should be implemented at the national level and through national regulations, and could include: protecting relevant traditional knowledge; the right to equitably participate in sharing benefits arising from the use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture; and the right to participate in making decisions at the national level on matters related to their conservation and sustainable use. CGRFA-8 also reviewed progress in the implementation of the Global Plan of Action for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, adopted in Leipzig (Germany) in 1996 (see E&D File, Vol. III, No. 11). This is likely to be a key element in the revised International Undertaking. The commission considered a status report and noted that although there had been significant progress, much remains to be done. Work is continuing at local, national and international levels, and the Global Plan of Action is being widely used by international, governmental and non-governmental organizations as a framework for planning their activities. For the first time, the CGRFA also discussed action on animal genetic resources for food and agriculture. The commission gave the go-ahead for a major new initiative in animal genetic resource characterization, sustainable use and development and conservation by means of a report on the State of the World's Farm Animal Genetic Resources. Contact: Jose Esquinas-Alc zar, Secretary of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, I-00100 Rome, Italy, telephone +39-06/5705 4986, fax +39-06/5705 2116 or 5705 6347, e-mail , website (www.fao.org/ag/cgrfa/docs8.htm). AFRICAN WATER FORUM ESTABLISHED The Africa Water Resources Management Policy Conference, involving ministers and officials from over 20 African countries and representatives of several donor countries, concluded on 28 May with an agreement to establish an African Water Resources Management Forum. The forum will comprise experts from 15 African countries and will promote information and knowledge exchange among African water management professionals and practitioners. An interim task force is being set up to guide the activities of the forum and to contribute to the elaboration of a long-term vision for water management in Africa. At the conference, ministers and officials discussed water management policy reforms and problems of water scarcity and equitable distribution, water pollution, watershed degradation, transboundary water resource management and the environmental aspects of water management. In other sessions the conference focused upon economic and financial issues, regulation, statutory and customary water law, institutions and emerging and innovative approaches to water management and sustainable use. According to the organizers, water policy reform and implementation is gaining momentum across Africa, reflecting the growing awareness of the need to sustainably manage Africa's water resources. The meeting addressed the important role of civil society in water management, the difficult questions of water pricing and cost recovery, and the importance of an enabling environment for universal access to safe water supplies and sanitation sources. The conference was sponsored by the World Bank and the Government of Kenya in cooperation with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) as part of the Global Water Partnership. Contact: Patricia Jacobs, Media and Information Officer, Communication and Public Affairs, UNEP, PO Box 30552, Nairobi, Kenya, telephone +254-2/623088, fax +254-2/623692, website (www.unep.org). CLOSER UNCTAD-OAU TIES ON AFRICA The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and its partner the African Economic Community (AEC) have signed an agreement to increase cooperation. The Memorandum of Understanding is designed to "promote economic growth and development in Africa." Key points include regional and subregional cooperation, resource flows and debt, international trade and commodities. The partners also pledged to support the Abuja Treaty on dismantling trade barriers in Africa and establishing an African Economic Community. UNCTAD and the OAU/AEC will also work together to increase aid to Africa and encourage investment on the continent. They will monitor the debt problem of African countries, prepare proposals for debt relief, and provide assistance to manage the debt. The two organizations will help Africa prepare for negotiations in the World Trade Organization (WTO) and work to improve trade and competitiveness. Contact: Kamran Kousari, Coordinator for Africa, Division on Globalization and Development Strategies, UNCTAD, Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/917 5800, fax +41-22/907 0274, e-mail . CONFERENCE ON EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA As part of the follow-up process to the 1995 World Summit for Social Development, the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) held a conference on Social Development in Eastern and Southern Africa. The meeting was attended by over 350 representatives of governments, UN agencies, bilateral development partners, multilateral institutions, and international and national NGOs. The conference, held from 15-17 March in Nairobi (Kenya), is the first of three subregional meetings organized by ECA and UNDP this year. In his opening remarks, Kenya's Minister of Planning and National Development said the Nairobi conference aimed to monitor rather than evaluate progress in the implementation of the WSSD outcome to highlight advances made, and to provide the necessary information for decision makers and development actors to design interventions and strategies to achieve these outcomes. The areas being monitored were: poverty reduction; employment creation; public spending on social sectors, especially education and health; and establishing enabling environments for good governance. A series of recommendations from a pre-conference gathering of NGOs in March, organized by the International Council on Social Welfare (ICSW), were presented on behalf of 20 NGO umbrella networks representing more than 14,000 organizations from ten countries in the Eastern and Southern Africa subregions. The recommendations: -- called on governments to place poverty eradication at the top of national agendas and to demonstrate this commitment by ensuring that each line ministry allocates at least 10% of its budget to poverty eradication by the end of the year 2001; -- called for lobbying through the ECA, Southern African Development Community (SADC), East African Community (EAC), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Organization of African Unity (OAU) and G-77 for debt cancellation, and using the resources saved for poverty eradication and employment creation; and -- suggested accelerating women's access to and control over land and credit for increased productivity. The conference concluded that while tangible progress had been made since the Social Summit, a number of major constraints, such as financial ones, limited the ability of Eastern and Southern African countries to fight poverty. According to Yousif Suliman, Senior Economic Affairs Officer of the ECA, "The rate of growth of African economies has not been enough to provide sufficient income-generation that will impact positively on the social sector. A number of constraints have affected the capacity of countries to take off, among them international commodity prices, debt, dwindling flows of capital and aid into the continent, and capital flight. The efficient use of capital has also not been too high." Another constraint, according to Lalla Ben Barka, Deputy Executive Secretary of the ECA, is that employment has not kept pace with the increased labour supply. Unless urgent remedial measures to combat absolute poverty are taken, according to Barka, Africa will remain the only continent where poverty will continue to rise in the next century. "One way to achieve this goal, is to enhance the human capital of the poor by ensuring their access to basic health care, education, nutrition, productive employment and sustainable livelihood methods," she said. Key recommendations that emerged from the conference included: -- revisiting macro-economic reform packages to ensure that they are country-specific and reflect social objectives and assess the impact on employment; -- supporting, with development partners, the implementation of the 20/20 Initiative with emphasis on employment development programmes as well as construction of economic and social infrastructures; -- providing free and compulsory primary education; and -- giving priority to the fight against HIV/AIDS, which was recognized as not only a health problem but a development issue that touches all sectors with ultimate impact on quality of life. Conference participants also recommended that countries establish consultative mechanisms at all levels, involving all stakeholders. These fora should meet at regular intervals to engage on socio-economic, political and governance issues, and sound governance systems should be established to guarantee public and private sector conduct to minimize corruption. The conference also recommended that civil society organizations develop self-regulating codes of conduct to increase their credibility, transparency and accountability. Contact: Economic Commission for Africa, United Nations, PO Box 3001, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, telephone +251-1/515826, fax +251-1/510365, e-mail , website (www.un.org/depts/eca). UNDP: NEW STUDY ON GLOBAL PUBLIC GOODS A new UNDP study argues that the major crises of the 20th century could have been averted if governments had invested more in managing and protecting global public goods. The book, Global Public Goods: International Cooperation in the 21st Century, says these assets are increasingly undervalued and calls for an overhaul of the governments and institutions who manage them. Global public goods are those assets that go beyond borders, generations or population groups and benefit everyone: health, equity, justice, information, peace, environment, and human rights. The report argues that institutions ensuring the efficiency of markets should also be included in the list. Whether the definition of these goods is narrow or broad, what they have in common is that they are global and as such do not belong to any one individual, group or nation. A globalizing world requires global theories and policies, the authors argue, and many of today's international crises actually have their roots in an "undersupply" of these global public goods. The end of the Cold War has not brought world peace, millions of refugees are still forced to leave their homes, transnational crime is on the rise, new diseases are emerging--the list of common problems which cannot be resolved by a single country is growing. According to the report, "Global public goods are increasingly undervalued and mismanaged by institutions and governments," a trend that could "imperil all of humanity." Under these conditions, such global actions as reducing pollution or ending disease are important to national policy objectives. If governments "that matter" do not take action, these global public goods will suffer. The book argues nations should be prepared to finance these goods on the basis of reciprocity and collective responsibility. In other words, it suggests an entirely new approach to official development assistance (ODA). ODA remains crucial and should be in fact increased in an era when the chasm between rich and poor is widening. But a new form of international cooperation is needed which embraces a wider set of issues--such as trade, debt, investment, financial flows and technology--while giving countries incentives to supply public goods. One way to do this, the report suggests, is to separate ODA into two categories--one for national development and the other for global or regional public goods. The report sees three key weaknesses in the way global public goods are now provided. First, there is a "jurisdictional gap," meaning a gap in policy-making between the globalized and national worlds. To close it, governments should take full responsibility for the cross-border effects generated by their citizens. In other words, they should enact national policies that would prevent negative spill-overs beyond their borders and mainstream foreign affairs into sectoral national policies. Second, there is a "participation gap," with decisions made by a disproportionately small group. Instead, all actors should have a voice in order to ensure equity in policy making. Third, there is an "incentive gap," which could only be overcome if cooperation offers clear net benefits to all participating parties and all actors perceive the benefits as fair. The report proposes a number of specific mechanisms for putting theory into practice. -- expand the G-8 to a "G-16" by adding eight major developing countries; -- create a Global Participation Fund to help strengthen the position of developing countries in international negotiations and direct funds to existing regional bodies; -- create a new UN Global Trusteeship Council to help the UN act as an "honest broker" in complex negotiations; -- initiate two-track budgeting at the national level, whereby money spent on global priorities would come from a different budget than that spent on, say, eradicating poverty at home; and -- publish "national externality profiles" to show the positive and negative effects of policies that spill over national borders. Contact: Office of Development Studies, Bureau for Development Policy, United Nations Development Programme, 1 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/906 6064, fax +1-212/906 3676, e-mail WIPO MOVES TO PROTECT INTERNET DOMAIN NAMES Companies using famous words or brands would have first claim to Internet addresses under proposed new World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) rules. The move seeks to outlaw the widely condemned but not illegal practice of cybersquatting, whereby unscrupulous vendors register and resell Internet addresses. WIPO issued its recommendations to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which oversees the assignment of Internet addresses. WIPO would like to see contracts signed before names are registered. The contracts would punish those infringing on trademarks or trying to peddle names for profit. The rules, which will be reviewed by ICANN, seek to dismantle the first-come first-served approach to Internet domain registration. Disputes would be handled by voluntary arbitration or through the courts. This is the first time an official body has tried to draft international rules to outlaw cybersquatting. Contact: WIPO, PO Box 18, CH-1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/338 9111, fax +41-22/733 5428, website (www.wipo.int). Y2K ACTIONS MULTIPLY As the new millennium nears, the so-called Millennium Bug--or Year 2000 (Y2K) problem--is receiving growing attention. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says Y2K will have serious repercussions for food supplies in developing countries. According to FAO, "At least in the near term, the Millennium Bug could prove to be one of the most dangerous pests threatening farmers, along with the locusts and brown planthoppers they have battled with throughout the centuries." Although governments and industries have been working to resolve the Y2K problem, little attention has been paid to the problems that could be faced in agriculture and food supply systems. FAO warned that because agriculture and food supply systems depend on computers, the process of supplying food--from seed supplies to distribution networks and market information systems--is vulnerable to the Y2K problem. "Even small farmers who till their fields with ox-drawn ploughs probably rely on supplies produced in high-tech factories and transported thousands of kilometres over computer-controlled transportation networks," said FAO. Once crops are harvested, computer malfunctions are also likely to cause severe problems in the processing, marketing and distribution systems crucial to food security at national and household levels. Most experts pinpoint transportation as the weakest link. Another area likely to be affected in many countries is computerized telephone switching. Farmers, traders and ministries rely on telecommunications systems to deliver a steady flow of information on weather, prices and shipping. "If you don't know who needs grain," said Geri Guidetti, moderator of an Internet forum on Y2K and agriculture, "if you don't know what global prices are...what's going to happen to the normal grain commerce?" FAO has called for contingency plans to cope with failures that countries do not have the means to prevent. Such plans would include diversifying sources of supplies and services, and taking steps to identify failures promptly and establish alternative delivery systems in case of computer failure. While farmers and governments may decide to review food and input stocks, FAO warns against panic buying and hoarding whose effects could be even worse than Y2K. Meantime, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has set up a new Y2K web site and Expert Service, the "YES Corps," to help countries fix computer bugs before the year 2000. The volunteer programme will be run by the UN International Y2K Coordination Center, with funding from the World Bank. It will concentrate on telecommunications, utilities and health. Experts will come from government, industry and academia. The centre was created to promote Y2K readiness worldwide. Contact: Mario Nicolai, Y2K Coordinator, Information Systems and Technology Division, FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, I-00100 Rome, Italy, telephone +39-06/57051, fax +39-06/57 05 31 52, e-mail , website (www.fao.org) or International Y2K Cooperation Center, 1000 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 502, Washington DC 20036, United States, telephone +1-202/466 5464, fax +1-202/466 5451, e-mail , website (www.iy2kcc.org). UNDP LAUNCHES INTERNET INITIATIVES In an era of dwindling aid and ever-widening Internet access in donor countries, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) has teamed up with software giant Cisco Systems to launch a website and organize a global concert called Net Aid. The event will take place on 9 October and will be broadcast simultaneously on the Internet from the Giants Stadium in New Jersey (US), Wembley Stadium in London, and Geneva's Opera House. Organizers are hoping for one billion hits--visits to the website--during the concert webcast, or web broadcast. The website will be maintained beyond the concert, and UNDP hopes it will help mobilize support for development programmes worldwide by telling people and organizations what they can do to fight poverty. In another Internet initiative, UNDP has joined forces with a Wall Street trading house to create the first global commodity code standard for Internet, or e-commerce. The Standard Products and Services Codes is designed to help companies identify suppliers and services worldwide. It will be produced with Dun and Bradstreet and classify more than 8,000 products and services for e-commerce. Contact: Cassandra Waldon, United Nations Development Programme, Room DC1-1956, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/906 6499, fax +1-212/906 5364, e-mail , website (www.undp.org). PLEASE KEEP RADIO, DEVELOPING COUNTRIES SAY Developing countries have asked the UN not to abandon radio in favour of more sophisticated information technologies. The Group of 77 (133 developing countries plus China) said that relying on new communications such as the Internet would give rich nations an unfair advantage over poor ones. Developing countries do not have as much access to the information highway as industrialized