EU Presidency Statement - Globalization

Mr. President,

I have the honor to speak on behalf of the European Union. The countries of Central and Eastern Europe associated with the European Union (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia) and the associated countries of Cyprus, Malta and Turkey align themselves with this statement.

Member States have chosen two closely interacting sub-themes for this debate, relating to the economic and technological dimensions of globalization. On a general level first of all, the European Union would reiterate the importance which it attaches to coordination and to increased cooperation between the United Nations and the Bretton Woods institutions, and of course to their annual dialogue at the Economic and Social Council. We must also stress the need for more and more innovative partnerships, since interdependence exists not only between countries but between all the actors involved. From the outset we would also like to highlight another thread running through our approach, namely the particular attention we would like to pay to the least developed of the developing countries.

(Sub-theme 1: promoting the integration of developing countries into the world economy and generating new public and private financing resources to complement development efforts).

Globalization is a formidable multiplier of growth and prosperity, but inequalities remain: not all countries, particularly the poorest, are yet able to benefit fully from this potential. Humanizing globalization above all means making it inclusive, by fully integrating the developing countries into the world economy and generating new flows of financing in their direction. It is, of course, first and foremost for those countries themselves to create an environment conducive to investment, trade and development in general, but the international community also has an important role to play.

This integration that begets progress is vital to the attainment of the international development goals set by the major world conferences. At the Millennium Summit, we renewed our commitment to an open, equitable, rule-based, predictable and non-discriminatory trading and financing system.

At that Summit we also promised to make every effort to ensure the success of the International Conference on Financing for Development. We are very pleased that the Bretton Woods institutions are involved in the innovative preparatory process for the Monterrey Conference.

The Johannesburg Summit will enable us to contribute to making globalization serve sustainable development, by means of better integration of its economic, social and environmental dimensions and new momentum for the fight against poverty.

If the developing countries are to benefit fully from the boom in global trade, they must first be members of the World Trade Organization, and have the means to operate effectively in it and to use all its instruments. Developing countries must be given help, in the form of technical assistance. Their capacity to participate fully at the WTO and to benefit from it must also be strengthened. The General Assembly has already asked UNCTAD to support efforts to promote the effective participation of these countries in multilateral negotiations and greater diversification of their trade. A special effort must also be made for the least developed countries, both as regards trading preferences ¡V and the European Union has shown the way with its "Everything but Arms" initiative ¡V and to help them participate in the WTO's activities.

The fourth Ministerial meeting of the WTO in Qatar should also highlight the tangible advantages for the developing countries in the vast arena of work which it will unfold. Trade must serve man, and therefore serve sustainable development paying heed to the needs of future generations by taking account of the economic, social and environmental dimensions of progress.

At the third United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries in Brussels this spring, we made a number of commitments to the LDCs. It is essential to implement these, and to agree rapidly on the means to follow them up. This means negotiating substantial reductions in the high tariffs and subsidies affecting trade ¡V particularly in the sectors which are of most importance to the LDCs. It also means negotiating rules which take account of their development needs and of their implementing capability.

Confidence levels are an important factor in flows of finance, whether private finance in the form of direct and portfolio investment or public finance in the form of concessional loans. Confidence is built on patient and careful work. National governments of course bear the primary responsibility, but the international community also has a crucial role to play:

a clear consensus needs to be reached, in consultation with civil society, on the factors such as legal protection, non-discrimination etc which are needed if foreign direct investment is to flourish in a country; this would make it possible to develop new flows of investment into countries which have until now been excluded from them;

corruption is a scourge which must firstly be combated at national level, but it is obvious that it also, and perhaps increasingly, has international ramifications. International legal instruments should be adopted to fight corruption, but also to facilitate the repatriation of the proceeds of unlawful operations, transferred abroad. Some progress was made in 1997 with the adoption of the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions.

While it is essential to attract private capital to all developing countries, that does not mean giving a free hand to the private sector, particularly in fragile economies. Corporate governance must be developed, particularly through more detailed and more widely disseminated international accounting standards and competition law. The European Union also favors the use of various instruments to encourage socially responsible investment; OECD guidelines exist on this subject.

To consolidate confidence, the developing countries must also be returned to solvency. The problem of debt requires a range of solutions, which are of course primarily a matter for the developing countries themselves, but also require the industrialized countries to take concerted action.

