Background
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian, Cultural) is expected to conclude its consideration of social development this morning. Under the umbrella of social development, the Committee will consider issues related to youth, older persons, disabled persons, and issues related to the family.
For further background information, please see press releases GA/SHC/3737 and 3738 of 6 and 7 October, respectively.
AUGUSTINE MAHIGA (United Republic of Tanzania) said most of the goals of the World Summit for Social Development continued to be elusive, and many of the targets set at major United Nations conferences had not been met. He stressed that the social development of developing countries required their involvement in international decision-making processes, noting that thus far multilateralism had only been marginally extended to the economic realm. It was hoped the process of globalization could be more inclusive and equitable by addressing the needs of those who had been marginalized.
Turning to the issue of ageing and social development, he said the Government of Tanzania had developed a national policy on ageing that recognized the worth of older persons as important resources for the nation. It had drawn up laws to promote the well-being and rights of older persons.
The Government also planned to host a regional workshop in October that would explore the nexus between ageing and poverty, with the aim of identifying measures to address that relationship in the achievement of Millennium Development Goals. He said the workshop was especially important in an era when grandparents were becoming parents, due to prevalence of HIV/AIDS, when parents died and left their children in the care of grandparents. That burden had fallen largely on older women, and it was therefore critical to mainstream a gender perspective in policies on ageing.
MEHIEDDINE EL KADIRI (Morocco) said that the World Summit for Social Development had been a positive turning point to fight poverty, increase education levels and prevent the spreading of disease. The international community must, however, exert all efforts to ensure that the commitments made and goals were fulfilled. The Government of Morocco had established a comprehensive national policy aimed at eradicating poverty, combating illiteracy and providing social services, and the 20/20 initiative, adopted in Copenhagen, had been implemented in Morocco.
A national report of the social services, based on the 20/20 initiative, had been completed, he said. The report examined how aid was used in order to promote national social development. A national agency had been created to revive the social and economic situations of both the northern and southern sectors of the country.
Regarding disabled persons, he said, the Government had implemented a programme of action in cooperation with civil society, to eradicate all discrimination based on disabilities. It had also undertaken actions to promote the participation of youth in decision-making, as youth embodied the values of peace and development. A national institutional mechanism towards an international forum for youth was also underway. He stressed the responsibility of the international community to cooperate and assist developing countries in efforts to eradicate poverty.
ADEKUNBI ABIBAT SONAIKE (
Nigeria) said that despite the efforts made and the modest success achieved in the area of economic and social development, the vast majority of developing countries were still faced with the problem of inequalities in income distribution, credit access, education, adequate employment, health, nutrition, poor infrastructure and the lack of effective networks for social protection. As trade liberalization affected developing countries, it also impacted most negatively on the family, deepening family and individual poverty, she continued. Concerning the family, Nigeria recognized the important role of the family as the basic unit of society, and that it played an indispensable rile in the development of the State. Therefore, it was imperative that one continued to value and demonstrate considerable respect for the family, its rights and well-being, as well as its responsibilities and constructive contributions to the process of peace and development.
It was necessary for policies to be formulated in support of parents and caregivers as heads of families to carry out their child-rearing responsibilities most effectively, she said. That role was being threatened by chronic poverty, especially in developing and least developed countries. It was important to promote investment in the positive growth of the family through micro-credit facilities and vocational training to support economic activities.
CATHERINE OTITI (
Uganda) said her Government was committed to actively participate as a member of the ad hoc committee on an international convention on persons with disabilities to chart a course for a convention to protect the rights of disabled persons.
She said Uganda had made progress in its efforts to eradicate poverty. Primary education was free and compulsory and had led to high enrolment figures and an increase in the youth literacy rate to over 80 per cent. Gender equality was being promoted both in schools and in the political sphere and had resulted in more than 87 per cent literacy among young women and more than 25 per cent of seats in the national parliament held by women.
On HIV/AIDS, she said that the fight against HIV/AIDS and other diseases was inextricably linked to social development in sub-Saharan Africa. Uganda had taken a multifaceted approach to the problem, but substantial assistance was still required for community support, increased access to treatment, and the promotion of prevention measures.
RENE NSEMI (Congo) said that almost 10 years after the World Summit on Social Development, the initial reasons for its convening remained the same. The world social situation was still characterized by persisting and even widening gaps between rich and poor countries. The poor were the most vulnerable to economic shocks and natural disasters, conflicts and scourges such as HIV/AIDS. The Congo had been affected by recurring conflicts that had undermined development efforts. Those repeated crises had affected living conditions and created levels of mass unemployment. The Government had developed a detailed policy for the next few years, which attached high priority to youth employment. Projects were also underway to rehabilitate ex-combatants.