countries and they want to make sure their flow of information is not threatened. For the time being, radio remains the key source of information for developing countries and efforts should be made to retain it. This factor has been acknowledged by the UN, which told the Committee on Information during a debate recently that traditional methods would be both maintained and strengthened. "As we are aware that new technologies are not readily available to many developing countries, the Department [of Public Information] continues to move forward on a broad front," said Kensaku Hogen, Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information. In other words, both traditional and new methods would be emphasized. He pointed out that the UN's radio capacities had been much modernized. Mr Hogen also spoke in support of developing the UN's international radio broadcasting capacity. But he said it could cost at least US$4 million a year for several years and that so far no member states had offered to contribute to the project. A range of other topics were covered during the committee's two-week 1999 session including the creation of a communications culture throughout the UN, the importance of information in reaching UN goals, the gap between developing and developed countries, reinforcing the use of languages other than English in UN broadcasting, access to information technology, the press and UN Information Centres. ECLAC REPORTS MIXED 1998 RESULTS There is good news and bad news in Latin America, the latest figures reveal. A report by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) shows that poverty fell throughout most of the region between 1990-1997 but levels still remain high. According to the report, Social Panorama of Latin America 1998, the percentage of poor households fell from 41% to 36%, as did extreme poverty, from 18% to 15%. The trend towards the urbanization of poverty has also slowed. But figures remain high. About 200 million people still live below the poverty line, 90 million of them in extreme poverty. A slowdown in economic growth will make it hard to reduce poverty further, and may even contribute to its increase. "If poverty is to be overcome further, it is very important to avoid recession," said Rolando Franco, Director of ECLAC's Social Development Division and the report's author. "The experience of the region shows that a single year of recession is enough to wipe out between half and all the ground gained in reducing poverty during four or five years of economic growth." The job market changed during this period, with a fall in the number of working age people but an increase in women and children in the job market. Low-productivity jobs increased significantly. There is particular worry about young people who neither study nor seek work since they can easily be marginalized or turn to violence or illegal activities. There is some good news on the child front. By 2000, over 80% of the region's urban children will complete four years of primary school, and more than 70% will finish six, meeting UNICEF's goals. Rural areas lag behind, however, and educational achievement between richer and poorer urban homes is still unequal. Public spending for social purposes rose in 14 of the 17 countries studied, a 38% increase in public spending per person during 1990-1997, or 5.5% a year. However, the state of the world economy raises doubts about whether this type of spending can continue to rise. Contact: Distribution Unit, Documents and Publications Division, ECLAC, Casilla 179-D, Santiago, Chile, fax +56-2/210 2069, e-mail , website (www.eclac.org). MANY SUPPORT UN WORLDWIDE, SURVEY SAYS A poll conducted in 13 countries shows public support for the United Nations is substantial, with 70% ratings in Brazil, Italy, Mexico and the United States. But it also reveals widespread ignorance about the world body's work. More than half those surveyed in Canada, France, Germany, India, Poland, Spain and the UK said they support the UN. The figure for Hong Kong was just under half, while only 30% of South Africans said they approve. The survey asked two questions. One was about respondents' overall opinion of the United Nations. The other asked them to name something in which the UN was involved. Most countries mentioned peacekeeping as a familiar UN activity (26% of respondents), especially Canada, France and the UK. The next most-mentioned issue was humanitarian aid (8.2%), followed by economic development and world health (5%). Nearly 40% said they were unsure about the nature of the UN's work. Young people tended to support the UN more than the elderly, while men seemed to be more favourable than women to the world body. The poll was conducted by Zogby International (US) and Gfk Great Britain and has a 3% error margin. The number of countries was limited by cost, since the firms undertook the polls at no charge. UN NGO NEWS HAGUE APPEAL FOR PEACE Organized around the centenary of the First Hague International Peace Conference of 1899, the Hague Appeal for Peace Conference took place from 11-15 May, bringing together up to 10,000 people, including hundreds of peace activists and representatives of civil society from over 100 countries and international and UN leaders. The objective of the meeting was to strengthen the worldwide peace movement with the goal of abolishing war in the new century. According to William R. Pace, the Secretary-General of the Hague meeting, "The Hague Appeal is a multi-year campaign of which the conference represents the end of the first major stage [and] constitutes the last step in finalizing the Hague Agenda for Peace and Justice in the 21st Century." Cora Weiss, President of the Hague Appeal, said, "We need only to consider the genocide in Cambodia, Rwanda and Bosnia and the spread of weapons of mass destruction to recognize that governments alone cannot accomplish our goals...We are forging a new approach in which citizen advocates, progressive governments and official agencies will work together for common goals. We will embrace the moral imagination and courage necessary to create a culture of peace for the 21st century and learn the steps needed to abolish war." The agenda of the meeting was organized around four basic themes: root causes of war/culture of peace; international humanitarian and human rights law and institutions; prevention, resolution and transformation of violent conflict; and disarmament and human security. Over 400 working groups, debates and other activities provided an opportunity for a number of existing campaigns and initiatives to take stock of progress and devise strengthened strategies. These included the International Action Network on Small Arms, Global Ratification Campaign for the International Criminal Court and the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. In addition the Global Campaign for Peace Education, the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, the Global Action to Prevent War and a campaign to abolish nuclear weapons were either launched or made renewed calls for more concerted efforts by civil society, governments and international organizations. Among others, the meeting was addressed by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan; the First Lady of South Africa, Gra‡a Machel; Carol Bellamy, Executive Director, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF); and Federico Mayor, Director-General, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Nobel Laureates Jody Williams, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Jose Ramos Horta, Joseph Rotblat and Rigoberta Menchu Tum also attended the conference. "We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of commitments demanding a war-free future," said Cora Weiss on the final day of the meeting. The meeting was followed on Sunday 16 May with a rally at the Peace Palace in the Hague and the "2000 Walk for Nuclear Disarmament," which began at the International Court of Justice in the Hague and ended at NATO headquarters in Brussels on 27 May, where walkers denounced NATO's nuclear policy as a violation of international law and condemned NATO's military activities in Kosovo. The conference organizers will oversee the preparation of the conference report and the finalization of the Hague Agenda for worldwide dissemination. Contact: Bill Pace, Secretary-General, The Hague Appeal for Peace, c/o World Federalist Movement (WFM), 777 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States, fax +1-212/599 1332, e-mail , website (www.haguepeace.org). LESSONS LEARNED FROM CONFLICT PREVENTION A roundtable on Lessons Learned: Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Rwanda, Burundi and Liberia was convened at UN headquarters on 30 April as part of the preparations for The Hague Appeal for Peace, taking place in the Netherlands from 17-19 May (see article above). Organized by Peace Action, the NGO Peace Caucus and the Permanent Mission of Sweden, the roundtable was one among a series of discussions designed to coincide with the major themes of the Hague conference. It was attended by some 50 representatives of government, the UN and NGOs. Pamela Maponga of the UN Department for Disarmament Affairs described some of the work that the UN is undertaking for the prevention of conflict, including the current development of a regional early-warning system in Gabon, and the compilation of a list of arms-producing companies. She noted that despite government statements and reassurances to the contrary, many arms suppliers were in fact openly providing arms to warring parties and thereby exacerbating conflict situations. Barnett Rubin, of the Council on Foreign Relations and consultant to the UN on Afghanistan, noted that intervention in situations of armed conflict is often presented as a choice between indifference and military action. He challenged the Hague Appeal to strengthen the alternative options. While Rubin welcomed the establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC) "if it is enabled to operate in a judicial rather than political manner," he emphasized the need for "restorative rather than retributive" justice. He expressed the need for a better means for airing grievances before situations of actual armed conflict arise. He proposed that a corps of human rights and peace monitors be trained to serve as an early-warning system, and that mechanisms for legal institutions and judicial infrastructures be promoted around the world. He said that serious attention needs to be paid to the economic causes of destabilization leading to the break-up of governments that had guaranteed the security of different groups. He cited as an example the collapse of the international coffee agreement prior to the Rwandan genocide, which played a significant role in creating insecurity in the region. David Philips, an expert on conflict resolution from Columbia University, described in detail his perspectives on the situation of armed conflict in Kosovo. In his opinion, the opportunity to create a momentum for peace in the period just after the Dayton Peace Accords were signed had been lost, due to a failure to support, among other things, the democracy movement in Serbia. He also cited private sector responsibility, and the desire to run "business as usual" without consideration of the impact this would have on consolidating support for an "illegitimate regime." He noted that "sovereignty was no longer an excuse for tyranny." Describing years of conflict in his country, the representative of Liberia emphasized the need for "free and fair elections" towards the establishment of an inclusive government, as a means not only for ending conflict but for achieving a sustainable peace. He also highlighted the importance of development in this regard. Among the lessons learned cited by a representative from Concern Worldwide were the need to improve coordination and cooperation among NGOs on the ground in emergency situations, and the important role of counselling for refugees, particularly children, in humanitarian emergency situations. She also noted the important responsibility of the media in focusing the international community's attention on conflict and emergency situations. Contact: Cora Weiss, Peace Action, 777 UN Plaza, Suite 10D, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/750 5795, fax +1-212/682 0886, e-mail . NGOS TO MEET ON DESERTIFICATION NGOs are planning to meet in Paris on 16-17 September 1999 to establish French and European NGO networks on the struggle against desertification and to plan NGO activities for the third meeting of the Conference of the Parties of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, to take place in Recife (Brazil), in November. Over 100 countries are concerned with the problems of desertification and drought, and a large number of NGOs are addressing these issues and actively contributing to the development and implementation of the convention. Over 500 NGOs are now accredited to the convention although, as the organizers of the Paris meeting point out, they are largely from developing countries. The Paris meeting is hoping to broaden and strengthen the participation of European NGOs in worldwide NGO efforts to combat desertification by raising the awareness of European decision makers and public opinion. Contacts: Tahirou Diao, Sahel DEFIS, 253 chemin de FontaniŠres, F-69350 La MulatiŠre, France, telephone +33-4/78 51 48 88, fax +33-4/78 51 48 58, e-mail . WOMEN ADOPT AGENDA FOR PEACE IN ZANZIBAR A pan-African women's conference has ended in Tanzania by adopting a declaration on women and peace, a pan-African women's peace movement, and a Women's Agenda for a Culture of Peace in Africa. Salma Salmin Amour, First Lady of Zanzibar, called on African women to sensitize their husbands to the culture of peace. "We don't want war in Africa," she said to a public ovation. "Nothing is impossible." The Zanzibar Declaration marks the launch of an African women's peace movement in the face of growing turmoil on the continent. Last year, 14 of 53 African states were involved in armed conflict and accounted for more than half the war deaths worldwide. There are eight million displaced persons in Africa, 70-80% of them women and children. Participants to the conference also asked the OAU Secretariat to set up a Pan-African Women's Bureau for Peace in Africa and to appoint at least one woman to one of the OAU's vacant senior posts. The agenda recommends action to "bring the perpetrators of crimes to justice, create counselling centers to take care of and rehabilitate women victims of violence," and to make sure that psychological help is available to women victims of war. It also calls for more grassroots mobilization, better training, efforts to modify attitudes and stereotypes, and the insertion of women into the democratization process. At the conference, Director-General of the UN Educational, Social and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Federico Mayor encouraged African women to lead a peace movement across their continent and said most political decisions are made by men, who hence bear responsibility for the continent's conflicts. The conference, entitled Women Organize for Peace and Non-Violence in Africa, was held on 17-20 May in Zanzibar (Tanzania). It was organized by UNESCO with the Tanzanian government, the Organization of African Unity (OAU), and a number of non-governmental groups. It was part of UNESCO's international Culture of Peace campaign. ELIMINATING GENDER VIOLENCE IN AFRICA A conference on Good Practices Towards Eliminating Violence Against Women and Girls in Africa was held in Nairobi (Kenya) from 8-10 March. Sponsored by UNIFEM, the conference brought together representatives of governments, NGOs and individual survivors of gender violence from around Africa. Among the key obstacles to ending gender violence, conference participants highlighted the numerous armed conflicts in the region, during which rape, abduction, and denial of "United Nations standards of life" like health facilities and food, have greatly escalated; a lack of political will in male-dominated African governments; and legal obstacles such as sub-sections in laws addressing gender discrimination which permit such discrimination on the basis of traditional customs. Conference participants also discussed the issue of female genital mutilation, still widely practised in 26 African countries. "We must make it clear that no cultural value is worth its name if it supports the oppression of a member of the society which includes women," said UNIFEM Regional Programme Advisor for East Africa, Laketch Dirasse. "The change will happen if we acknowledge the practice as a violation of women's sexual rights and bodily integrity," she said. Poverty was also cited by conference participants as a form of violence, particularly against women. Another problem, according to Mugambi Kiai of the Kenya Human Rights Commission, has been the lack of involvement of the perpetrators of violence in finding a solution. "Part of the problem is that most men who are violent don't see the problem of violence against women as violence, but as discipline, sanctioned by culture," he said. To redress this problem, a group of male activists in Kenya, led by the head of the Presbyterian Church of Eastern Africa, have formed a "Men for Equality with Women" secretariat to deal with gender violence and other gender inequalities suffered by women and girls. The group is concerned about the rising cases of sexual violence that have put the lives of many women at risk of physical and psychological trauma, and sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS. As a contribution to civic education, a symbolic court was launched in Nairobi in May by El-Taller Africa. NGOs and human rights group representatives served as jurors, listening to the details of survivors' stories, analyzing each testimony and passing their verdict. According to organizers, "Creating the public and political space for violated women, calling the crimes by their specific names in their own vernaculars, speaking out, receiving care protection and respect," has helped to "restore the victims' dignity and self-worth." In South Africa, organizations like Agisanang Domestic Abuse Prevention and Training (ADAPT) are taking part in community awareness campaigns making use of theatre, radio, factories, unions, churches and schools. Men's groups from other countries like Burundi, Senegal and Uganda also have pledged to start men's initiatives in their respective countries. Contact: Laketch Dirasse, UNIFEM Eastern Africa Regional Office, UN Gigiri Complex, Block Q, Rooms 100-109, Nairobi, Kenya, telephone +254-2/621234, fax +254-2/624494, e-mail , website (www.unifem.undp.org/regional.htm). UN FOUNDATION GRANTS US$21 MILLION The United Nations Foundation has pledged US$21 million for 11 UN projects including: -- US$5.9 million to the UN Population Fund and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to strengthen reproductive services in communities in crisis; -- US$1.8 to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS to slow the spread of HIV/AIDS among young people in Botswana and Zimbabwe; -- US$1.7 million for micro-insurance for West African women; and -- US$3.9 million to the UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization to fight against invasive species on the Galapagos Islands, a World Heritage Site. In its 18 months of existence the foundation has awarded US$108 million to children's health projects (24%), environment (25%), women and population (35%), and other UN activities (16%). NGOS CREATE GLOBAL WEBSITE FOR BEIJING+5 During the 43rd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), representatives of regional and international information and communication networks met in a Global Electronic Network Forum to discuss