Remembering
the humans that have been forgotten:
The
Informal Interactive Hearings with Civil
Society, NGOs, and the Private Sector
at UN Headquarters
June 22, 2006
by Jeanene MITCHELL
Youth
Representative for the UN/DPI of the
Light Millennium
The Informal Interactive Hearings with Civil Society, NGOs, and
the Private Sector took place at the United
Nations headquarters in New York on June
22, 2006.
The hearings were part of the preparation
process for the High-level Meeting
on the midterm comprehensive global review
of the implementation of the Programme
of Action for the Least Developed Countries
for the Decade 2001-2010, also known as the
Brussels Programme.
At the Hearings, representatives of the private sector, non-governmental
organizations, and civil society organizations
from around the world participated in
a dialogue with UN member states on
the Brussels Programme of Action.
The success of this programme,
which compels all partners to “improving
the human condition of over 600 million
people in the 50 Least Developed Countries
confronted by extreme poverty,” requires the involvement
and input of civil society—in
advocacy, review processes, and implementation.
The meeting opened with a statement by the President of the United
Nations General Assembly, H.E. Mr. Jan
Eliasson, who stated that “lively
and constructive discussions on how
to bring about a more effective implementation
of the Brussels Programme of Action”
was something owed to “the millions
of people trapped in extreme poverty
in the LDCs.”
Mr. Anwul K. Chowdhury, Under-Secretary-General and High Representative
for Least Developed Countries, Landlocked
Developing Countries and Small Island
Developing States, clearly summarized
the purpose of the meeting:
While a number of milestones have been reached
in the efforts to reduce poverty in
the world’s 50 most vulnerable
countries, the future remains far from
bright. Between 2000 and 2001, the LDCs achieved an average annual
growth rate of 5.5 percent, an improvement
over the 4.4 percent registered between
1996 and 2000 and the 2.2 percent recorded
between 1991 and 1995.
This is, of course, encouraging
news.
It should be noted, however,
that it falls short of the target of
7 percent annual growth set in the Brussels
Programme.
Poverty remains on the rise,
with 100 million more people forecast
to join in the next decade the ranks
of the 370 million—nearly half
the population—already living
in abject poverty in the LDCs. Not only will these countries, by the
current trends, miss the target of the
Millennium Development Goals to halve
the proportion of people living in absolute
poverty by 2015, but the proportion
of poor people will, in fact, increase…While
other developing countries make progress,
the LDCs are sinking deeper into poverty.
Mr. Chowdhury noted that the LDCs cannot make as much progress
as other developing countries because
they are hindered by structural weaknesses
such as “pervasive poverty and
weak institutional, technical, and human
capacities.” As a result, LDCs remain more susceptible
to internal and external shocks, and
are less able to take advantage of economic
opportunities like trade and attracting
foreign direct investment.
Based on the midterm review process
of the Brussels Programme, Mr. Chowdhury
stated that the areas needing more emphasis
include rural development and agriculture,
development of infrastructure (including
information and communication technology),
promotion of good governance, including
the local level, empowerment of women,
energy, and conflict resolution. These are areas in which the private sector
and civil society are already involved,
and must become even more engaged, according
to Mr. Chowdhury.
The representatives of NGOs, civil society, and the private sector
gave compelling short speeches on what
their respective groups were doing,
and what more needed to be done in order
to achieve the goals and objectives
outlined by the Brussels Programme. Many echoed the same themes as Mr. Chowdhury. Mr. Richard Malinda-Kavouma, a representative
from the Weekly Observer newspaper in
Uganda, noted in his statement that
“The human being has been forgotten,”
and that civil society needs to advance
the interests of its members in the
face of the state as the voice of the
poor.
Another representative from Nepal
stated that “only civil society
can make poverty a historical wrong.”
Patricia Cisse of AfIBA commented
that mutual distrust between NGOs and
government results in inefficiencies,
while Helen Grace Akwii’s discussion
of the WTO’s effect on LDCs included
the point that LDCs suffer from policy
contradictions and trade demands, and
the WTO is “a level playing field
where LDCs are ants wrestling with elephants.”
The need for microcredit and development opportunities, especially
for women, was discussed numerous times,
as was the necessity for LDCs to have
better market access and entry into
the economic system, as stated by the
representative of Norway.
Promotion of education, healthcare,
and good governance was also stressed,
and Filipo Veglio of the World Business
Council for Sustainable Development
made the compelling remark that “Business
cannot succeed in societies that fail.”
Overall, the hearings emphasized the importance of civil society,
NGOs, and the private sector in promoting
advancements in education, economic
opportunities, governance, healthcare,
and environmental protection in the
LDCs.
With their continued involvement
and commitment to improving the standard
of living in the LDCs, it is our hope
that the Brussels Programme will be
successful in improving, and eventually
eradicating, the plight of the poorest
of the poor.
