South Centre brought together delegates from the developed and the developing world on Aril 16, 2008 as part of its South - North Dialogue Series (SNDS) initiative. Participants from the North included those from Norway, Switzerland, Germany and France while from the South it included delegates from Maldives, Mexico, China, Indonesia and Philippines; and some NGO's like Third World Network, ICTSD, IGSD and E3G Third Generation Environmentalism.
This SNDS initiative was aimed at strengthening the participation of developing countries in climate change negotiations and to forge an alliance with developed partners in capacity building, financing and technology transfer. The event was organized in the light of the ongoing Bangkok talks under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
The perspective of the developed countries was summarized by H.E. Mrs. Marie-Louise Overvad, Ambassador of Denmark, who acknowledged the higher responsibility of the North in climate change "mitigation" and "adaptation" and its moral obligation to help developing countries counter the adverse effects of global warming.
From the South, H.E. Mr. I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja, Ambassador of Indonesia, emphasized the importance of political partnerships and active involvement of all nations, if the hard-won victory in Bali is to survive and deliver.
Mrs. Bernarditas Muller, a senior negotiator from the Philippines (and now the G-77) on climate change and South Centre advisor, elaborated on the role of capacity strengthening as a cross-cutting issue which should be demand-driven and tailored to fit the needs of developing countries instead of simply being imported from the North experience. A lot has been achieved in Bali and political will and efforts should be channelled through the UNFCCC avenue rather than splitting resources and creating alternative venues for action.
The Event concluded with a common agreement that whatever capacity-building and financing should happen on climate change, should be under the Convention.
Monday, April 28, 2008
South North Dialogue Series: Building Capacities on Climate Change
Working Lunch in preparation for the Third Session of the World Health Organization (WHO) IGWG
On 24 April 2008, the South Centre's Innovation and Access to Knowledge Programme (IAKP) organized a working lunch for the delegates of developing countries working on the IP Issues.
The purpose of the meeting was to assist developing country delegations to share information, prepare and coordinate their participation in the upcoming third session of the World Health Organization (WHO) Intergovernmental Working Group on Innovation, Public Health and Intellectual Property Rights (IGWG) from April 28 - May 3, 2008.
The third WHO IGWG meeting is to negotiate and finalize the draft text of the Global Strategy and Action Plan to be submitted for approval to the WHA in May 2008. The aim of the Global Strategy and Action Plan is to create a medium term framework to increase research and development for developing medical products targeted at addressing the disease burden of developing countries.
Comparative analysis of liberalisation schedules and other commitments of the African interim EPAs
Mr. Darlan F. Marti, Programme Officer, Trade for Development Programme at the South Centre served as a discussant in the session on "Comparative analysis of liberalisation schedules and other commitments of the African interim EPAs" at Brussels on 17 April 2008.
The session was organized by APRODEV, ODI and ECDPM as a part of their meeting on the EPA negotiations state of play and assessment of options of the way forward.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Video - South Centre Statement at General Debate of the Twelfth Session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD-XII)
Digital Video is available from here
(Real Player is required to view it and can be downloaded from here)
According to Dr. Tandon, "there are areas of development in the South that give reasons to celebrate. The independence shown by some countries in Latin America from dependence in the North is an example of this positive development. The growth of the economies of certain countries in Asia whose increasing so- called “sovereign wealth” is now the source of bailing out distressed banks in the North is a sign of changing times".
Reflections on UNCTAD XII
South Centre organized an informal NGOs meeting on 23rd April 2008 to reflect on the UNCTADXII process, the challenges presented, the role played by the civil society, and future directions to take.
The meeting was well attended by several representatives of NGOs present for UNCTAD XII at Accra. There was an interest expressed in continuing with such informal meetings on the sides of key events to strategise and leverage efforts and actions.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Press Release: Six Major Challenges Ahead for UNCTAD
According to Dr. Tandon, "there are areas of development in the South that give reasons to celebrate. The independence shown by some countries in Latin America from dependence in the North is an example of this positive development. The growth of the economies of certain countries in Asia whose increasing so- called “sovereign wealth” is now the source of bailing out distressed banks in the North is a sign of changing times".
