Statement by the Head of the Malaysian Delegation,
Ambassador Dato’ Deva Mohd. Ridzam,
at
the Third UN Conference on Least Developed Countries,
Mr. Chairman,
Heads of Delegation,
Let me begin by congratulating you on
your election as President of the Conference. I also wish to say how delighted
my delegation is on the guidance you have provided for our deliberations. The
various sessions have indeed enabled participants to engage in an open,
constructive and mature interactive dialogue.
My delegation would also like to thank the United Nations for organising this Conference, one intended to enable the international community, the rich countries in particular, to hear the case of 49 countries, representing 600 million people or 10 percent of the world’s population, living on less than USD 1.00 a day. My delegation would also like to record our appreciation to the European Union for hosting this conference in Brussels.
Mr. Chairman,
It is of great concern that since the UN took up the cause some 32 years ago, the list of members defined as LDCs have grown. Many LDCs in fact have even become poorer. This is particularly disturbing as the world is never as rich as it is today. It is immoral that in a world so rich there should be people and countries, which are so distressingly poor. This clearly shows that the international community has repeatedly failed to meet the challenge, as partners, in bringing development, security and peace to the LDCs.
At the recent Millennium Summit, leaders, recognizing the special needs of LDCs, set laudable new targets and goals yet were unable to bring themselves to committing new reliable resources to help overcome poverty, illiteracy, disease and/or to resolve or prevent conflicts.
International targets, set previously to help LDCs achieve decent human and social development, have disappointingly not been reached. For millions it is still a question of having to deal with the basics of life - food, water and shelter. Yet, despite the glaring wealth gap between the rich and the very poor, we still continue to engage in endless debates about the merits and demerits of debt cancellation and/or debt relief.
Even for those LDCs who have made some progress, they remain challenged by ever-present danger of external shocks and natural disasters. Having been denied access to international private capital, the LDCs also remain burdened by declining ODA flow. Only a handful few developed countries have fulfilled their promise towards reaching the agreed ODA target for LDCs of 0.7 percent. The call for rich countries to allocate 0.15 percent of their GNP to help LDCs have to-date received no clear response.
On the trade side, even the IMF has acknowledged that developed countries impose the highest trade barriers on manufactured goods in which the LDCs, have the greatest comparative advantage. These goods include textiles, clothing and footwear. Is this fair? At the same time, LDCs, in the name of ‘structural adjustment’ must move heaven and earth to liberalise. In fact, under the thumb of the IMF, they have very little choice but to move heaven and earth, no matter the merciless consequences on their peoples and their societies. But for the rich and powerful, even the most marginal concessions on textiles, clothing and footwear are not possible.
For that matter, for most of the rich, the most basic fair play on agriculture that developing countries hope for is also politically un-doable. If the wealthiest countries end agricultural subsidies, levelling the playing field for the world’s farmers, that alone could, according to some estimates, increase the income of developing countries by USD 20 billion a year. Why not do it? Why not remove the subsidies? Why not play fair? Why not give the hundreds of millions of farmers in the developing world a better chance to put food in the mouths of their children and a few cents in their pockets?
Mr. Chairman,
For all countries, especially the rich countries, how can we afford to continue to ignore the poorest countries when the spread of disease, environmental degradation and hunger knows no borders. In fact, the world today is so intricately integrated in terms of trade, flow of capital and even in terms of public health for any country to continue to ignore the plight of neighbours in a shrinking world.
Indeed, what has happened in the last three decades illustrate graphically today’s imperative of interdependence – between countries and regions, and between issues – political, economic and social. Interdependence also means shared responsibility. Global existence today does not have an escape clause – or an escape hatch.
As we approach the Fourth WTO Ministerial Meeting in Qatar, it is absolutely critical that the industrialized countries realize that there are sound reasons for developing countries to hold firmly to the position that the present grave imbalances be rectified and that implementation issues be resolved. There must therefore be an agreed agenda for a new Round before Doha. Similarly, given past experiences, the industrialized countries should also understand why developing countries are especially careful of the seemingly innocuous issues, which are but first steps down the slippery slope, which can finally end up in developing countries’ loss of capacity to pursue their respective national social and socio-economic policies and goals.
Malaysia has always believed in engagement with the world, including the LDCs. To us, engagement with the LDCs is not charity; it is a necessity. Along with members of the international community, Malaysia continues to remain out there with our friends in the LDC for our own sake, our own security, and our own prosperity.
Indeed, Malaysia has had a long and valued association with LDCs in Asia, Pacific Island countries and Africa. Malaysia has participated in more than 2 dozens UN peacekeeping operations. Cooperation did not end there. We have also worked with developing countries, including LDCs, on a range of common objectives from debt problem, trade, securing fair prices for agricultural products to issues concerning global peace and security.
As a concrete response to the First UN Conference on the LDCs in 1981, Malaysia began in earnest to promote South-South cooperation. Over the last 30 years, some 105 developing countries, including most of the LDCs, have participated in Malaysia’s modest technical cooperation programme. To-date, more than 7000 participants have undergone various training programmes from vocational training to degree courses in Malaysia.
This solidarity with the South is not completely altruistic. We see mutual benefits in South-South cooperation. From Malaysia’s experience, prosperous neighbours and partners will become good markets for our products and services.
