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United Nations Department
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Preparatory Committee for the World ENV/DEV/B/15
Summit on Sustainable Development 5 June 2002
Fourth Session
6th Meeting (AM)
BALI PREPARATORY MEETING HEARS CALL FOR CONCRETE OBJECTIVES, PRECISE
TIMELINES
TO GENERATE MOMENTUM FOR ACTION
President
of Indonesia, UN Deputy Secretary-General Open
Ministerial Segment of Preparatory Committee for Sustainable Development Summit
Success
at the fourth and final Preparatory Committee for the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable
Development would be possible because everyone believed in a life of dignity
for all, with respect for the diversity of cultures and harmony with
surrounding nature, Megawati Soekarnoputri, President of Indonesia, said this
morning in opening the Committee’s ministerial segment
To achieve those goals, each nation
managed its development differently, the President continued. Some nations were able to enjoy a high
quality of life by developing their human resources and their capabilities in
science and technology. Among those
were nations who could effectively manage their natural resources for
development and in harmony with nature.
They were models that could inspire other nations.
She called for international
cooperation to help developing countries utilize resources in a sustainable
manner. The tendency to blame one
another had become part of any discussion of sustainable development; conflicts
and instability had often resulted.
But, she said, closely cooperative endeavours were the only answer. Interdependence, in the global village, was
real.
Deputy
Secretary-General Louise Fréchette said,
“We are here today because we face great challenges on both sides of the
development-environment equation”.
Johannesburg was meant to find another way -- a path that improved
standards of living while protecting the environment, “a path that works for
all peoples today and tomorrow”. The
relationship between human society and the natural environment was the “core
concern of Johannesburg, and is what sets Johannesburg apart from other United
Nations conferences and summits”.
The Secretary-General had
proposed five key areas for particular focus -- water and sanitation, energy,
agriculture, biodiversity, and ecosystem management and health, she said. It was important to have firm goals and
timelines in those areas, as well as concrete commitments to generate real
momentum for action.
She stressed the need for a
credible political declaration that committed leaders to act and inspired all
actors to recognize their own responsibilities. Progress towards implementation would depend on actions by all
actors, separately and jointly, by way of partnerships, she added. Progress would also depend on the
availability of resources. The Summit
was truly a chance to set a more hopeful course of development for all
humanity, she stressed. “We know what
needs to be done. Now, let us move
ahead.”
Also
this morning, participants were briefed by the co-Chairs of the Global
Environment Facility (GEF) of the Ministerial Round Table on Financing for
Environment and Sustainable Development:
Kjell Larsson, Minister for the Environment of Sweden, and Mohammed
Valli Moosa, Minister for Environmental Affairs and Tourism of South Africa.
A statement was also made by the
Minister of State of Water Resources of Nigeria, Chief Precious Ngelale, on
behalf of the African Ministers Conference on Water.
Following
the opening statements and reports, Ministers engaged in a dialogue on the
various issues at hand.
In his opening statement for that
part of the meeting, Emil Salim (Indonesia), Chairman of the Preparatory
Committee, said that in the
next 10 years, poverty eradication would be an essential element of sustainable
development. In addition, unsustainable
patterns of production and consumption must change, and natural resources must
be managed in a way that supported social and economic development. Those three facets must be merged into one
-- sustainable development.
The speaker for Japan stressed
that that a respect for nature must be passed down to the next generation;
conservation was essential for the survival of mankind. Japan would continue its efforts in that
regard.
The
representative of Venezuela, for the “Group of 77” developing countries and China,
said the principle of shared but differentiated responsibilities between
developed and developing countries for the implementation of Agenda 21 was
fundamental. Johannesburg must be
approached with a spirit of solidarity.
The
representative of Spain, for the European Union, said the Union
sought a coherent policy for implementing Agenda 21 as a global pact. All actors must work closely together
towards agreed-upon, concrete goals.
Transfer of information and technology was important, as was the
realistic financing of programmes involved.
Statements
were also made during that segment by representatives of Norway, Colombia,
Egypt, Libya, China, Slovakia, Dominican Republic, United Arab Emirates,
Indonesia and Germany.
The
observer for Switzerland also spoke, as did the President of the Economic and
Social Council.
The
ministerial segment is scheduled to continue this afternoon at 3 p.m.