strategies for using electronic networking as part of the five-year review of implementation of the Fourth World Conference on Women Platform for Action (Beijing+5), and to share experiences on advocacy. From this emerged the WomenAction Working Group, which includes the International Women's Tribune Center (United States), International Archives for the Women's Movement (Netherlands), Isis International (Philippines), Isis-WICCE (Uganda), APC/Women's Network Support Program, ENDA/SYNFEV (Senegal), and FEMNET (Kenya). The collaborating partners are International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Gender Task Force (Switzerland), and WomenWatch, which includes the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women (UN/DAW), International Training and Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) and the Gender in Development Programme of the UN Development Programme (UNDP/GDP). WomenAction decided to develop global and regional websites as a way to share information on the Beijing+5 process. Seed money has been raised and work has begun on a global website. The registered domain is (www.womenaction.org/2000), which should be online soon. Future plans for the website include links to regional websites, directories of women's organizations and resources, links to the UN's WomenWatch, a page for each thematic issue with links to existing websites, and information about the Special Session and NGO activities in English, French and Spanish. Regional websites in Asia, Africa and North America are already operating, and sites in Europe are being developed. Training and capacity-building will be provided for regional facilitators of online working groups and regional website coordinators. The websites aim to continue the discussion around Beijing+5 initiated at the CSW, including the monitoring and review of specific actions to be taken on critical areas of concern, and discussions regarding NGO access to the special session. The websites will also collect and share national and regional NGO alternative reports on progress since Beijing and serve as a clearinghouse for information on NGO initiatives around the Beijing+5 process. WomenAction is developing a score card/checklist to monitor implementation of critical areas of concern. To date, a draft survey has been developed for Section J (Women and the Media) as a possible model for other sections of the Platform for Action, and is being widely disseminated. The forum on global electronic networking for Beijing +5, which took place at the 43rd CSW, also raised larger issues regarding gender, age and geographic gaps in access to information technology. The forum noted difficulties in Internet access for women in Africa and Eastern Europe and the need to help women access the new telecentres being constructed in Africa and Asia, where women in rural areas can use computers with Internet links. They stressed the role information technology can play in making global policy formulation a more participatory process linked to local communities, and the need for resources to do this. Contact: Send a message to or contact the International Women's Tribune Center, 777 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/687 8633, fax +1-212/661 2704, e-mail . NGO NEWS 25TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF EUROPEAN NGOS The 25th General Assembly of the Liaison Committee of Development NGOs to the European Union, now representing some 900 NGOs from the EU's 15 member states, took place in Brussels in mid-April. During the assembly NGOs voiced a number of concerns about difficulties that they say have arisen in their relations with the European Commission, particularly with regards to new procedures and arrangements for funding their development work. Between 15-20% of the EU aid budget is channelled through NGOs. The assembly also debated and adopted a series of resolutions relating to topical issues on the international and European development agendas such as labour standards and the World Trade Organization, arms control, European immigration and refugee policy, East Timor, Guinea Bissau and the International Year of Older Persons. The European NGO Conference, now a regular parallel event to the assembly, this year considered the theme, The Evolving Role of NGOs in Development. Participants discussed three sub-themes: reinforcing the complementarity between actors in the development process; increasing the efficiency and impact of NGO interventions; and increasing the transparency and accountability of all actors involved in development. Rather than put forward concrete proposals and conclusions, the conference was seen as the first phase of a reflection and discussion process among European NGOs that is designed to lead to the elaboration of a framework of common objectives and complementary practices and guidelines. Contact: Liaison Committee of Development Non-Governmental Organisations to the European Union, 10 Square Ambiorix, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium, telephone +32-2/743 8760, fax +32-2/732 1934, e-mail , website (www.oneworld.org/liaison). In another development, Eurostep, the Brussels-based coalition of more than 20 of the biggest European development NGOs, has publicly reproached the European Commission for not producing a report on the coherence between the EU's broader economic and social policies and the goals of its development policies. According to Eurostep this was requested by the EU's Development Council in June 1997. Eurostep says it has prepared a position paper for this exercise that details the way in which the EU's Common Agricultural Policy undermines the stated goals of EU development policy and agriculture in developing countries. The coalition is calling on the commission to produce the report on policy coherence by August of this year and for the convening of a special meeting of the EU Development Council to consider the report later in the year. Contact: Eurostep, 115 rue Stevin, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium, telephone +32-2/231 1659, fax +32-2/230 3780, e-mail , website (www.oneworld.org/eurostep/). NGOS MOVE AGENDA FOR G-8 DEBT REDUCTION Debate has intensified on bilateral and multilateral debt reduction among the Group of 7 industrialized countries and the Russian Federation (G-8), and NGOs have played a central role in moving this agenda forward. Finance ministers discussed the topic in Washington in April at the Spring meetings of the IMF/World Bank, and again when the Bretton Woods Institutions (BWIs) met with the United Nations Economic and Social Council on 29 April (see NGLS Roundup No. 40). There, the three international institutions discussed responses to the global financial crisis including both debt relief and changes in the "global financial architecture." The G-8 is to issue a joint statement on debt reduction at its meeting in Cologne (Germany) in June. Debt relief was not always high on the G-8's agenda. According to the 26 April Wall Street Journal, political outsiders can take credit for the change: "In a grass-roots campaign reminiscent of the drive against South African apartheid, the debt-relief movement, particularly the faith-based Jubilee 2000 coalition, has jarred the highest levels of power. So much so that Pope John Paul II raised the issue of debt relief when he met with President Clinton in St. Louis in January." In response to the Pope Mr Clinton wrote, "I am determined that the US play a leadership role in this important moral endeavour, and I wish to thank you, the Catholic Church, and Jubilee 2000 campaign for providing such inspirational guidance to the world community." In recent months, Britain, France, Canada, Germany, the US, and Italy have all floated plans to reduce debts owed by poor countries to rich ones, and to multilateral lenders. Commented Carole Collins of Jubilee 2000/USA, "Popular pressure has finally focused their attention on the unpayable debt of poor countries." Jubilee 2000 (see Go Between 69) sees in the book of Leviticus a biblical call for millennial debt forgiveness. Not only the Pope, but the World Council of Churches has endorsed the campaign. In April, US Catholic bishops said that "the debt crisis should be measured in terms of its human costs and moral consequences," according to the Wall Street Journal. Jubilee 2000 gatherings in Latin America/Caribbean (Honduras, January), Southern Africa (Gauteng, March), and Asia (Philippines, April) all contributed analysis that goes beyond debt cancellation to a critique of the dominant market-driven economic model. As finance ministers met at the World Bank and IMF in Washington in April, NGOs representing labour, environment, religious and other groups held a forum to discuss an Alternative Global Financial Architecture. Representing "those excluded from the Bretton Woods Institutions' deliberations," they critiqued the official proposals and unveiled their own proposals for a more just and stable financial system. One US-based proposal is the Global Sustainable Development Resolution, circulated in the US Congress by Representative Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent. Participants included the Institute for Policy Studies, the Economic Policy Institute, the Halifax Initiative, Friends of the Earth, the AFL-CIO, 50 Years is Enough, the Preamble Center, and Jubilee 2000 Latin America (Peru). From 26-28 April, Brazilian NGOs in the Jubilee 2000 movement held a Foreign Debt Tribunal with some 1,200 participants. Calling for debt cancellation and restitution for negative social and environmental impacts, the Brazilian NGOs stated that the foreign debt constitutes an ongoing violation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. They called for the International Court of Justice in the Hague to judge both the processes that gave rise to the foreign debt, and those responsible. In Cologne in June, campaigners plan to present petitions to the G-8 with millions of signatures demanding debt cancellation. They question the framework of the IMF/World Bank's Highly Indebted Poor Countries' (HIPC) debt initiative, which, in their view, aims only to make debts "sustainable" for countries that follow IMF conditions. According to the Canadian Ecumenical Coalition for Economic Justice (ECEJ), "Deeper questions about the legitimacy of the debt are not addressed by the G-7 governments." ECEJ proposes a "human development alternative," which commits financial resources to meeting people's basic needs before making debt payments, and includes both debtor country governments and civil societies in seeking solutions. Contact: There are Jubilee 2000 groups in 53 countries. The website of Jubilee 2000 Coalition UK lists contacts for all these groups (www.jubilee2000uk.org). Jubilee 2000 Coalition (UK) can be contacted at 1 Rivington St., London EC2A 3DT, United Kingdom, telephone +44-171/739 1000, fax +44-171/739 2300, e-mail . FIRST ARAB HUMAN RIGHTS CONFERENCE HELD An International Conference of the Arab Human Rights Movement was held in Casablanca (Morocco) from 23-25 April. The conference examined the human rights conditions in the Arab world, and the responsibilities, tasks and prospects of the Arab human rights movement. Participants included nearly 100 human rights defenders and experts in the human rights field from 15 Arab countries. Representatives from major international human rights NGOs and funding agencies attended as observers. Participants adopted the Casablanca Declaration of the Arab Human Rights Movement, which sets out the principal ethical standards and human rights perspectives that will comprise a framework for the Arab human rights movement in the future. The declaration emphasized the universality of human rights, and used international human rights law as expressed in relevant UN instruments as a basis for discussion. The declaration: -- called for substantial reforms in the UN "to make it more representative of the regions and peoples of the world;" -- called upon the UN Security Council to review the international sanctions system and its application methods; -- called for the immediate and unconditional end to economic sanctions on Iraq, saying they further aggravated the human rights situation there; -- drew attention to "the grave consequences of using principles of human rights for the realization of specific foreign policy objectives of some countries," contending that "the Arab world is still suffering from the opportunistic, political and propagandist use of human rights by some major powers as evidenced by the double-standards employed by such powers;" -- rejected the "manipulation by some Arab governments of patriotic sentiments and the principle of sovereignty so as to avoid complying with international human rights standards;" and -- rejected the "attempt to use civilizational or religious specificity to contest the universality of human rights." The declaration stated that "commendable specificity is that which entrenches the dignity and equality of citizens, enriches their culture and promotes their participation in the administration of public affairs." With regard to the rights of peoples and minorities in the Arab world, the declaration affirmed commitment to the right of self-determination and condemned all acts of oppression, despotism and war committed against minorities in the Arab world, especially genocide, displacement and enslavement. In this context, the declaration expressed support for the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people, the Kurdish people and the citizens of South Sudan. The declaration expressed concern that a number of Arab countries did not have modern legal structures, and even in those that did, defects in the rule of law and in institutional, legislative and other safeguards for human rights and fundamental freedoms have led to their systematic violations. The declaration also highlighted the need for an effective regional conflict-resolution system and mechanisms for the protection of human rights in the Arab world. It affirmed that acts of violence and armed internal conflicts constitute in themselves a grave violation of the rights to life, physical integrity, life in peace and all other rights. In this context, it strongly condemned the crimes, massacres and disappearances committed in Algeria in recent years against tens of thousands of citizens. The responsibilities the declaration outlined for the Arab Human Rights Movement included: -- promoting democracy; -- setting common priorities for advocacy and protection; -- realizing economic and social rights, including citizens' right to participation, "the backbone of the application of the right to development;" -- entrenching the values of human rights in Arab and Islamic culture; -- recognizing women's rights as an integral part of human rights; -- confronting the violations of the rights of the child in the Arab world, especially those emanating from economic sanctions, armed conflict, and poverty; -- disseminating human rights education and culture; -- affirming the need for international criminal justice as manifested by supporting the ratification of the Convention on the International Criminal Court; -- protecting human rights defenders and their rights; and -- increased bilateral and collective cooperation between Arab human rights NGOs. The conference was organized by the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies and the Moroccan Organization for Human Rights. Contact: Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, PO Box 117, Maglis El Shaab, Cairo, Egypt, telephone +202/355 1112, fax +202/355 4200, e-mail . CONFERENCE ON THE USE OF CHILDREN AS SOLDIERS Across Africa over 120,000 children under 18 are participating in armed conflicts. Some of these children are no more than seven or eight years old. These figures are the highlight of a country analysis of child recruitment and participation in armed conflict, The Use of Children as Soldiers in Africa, prepared as a background document by the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers for the African Conference on the Use of Children as Soldiers, which was held in Maputo (Mozambique) in April. The conference adopted a declaration setting out what needs to be done to eliminate the use of African children as soldiers. "The use of any child under 18 years of age by any armed force or armed group is wholly unacceptable, even where that child claims to be a volunteer," the declaration said. Though the minimum age for military recruitment is 18 in most African countries, that age is often difficult to determine, so participants called for measures to more accurately identify recruitment age. They also recommended measures to register births systematically and provide identity documents for children. The declaration urged governments to demobilize all children currently serving in the armed forces and move them to safety. Governments should also ensure that children enrolled in military school are not members of the armed forces and are treated in full accord with international and regional human rights law. The declaration also called on African states to support the inclusion of a specific provision in the ILO Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labour prohibiting the use of children as soldiers. The declaration condemned armed opposition groups that use children as soldiers, and called on rebel groups to end this practice and release any children now serving in their ranks. The declaration requested African as well as non-African states to bring pressure to bear on any government or armed opposition group that recruits or uses children as soldiers by refraining from providing them, whether directly or indirectly, with arms, military equipment, training or personnel, and refusing to grant sanctuary to any armed group that uses child soldiers. It requested the OAU to take up the issue of child soldiers on a systematic basis. Conference participants also looked at African experiences and lessons learned in preventing the recruitment of children and the demobilization, rehabilitation and social reintegration of child soldiers; how to ensure respect by armed opposition groups for standards governing the recruitment and use of child soldiers; and the adoption of an Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child prohibiting the military recruitment and use of children under 18 as soldiers. Participants also sought to promote the ratification and implementation by African states of existing national and regional standards, including the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. The conference was hosted by the government of Mozambique and organized by the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers and the Save the Children Alliance. It was attended by 150 representatives of governments, intergovernmental, international and non-governmental organisations. Contact: Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, 11-13 chemin des Anemones, CH-1219 Chƒtelaine (Geneva), Switzerland, e-mail , website (www.child-soldiers.org). NORTHERN NGOS TEAM UP ON ENVIRONMENT Environmental NGOs from Europe and the US have teamed up to campaign on global issues such as climate change, biotechnology, standardization and biodiversity. The Transatlantic Environment Dialogue (TAED) is based on the New Transatlantic Agenda, signed by the European Union and the United States in 1995 to improve cooperation. TAED was launched in Brussels on 3 May by the European Environmental Bureau and the US-based National Wildlife Federation. It hopes to improve dialogue between environmental NGOs on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and increase NGO access to high-level policy makers. The coalition will be invited to submit policy recommendations to EU/US summits. Contact: Transatlantic Environment Dialogue