Whilst we have a lot to celebrate, we still confront major challenges.
According to Dr. Tandon, "at the systemic level there are still many serious and formidable obstacles to change towards a more equitable and just world that needs urgent collective action by the global community. Africa looks more mired than the rest of the South in the quagmire of the past, but there are signs of growth in Africa too".
Dr. Tandon listed six major challenges where UNCTAD should direct its energies and future efforts. The challenges include:
1 Recognise that the three pillars set by the UN reform process -- security, development and human rights -- are interdependent; none can be sacrificed for the others.
2. Recognise that MDGs are not simply a statistical game of numbers, or simply one of finding money. There are difficult and complex political issues underlying them. Statistization and monetization of MDGs mask /mystify systemic and structural malaise behind these issues, and divert attention from them. Recognise that what led to Millennium Summit in 2000 and MDGs was the development failure in 1990s. That still remains the case.
3. Recognise that the Washington Consensus is dead, and therefore there is need for fresh thinking on development, financial architecture, and climate change.
4. Recognise that development is self-defined; the North cannot define it for the South.
5. Recognise that aid and charity are the wrong way towards addressing systemic and developmental issues, especially of Africa. UNCTAD must lead the way towards finding ways and means of exiting from aid dependence for the countries of the South.
6. Recognise that the UN, imperfect as it is, is nonetheless the only truly global inter governmental system we have, and the need therefore to work through it. But understand that power and access to knowledge are the key to hard-nosed negotiations.
However, difficult as they may seem, UNCTAD should be bold enough to face them as the price for not taking action is something developing countries can ill-afford. And in this effort, UNCTAD will find in the South Centre a willing ally. The South Centre makes up for its woefully limited resources with hard work and independent conceptual thinking, and enjoys the confidence of the countries of the South.
Read the complete statement at:
http://www.un.org/webcast/unctad/xii/pdf/south_centre_en.pdf
Monday, April 21, 2008
South Centre@UNCTAD XII: Millions of Small Producers Squeezed Out in the Commodities Game
UNCTAD is one of the few multilateral spaces available for developing countries where issues related to small producers can be defended. But more than ever before, we find that this space is shrinking. For all the talks in recent years, developed countries have failed to live up to a string of pledges to help developing countries create an environment that will help them in meeting market volatility and fluctuations head on.
"The space occupied by UNCTAD is the space developing countries should defend to protect the rights and livelihoods of the small farmers", this was one of main messages coming out of the event organized by the South Centre in partnership with Action Aid on 19th April 2008 as a pre-event to UNCTAD XII being held in Accra, Ghana.
The Event was chaired by Dr. Yash Tandon, Executive Director of the South Centre. The panelists included, among others, Ms. Dede Amanor-Wilks, International Director - West and Central Africa, Action Aid, Ms. Luisa Bernal, Coordinator - Trade for Development Programme, South Centre, and Mr. Mamadou Cissokho, President, ROPPA, Senegal.
Monday, April 14, 2008
Delegation from Central Institute of Economic Management, CIEM, Vietnam visits South Centre
The Director Ms. Hoang Thu Hoa and the Deputy Director Mrs. Tran Thi Hong Minh, Information Department, Central Institute of Economic Management, CIEM, Hanoi visited South Centre on 14 April 2008.
The key objective of the visit was to learn from the experiences of the South Centre in the field of e-learning, e-publication and information portals. Mr. Vikas Nath, Head - Media and Communication, South Centre briefed the delegation on the various innovative services initiated by the South Centre including their costs and sustainability plans, and also the strategy of South centre to bring together through a single interface access to print, electronic and internet resources relevant to the growing constituency of the South Centre.