Background
The
fourth and final Preparatory Committee for the upcoming World Summit on
Sustainable Development this morning began its ministerial segment, during
which Ministers are expected to discuss follow-up
to the Bali implementation plan, partnership initiatives and elements for the
political declaration to be adopted at the Johannesburg Summit.
Statements
United Nations Deputy
Secretary-General LOUISE FRÉCHETTE recalled the “set of specific, time-bound
objectives”, known as the Millennium Development Goals, which had been adopted
at the 2000 Millennium Summit of the General Assembly with the aim of fighting
poverty, securing people from violence and armed conflict and protecting the
environment. She said, “We are here
today because we face great challenges on both sides of the development-environment
equation”. Three billion people
suffered the dehumanizing conditions of poverty and the latest report of the
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) depicted a world at risk.
She said Johannesburg was meant
to find another way -- a path that improved standards of living while
protecting the environment, “a path that works for all peoples today and
tomorrow”. The relationship between
human society and the natural environment was the “core concern of
Johannesburg, and is what sets Johannesburg apart from other United Nations conferences
and summits”.
The Secretary-General had
proposed five key areas for particular focus -- water and sanitation, energy,
agriculture, biodiversity and ecosystem management and health. It was important to have firm goals and
targets in those areas and specify concrete commitments so that real progress
could be made in the implementation of Agenda 21 and the Millennium
Declaration.
The five areas were widely
considered to be central to sustainability, she said. They were intricately connected -- “call it a multiplier effect
or a virtuous circle” -- that progress in one would generate progress in
another.
Important progress had been made
thus far by the Committee, but some critical work remained to be done over the
next three days. Full agreement must be
reached on a solid, specific implementation plan with targets “before we leave
Bali”, she said. Only then would a firm
foundation have been established for the vital work that remained to be done
between Bali and Johannesburg.
She then stressed the need for a
credible political declaration that committed leaders to act and inspired all
actors to recognize their own responsibilities. The declaration was the place for commitments to action in key
areas, global and local, and for providing a sense of values that underpinned
the concept of sustainable development and instigated action.
Noting the important role to be
played by governments in ensuring sustainable development, she appealed to them
to ratify the treaties that underlay efforts to achieve such development. She then noted that sustainable development
would not be achieved without non-governmental organizations (NGOs). She also underlined the role to be played by
the private sector and international organizations.
Progress towards implementation
would depend on actions by all actors, separately and jointly by way of
partnerships, she said. Progress would
also depend on the availability of resources.
Governments must sustain the momentum generated by the Monterrey
Conference on Financing for Development, particularly in the area of official
development assistance (ODA).
Governments must also make good on their commitment at the World Trade
Organization (WTO) meeting in Doha to make the new negotiations on trade a true
“development round” that opened markets to developing-country goods and allowed
them to compete fairly.
The Summit was truly a chance to
set a more hopeful course of development for all humanity, she said, adding “We
know what needs to be done. Now, let us
move ahead”.
MEGAWATI SOEKARNOPUTRI, President of
Indonesia, welcomed participants and thanked the United Nations for
showing confidence in her country by holding the preparatory meeting
there. Indonesia, she said, was determined
to do its utmost for the success of the meeting.
Such success, she continued, was possible because all believed in a life of dignity for everyone, with respect for the diversity of cultures and harmony with surrounding nature. Towards those goals, each nation managed its development differently. Some nations were able to enjoy a high quality of life through developing their human resources and their capabilities in science and technology. Among those were nations who could effectively manage their natural resources for development and in harmony with nature. They were models that could inspire other nations.
However, she said, the majority of nations were endowed neither with well-developed human resources nor the capabilities to master and implement technologies. Human resources development was a priority for those nations. No judgments were being made on this occasion, however some nations were able to extract the maximum benefit from their resources while others sold off the raw materials themselves. The political reality of developing nations presented a dilemma that often led to the exploitation of natural resources in an unsustainable way.
She called for international
cooperation to help such countries utilize resources in a sustainable
manner. The tendency to blame one
another had become part of any discussion of sustainable development; conflicts
and instability had often resulted.
But, she said, closely cooperative endeavours were the only answer. Interdependence, in the global village, was
real.
For more than three decades, she
said, Indonesia itself had relied on the exploitation of its natural resources
for economic development, but the results had led to reconsideration. It was realized that development must be a
sustainable process, which required long-term efforts to upgrade the capacity
of human resources to direct development in the best way.
