UNCTAD Chief Urges Help to Developing Countries in Competing on Equal Terms in Global Economy
May 25, 1998 - 0:0
TEHRAN Building the capacity of developing countries to compete effectively and on equal terms is a moral challenge of the highest order, according to Rubens Ricupero, secretary-general of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Mr. Ricupero was speaking on Tuesday on behalf of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan at the second World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial conference in Geneva. He said the WTO must address the challenges of globalization, particularly that of avoiding marginalization of the weaker members of the international community.
The trade liberalization process must maintain its momentum, he continued. But priority should be given to trade barriers targeting the exports of developing countries both in goods and services. Tariff peaks should be reduced and so-called trade remedies further disciplined. Access for the temporary movement of natural persons should also be facilitated. He said the international trading community was being called on to demonstrate solidarity in the trade field to assist Asian countries to remedy their situation.
But he cautioned against the use of trade rules as a mechanism for imposing disciplines in non-trade areas which, he said, could put heavy strains on the system. The WTO must be seen as a partner in the overall international effort, carried out by the UN and its various agencies aimed at promoting sustainable development and human rights in the pursuit of the goals of the UN Charter. Renato Ruggiero, WTO director-general, told the ministerial conference that 80 percent of 132 WTO members and all 31 candidates for membership were from developing or transition economies.
The WTO system, he said, was based on principles whose value is timeless and universal consensus, non-discrimination and the rule of law. ``Trade is peace,'' he continued. As people increasingly shared similar concerns, aspirations and hopes, the trading system would help to channel present turbulent global concerns into rules and commitments which reflected shared responsibilities. The challenge for the next decade would be to manage a world of ever deeper integration.
(Courtesy UN Information Center)
The trade liberalization process must maintain its momentum, he continued. But priority should be given to trade barriers targeting the exports of developing countries both in goods and services. Tariff peaks should be reduced and so-called trade remedies further disciplined. Access for the temporary movement of natural persons should also be facilitated. He said the international trading community was being called on to demonstrate solidarity in the trade field to assist Asian countries to remedy their situation.
But he cautioned against the use of trade rules as a mechanism for imposing disciplines in non-trade areas which, he said, could put heavy strains on the system. The WTO must be seen as a partner in the overall international effort, carried out by the UN and its various agencies aimed at promoting sustainable development and human rights in the pursuit of the goals of the UN Charter. Renato Ruggiero, WTO director-general, told the ministerial conference that 80 percent of 132 WTO members and all 31 candidates for membership were from developing or transition economies.
The WTO system, he said, was based on principles whose value is timeless and universal consensus, non-discrimination and the rule of law. ``Trade is peace,'' he continued. As people increasingly shared similar concerns, aspirations and hopes, the trading system would help to channel present turbulent global concerns into rules and commitments which reflected shared responsibilities. The challenge for the next decade would be to manage a world of ever deeper integration.
(Courtesy UN Information Center)