The potential of partnerships is still greatly under-exploited. Innovative synergies can be found through cooperation between Ministries, national and local authorities, public bodies, banks, companies and non-governmental organizations. Official development assistance could link up with other forms of finance. The interaction between international, national, regional and local levels should be intensified. International financial institutions could operate more diverse means of cooperation. There is also of course, the possibility of public-private partnerships, particularly to finance basic infrastructure and take advantage of the catalytic effect of official development assistance. Innovative forms of guarantees could be developed to allow this option to provide more flows of finance.

Finally, the European Union can but reaffirm its commitment to reaching the target of 0,7% of GNP for ODA as soon as possible. It invites all partners who are able to participate in a worldwide effort of solidarity to do the same. Official development assistance remains a significant source of development finance for a number of countries. It must be targeted at specific ends where it backs up action by the private sector and local public bodies, such as implementing international development objectives agreed at the major world conferences.

(Sub-theme 2): Enhancing the integration of developing countries in the emerging global information network, facilitating access to information and communications technologies for developing countries.

The revolution in information technology and telematics is both a cause and a component of the phenomenon of globalization. The digital divide is an important aspect of the technological dimension of development, a dimension which, though essential, is often neglected. A very complex dimension too, inextricably linked as it is with other questions such as the development of an educational system which includes training in the new technologies, for women as well as men; the legal framework; economic freedom; infrastructure; and the respect for fundamental freedoms, particularly the freedom of expression.

The European Union awaits with interest the recommendations of the Secretary-General's report on the impact on development of the increased integration between trade, the financial sector, knowledge, technology and investment.

To bridge the digital divide, we must work in a different way:

It is vital that the telecommunications markets be integrated and liberalized without delay, so as to lower the cost of access to the internet.

Given the transnational nature of the worldwide web, it is essential that governments cooperate on issues such as copyright, computer security, electronic trading standards, legal and tax questions and combating computer crime. Harmonizing practices will also help to bridge the digital divide.

We must involve the private sector much more, by multiplying the forms of partnership, if only because governments have only limited expertise in information and communication technologies and are not always able to develop adequate national strategies. The ICT working group is a an excellent example of a promising partnership between the UN and the private sector as is the DOT Force launched by the G8. At local, national and international levels, public-private partnerships often appear to be an ideal means of pooling resources and knowledge in the common interest. We also welcome the fact that UNCTAD has set about facilitating the search for partners for developing countries in the fields of biotechnology and ecotechnology.

We must not only launch technological projects, but also integrate the technological dimension in development programmes. United Nations funds and programmes, and active players in development aid in general, should therefore also take account of all the lessons of the information revolution.

Information technologies are an ideal tool of transparency and governance. One of a number of ways of bridging the digital divide is therefore to focus on the promotion of e-government, i.e. the integrated use of telematics in the administration of public affairs, which will undoubtedly act as a catalyst on society as a whole. E-government makes it possible to reduce the costs of communicating and distributing information, reducing outlay by the State, businesses and citizens. It makes it possible to reduce corruption, open up isolated communities and create new mechanisms for participation and involvement in civil society. At the Lisbon Summit, Europe decided to go down this road in the e-Europe project. On 29 and 30 November, the Presidency of the European Union and the European Commission are holding a European conference on this subject in Brussels.

the multiplication of community access points to the internet (telecentres) is a corollary of a successful e-government strategy. The private sector will be the main provider but there is no reason why public bodies should not also take an active role.

We must also exploit the potential of tools which are still revolutionary, such as telemedicine and teaching over the internet. A good opportunity to address these subjects will be provided by the next substantive session of the Economic and Social Council, where the high level debate will be devoted to enhancing human resources, particularly in the fields of education and health.

Mr. President,

The European Union is convinced that we can and must humanize globalization, to put it to the service of all. I have addressed just a few aspects of an infinitely greater issue, to pinpoint some concrete examples which demand action. The European Union hopes that this dialogue will make it possible, as in the past, to highlight new trends and new areas to work on and thus contribute to forthcoming debates, particularly the Conference on Financing for Development.

Thank you for your attention.

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• Commissioner Wallström's speech on Global Sustainability (26/2/2002)
• EU Presidency Statement - UN Summit on sustainable development (29/1/2002)
• Making Globalization Work for the Poor  (20/6/2001)
• EU Presidency Statement - The EU, the UN and the Challenges of Globalization (21/3/2001)