Many years ago, her father, President Soekarno, had called for building the world anew. She now called on the international community to build the world anew through sustainable development, to make human life better through development and through maintaining natural resources, which were the common heritage of mankind. Saying it was time to implement Agenda 21 with concrete action, she declared open the ministerial segment of the Preparatory Committee.
Mohammed
Valli Moosa, Minister for Environmental Affairs and Tourism of South
Africa, and co-chair of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) of the
Ministerial Round Table on Financing for Environment and Sustainable
Development, said that in the 10 years since the 1992 United Conference on
Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil it had become
ever more clear that successful sustainable development required progress on
the social, economic and environmental fronts.
He noted the lack of resources devoted to the environment, which
undermined the situation of the poor.
The Summit would provide a unique opportunity to ensure that
environmental security was integrated into programmes for sustainable
development.
The Facility had sponsored a series
of round tables to produce recommendations on the subject, he said. A Ministerial Round Table had been convened
to address means to generate financing to promote environmental concerns. Among the issues stressed at that meeting’s
first session was the need for developed countries to provide additional
resources for sustainable development through increased official development
assistance (ODA) and market access for developing countries. At the second session, constraints and
barriers to achieving progress in the areas identified by the Secretary-General
had been examined.
Lack of capacity, knowledge and
skills in a country were among the constraints identified, he said. It was also pointed out that the cost of
clean technologies could act as a barrier to the promotion of such
technologies, as could lack of financing.
Addressing such constraints would assist in providing the tools and
mechanisms for developing countries to address sustainable development
needs. Participants had called for
action in the areas of finance policies, and partnerships had been called for.
Kjell
Larsson, Minister for the Environment of Sweden, and co-chair of the GEF
of the Ministerial Round Table on Financing for Environment and Sustainable
Development, also gave a readout of the ministerial meeting. He said sustainability could not be achieved
by marginal financing or funding. All
actors had a critical role to play in providing financing.
He said governments had a lead
responsibility to promote sustainable development. Substantial resources could be freed, and economic efficiency
could be improved. The creation by
governments of enabling environments for private investments was also key. Increasingly scarce external resources could
be used to leverage private financing for sustainable development. Better mechanisms should be developed to tap
into the interest of individuals to invest in an environmentally sustainable
future. Environmental impact
assessments should be included in all sustainable development packages.
There was much to be gained from the
formation of partnerships among all the relevant actors, he said. They would be most effective if they were
developed within a comprehensive framework.
Synergies between development aid and private financing should be
strengthened. Dissemination of
information, lessons learned and best practices was key. The Bali implementation plan provided an
important framework for pursuing sustainable development, but more specific
means of implementation must be identified and provided, possibly as annexes to
the document. The GEF had been called
on to continue to provide leadership in the follow-up of the World Summit.
Chief PreCious Ngelale, Minister of
State of Water Resources of Nigeria, on behalf of the African Ministers
Conference on Water, said the Summit must be about the need for social
progress, sustainable economic development and sound environmental
management. The Secretary-General had
placed emphasis on five areas, all of which had shown the centrality of
water. The Summit must be remembered as
a conference that had squarely confronted the water and sanitation crisis. There was an intimate link between the
health of humans and the health of the planet -- water and sanitation were key
in that area as well. He went on to
demonstrate the central role of water in the other areas of focus identified by
the Secretary-General.
He said poverty reduction began with
water issues, which in turn should be linked to gender issues. Pro-gender action programmes to promote
women’s access to water and sanitation services must be included in the
Summit. The Summit was a unique opportunity to demonstrate that
water was at the crossroads of environment and development. The ministers at the Conference on
Water had agreed that programmatic and institutional arrangements were needed
to confront issues related to water in Africa.
It was hoped that the implementation plan of the Summit would provide
the necessary support.
The political declaration should
also prominently address the lingering water and sanitation crisis in the
region and globally, he said. He invited
others to join in partnership initiatives with the Conference on Water. He drew participants’ attention to the Abuja
Ministerial Statement on Water, which was being circulated.
Interactive
Dialogue Segment
The
Chairman of the Preparatory Committee, Emil Salim (Indonesia) initiated
the dialogue by recounting the history of efforts for sustainable development
and asking what a Bali commitment could mean.