Besides training, Malaysia has also promoted greater trade and investment as well as air and sea links with developing countries including LDCs. As a result, trade and investment flows between Malaysia and the LDCs have grown by leaps and bounds. Today, Malaysian private sector investments are found in several LDCs, especially in Africa and Asia. These Malaysian FDIs have had visible and positive impact on countries concerned in terms of jobs, expertise and ability to generate revenue through export earnings.
As South-South cooperation has helped to promote social and economic developments of developing countries, this Third LDC Conference should give due recognition of its importance in helping LDCs to build capacity, attract FDIs and promote trade. As industrialized countries are not averse to working with, and for, peoples in the LDCs, this Conference should also foster industrialized countries to work with other developing countries in assisting LDCs to develop and prosper. Bilateral, trilateral or even quadrilateral cooperation projects could be initiated to assist LDCs.
Mr. Chairman,
At the Second LDC Conference 10 years ago, we were all told that the previous approach in dealing with poverty was unsuccessful – that foreign aid was misspent and foreign loans squandered. Today, we are told that lack of good governance, absence of democracy and non-observance of human rights are the causes of poverty.
If making available additional foreign aid and/or loans have in the past proved unproductive and that for resources to flow again, good governance, transparency and human rights are the way forward, then Malaysia would like to propose that the Third LDC Conference in Brussels should, as part of its proposed 10-year global action programme to help lift the LDCs out of poverty, make a firm and clear commitment to build needed infrastructure in the LDCs. These should include roads and railways, power plants, ports and airports.
These facilities are much needed by the poor countries but they will never be able to afford them on their own. The cost of infrastructure is very high. How can they on their own build these infrastructures when the provision of basic food, water and shelter is already – and will remain - a struggle.
Indeed, there is
no surer way to meet the Millennium Summit goal of reducing the proportion of
people living in poverty by half by 2015 unless this Third LDC Conference
adopts the above mentioned bold but yet credible and feasible strategy.
Mr. Chairman,
The industrialised countries, both in the West and the East, as well as in a number of other developing countries have succeeded today in dramatically reducing poverty because of the importance placed in the development of adequate and relevant infrastructure.
Construction of infrastructure creates jobs, encourages agriculture and industry, reduces transportation costs, provides access to health and education, bring about transfer of skills and technology and many more things. In short, it is one sure way to reactivate economic growth and developments badly needed in the LDCs which, in turn, bring real difference in the lives of peoples living in these countries. Besides reactivating economic growth and development, there cannot be a better way to integrate LDCs into the world economy, not to mention, integrate peoples within countries and regions as well. In other words, it helps promote unity and reconciliation between and among peoples.
Given the fact that the cost of building infrastructure is very high and the LDCs cannot possibly build all these themselves, new reliable sources of funds must be found. In this regard, Malaysia would like to propose that consideration should be given to the creation of a suitable mechanism to pool contributions from rich countries to finance infrastructure projects in the LDCs. Surely, this Conference can task the UN to explore an appropriate mechanism or arrangement whereby a suitable entity can administer and implement infrastructure projects agreed upon in LDCs.
Mr. Chairman,
Investment on infrastructure development will also benefit the rich. Only they possess the know-how, the machines and the expertise to carry out the projects. In other words, they will get back a good portion of the money they spent towards LDC infrastructure development.
Beyond that, when poor countries become richer, they will be excellent markets for the goods and services of the rich. It will be a win-win situation. In the ultimate analysis, it will cost the rich really very little, yet it will bring about tremendous benefit to the poor.
There will also be no debt for poor countries to pay and neither can they be any more allegations or talk of misuse of funds. There might also not be any failed foreign aid programmes because there will be an international infrastructure development entity or programme to take care of questions concerning good governance, transparency and what have you.
In a nutshell, Malaysia proposes that an international infrastructure development programme, funded, administered and managed by the international community, be established. This should be one of the principal poverty reduction action plan that should be adopted at this Third UN Conference on the LDC.
Mr. Chairman,
Poverty eradication or reduction cannot be tackled by piece-meal and disjointed fashion. It has to be an integrated strategy. Infrastructure development has to be at the core of that strategy. By adopting such a strategy, we would have addressed the issues related to poverty, capacity building, debt as wealth as good governance and transparency in a tangible manner and, at the same time, help LDCs pull themselves out of their increasingly dire situation.
Additionally, we would have also helped address to a large extent the question of lack of FDI flows to the LDCs and also about their capacity to trade and prosper. No amount of technical assistance or talk of capacity building is going to make a real difference in the lives of peoples in LDCs unless a special fund or programme under the UN for the infrastructure development in LDCs is created.
Mr. Chairman,
There is everything to gain and nothing
to lose by prospering the LDCs, close neighbours in a shrinking world.
There were some broad consensus among
leaders, both from the industrialized countries and the LDCs, who spoke on the
opening day that there should be a new beginning. A number of Heads of
State/Government spoke about the ‘scandal’ of a world increasingly rich where
poor people remain poor. Other leaders spoke about the need for rich countries
to do more to cut out “the cancer of poverty”. This goes to show that despite
two previous conferences, there has been too much poetry and not enough
motion. We cannot fail again.
The international community is at a
crossroads. The Third LDC Conference is a time to get real. Only political will backed by real actions
will make a real difference.