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UN
Conference on Financing for Development due to start
Without
binding financial commitments, the success of the Johannesburg World Summit
on Sustainable Development is endangered
Berlin,
12 March 2002. If no agreement is reached on binding and sufficient
commitments of financial resources to support developing countries, the
German Advisory Council on Global Change (WBGU) considers a successful
outcome of the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development to
be uncertain. It is therefore essential that the UN International Conference
on Financing for Development, due to start on 18 March in Monterrey, Mexico,
produces a binding commitment by the industrialized countries to gradually
raise their financial contributions to the internationally agreed target
of 0.7% of gross national product. If no agreement can be reached within
the group of OECD countries, the European Union should assume a leadership
role and commit itself to meeting the 0.7% target by 2015. It is further
essential that the Monterrey conference addresses new avenues for the
financial strengthening of international sustainability policy. Levying
user charges on international airspace and the high seas is a promising
approach.
Closing
gaps in the Monterrey Consensus
The
final declaration that has been drafted for Monterrey – the Monterrey
Consensus – is fragmentary in key sections. These gaps need closing.
In particular, the Council misses references to the potential of innovative
financing instruments and to the promotion of incentives to protect the
global environment. The draft final declaration also lacks a statement
on the deadline for achieving the 0.7% target.
Assessing
new financing instruments
In late February, the Council submitted to the
German federal government a report on the potential of innovative financing
instruments. The report argues in favour of levying charges upon the use
of global common resources, in particular international airspace and the
high seas. For instance, the Council recommends introducing gradually
a charge on the use of international airspace that is assessed on the
basis of pollutant emissions of aircrafts. The revenue could be deployed
to promote climate protection activities in developing countries, notably
to improve energy efficiency and intensify the use of renewable energy
sources.
Credibility
of industrialized nations at stake
The
issues at stake in Monterrey include the credibility of the industrialized
nations. They committed themselves at the 1992 Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit
to meet the 0.7% target. In view of mounting challenges, there is an urgent
need for more financial support to international environment and development
policy. At present, however, the average proportion achieved is only 0.24%
of gross national product. Germany’s ratio is 0.27%, or about EUR
5 billion.
Preventing
financial crises
In view of the dramatic impacts financial crises have upon individual
countries’ capabilities and environmental policies as well as upon
the livelihoods of their populations, the final declaration of Monterrey
also needs to address options for improving bank supervision and stabilizing
international financial markets.
International
Conference on Financing for Development
he United Nations is convening in Monterrey, Mexico, on 18–22
March 2002 an International Conference on Financing for Development. This
conference is widely viewed as one of the most important events in the
run-up to the World Summit on Sustainable Development. In addition to
official development finance, the financing conference will also address
issues of mobilizing domestic financial resources, private capital flows,
indebtedness and reforming the international financial architecture. In
late January, all controversial passages were already deleted from the
draft final declaration of Monterrey. The outcome is a document containing
many gaps and few commitments.
Further
information is available at:
www.un.org/esa/ffd
www.johannesburgsummit.org/
www.earthsummit2002.org/.
Please direct your queries to:
WBGU Secretariat
Reichpietschufer 60-62, 8th Floor
D-10785 Berlin
Germany
Tel. +49 30 263948 12
Fax +49 30 263948 50
Email: wbgu@wbgu.de
All press releases and reports can be downloaded
at http://www.wbgu.de.
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