Secretariat, European Environmental Bureau, 34 Boulevard de Waterloo, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium, telephone +32-2/289 1090 or 289 1094, fax +32-2/289 1099, e-mail . OTHER NEWS OECD MINISTERIAL COUNCIL The Ministerial Council of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) met on 26-27 May under the chairmanship of Angel Gurr¡a, Minister of Finance of Mexico. Before the council meeting, on 26 May, OECD ministers held a special dialogue with ministers from a number of non-member countries, including Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Russia and the Slovak Republic. Consultations were also held with the Business and Industry Advisory Committee and the Trade Union Advisory Committee to the OECD. In a final communique, the council called for maintaining the momentum to strengthen the international financial architecture and observed that economic growth in the OECD area and the world economy "remains unsatisfactory." Ministers also expressed concern at the continuing high levels of unemployment in some OECD countries and underlined their determination to further implement the OECD Jobs Strategy. The council also confirmed the pursuit of sustainable development, including dealing with the challenges of climate change, conservation of biodiversity and the sustainable management of natural resources, as a key objective for OECD countries. Ministers endorsed the need for a new World Trade Organization (WTO) round of multilateral trade negotiations that "must be responsive to the needs of all developing countries, through capacity building, to ensure their economic growth and that they fully reap the gains of liberalization." They also called for a more effective and transparent WTO Dispute Settlement Understanding, for appropriate account to be taken of environmental issues in future trade negotiations, and for continued cooperation between the International Labour Organization, WTO and OECD secretariats on internationally recognized core labour standards. Ministers stressed the importance of enhanced transparency and clarity in the functioning of the WTO system and observed that "active and constructive communication and consultation with civil society are essential for public understanding of the benefits and challenges of liberalization." Ministers also welcomed and endorsed the OECD Principles of Corporate Governance and described the entry into force of the Convention on Combatting Bribery of Foreign Public Officials as a significant milestone in the international fight against corruption. The importance of the OECD's development partnership strategy was reiterated by the council, which also recognized the need to make greater progress in gearing development cooperation policies to partnership principles and practices. The strengthened dialogue with multilateral institutions to improve aid coordination, and the joint work with the UN and the World Bank on international development targets, were welcomed. It was agreed that the OECD will undertake further analytical work on trade, investment and development and the impact of OECD members' policy frameworks on developing countries. The council stressed the importance of maintaining substantial volumes of aid and regretted that the conditions were not yet fulfilled to conclude an agreement on untying aid to the least developed countries. OECD membership is made up of 29 countries, largely from Europe and North America but also including Australia, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand and the Republic of Korea. "The OECD remains open to new Members sharing the same values, while being selective and preserving its high standards for membership. Ministers looked forward to the conclusion of the process of accession of the Slovak Republic to the Organisation," said the communique. Contact: Media Relations, OECD, 2 rue Andre-Pascal, F-75775 Paris Cedex 16, France, telephone +33-1/45 24 80 91, fax +33-1/45 24 80 07, e-mail , website (www.oecd.org). DAC HIGH-LEVEL MEETING Development cooperation ministers, heads of aid agencies and senior officials, including UN Deputy Secretary-General Louise Frechette and World Bank President James Wolfensohn, met for two days in mid-May at the Annual High-Level Meeting of the OECD's Development Assistance Committee (DAC). In his summary, DAC Chairman Jean-Claude Faure outlined the outcomes of the discussions. These included: -- agreement to support new initiatives for a better coordinated international aid system based on partnership (including the UN's Common Country Assessment and Development Assistance Framework and the World Bank's Comprehensive Development Framework); and -- agreement to work in OECD capitals, in other parts of the OECD and other fora to back the efforts of developing countries to participate effectively in the global economy. The concrete measures proposed or already being undertaken included: -- supporting the capacity of partner countries to set their own strategies and to coordinate aid themselves, including hosting Consultative Group meetings; -- linking increases in aid volume to improvements in the effectiveness with which aid is used; -- working to ensure that debt relief measures are well linked to the longer-term development strategies and priorities of countries involved; -- promoting regional approaches to development, especially in zones of conflict; -- reducing the proliferation of projects, with more emphasis on sectoral programmes; -- harmonizing donors' different administrative and reporting requirements and programme cycles in order to reduce the burden on partner countries; -- helping to strengthen the statistical capacities of developing countries; -- doing more monitoring and evaluation on a joint basis; and -- facilitating participation by civil society in the partner countries' and joint donor efforts to make aid processes more efficient (the recent organization of aid consultations in developing country capitals has assisted in this regard, according to the DAC). The ministers also discussed the progress made in negotiations between OECD member countries on untying aid to the least developed countries, and declared their continuing commitment to keep working towards this objective, possibly by the time of the High Level Meeting in 2000. The meeting also considered the issue of the coherence between OECD members' aid and development policies and their other national, regional and international policies, which have important impacts on development prospects. Finally, the meeting addressed the question of the increasing demands being made upon stagnant or declining aid budgets for emergency relief and reconstruction and for debt relief purposes. "DAC Members agreed that if the overall supply of aid continues to shrink, it will be impossible to target the necessary critical mass of aid to help the poorest countries and people meet their basic needs, while at the same time meeting the rising challenges of relief, reconstruction and peacebuilding in several parts of the world," concluded the DAC communique. Contact: Media Relations, OECD, 2 rue Andre-Pascal, F-75775 Paris Cedex 16, France, telephone +33-1/45 24 80 91, fax +33-1/45 24 80 07, e-mail , website (www.oecd.org). DAC REVIEW OF JAPAN The OECD's Development Assistance Committee (DAC) has concluded its review of Japan, noting that Japan's aid volume doubled since 1978, making it the world's largest donor this decade. An overall fiscal reform in 1997 which cut the aid budget by 10% was offset by provisions of new aid, the Special Yen Loan Facility to help crisis-hit Asian countries, and by the freezing of other proposed cuts. The DAC's recent review welcomed Japan's special aid to Asia but called on the country to confirm its commitment to freezing further aid cuts and to restore growth to the aid budget. Japan's ratio of aid to GNP fell from 0.28% in 1995 to 0.22% in 1997. Other issues mentioned in the review included the new International Development Strategy, strengthening the role of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and reform of the ODA system. The committee encouraged Japan to give more emphasis to the socio-economic impacts of its aid projects and to improve harmony between development cooperation and other economic policies affecting trade and investment in developing countries. FIRST OAU MEETING ON HUMAN RIGHTS A week-long ministerial meeting of the Organization for African Unity (OAU) in Mauritius has issued a declaration and action plan reiterating the importance of human rights in Africa and mapping out strategies to improve them. It was preceded by a meeting of experts and an NGO Forum. The ministerial meeting concluded that while Africa had made progress in human rights since it adopted the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights in 1981, much remained to be done, especially in ratifying regional as opposed to international conventions. Participants drew attention to Africa's distinctiveness, and a panel of experts meeting before the conference pointed out that that while all member states except Somalia had ratified the International Convention on the Rights of the Child, only 12 had ratified the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, which provided better protection for children. The meeting called for more cooperation with NGOs and wider outreach to civil society at large. "The development and energization of civil society, the strengthening of the family unit as the basis of human society, the removal of harmful traditional practices and consultation with community leaders should all be seen as building blocs in the process of creating an environment conducive to human rights in Africa and as tools for fostering solidarity among her peoples," the ministerial declaration said. Participants stressed such issues as the need for an independent judiciary, an alleviation of Africa's debt burden, women's and children's rights and the rights of the disabled. They also highlighted the links between refugees and human rights violations, and raised concerns about the impact of war crimes and terrorism on human rights. Other causes of human rights violations in Africa identified at the meeting included contemporary forms of slavery, racism, religious intolerance, poverty, disease, illiteracy, dislocation as a result of certain structural adjustment programmes, foreign debt, bad governance, corruption, abuse of power, lack of freedom of the press and of association, environmental degradation, border conflicts, unconstitutional changes of government, and nepotism. The conference called on those member countries not having done so to ratify human rights treaties and urged closer cooperation with the media and NGOs in an effort to build democracy and development. Participants recognized "the importance of promoting an African civil society, particularly NGOs, rooted in the realities of the African continent." Finally, it asked states to prepare national action plans to promote and protect human rights, making the point that while ample legislation existed to protect human rights, the problem was one of strategies to implement them. Prior to the ministerial meeting, from 7-9 April, 85 representatives of African and international NGOs met in Nairobi to discuss the range of human rights issues and made some strong points which were then presented to the ministerial conference. They reflected such broad themes as the human rights situation in Africa, the ratification and implementation of human rights instruments, partnerships to harmonize human rights programmes in Africa, the root causes of human rights violations, and human rights protection strategies. The NGO Forum urged OAU member states to strengthen their support of human rights through such actions as implementing resolutions on judicial independence and child labour, support widening the African Charter to include a protocol on women's rights and increase support to conventions that protect women and children, and to set up an election monitoring mechanism. NGOs also urged further ratification and implementation of national and international treaties, publication and dissemination of country reports, establishment of National Human Rights Commissions, and better partnerships with civil society by including NGOs in human rights programmes and in conflict resolution. The NGO Forum identified a number of causes--similar to the list later elaborated at the ministerial meeting--behind human rights violations, and called for measures to eradicate them. It called for better human rights education, more human rights training among police, army and the judiciary, and the incorporation of human rights into peacekeeping operations. Contact: OAU, PO Box 3243, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, fax +251-1/517844. 15TH NORTH-SOUTH MEDIA FESTIVAL The 15th North-South Media Festival, held from 3-7 May, focused on the Himalayas. The festival is an annual event where prizes are given to the best television submissions dealing with North-South relations or development themes. Prizes awarded at the festival went to: The New Free-Trade Zones: Slaves of Commerce (Televisi• de Catalunya, Spain), Geneva International Television Award; La vie sur terre (La 7 Arte et Hatu et Court, France), French-Speaking Community Award; Tour of Duty (Vlaamese radio en televisieomroep, Belgium), Pierre-Alain Donnier Award; Le Ra‹ (ENTV Algerie), South-North Award; Bebes voles (Little Bear, France) and Made in India (Light Night Production SA, Switzerland), International Independents' Award; Justice (JBA Productions, France) and Les pilules du mal (Videocam, Belgium), Ebel Award; and L'arc-en-ciel eclate (Les films de la Passerelle, Belgium), Youth Award. The prize for Press and Democracy in Africa for the French-language African newspaper that best supports democracy and human rights was given to the newspaper Le Lynx from the Republic of Guinea. The North-South Media Festival (formerly the North-South Media Encounter) is organized by the Geneva-based Institute of Development Studies, NGLS, Television suisse romande, Swiss Radio International, InfoSud Press Agency, and Fonction: Cinema, based in Geneva. It is supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, among others. Contact: Festival Medias Nord-Sud, c/o Television suisse romande, CP 234, CH-1211 Geneva 8, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/708 8193, fax + 41-22/328 9410, e-mail , website (www.nordsud.ch). FOCUS THE 1999 SEOUL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF NGOS NGOs from all regions of the world are being invited to gather together in Seoul (Republic of Korea) from 10-16 October for the 1999 Seoul International Conference of NGOs. The conference, The Role of NGOs in the 21st Century: Inspire, Empower, Act!, is being convened by the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Status with the United Nations (CONGO), the Executive Committee of NGOs Associated with the United Nations Department of Public Information, and the Global Cooperation Society, a Seoul-based NGO with chapters in 35 countries. The conference is being hosted by Kyung Hee University. The major goals of the conference are: -- to assess and explore implementation of commitments made at major world conferences over the past decade; -- to strengthen NGO partnerships with the United Nations and its agencies for improved policy dialogue with the United Nations and governments; -- to enhance communication and collaboration among NGOs for more effective implementation of NGO activities in support of the world conferences recommendations; and -- to assist with building networks for NGOs to seek common and concrete measures for self-empowerment and alliance-building. According to the convenors, the conference will offer governments, UN officials and leaders from other sectors the opportunity to understand and appreciate the broad scope of NGO achievements over the past decades, and the vital potential for the NGO contribution in the new millennium. This is seen by organizers as the key to excellence in developing partnerships between NGOs and governments, and to creating newly effective modes of communication and collaboration among NGOs, the United Nations and other international and regional agencies. Conference themes and sessions include peace and security, environment and human settlements, education for all, ethics and values, human rights, social and economic development, gender equality, youth and children, public health, reproductive health and mental health, productive ageing, and empowering NGOs. There will also be regional caucuses and best practices' clinics. Participants are also being invited to sponsor or organize panels, workshops and exhibitions or displays. Some 2,000 participants are expected and the results and outcomes of the conference will feed into the Millennium NGO Forum proposed by the UN Secretary-General. Contact: Conference of NGOs, 777 UN Plaza, 6th Floor, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/986 6117, fax +1-212/687 7352, e-mail , website (www.ngo99korea.org). WOCSOC: BUILDING GLOBAL GOVERNANCE PARTNERSHIPS Representatives of national and international networks from around the world will gather in Montreal (Canada) from 7-11 December 1999 to assess, develop and celebrate UN/civil society partnerships. The planners of this major event say this agenda is essential for democratic global governance for the new millennium. The objectives of the World Civil Society Conference (WOCSOC) are: -- to contribute to an effective and timely implementation of UN global conference and summit agreements by developing new action by civil society to oblige and assist governments to fulfil the promises and commitments made; -- to develop concrete proposals for 2000 and beyond, including making a substantive contribution to the Millennium Assembly and its preparatory process; -- to enhance and broaden cooperation among civil society actors by formulating practical proposals for increased cross-national, cross-cultural, cross-sectoral, gender-balanced cooperation to meet the needs of the 21st century; and -- to draw lessons through the sharing of strategies, plans, successes, failures and new opportunities in working with the UN system on issues where civil society and the UN have a common and imperative agenda. These objectives are reflected in a programme of plenaries and workshops, which addresses the vision and shared goals for the new millennium, spells out the obstacles and challenges and identifies strategies and reforms for achieving them. It is planned that civil society leaders from around the world will interact with key figures from the UN system, governments, business, academia and the media to propose changes and take action for new global governance partnerships and to create a wider support base for a stronger UN. A major contribution to the conference is a study conducted by the United Nations Association of Canada and the resulting book on Civil Society and the UN, to be published in late 1999. Another valuable contribution is The Study on Codes of Conduct for Partnership in Governance, edited by T. Kunugi and M. Schweitz under the auspices of the United Nations University. Contact: WOCSOC Secretariat, Forum International de Montreal (FIM), 380 St-Antoine Ouest, Bureau 3200, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H2Y 3X7, telephone +1-514/499 9468, fax +1-514/987 1567, e-mail , website (www.wocsoc.org). UNICEF'S CAROL BELLAMY: THE UN AND ITS PARTNERS Partnerships with NGOs and the private sector are important to the United Nations' development work, said Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), in an address to Harvard University. But, she adds, corporations and the United Nations do not always share the same goals, and cooperation with the private sector should not be at the expense of