Another challenge for the Government was the pandemic of HIV/AIDS, he said. A national council had been established to combat HIV/AIDS under the aegis of the head of State. The international community was urged to assist those efforts in order to allow the realization of the Millennium Development Goals. The Congo was determined to work with the international community and the United Nations to achieve the goals set at the World Summit on Social Development.
ISAAC LAMBA (Malawi) said his government placed the eradication of poverty at the centre of its development agenda, also the needs and contributions of all members of society must be considered in the formulation and implementation of national development policies, and most important was the mainstreaming of a gender perspective in development strategies. Malawi’s poverty reduction programmes had targeted vulnerable groups, including women, youth, and persons with disabilities.
The HIV/AIDS pandemic, along with limited institutional and financial resources, had posed additional challenges to the attainment of development goals, he said.
Social development must be fully integrated into economic development, with priority given to the needs of people, he continued. In that regard, ageing in Africa was an emerging issue that required further examination if his country was to make progress in mainstreaming the needs of elderly people. The Government of Malawi also fully supported a convention to promote and protect the rights of disabled people. The needs of families must also be effectively addressed, as the family was the backbone of society.
DONNETTE CRITCHLOW (
Guyana) said that although international assistance had been forthcoming in the fight to eradicate poverty in Guyana, efforts had been constrained by the international economic environment. As a heavily indebted country, Guyana had been able to secure some assistance towards the reduction of the debt-servicing burden. Nevertheless, resources were insufficient to meet the needs of the social sector, particularly as it related to education, health and housing. The worsening of the terms of international trade, coupled with the failure of some developed countries to fulfil their commitment to ensure that
0.7 per cent of their gross national product was channelled towards the development needs of developing countries, translated into an insufficient and unstable supply of finances for development. That situation must be remedied.
It was also imperative that developing countries were involved in and participated fully and effectively in the decision-making of international financial forums, whose policies and decisions had a profound impact on people
–- making them democratic, transparent and accountable. Social development could not be achieved in conditions of economic instability, and, conversely, economic development could not be attained where there were conflicts, chaos and marginalization. Unless an enabling environment was established and concerted action taken at the national levels, the established goals of the World Summit would no longer be attainable.
GERENGBO YAKIVU (
Democratic Republic of the Congo), highlighting the task of poverty reduction as an integral part of development, called on the international community to assist her country in rebuilding the socio-economic infrastructure destroyed by six years of war.
She said her country supported the promotion of youth employment in the fight to eradicate poverty, especially in countries that had been ravaged by armed conflict and faced the problem of young children with nothing to do, street children and orphaned children. Her Government had established mechanisms for re-education and rehabilitation for youth.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo also supported the Madrid Plan of Action to promote the participation of older people in society, and had set up mechanisms to care for them. Similarly, her Government endorsed the implementation of the full participation of disabled people in social life. It had also taken actions to promote the rights of women and children to strengthen family ties.
RANIA AL HA ALI (Syria) said the issue of social development was of high importance to the Syrian Government. Despite positive measures achieved in social development, much remained to be done. Regrettably there was still a growing gap between developed and developing countries, with increases in poverty and marginalization. It was therefore necessary to increase coherence in development policies and strategies, and to strengthen existing partnerships. The Government in Syria was currently formulating legislation to protect vulnerable factions of society. Policies existed that provided social protection and social services for vulnerable groups in the country, including for disabled persons and older persons.
A current concern for the Government was unemployment, she said. That concern had led to the initiation of many programmes aiming to absorb unemployed persons into the labour markets, including disabled persons. It was also stressed that social development could not be achieved if people’s human rights were being denied, particularly so if the right to self-determination was denied. The international community was called upon to act in order to end the current situation of occupation in the Middle East.
AMINA C. MOHAMED (Kenya) said that in preparing the Kenyan Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper, four major principles had been recognized for its success. These were: giving a voice to the poor, participation and ownership, equitable distribution of national resources, and transparency and accountability. Those principles were dictated by the conviction that no Government could, on its own, undertake development without the support of both private and civil society sectors. In formulating the national policies and budgets, the Government worked closely with the private and civil society sectors. Many developing countries were poor, with populations living in abject poverty. Left alone, they might not be able to bring about substantial economic and social progress in their societies.
Kenya regretted the collapse of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference in Cancun in Mexico last month. The collapse was not the only possible option available to members of the WTO -– it was the most unpopular option. She hoped that the impasse would not be allowed to gather dust and that talks would resume sooner rather than later. Developing countries could only achieve their full potential if there was a level playing field in international trade on which they were allowed to play to protect their interests, address their concerns and reap the attendant benefits. Trade was a tool for development -- potentially the most effective one.