Bali was the final harbour before sailing into Johannesburg. It meant all necessary documents had to be
finalized here: most importantly, the
implementation programme, with partnership initiatives as a supplement. All elements of the political declaration
must also be developed.
In the next 10 years, he said,
poverty eradication would be an essential element of sustainable
development. In addition, unsustainable
patterns of consumption and production must change, and natural resources must
be managed in a way that supported social and economic development. Those three facets must be merged into one
-- that was, sustainable development.
Health, globalization, regional contexts, and coordinated action at all
levels were elements that must be considered in the implementation document as
well.
The
representative of Japan said that a respect for nature must be passed
down to the next generation, as conservation was essential for the survival of
mankind. Japan would continue its
efforts in that regard. Water issues,
in particular, were a great challenge; a coordination information system must encompass
those problems and those of deforestation.
Japan had many projects in that area.
The
representative of Norway said that environment and development had been
discussed in Rio -- in Johannesburg, environment for development would be
discussed. The upcoming Summit would be
very important for implementing treaties and agreements signed since Rio within
clear time frames. He hoped the meeting
would not be about renegotiating the agreements already made. He thought the text should “look forward” to
how its provisions could be achieved, rather than looking back. Democracy and good governance were
pre-conditions for making sure that globalization was a positive force for
all.
The
representative of Venezuela, for the “Group of 77” developing countries
and China, said the Group had been carrying on negotiations with great
expectations for a transparent discussion to achieve full implementation of the
Rio commitment. The Group couldn’t
believe that agreement could not be reached.
There must be a real commitment to act.
The principle of shared but differentiated responsibilities for the
implementation of Agenda 21 was fundamental.
New and additional resources and transparency were key. An international humanitarian fund must be
set up. More sustainable consumption
and production patterns must be observed.
She also underlined respect for the special knowledge of indigenous
peoples. Johannesburg must be
approached with a spirit of solidarity.
The
representative of Spain, speaking on behalf of the European Union, said
the Union sought a coherent policy for implementing Agenda 21 as a global
pact. A gender-based approach must be
taken into account, along with the three pillars of social and economic development
and environmental conservations, with additional activities to ensure
implementation. All actors must work
closely together towards agreed-upon, concrete goals. Transfer of information and technology was important, as was
realistic financing of programmes involved.
The Union had submitted proposals to the Chairman for that latter
purpose. There should be equitable
distribution of the benefits of sustainable development, with trade and other
policies encouraging that. In addition,
regional approaches to issues were important, particularly in Africa.
The representative of Colombia
supported the statement of Venezuela for the Group of 77, saying that the
international community was embarking on a new endeavour, and there would be
many challenges ahead. A new culture
had to be built to foster sustainable development, both for equitable
development and environmental stewardship.
Those were ethical ideas. Agenda
21 had referred to ethics, but that theme had not yet been well developed. If ethics for sustainable development were
nurtured, a culture of sustainable development would follow.
The representative of Egypt
said it was important to concentrate on implementation of ideas developed at
Rio and not to come up with new concepts.
For implementation to occur, financial mechanisms must be clear. Poverty must be fought, and sustainable
technologies shared. Previous
conferences had laid foundations for a structure on which to base future
efforts. The agricultural sector should
be a priority -- coherent international action should be taken to improve use
of the land. Desertification must be
give absolute priority; Johannesburg must recognize the Global Environment
Facility (GEF) as the primary tool for that effort. In all efforts, civil society must be integrally involved.
A
representative of Japan then took the floor again. He supported the report made by the Minister
of Nigeria on the Conference on Water.
The multiple facets of agriculture must be emphasized. The principles of market competition had brought
about mass consumption and mass waste disposal -- that “status quo” must not be
forgotten and should be addressed.
Japan upheld the basic ideal that forests and oceans were “home to our
lives”.
The
representative of Libya said sustainable development was a preoccupation
for all. Solidarity against poverty and
famine was highly important. There must
be real commitments undertaken to combat those phenomena. There were more than 1 billion people
without water, and half the world was without sanitation, he pointed out. Financial resources had not been granted for
the realization of Agenda 21. Many were
now caught in the trap of external debt, which hampered efforts to achieve
sustainable development.