holding governments to their commitments. The head of UNICEF said that while business is driven by profits, and rightly so, the UN is driven by a set of principles and the two must not be confused. "It is dangerous to assume that the goals of the private sector are somehow synonymous with those of the United Nations, because they most emphatically are not," she said. "It is perfectly right and legitimate for both to be pursuing their singular mandates--and where they can work together as partners, so much the better. But in coming together with the private sector, the UN must carefully, and constantly, appraise the relationship." The alliance between the UN and the business sector has received much publicity lately. At the last World Economic Forum in Davos (Switzerland), UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said peace and prosperity required a broad range of active partnerships. "In today's world," he told corporate leaders, "we depend on each other. The business of the United Nations involves the businesses of the world." Clearly there is much scope for expanded development work on the part of the private sector, she said. The global economy is worth nearly US$30 trillion, yet 1.5 billion people, or a quarter of the human race, are living in unacceptable conditions. These figures are the worst on record, yet aid continues to fall. "Obviously the UN system looks to the private sector as a source of funding for multilateral development assistance," Ms Bellamy said, but she added it would be wrong to think governments don't have the necessary resources for development and that it is up to the private sector and the market to come up with money. This rationale "is based on the mistaken idea that governments should be allowed to shirk their responsibility as the leading players in development, and it is based on a limited and almost patronizing view of what the private sector can bring to a relationship with the UN--namely, money." On the contrary, she said, there is much more to the relationship. The private sector is also a source of expertise and knowledge, and is courted as much for its capacity as for its wealth. She said the private sector has a major role to play in promoting human rights, and numerous companies already have innovative projects in desperately poor countries. Any partnership, however, should be undertaken with caution and forged only with those companies who act responsibly. "Without due diligence," she said, "one runs the risk of becoming associated with companies whose past records suggest that they may not be the best partners." UNICEF, for example, attaches ethical strings to its contracts to make sure suppliers are not linked to such activities as land mine production or exploitative child labour. Partnerships are not limited to the private sector, however, and NGOs are also indispensable to development. Often, NGOs have not been recognized for the role they play in multilateralism, Ms Bellamy said, nor have they been consulted enough about key issues. "They have not been part of the decision-making process over how priorities are set in the field. They have too few opportunities to meet with major multilateral agencies, and to help in devising ways to pool efforts and share operational authority." As with the private sector, however, Ms Bellamy urged prudence, since NGOs, however generous and expansive, are not exempt from criticism and some have come under fire because their very existence seems tied to catastrophes. She said NGOs are also criticized for not being sufficiently sensitive to the overlap of work among organizations. Finally, Ms Bellamy stressed the importance of partnerships with the public sector, or governments. Much has been said about offsetting the decline in official development assistance by using the market economy, and clearly the private sector's role in developing countries has risen dramatically, even as aid drops. She said private capital flows increased five-fold and now represent almost 80% of all resources that go to developing countries each year--nearly twice the 1990 figure. "But private capital seldom gravitates to the very neediest countries," she said. "In 1995, for example, all but 20% of total private flows went to just 12 developing countries, while the 49 countries in sub-Saharan Africa received only 5%." In those countries that it does reach, private capital does little for the poor, she said. "Only rarely do we find it supporting the development of such essential social services as primary health care, or basic education. More to the point, private capital will not find its way to countries that lack an adequate social and economic infrastructure--which is precisely what multilateral aid is aimed at helping poor countries to build." At a time when even modest increases in aid to the world's poorest countries could save the lives of millions of children and women, "ODA is in a state of virtual free-fall." This, she said, "is a scandal." She called on rich countries to live up to their obligations to poorer ones. These obligations are not only generous and compassionate but would help build a stable and vibrant world economy. "For practical, legal and moral reasons, governments must be held to their commitments. No one should pretend that simply getting more money from the private sector will compensate for the failures of the public sector." "There is a belief among many people that globalization is an ineluctable process, as irresistible and beyond human control as the tides," she concluded. "In fact, it is the product of deliberate, day-to-day policy choices. And that is why, ladies and gentlemen, we must not let governments off the hook." Ms Bellamy was speaking at the Harvard International Development Conference in Cambridge (United States) on 16 April. Contact: UNICEF, 3 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/326 7000, fax +1-212/887 7465, website (www.unicef.org). FIRST MEETING OF STATES PARTIES TO THE LAND MINE BAN TREATY Over 1,200 representatives of 108 governments and intergovernmental, international and non-governmental organizations attended the First Meeting of States Parties (FMSP) to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction. The convention, already signed by 135 countries, entered into force on 1 March. On 6 May, Chad became the 80th country to ratify the treaty. The meeting, held in in Maputo (Mozambique) from 3-7 May, was opened by Mozambique President Joaquim Alberto Chissano. Mozambique's Foreign Minister, Leonardo Santos Simao, was elected Chair. UN Deputy Secretary-General Louise Frechette addressed the opening plenary on behalf of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, stressing the UN's commitment to work towards swift implementation of the convention, and describing the UN's role in establishing procedures to facilitate and clarify compliance with the convention. Participants addressed the framework for implementation of the treaty, including reporting formats; requests for extension of the deadline for destruction of mines; and requests for clarification relating to compliance. Several sessions were devoted to informal consultations on international cooperation and assistance, and delegates visited a demining area in Mozambique. A report presented by the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), a coalition of 1,000 NGOs which won the Nobel Prize in 1997 for its pivotal work in the process leading up to the adoption of the convention, provoked significant discussion. The Landmine Monitor Report 1999: Toward a Mine-Free World contains information on every country in the world with respect to mine use, production, trade, stockpiling, humanitarian demining and mine-survivor assistance. The report found that while there has been a significant increase in global pledges to and spending on mine action, too little money is actually reaching the field and resulting in mines being quickly detected and destroyed. According to the report, too much funding is going to research and development programmes for demining technologies and equipment that may have limited relevance to immediate needs on the ground. The report called on governments to provide up to US$3 billion over the next 10 years to support effective assistance programmes in mine-affected countries. It also emphasized that survivor assistance programmes must build local capacities so that rehabilitation needs are met "in country" over the long term. The report called on states that have not yet ratified the convention to do so as soon as possible, and to abide by its terms until their ratification process is completed. It noted that only a relatively small number of the states Parties have enacted domestic legislation implementing the treaty, and called on states to do so. The report also found that global stockpiles of anti-personnel mines total around over 250 million, more than double the previous common estimate. It recommended an increased emphasis on stockpile destruction, as a form of "preventive mine action." The meeting concluded with the adoption of the "Maputo Declaration," which reaffirmed states Parties' unwavering commitment to the total eradication of anti-personnel mines, as well as to the treaty's universal adoption. The declaration appealed for technical assistance to mine-affected countries, and stressed the importance of assistance to landmine victims. The text describes landmines as "a major public health threat" that requires long-term strategies aimed at social and economic reintegration of survivors, not just short-term care. The declaration expressed the "serious concern" of the states Parties at the continued use of anti-personnel mines in areas of instability around the world. More particularly, states Parties expressed their "outrage at the unabated use of anti-personnel mines in conflicts around the world" and called on "those few signatories who continue to use these weapons" to "respect and implement" their commitments. This reflected a response to the ICBL report that finds that mines continue to be used in conflict areas in Angola, Guinea-Bissau, and Senegal, all of which are signatories to the convention. Angola did not respond publicly to the allegations at the meeting, but Senegal made a statement in which it "categorically rejected" allegations made by the ICBL. With regard to the conflict situation in Kosovo, the ICBL called on all treaty signatories to insist that any non-signatories do not use anti-personnel mines in joint operations. All of the NATO nations except the United States and Turkey have signed the treaty. The Kosovo operation has heightened ICBL's concerns about US mines being stored in NATO countries that have signed the treaty, and the possibility of US transit of the mines through those, or other signatory countries for the purpose of fighting. The ICBL maintains that such transit constitutes a treaty violation and has called for clarification in this regard. One of the flashpoints of the meeting was the question of how to penalize signatory countries for violations of the convention. There were repeated calls from NGOs and government delegations alike for states Parties to give effect to the convention's provisions by adopting national legislation needed to "criminalize" violations and specify penalties. Some donors said that they favoured reducing or withdrawing aid for mine action programmes in countries that violate the treaty and concentrating resources instead on complying states. Farida Gulamo of the Mozambican Campaign to Ban Landmines and Secretary General of the Mozambican Association of Disabled People proposed that donor aid be rechannelled for victim assistance in mine-infested countries that complied with the treaty. Norwegian People's Aid (NPA), which has cut back funding for its mine action programme in Angola, said that there was a need to send a clear strong signal that treaty violations will bring serious consequences, but was wary of the effects of aid cuts. "The only losers are the most vulnerable, the poorest and the internally displaced," NPA said. ICBL Ambassador and Nobel Laureate Jody Williams noted that "it would be a tragedy to see victims further victimized for the illegal actions of their governments," but said that "some penalties must be found or it fosters impunity, which is why internal conflicts have degenerated the way they have." Contact: International Campaign to Ban Landmines, PO Box 8844, Youngstorget, N-0028 Oslo, Norway, telephone +47/2203 7700, fax +47/2220 0940, e-mail , website (www.icbl.org) or Department of Peacekeeping Operations, UN Mine Action Service, United Nations, Room DC1-1500, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/963 1875, fax +1-212/963 2498, e-mail , website (www.un.org/Depts/Landmine). COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS MEETS On 22 March-30 April, the Commission on Human Rights held its 55th session in Geneva. The thrust of the UN Secretary-General's intervention was on affirmation of the primacy of human rights over national sovereignty. Among other things, the commission passed resolutions on the right to democracy, unilateral coercive measures and the death penalty. It also reviewed progress on new mechanisms relating to economic, social and cultural rights. In his address to the human rights commission, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said human rights are at the core of the "sacred bond" between the United Nations and peoples of those nations. No government, he said, has the right to hide behind national sovereignty in order to violate the human rights or fundamental freedoms of its people. He said it is not enough to know what the world is against, but also "who" it is against. "The United Nations should have the courage to recognize that just as there are common aims, there are common enemies." He referred in particular to human rights abuses in Kosovo, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan. The Right to Democracy The commission adopted resolution 1999/57 on the promotion of the right to democracy, affirming that democracy fosters the full realization of all human rights. It says that the rights of democratic governance include, among other things, the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, of association and peaceful assembly; the right to freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas; the right to application of the rule of law, including fairness in the administration of justice and independence of the judiciary; the right to universal and equal suffrage; the right of political participation; and the right to transparent and accountable government institutions. The measure was passed by a ballot vote of 51 in favour, none opposed, and two abstentions (Cuba and China). The delegate from China stressed the fact that the commission has used the term "right to democracy" for the first time; the term should be examined more deeply. China successfully blocked an attempt by the United States and Poland to censure its human rights record by mobilizing 22 votes to 17 in favour of taking no action on the US-Polish proposal. This is the eighth time since 1991 that China has won the battle over its human rights record at the commission, although its margin of victory is narrower than the last time such a vote was held in 1997. The United States, however, was also the target of many NGOs, who criticized its domestic human rights record, including on issues related to racial discrimination by the police, juvenile capital punishment, "environmental racism," and exceptionally high levels of income inequalities and poverty for a top-ranking industrialized nation. Death Penalty The commission also passed resolution 1999/61 on the "question of the death penalty." Among other things, it urges member states that still maintain the death penalty to progressively restrict the number of offences for which the death penalty may be imposed, and establish a moratorium on executions, with a view to completely abolishing the death penalty. The resolution was adopted by a roll-call vote of 30 in favour, 11 against, with 12 abstentions. Delegations opposing the resolution included China, Cuba, India, Japan, Pakistan, Sudan and the United States. Unilateral Coercive Measures South Africa, on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned States, introduced resolution 1999/21, which "rejects" the application of unilateral coercive measures "as tools for political or economic pressure against any country, particularly against developing countries, because of their negative effects on the realization of all human rights of vast sectors of their populations, inter alia children, women, the elderly, disabled and ill people." This issue, the text says, will be examined "on a priority basis" by the commission next year. The resolution was adopted by 37 votes in favour (mainly developing countries), 10 against (mainly developed countries), and six abstentions. Structural Adjustment and Foreign Debt The commission heard progress reports presented by the UN special rapporteur on debt and the independent expert on structural adjustment programmes (SAPs) and human rights-related questions. Most developed countries still refuse to accept the link between debt/SAPs and human rights. While many do recognize the adverse social impact of debt and SAPs, they do not wish to treat these matters in human rights terms--even though the independent expert has outlined the serious adverse impact of economic adjustment policies resulting from debt on a range of individual human rights, including the right to education, health, housing and food. A televised conference between NGOs and World Bank officials during the commission suggested that some staff at the Bank have accepted that such a link exists, and that acknowledging this link should help speed up the process of debt relief. Some NGOs associated with the Jubilee 2000 debt cancellation campaign told the commission that international human rights bodies cannot effectively seek to hold governments to account for the progressive realization of the economic and social rights for their people so long as the means to secure those rights are tied up in debt service obligations. Such bodies have a responsibility to call for outright cancellation of unsustainable debt--which should be redefined as any debt which, as a direct consequence of its servicing obligations, deprives people of basic human rights to the highest attainable standard of health, education, and an adequate standard of living. Such a human rights-consistent redefinition of unsustainable debt, they argued, would dramatically alter the current terms of the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, which many view as far too slow and restrictive. On the same subject, a representative of the International Labour Organization told the commission that "there cannot be any fruitful structural adjustment programme without the involvement of the population (women as well as men) in the programme and without the programme being...accepted by the majority of the population." Other Social and Economic Human Rights Issues The commission also reviewed progress reports of the special rapporteur on the right to education (see page 31) and on human rights and extreme poverty. It has also asked the human rights subcommission to further review its proposal on a "social forum" to address links between human rights and globalization (see NGLS Roundup, November 1998), and to undertake a study on the "issue of globalization and its impact on the full enjoyment of all human rights" to be submitted at its session next year. The human rights subcommission will meet from 2-27 August in Geneva. RIGHT TO EDUCATION MOVES FORWARD Resolution 1998/33 of the Commission on Human Rights has appointed the first special rapporteur on the right to education, Katarina Tomasevski. Go Between takes a look at her preliminary report and at some of the issues it explores. One in four people will enter the 21st century not knowing how to read a book or sign their names, edging them ever closer towards poverty. And their numbers are growing. These people have yet to benefit from the right to education, a fundamental right entrenched more than 50 years ago in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and later in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The right to education, which allows people to improve their skills and hence their livelihoods, falls under the set of economic, social and cultural rights (ESC) which has been the focus of much activity around the UDHR's 50th anniversary. Until recently ESC rights were neglected in favour of civil and political rights, but there is an increasing belief that one set of rights cannot function without the other. The commission's work is a part of a growing trend to mainstream human rights, in other words, to include human rights in other activities such as development, health, environment, housing or work, and the appointment of the special rapporteur is one step in this process. "Education is not just a fundamental human right as recognized in Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights," said Oxfam International, in a paper to a 9 April seminar of the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR). "It is also an enabling right which unlocks a wider set of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. Education should be regarded as a priority, regardless of the economic benefits." The special rapporteur's preliminary report was recently submitted to the 55th session of the Commission on Human Rights (see page 30) and considers some of these issues. It maps out a range of issues that need immediate attention, describes her approach and framework for analysis, and outlines issues for longer-term study. The preliminary report focuses on primary education; it emphasizes the lack of a common language and terminology in education, as well as the financial obstacles faced by both poor parents and poor governments. It proposes the development of rights-based indicators, and looks at the difference between compulsory education and the right to education, concluding that the latter concept offers a much richer and nuanced approach to assessing and improving educational standards. The 4-A Scheme The indicators are contained in a "4-A scheme" that all primary schools should reflect, namely availability, accessibility, acceptability and adaptability. The first, availability, is to ensure primary schools are available to all children. In Africa, for example, nearly half the population is of school age yet most live in rural areas, with little access to schools. Other factors may come into play, such as availability of schooling for girls--or at times for boys in those countries with a surplus of female school attendance. Second, accessibility would ensure non-discriminatory access to available public schools. In some developing countries, early marriage and pregnancy are often the main reasons girls do not finish primary school. Lack of access is not only because of sex, but also language, religion, citizenship or physical impairment. Third, acceptability to both parents and children is sought. On the parental side, acceptability would centre on the respect for parental freedom to educate their children according to their religious, moral or philosophical convictions--or language, an increasingly controversial issue that the special rapporteur plans to delve into more deeply. From the child's perspective, acceptability would encompass schooling which is child-friendly, based on the child's rights to curiosity, to ask questions, to disagree, to make mistakes, to be free from violence, to be scheduled according to the child's other lifestyle needs, to be, in other words, respected. Finally, adaptability looks at what children should learn at school and how the learning process should be organized. With the world's rapidly changing and technologically evolving environment, there is no way to know what children will need to know as future adults, and different approaches are being tested in an effort to move away from traditional classroom learning. NGO Viewpoints While welcoming the preliminary report, NGOs attending the ISHR seminar concluded the right to education was being violated on a very large scale. In 1990 at the World Conference on Education for All in Jomtien (Thailand), governments and international agencies pledged to ensure every child in the world would receive a good primary education by the year 2000. That has not been the case. Today, more than 130 million children of school age living in developing countries are growing up without access to basic education. Millions more, many of them girls, will have to make do with inadequate schooling. Yet aid levels have fallen, and economic reforms are ignoring the best interests of the child in favour of a country's national balance sheet. Poverty and debt have made a contribution, as have widespread disparities, whether along gender, rural-urban, regional or ethnic lines. Meantime, teacher morale is dropping as pay, support and social status decline. Without discounting the role of national governments in poor countries, NGOs at the seminar stressed the responsibility of international financial institutions for their lending practices. The representative of Oxfam International said experience under structural adjustment has highlighted incompatibilities between the objectives set by governments and donors at Jomtien and other UN-sponsored summits in the 1990s, and policies and practices of the Bretton Woods agencies. "The fact that the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Policy Framework Papers typically offer no analysis of the consistency of the fiscal targets adopted with social-policy objectives in areas such as health, education and food security, suggests that the IMF may be acting in violation of international human rights standards." Participants noted that the World Bank is beginning to give more emphasis to social factors in its policy work, although there still appears to be little effort to ensure consistency between macro-economic and social policy objectives. HUMAN RIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT COOPERATION On April 20 in Geneva, NGLS organized an informal interagency discussion on human rights approaches to international cooperation attended by representatives of some 17 UN agencies, programmes and funds. Below are some of the main points that emerged from the meeting. The discussion took place in the context of the UN Secretary-General's reform efforts to mainstream human rights across all areas of UN work, and the increasing interest among NGOs and governments in "rights-based" approaches to development. There is still a tendency in the UN to treat human rights as a separate sectoral activity centred around governance questions--separate from education, heath, nutrition and similar issues--whereas human rights pervade all these questions. In the same spirit as mainstreaming gender equality, mainstreaming human rights brings qualitative changes to assessments, priority setting and monitoring of all sectoral programmes and policies. Human rights legislation provides a wide range of standards and benchmarks that need to be much more actively used. The work currently underway in the UN to develop indicators and benchmarks for the realization of human rights tends to show that a number of indicators in the areas of economic and social issues exist, which can be applied to assess the realization of economic and social rights. As far as civil and political rights indicators are concerned, more work needs to be done. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is currently working on the development of indicators for all human rights, but has to take account of the political sensitivity of using civil and political rights indicators, in particular for independent and fair administration of justice, democracy and participation, and security of the person. An "Empowerment" Approach A human rights approach to international development cooperation should not be based on a top-down "sanctions"-type approach. Imposing new forms of negative conditionalities on southern governments is counterproductive. In fact the Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights issued a general comment on the serious adverse human rights impact of economic sanctions, particularly on the most vulnerable members of society. Moreover, a sanctions approach, if it is perceived to be the main avenue to mainstream human rights in development, will serve to exacerbate North-South tensions and frictions. Governments most likely to call for sanctions could themselves fall short of having entirely fulfilled their human rights obligations, particularly (but not exclusively) their own citizen's economic social and cultural rights (ESCRs). A human rights approach to development should instead follow a bottom-up "empowerment"-type approach, where the UN system's role should be to (a) assist (for example, through treaty body recommendations or technical cooperation) governments in fulfilling their human rights obligations; and (b) support and encourage the strengthening of civil society's human rights advocacy capacity and help enlarge their legal and political space to carry out advocacy work. Domestic political mobilization by civil society can play a pivotal role with respect to the degree to which state Parties take seriously their ESCR obligations, and the recommendations of the committee on ESCRs. An "empowerment"-type approach does not mean that UN agencies do not have a key advocacy role, through advice and policy dialogue, to remind governments of their human rights obligations. UN agencies could be more bold on this front, notwithstanding the considerable degree of country-specific political sensitivity and shrewdness such efforts require. A subtle combination of private diplomacy and public pressure often works best. International Economic Factors A key factor, from an empowerment perspective, is the availability of resources needed for governments to fulfill their human rights obligations. Without minimizing poor country governments' room for manoeuvre from within existing budgets, the role and levels of overseas development assistance (which is itself an explicit human rights obligation of states under Article 2.1 of the covenant on ESCRs) remain a critical determinant. It has in fact been argued that the 0.7% ODA target should be treated as one benchmark to assess rich country governments' commitment to fulfilling their human rights obligations to the international community. Country-level rights-based development cooperation work, which ultimately serves to pressure national governments to fulfill their human rights obligations, should be balanced with efforts to address the international factors affecting human rights, including the methods and practices of transnational corporations, externally-imposed macro-economic policy conditions and other factors related to the international economy and globalization. While some NGOs have chosen, as a matter of strategy, to focus on the "soft" programming components of aid, others are undertaking pioneering work on the human rights responsibilities of global economic and financial institutions and private transnational economic actors. NGO advocacy efforts in this area have so far most visibly had an impact on the work of the UN human rights subcommission (see NGLS Roundup, November 1998). Accountability of Transnational Corporations It would be misleading to believe that because transnational corporations are not state Parties to the UN human rights covenants, they cannot be held accountable. Among governments' duties, now widely accepted in human rights jurisprudence, is the duty to "protect"--which is primarily aimed at protecting citizens against human rights abuses committed by other non-state actors. The debate is open as to whether voluntary corporate codes of conduct work (or are sufficient), or whether the logic of an increasingly competitive international environment combined with the current rapport de force between individual governments and transnational corporations would necessitate an international agreement to ensure corporate compliance with human rights principles. This is a topical issue among NGOs active in opposing the draft Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the possible Millennium Round of trade negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO). The UN subcommission on human rights is also expected to hold a sessional working group on TNCs, which inter alia, would examine the scope of the obligation of states to regulate TNC activities. Contact: Geneva office of NGLS. NGOS AND UN DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORKS In April this year NGLS organized an interagency consultation on the development programming frameworks being elaborated by the UN system, in particular the UN's Common Country Assessment (CCA) and the UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF). The meeting also discussed the recent proposal of the World Bank President James Wolfensohn for a Comprehensive Development Framework. As part of his UN reform proposals in 1997, Secretary-General Kofi Annan established the United Nations Development Group (UNDG) charged with substantially improving the efficiency, effectiveness and impact of the UN's operational development activities at country level. With an executive committee comprised of UNDP, UNICEF, UNFPA and WFP, full membership of the UNDG involves DESA, UNDCP, UNCHS, UNOPS, UNIFEM, UNAIDS, UNCTAD, IFAD, the UN regional commissions, the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflict. UNDG members currently work together in eight sub-groups and three working groups to implement decisions made by the UNDG Executive Committee. Themes and topics covered in these inter-agency groups are derived from the UNDG Action Plan and include working collectively on issues such as gender, information, programme operations and policies, training and personnel, common premises and services, the right to development, and Resident Coordinator issues. With regard to programming frameworks, the Secretary-General also announced in 1997 the establishment of the UN Development Assistance Framework or UNDAF. Consisting of common objectives, strategies of cooperation, a programme resources framework and proposals for follow-up, monitoring and evaluation, the UNDAF lays a new foundation for cooperation among the UN system, government and other development partners at the country level. In the preparation of an UNDAF for a particular country, the vital first step is to produce a Common Country Assessment (CCA) in order to: -- generate a common understanding of the country's development problems, needs and priorities; -- help define the purpose and strategy of UN system support; -- promote team-work and cooperation among the UN system; and -- build partnerships with key development actors at the country level. General Assembly Resolution 53/192 endorses this new approach to UN operational activities with, among other things, a call for full government participation and ownership and for close consultations with civil society. Paragraph 30 of 53/192 states "with the agreement of the host country, the United Nations development system should assist national Governments in creating an enabling environment in which the links between national governments, the United Nations development system, civil society, national non-governmental organizations and the private sector that are involved in the development process are strengthened with a view to seeking new and innovative solutions to development problems in accordance with national policies and priorities." So far, pilot UNDAF processes have been executed in 18 countries and CCAs are currently being developed for over 70 countries. While assessment of the pilot UNDAF experiences showed some participation of NGOs and civil society organizations, new guidelines on the CCA and UNDAF produced in April 1999 strongly reiterated and reaffirmed the need for broader and deeper participation of NGOs and other organizations of civil society. World Bank: CDF Earlier this year World Bank President James Wolfensohn launched a discussion paper outlining "A proposal for a comprehensive development framework" (CDF). The proposal identifies 14 key dimensions or prerequisites of development: governance, justice, financial system, education, health and population, water and sewage, energy, roads and transportation, environment, cultural issues, rural strategy, urban strategy, private sector, and country-specific issues. The proposal also identifies four categories of partners: government, multilateral and bilateral institutions, civil society, and the private sector. The document presents the 14 prerequisites and the four partners in the form of a matrix for the assignment of roles, responsibilities and tasks among the players within a holistic vision of a country's development needs. The proposal affirms that countries, in particular governments, must be in the driver's seat of this approach, which envisages a 15-20 year planning and implementation period. The World Bank is launching a test phase of the CDF in up to 14 developing countries over the next two years. Conclusions Participants at the NGLS consultation, mostly UN system staff with responsibilities for cooperation with NGOs and civil society, agreed that in light of the very receptive environment for trying these new initiatives, practical guidance would be useful on how best to approach, at the country level, non-governmental participation in the development of these frameworks and beyond. It was agreed to explore an interagency initiative that would address this question with a view to: -- enhancing the real participation of NGOs and civil society in the development work of the UN system; -- strengthening the involvement of NGOs and CSOs in the development instruments, tools, methodologies and frameworks being elaborated by the UN system at the country level; -- identifying best practices and difficulties/obstacles; -- contributing to thinking and practice on establishing an enabling environment for NGO/CSO participation; -- contributing to thinking and practice on capacity building for strengthened NGO/CSO involvement in multi-stakeholder, participatory development processes, programmes and projects; and -- understanding how NGOs/CSOs perceive these UN assessment and programming frameworks in relation to the wider policy environment, including World Bank frameworks, structural adjustment programmes, and others. Contact: NGLS office in Geneva. UNDG: Ian McFarlane, Policy Specialist, Development Group Office, 1 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/906 6247, fax +1-212/906 3609, e-mail . World Bank: William Reuben, Senior NGO Specialist, World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington DC 20433, United States, telephone +1-202/458 5012, fax +1-202/522 1669, e-mail , website (www.worldbank.org). ICPD+5 INFORMAL CONSULTATIONS CONTINUE The Commission on Population and Development, acting as the Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the Special Session of the UN General Assembly (GA) for the review and appraisal of implementation of the Programme of Action (POA) of the International Conference on Population and Development, held informal consultations from 5-7 May in New York. The PrepCom was unable to conclude its work in its formal session from 24 March-1 April (see Go Between 74), and it continued negotiations on outstanding and bracketed text on proposals for key actions for further