There must a plan that had clear
commitments with time limits for implementation to realize the Millennium Goal
of halving the number in poverty by 2015, as well as other targets that had
been set, he said. Measures must be
taken to, among other things, stop deforestation and to protect fisheries, and
adequate financial resources to promote sustainable development must be
forthcoming. A favourable international
climate addressing the negative heritage of colonialism must be instituted. All States should put an end to their
conflicts and take measures to eliminate weapons of mass destruction.
The
representative of China said the rapid development of globalization had
brought with it great challenges and opportunities. Realizing sustainable development on the global level was a large
challenge. Innovative methods to
correctly handle the three pillars of sustainable development had been put
forward; however, there was still a gap between ideals and reality. He cited the decline in ODA at the global
and the widened gap between the North and South and the East and West since
UNCED, among other constraints.
Action must be taken to narrow the
gaps, he said. The whole world’s
attention would be focused on the Summit.
The political declaration must stress the basic principles of the Rio
conference, especially the principle of shared but differentiated
responsibilities to implement Agenda 21.
The implementation plan must contain clear and feasible measures and
follow-up mechanisms.
The
representative of Switzerland said that better multilateral relationships
and partnerships were basic for attaining goals in sustainable
development. The plan of action coming
out of Bali must be based on a strong consensus, with every delegation involved
in negotiations. His country was ready
to make commitments and live up to them -- there should be no backing away from
commitments made in Rio and the Millennium Summit. Switzerland was ready to increase its efforts to meet such
commitments, along with raising its ODA to 0.4 per cent. International instruments must be ratified
and implemented, and forests and water must be protected through international
rules. Switzerland had enacted laws and
constructed infrastructure in that effort and was forming a partnership for sustainable
development in mountainous regions.
The
representative of Slovakia said his country supported all those who had
called for concrete action. Natural
resources had to be treated as one integrated unit, and that was taken into
account in Agenda 21. Sectoral policies
still prevailed, however, and he urged the strengthening of cross-sectoral
integrative tools, and a comprehensive plan that ruled over all sectoral
plans. He also supported activities
that aimed to lower overhead for activities that directly benefited sustainable
development, with the primary goal of improving the state of the environment.
The representative of the Dominican
Republic called for countries that had not done so to ratify the Kyoto
Protocol and other relevant agreements before the Johannesburg Summit. A clear commitment must come out of that
Summit to implement all elements of Agenda 21.
The
representative of the United Arab Emirates said common solutions must be
found to solve the problems facing humanity, such as poverty, debt, pollution
and lack of access to water, among others.
Those problems must be addressed at all levels. Sustainable development and the
implementation of Agenda 21 required a secure environment on the regional and
international levels. In that context,
he cited the situation in Palestine as a result of the Israeli occupation. He called for solutions to such problems,
based on the principles of the United Nations Charter and respect for
international law. The stability of
development required certain confidence-building measures to be
undertaken. Cooperation was also
key. He called on developed countries
to reconsider their protectionist and unilateral measures, which had an adverse
affect on international trade.
The
representative of Indonesia said the implementation document was now 78
pages long -- double the size of last Monday.
Core to the process of sustainable development was implementation. Financial resources had not been
forthcoming, he noted, particularly to implement Agenda 21. The Monterrey Consensus and the Doha outcome
must be built upon.
IVAN
SIMONOVIC (Croatia) President of the Economic and Social Council, said
his prepared statement would be distributed and he would restrict himself to
making a brief statement. Doha and
Monterrey were the basis for forward movement.
At the recently established international forum for indigenous peoples,
it had been stressed that a reference to indigenous peoples should be included
in the outcome to Johannesburg.
Between Bali and the Summit there
would be a substantive session of the Council, he said. Its high-level segment would be devoted to
the development of human resources, which was key to sustainable
development. The core of sustainable
development was the issue of coordination of various values and
activities. Without the strengthened
role of the Council, it would be virtually impossible to coordinate the various
United Nations departments and commissions dealing with sustainable
development.
The
representative of Germany said Agenda 21 and other international consensus
documents should not be renegotiated; the problem was the implementation of
activities and principles. Concrete
targets were therefore essential in all areas including renewable energy, an
area in which his Government had already set targets and was therefore
motivated to meet them. Other matters
had to be dealt with directly; foreign direct investment could be more
effective than ODA, for example.
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