implementation of the POA, as contained in a revised working paper prepared by the Chair, Anwarul Karim Chowdhury (Bangladesh). Delegates worked long into the evening each day of the informals, reaching agreement on many paragraphs in sections on partnerships and collaboration, mobilizing resources, and in the introduction. Though considerable progress was made, many paragraphs remained bracketed, particularly in the area of adolescent sexual and reproductive health. Negotiations will continue in a resumed session of the PrepCom to be convened from 24-25 and 28-29 June, just prior to the GA special session taking place from 30 June-2 July. With regard to partnerships and collaborations, references to delivering benefits to poor people's health, including sexual and reproductive health, were added. Reference to governments removing legal and bureaucratic obstacles toward facilitating the involvement of civil society was deleted. Discussions about the inclusion of women's, youth and indigenous organizations in country delegations to international and regional fora were replaced with "local community groups." On the role of government and international organizations in creating and supporting mechanisms to build and sustain partnerships with relevant groups, references to human resource development and external funding and support for South-South cooperation were added. Delegates could not agree on wording outlining the collective role of governments, international organizations and financial institutions to provide resources necessary for the effective participation of civil society. As anticipated, discussions regarding mobilization of resources were arduous. After calls for increased political will, a compromise text on the need to translate commitment to ICPD goals into commensurate levels of donor funding was accepted. The text calls on donor countries to renew and intensify efforts to meet the need for complementary external resources to implement the costed elements of the POA. Donor countries were urged to reverse the current decline in ODA and to fulfill the agreed target of 0.7% of GNP for overall ODA. Significant increases in ODA funding for basic emerging and continued health challenges such as malaria and other diseases were called for, including those having the highest mortality and morbidity rates. Emphasis was also placed on mobilizing resources both domestically and internationally for HIV/AIDS prevention. Much time was spent negotiating the preambular section of the text, particularly the first paragraph, which outlines the aims, focus and key recommended actions of the POA. The sovereign right of each country in implementing the recommendations of the POA was emphasized. Reference was added to the POA's emphasis on fully integrating population concerns into development strategies and planning, taking into account the interrelationship of population issues with the goals of poverty eradication, food security, adequate shelter, employment and basic social services for all, with the objective of improving quality of life through appropriate population and development policies and programmes. References on measures to strengthen food security, nutrition and agricultural policies, including fair trade, were also added. Participants noted that the world's reproductive age population continues to grow at a slightly higher rate than the world's population as a whole, reflecting the large number of young people entering their childbearing years. Reference was added regarding universal access to primary education, with special attention to closing the gender gap in primary and secondary school education. Among the setbacks cited in implementing the POA during the past five years, it was noted that: maternal mortality and morbidity remain unacceptably high; adolescents remain vulnerable to sexual and reproductive health risks; and millions lack access to contraceptives. Mortality and morbidity among adults and children from infectious, parasitic and water-borne diseases remain unacceptably high. Increases in adult mortality for men in countries with economies in transition and in some developing countries were noted. The plight of refugees and displaced persons, a concern of the POA, was also highlighted. Other references added include a paragraph calling for an integrated approach toward policy design, development planning, service delivery, research and monitoring in implementing the POA, and a recommendation on key future actions regarding partnerships between governments and civil society at the national and international levels. Contact: UNFPA, External Relations and Liaison Branch, Information and External Relations Division, 220 East 42nd Street, New York NY 10017, United States, fax +1-212/297 4918, e-mail , website (www.unfpa.org) or (www.undp.org/popin). WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY ENDORSES WHO PROGRAMMES The World Health Assembly, the governing body of the World Health Organization (WHO) comprising 191 member states, ended with a strong show of support for WHO's technical work, including its Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, Roll Back Malaria programme, and its Revised Drug Strategy. The assembly was held in Geneva from 17-25 May. Framework Convention on Tobacco Control The assembly decided to open negotiations on the first global treaty on tobacco control. The convention will address issues such as tobacco advertising and promotion, agricultural diversification, smuggling, and taxes and subsidies. Fifty nations, including major tobacco growers and exporters, offered financial and political support for the convention. WHO aims to have the convention ready for ratification by 2003. This is the first time WHO has exercised its constitutional mandate to negotiate a convention. Roll Back Malaria The assembly unanimously endorsed the Roll Back Malaria programme. It was started in 1998 and was one of the first initiatives of Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland, WHO's new Director General. The programme aims to halve malaria-related deaths worldwide by 2010. It has six core elements: early detection, rapid treatment, multiple means for preventing malaria infection, coordinated action, a powerful global movement, and research to develop new products. Revised Drug Strategy The strategy aims to improve developing countries' access to essential drugs. While it raised considerable debate last year, the resolution on the strategy was passed unanimously in the assembly. It allows WHO to expand its work on issues affecting access, quality and the rational use of drugs. Some member states said they were concerned about the possible impact of the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement on trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights (TRIPs). They felt that TRIPs requirements could lead to higher costs for new, patent-protected essential drugs, and reduce access to health care. Others said the agreement would stimulate research for new drugs. The resolution on the drug strategy urges countries to "explore and review their options under international agreements, including trade agreements, to safeguard access to essential drugs." Polio Eradication WHO's polio eradication programme is now in its final phase. Speakers at the assembly agreed that the two major obstacles to polio eradication were civil strife and funding shortfalls. They called for the Director General to establish an emergency fund for countries affected by conflict, countries classified as major poliovirus reservoirs, and countries in difficult circumstances. The initiative includes providing routine immunization, vitamin A supplementation and other preventive services, particularly in countries with health services destroyed by military conflict and civil strife. Countries unanimously endorsed WHO's proposal to begin identifying and ensuring the safe handling of all laboratory stocks of poliovirus, now the only remaining sources of the virus in polio-free areas. Destruction of Smallpox Virus Stocks The assembly agreed that variola, the smallpox virus, should be destroyed by 2002 at the latest. Variola stocks are held by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States and the Russian State Centre for Research on Virology and Biotechnology. They were to have been destroyed by 30 June this year, but the assembly pushed the date forward to allow for more research into antiviral agents and improved vaccines, and investigate the genetic structure, origin and development of smallpox. Active Ageing A pilot project to collect data on ageing begins in July and takes place in four African countries. As part of the UN Year for Older Persons, WHO will also launch a "Global Movement on Active Ageing," a series of walks worldwide. Iodine Deficiency Disorder Iodine deficiency disorder (IDD) is the world's most important, preventable, and least-known cause of mental retardation. Dr Brundtland outlined measures to eradicate IDD within the next decade by providing technical expertise and financial support to countries, ensuring salt is iodized correctly, and working closely with the salt industry. Budget for the 2000-2001 Biennium The assembly recognized the importance of maintaining its present programme expenditure levels to compensate for possible cost adjustments. It approved a working budget of US$842.64 million and called on the WHO secretariat to identify additional efficiency savings of 2-3% for reallocation to high priority programmes, particularly at country level. Other Activities Roundtable discussions were also held at the assembly on key health issues, such as problems faced by health ministers in finding money for health, setting priorities in health, investment in hospitals, and HIV/AIDS. There was also a lecture by Amartya Sen, Nobel laureate, on the role of health in development. A number of reports were also released, including a World Bank report on the economics of tobacco and a briefing on WHO's relief work in the Balkans. World Health Report 1999 Dr Brundtland presented the World Health Report 1999: Making a Difference to the assembly. This year's report sets out a global health agenda for the next decade. It demonstrates how lasting improvements in health can lead to considerable social and economic gains and warns of the complexity of current and emerging health challenges. The report says that one billion people today have not benefited from progress in disease control and extended life expectancy. Decision-makers, according to the report, must focus on areas where there is a high return in health gains. In a new departure, the report argues for a "new universalism," as opposed to the classic universalism that advocated government-financed support and provision of all services for everyone. The new approach maintains government responsibility for financing and leadership, while recognizing its limits. Private sector provision of publicly-financed services is compatible with government responsibility for health for all but requires a clear regulatory role for governments. Contact: Gregory Hartl, Health Communications and Public Relations, WHO, 20 avenue Appia, CH-1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/791 4458, fax +41-22/791 4858, e-mail , website (www.who.int). AFRICAN ECONOMIES GROWING, BUT NOT ENOUGH Recent economic reports reveal Africa's economy has grown significantly in the past few years, despite economic turmoil in other parts of the world. Still, growth is not high enough to stem the increasing spread of poverty on the continent, and many basic needs are not yet being met. UNECA Calls for Greater Growth Africa must attain and maintain 7% economic growth a year if it is to reduce poverty by half over the next 15 years, according to new paper by the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). The paper, Economic Report on Africa 1999: The Challenge of Poverty Reduction and Sustainability, warns the continent's economy is not growing fast enough to halve poverty by the year 2015. While GDP in Africa has grown faster than population for four years in a row, "The level of growth is below that necessary to have a significant impact on poverty," the report said. Africa's economic growth has been remarkable given a slowing of the world economy to 2% in 1998 from 4% in 1997. "The central message is a simple one," said K.Y. Amoako, the ECA's Executive Secretary. "Despite recent progress in economic policy reforms, most of the countries of the continent lack the fundamentals for sustained future growth." While growth figures are encouraging, they remain uneven. Growth was mostly in the north and central African regions, but the rest of the continent declined. South Africa, Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt and Morocco accounted for 37% of the population and 59% of GDP. The 33 least developed countries had 45% of the population but only 17% of GDP. Growth continued among the oil-exporting countries. Only three countries--Botswana, Republic of Congo and Equatorial Guinea--grew by 7% or more in 1998, the figure needed to meet the ECA's goal of a 50% reduction in poverty in 15 years. Agriculture recovered in 1998 and contributed to GDP growth, due both to good weather and to reforms that made inputs and credit more available. Industrial growth was lower than in 1997, however, registering 3.2% in 1998 compared with 3.8% the previous year. Export revenue declined by 17%, and resource flows fell to US$3 billion from US$4.5 billion in 1997. Debt service grew to US$35 billion, or 31% of exports. Contact: UNECA, PO Box 3001, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, telephone +251-1/ 517200, fax +251-1/514416, website (www.un.org/depts/eca/). Basic Needs Remain Unmet While much of the continent experienced good weather and healthy harvests, that has not been the case everywhere, especially in countries with war or civil strife. Perhaps hardest hit was Angola where, according to the latest food and crop figures from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), renewed fighting between government and Unita forces at the beginning of the cropping season late last year displaced many people in rural areas. Farms were abandoned and farmers fled to cities, with food supplies down and a growing need for food assistance. Nor did Somalia benefit from the weather. The country faces a deepening food crisis with reports of starvation and malnutrition, the result of six consecutive poor harvests due to bad weather and war. War between Ethiopia and Eritrea also displaced a large number of people, and the food supply remains precarious in the Great Lakes region. As is the case on the economic front, there is good news with the bad. The 1999 food outlook in West Africa is generally favourable, while cereal imports are expected to be lower than last year, reflecting the good harvests across most of the continent. Still, the basic needs of millions of Africans remain unmet. Contact: Global Information and Early Warning System on Food and Agriculture, Commodities and Trade Division, FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, I-00100 Rome, Italy, fax +39-06/5705 4495, e-mail , website (www.fao.org/giews). Half of Africa Headed for Poverty, says UNDP According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Africa is the only world region where poverty has increased since the 1970s, and more than 40% of Africans live on less than US$1 a day. While aid falls and disease, war and famine increase, poverty continues to spread. To combat this poverty requires new and "radical" strategies, the development agency said in a new economic report. UNDP figures show that in spite of economic growth, half of sub-Saharan Africa will be living in poverty by next year. The main challenges are still lack of basic services, violent conflicts, HIV/AIDS and foreign debt. Sub-Saharan Africa spends four times more on servicing its foreign debt than on health and education. The report said two more generations of Africans may have to suffer in poverty before things get better. UNDP's figures reflect the same positive signs as those released by the ECA. It said 21 countries registered growth in the past five years, 12 with rates of 4-5% a year. UNDP also concluded the recovery, driven by strong growth in export earnings, is largely due to better weather and fewer conflicts. One way to promote Africa's integration into the world economy is through trade and investment, said Thelma Awori, UNDP's Assistant Administrator in charge of the Africa Bureau. She told delegates to the Attracting Capital to Africa summit in Houston (United States), that Africa's economic pace is picking up, as evidenced by the sustained positive growth rate over the past five years. "Africa has taken brave steps to build the private sector to become the engine of growth; however, the engine at the present time is in need of a critical mass of capital and institutional capacity to fuel the process of socio-economic transformation." The summit was organized by the Corporate Council for Africa and attended by five heads of state, four prime ministers, senior representatives from 26 countries, entrepreneurs, and US corporate chief executive officers. Contact: Regional Bureau for Africa, UNDP, 1 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/906 5924, fax +1-212/906 5423, website (www.undp.org/rba/welcome.htm). HABITAT EMBARKS ON NEW VISION The 17th session of the Commission on Human Settlements, Habitat's governing body, has adopted 23 resolutions to revitalize the settlements agency, endowing it with a "new strategic vision" and giving it "the style and profile of a global advocacy agency." The commission, made up of 58 countries, met from 5-14 May in Nairobi. More than 600 delegates from governments, local authorities, NGOs and other partners worldwide attended. Habitat's reform process, in line with the wider UN reform, has been underway since September 1998 and is beginning to show results. Its Acting Executive Director, Klaus T”pfer, has streamlined management and is seen as responsible for showing a modest positive balance at the end of 1998. These changes are expected to herald a new beginning for the organization by significantly changing its working style and making it more dynamic and flexible. Formally the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements, the centre has been launched as the City Agency of the United Nations. Two new campaigns were unveiled at the commission's meeting, Adequate Shelter for All, and Sustainable Urban Development. Both are based on Habitat's Secure Tenure and Urban Governance global campaigns. Their aim is to reduce poverty by pushing for equity, sustainability and social justice through partnerships with local authorities, NGOs, the private sector and other UN agencies. For the 2000-2001 biennium, Habitat work will concentrate on meeting the goals of the Habitat Agenda, the global action plan adopted in 1996 by world governments at the Habitat II conference in Istanbul (Turkey). The approved work programme will focus on poverty reduction, better shelter, governance, healthy living environments, and the status of women. The panel approved a US$23 million budget for the biennium. The commission also strengthened Nairobi as Habitat's head office, pointing out that Habitat and UNEP are the only two UN agencies headquartered in developing countries. While working closely together, both agencies will continue to be separate and have their own executive directors. Habitat says only one in ten people lived in cities at the turn of the century. At the century's close, one in two will live in urban areas. More than a billion urban dwellers live in poverty, and over half the urban population in most developing countries lives in informal settlements ignored by city authorities. Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi told the commission that insecurity made it difficult to address poverty in his country, since resources were being diverted into security spending. He said war and conflict in Africa prevented finding housing and human settlements solutions in Africa. Since the 1996 Habitat II in Istanbul, a number of governments and other partners have adopted specific action plans to implement the Habitat Agenda. A review of progress, however, also reveals there are still significant gaps and weaknesses. At the same time the process of urbanization is expanding in developing countries and urban living conditions are worsening worldwide. Habitat says this makes implementation of the agenda even more urgent. Throughout the UN system, Habitat II was seen as a breakthrough in UN-civil society relations. In an ongoing effort to strengthen this partnership it decided to establish an advisory group made up of local authorities to help strengthen local dialogue with Habitat. Local administrations are considered crucial partners for Habitat and key to implementing local Agendas 21. The State of the World's Cities: 1999 The 1999 report, released during the commission's meeting, argued that national development increases as urban conditions improve. "Cities are the key to overall development," it said. The report also said empowerment of people by national governments is the best path to sustainable urban development. It said when ordinary people take part in decision-making and development, government becomes more effective. "This is good news for many local authorities and urban citizens' groups whose political and economic potentials have grown rapidly in the past few decades, yet remain untapped because their systems of governance are still highly centralized or because national politicians see cities as a threat," said Mr T”pfer. The report draws on more than 700 best practices around the world and uses data from 600 sources. It is the first in a new UN series that chronicles conditions and trends in the world's cities. Other Habitat News... -- Consultations continue in an effort to finalize a first draft of the World Charter of Local Self-Government. The charter was initiated by mayors and local representatives at Habitat II and is hoped to become an international convention early next century. The charter would provide a framework for the practice of local democracy. -- World Habitat Day will be celebrated this year on 4 October, with the theme Cities for All. -- Habitat and the World Bank have joined to launch the Cities Alliance to improve the efficiency and impact of urban development cooperation. The alliance is a coalition of donors and will work in partnership with cities to come up with strategies for urban development and action and help upgrade low-income settlements. Habitat and the World Bank are the world's two largest sources of aid to cities in developing countries. -- A joint UNEP/Habitat Task Force has been set up to monitor the environmental and human settlement impacts of the Balkans conflict, where war makes it difficult to assess damage. -- Habitat and the Dutch software company Quercus Corporation have agreed to jointly develop special software to improve knowledge on human settlements. The software will be used by urban observatories' worldwide. Funds for the US$5 million were raised by Quercus. -- Habitat and the municipality of Dubai have launched the Dubai International Award for Best Practices to Improve the Living Environment. -- Habitat and UNEP have signed an agreement with seven African countries, Germany, and the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council to address Africa's looming water crisis. The project is the first initiative to support African countries in managing their growing urban water crisis and protect African waters from land-based pollution. Contact: Christina Engfeldt, Chief, Information and External Relations, UNCHS, PO Box 30030, Nairobi, Kenya, telephone +254-2/623067, fax +254-2/624060, e-mail , website (habitat.unchs.org). ECOSOC ON BASIC INDICATORS Recognizing the importance of indicators and statistics as essential tools for policy-making processes, the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) met in an informal session from 10-11 May at UN headquarters to discuss basic indicators for monitoring progress towards the implementation of the integrated and coordinated follow-up of all aspects of major UN conferences and summits held in the last decade. The Report A report of the Secretary-General (E/1999/11) was prepared to consider the work being carried out by the UN system and other relevant international and national institutions on this issue. Among the major findings of the report is the need for improvement in the coordination of data collection to promote efficient use of resources and contribute to easing the burden on statistical programmes of countries. There is an enormous mismatch between the demand for information, the report noted, and the ability of most countries to supply the required information. There are also many instances of inconsistencies between data disseminated at the international level, the report said. Inconsistent definitions and methodologies lead to loss of credibility when two or more agencies produce different indicators of the same concept. The report also found serious gaps in international databases, such as information on HIV/AIDS, which it said is a result of a lack of basic statistical data at the country level. The report concluded that possible steps to be taken next fall into two categories: improving partnerships at the international level, and strengthening statistical capacity at the national level. Building on existing mechanisms, continued coordination at the international level regarding data collection, and development of concepts and methods will go a long way towards addressing the various problems related to inconsistencies, the report said. A common development indicator platform is suggested in this context. In order to strengthen national statistical capacity, the report recommended the formation of a high-level working group consisting of major donor agencies and the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) of the UN secretariat to more effectively coordinate data-collection and statistical capacity-building programmes in countries. In addition, a targeted international programme to build national capacity in the areas of censuses and sample surveys was proposed. The Discussion During informal discussions, the G-77/China concurred with the report's emphasis on the need for building national statistical capacity. It noted that this capacity needs to be built in relation to all stages of the information process--from data collection to analysis and dissemination--and that it must be accompanied by efforts at the international level to better coordinate requests for statistical information, with a view to eliminating statistical overburdening of developing countries. In this regard, the G-77 looked favourably on suggestions to strengthen existing mechanisms for coordination of indicator initiatives among international organizations and to develop, as far as practicable, a system of indicator sets which responds to key requirements of national and international information demands. The G-77 cautioned, however, that the development of such sets must be "anchored in a transparent and broad-based process of consultation in order to be sensitive to the needs and concerns reflected in differing country situations." The EU and other countries expressed support for the improvement of a system of qualitative and quantitative indicators used for describing and measuring economic and social performance both on the national and international level, especially in the context of development. It expressed concern, however, at the "proliferation of statistical indicators used by international organizations and the response burden associated with their respective data requests to countries....Ad hoc requests by international agencies lead to ad hoc data collection, crowding out limited financial and human resources and thus interfering with regular national statistical programmes," the EU said. At the national level, the EU noted that governments should be encouraged to develop and rank their own user needs in the field of development. Accordingly, statistical capacity building in developing countries should focus on assisting in assessing national user-needs, encouraging stronger support from governments and coordinating technical assistance. The EU expressed support for developing a set of common indicators and called for "a concerted approach, involving a wide variety of stakeholders at the national, bilateral as well as multilateral level." UN agencies expressed concern that both access to data and the data itself was "politicized" in some countries, and therefore unreliable. They wondered to what extent in some cases national unwillingness to secure data was a result, for example, of a reluctance to actually implement the various programmes and platforms for action emerging from the global conferences, rather than a problem linked to lack of resources. Other speakers expressed concern that international agencies collected data in such a manner as to buttress their own points of view, without consideration that validation of data sets was culturally based. They emphasized the need to develop indicators at the national level, and wondered whether a common international data set was in fact possible. Lack of basic data, proliferation of indicators, lack of resources, and inconsistency of indicators were all cited as obstacles to conference follow-up. The need to improve the quality of statistics, relevance, reliability, timeliness as well as their accessiblity was also highlighted, as was the need to help decision makers become more aware of the importance of such information for guiding macro-economic and social development policies. A number of positive efforts to harmonize core sets of indicators in recent years were cited, including the common country assessment indicators of the UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF-CCA); the Minimum National Social Data Set (MNSDS), adopted by the Statistical Commission; the indicators for basic social services for all (BSSA) of the Task Force on Basic Social Services for All of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC); and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's Development Assistance Committee (OECD-DAC) indicators, developed in collaboration with the UN and the World Bank. Further information on a wide range of international data initiatives can be found in the report of the Secretary-General. To obtain a copy of the Secretary-General's report, contact the New York office of NGLS or see website (www.un.org/esa/coordination/ecosoc/doc99-11.htm). CALENDAR DISARMAMENT -- Ad Hoc Group of States Parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction --15th session, 28 June-23 July, Geneva --16th session: 13 September-8 October, Geneva --17th session, 22 November-10 December, Geneva -- Conference on Disarmament, 3rd part, 26 July-8 September, Geneva -- Group of Governmental Experts on Small Arms, 3rd session, 26-30 July, New York ECOSOC/GENERAL ASSEMBLY -- Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), substantive session, 5-30 July, New York -- 54th UN General Assembly, 7 September-December, New York HUMAN RIGHTS -- Human Rights Committee --66th session, 12-30 July, Geneva --67th session, 18 October-5 November, Geneva -- Commission on Human Rights, Subcommission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, Working Group on Indigenous Populations, 17th session, 26-30 July, Geneva -- Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, 55th session, 2-20 August, Geneva -- Commission on Human Rights, Subcommission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, 51st session, 2-27 August, Geneva -- Committee Against Torture, 23rd session, 8-19 November, Geneva -- Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 21st session, 15 November-3 December, Geneva -- Commission on Human Rights, Open-Ended Working Group on Draft United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 5th session, November, Geneva Rights of the Child -- Committee on the Rights of the Child, 22nd session, 20 September- 8 October, Geneva NARCOTIC DRUGS -- Commission on Narcotic Drugs, Meeting of Heads of National Drug Law Enforcement Agencies, Latin America and the Caribbean Region, 3rd quarter (1 week), Santiago -- Commission on Narcotic Drugs, 42nd resumed session, 2-3 December, Vienna SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT Basel Convention on the Control of the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal -- Conference of Parties, 5th session, 6-10 December, Basel Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) -- 42nd Meeting of the Standing Committee, September, Geneva Climate Change Convention -- Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technical Advice (SBSTA) -- Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI) -- Ad Hoc Group on Article 13 -- Conference of the Parties, 5th session The above meetings will take place from 25 October-5 November in Bonn. Convention to Combat Desertification (CCD) -- Conference of Parties, 3rd session, 15-26 November, Recife Global Environment Facility (GEF) -- NGO Consultation, 16 November, Washington DC -- GEF Council Meeting, 17-19 November, Washington DC International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR) -- ECOSOC Special Session on Natural Disaster Prevention, July, Geneva Small Island Developing States (SIDS) -- SIDS+5: Special Session of the UN General Assembly, 27-28 September, New York TRADE, FINANCE AND DEVELOPMENT International Monetary Fund/World Bank -- IMF/World Bank Joint Annual Meeting of the Boards of Governors, 28-30 September, Washington DC United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) -- Commission on Enterprise, Business Facilitation and Development, 4th (and final) session, 19-23 July, Geneva -- Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, 4th (and final) session, 20-24 September, Geneva -- Commission on Investment, Technology and Related Financial Issues, 4th (and final) session, 4-8 October, Geneva -- Trade and Development Board, 46th session, 18-29 October, Geneva (preparatory process for UNCTAD X) World Trade Organization -- Third Ministerial Conference, 30 November-3 December, Seattle OTHER MEETINGS -- Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Executive Committee, 50th session, 4-8 October, Geneva Guest editorial Peter Piot, Executive Director, UNAIDS There is still no cure and no vaccine for AIDS. In 1998 alone, 6 million people became infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), bringing the total number of those living with HIV/AIDS to over 33 million by year's end. In sub-Saharan Africa there are countries where up to a quarter of the over-15 population is infected. The threat to development is acute because HIV/AIDS is a disease of the young. Worldwide, over half of all infections occur in people aged 24 or younger--those who must build the bridges, create national wealth, conduct the research of the future. Why are young people in the line of fire of this virus? A big part of the answer is that adults spend too much time telling young people what to do without listening to what they need: affection, close bonds with adults, and education about healthy sexuality. There is not enough real dialogue. In addition, not enough is being done to combat the violence, poverty and discrimination which create huge reservoirs of HIV risk in young lives. These are the reasons why UNAIDS chose Listen, Learn, Live! as the slogan for this year's World AIDS Campaign. The campaign, which will culminate on 1 December 1999--World AIDS Day--will encourage communities around the world to engage in open communication and challenge harmful attitudes and societal ills in order to make the world safer for children and young people. Campaign partners include Education International, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the International Save the Children Alliance, MTV International, the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, and the World Organization of the Scout Movement. We have evidence that frank discussion of sex and drug use helps young people adopt safer behaviour, but many countries share a culture of silence that discourages openness. For instance, in a survey of 11-20 year-olds in urban Cambodia, fewer than 20% believed they could contract HIV infection, and only 10% knew it was sexually transmitted. Fewer than one in three had ever talked to anyone about AIDS though almost all wanted to know more about it. Alongside the home, schools are ideally suited to giving young people the facts about HIV, pregnancy and drug use, and the skills they need to survive, including how to avoid unwanted sex and drug use and how to stand up for their own decisions under pressure. A recent UNAIDS review shows that programmes like these help delay sexual initiation and reduce rates of sexually transmitted disease and pregnancy. Life-skills programmes need to start early: in a survey of 8,000 10-18 year-olds in the Caribbean, more than 40% of sexually active respondents said they had started having intercourse before age 10 and another 10% at age 11 or 12. Another barrier to overcome is the stigma surrounding AIDS, especially by those who mistakenly believe HIV can spread through coughing or mosquitoes. This can lead to cruel rejection: parents have beaten their children for playing with a neighbourhood child who is HIV-positive. Discrimination also undermines prevention efforts because people with HIV fear disclosure and may avoid seeking HIV counselling and testing. Around the world, macho attitudes pressure young men into early, frequent and predatory sex, and raise the HIV risk for them and their partners. Violence and sexual exploitation also increase vulnerability. In Lima (Peru), 90% of young mothers age 12-16 were victims of rape--most often by a male relative. Violence of any kind pushes children out of the family and onto the streets, where the risks of rape, drug use and commercial sex multiply. Another threat in the HIV era is lack of bonding with an adult. In the Caribbean survey, between one-third and two-thirds reported being unable to discuss their concerns with either parent. In the absence of a mother's caring, one in four reported a suicide attempt. The suicide risk doubled in those lacking a father's care. Conversely, young people benefiting from a father's care delayed their sexual initiation and had less anger and ill-health. In parts of the former Soviet Union many parents are spending less time with their children as they struggle to make ends meet--for instance, by holding down two jobs--or retreat from reality into alcohol or drug use. Fortunately, as we now know, other adults can step in. In a large-scale study of young people in Minnesota (USA), feeling connected to a caring adult--not necessarily a parent--was associated with less risk-taking behaviour and a better health outcome later in adolescence, measured in terms of smoking, drug use, early sex, and unwanted pregnancy. Interestingly, health outcome was unaffected by factors such as race, socioeconomic status and parents' educational level. From community-based groups to major international organizations, NGOs are in a privileged position to encourage dialogue on these sensitive topics and challenge the social forces that increase the HIV risk for the young generation. I appeal to you to get involved in the World AIDS Campaign with Children and Young People. Working for and with people under 25 is perhaps the best hope we have today of bringing this deadly epidemic under control.