South North Dialogue: Capacity Building in Climate Change for Developing Countries
Capacity-building for developing countries to be able to adapt to climate change will be an important component in further enhancing the global cooperative framework for action on climate change under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The key question is how best to undertake capacity-building, together with the provision of financing and technology transfer under the Convention, to strengthen participation of developing countries in meeting the developmental challenges of climate change. This is an issue which needs to be discussed in a North-South as well as South-South context and forms the theme of our upcoming South - North Dialogue Series to be held on 16 April 2008 at the South Centre from 1300 - 1530.
Please RSVP your participation to: Mrs. Shirley de Leon-Garnier, By email: deleongarnier@southcentre.org, By telephone: 022 7918055 ext. 29
Opening address will be provided by Dr. Yash Tandon, Executive Director, South Centre. Perspectives will be shared by H.E. Mrs. Marie-Louise Overvad, Ambassador of Denmark, and Ms. Reena Wilfrid-René, Second Secretary, Permanent Mission of Mauritius. Closing remarks will be provided by Mr. Vice Yu, Lead Expert on Climate Change, South Centre.
The South North Dialogue Series is an activity taken up under the South Intellectual Platform of the South Centre.
For further details on the event, see the Events section at http://www.southcentre.org
South Centre participates in African Group Health Workshop organized by the African Union
Dr. Xuan Li Coordinator of Innovation and Access to Knowledge Programme (IAKP), and Ms. Marion Motari, Research Fellow, IAKP at the South Centre participated in the African Group Health Workshop organized by African Union on 11-12 April 2008 in Geneva, Switzerland.
Dr. Li gave a presentation on “IPRs, Public Health and Innovation: TRIPS Flexibilities, Technical Assistance and Way Forward” while Ms. Marion Motari’s presentation was on "Options for Sustainable Financial Mechanisms to Support Medical R&D."
South Centre in Media: Speaking existential truth to negotiated truth
South Centre gets quoted in the Trinidad and Tobago Express.
Dr Yash Tandon, Executive Director of the Geneva based South Centre challenged the intellectuals of the region to once more "speak truth to power" and to push back the now dominant economic and trade theories. The problem, as Arthur pointed out, was that no one was listening to the Caribbean any more. "In the prevailing intellectual and ideological climate, it has been virtually impossible to call upon a grand design for development, subscribed to by all." Tandon was however insistent that the region should not capitulate. "Go back into the sea,if necessary .Fight against the current. Only dead fish float back to the beaches."
Read the complete article at:
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl/article_opinion?id=161308525
Sunday, April 13, 2008
South Centre launches online course of IP and Development
South Centre in partnership with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) have launched the first e-Learning course on the theme of “Intellectual Property Policy and Development”. The online course will be run from 9 June - 25 July 2008.
the adoption of the WIPO Development Agenda, the international community and developing countries in particular will have to address various IP policy issues such as public health and patents, protection of traditional knowledge, and access to digital content. This instructor-led online course, which has been reviewed by leading academics and policy makers, will provide participants from the South and North with the necessary background knowledge to address IP policy issues in various areas such as public health, agriculture, traditional knowledge, and digital and internet content.
The course is FREE for delegates and government officials from South Centre member countries. - USD 150 for other participants/institutions from South Centre member countries, and for all participant/institutions from Goup of 77 member countries which are not South Centre member countries.- USD 400 for all other participants/institutions.
UNCTAD XII Side Event: Trade, Commodities and Development: Perspectives on a Development Agenda in Commodities Trade
South Centre in partnership with Action Aid International is organizing a side event to the UNCTADXII conference in Accra, Ghana on 19 April 2008 from 12:30pm-3pm at the International Conference Centre.
The side event "Trade, Commodities and Development: Perspectives on a Development Agenda in Commodities Trade" will be chaired by Mr. Benjamin Mkapa, former President of Tanzania and Chairman of the South Centre.
The key objective of the event is to highlight the importance of taking action to address the problems linked to commodity dependence in developing countries, especially Africa. For more information about the event, the Agenda and the background documents in English, French and Spanish, please visit:
http://www.southcentre.org/Events/2008/2008Apr_UNCTADXII_Side_Event_19April.htm
or
http://www.unctadxii.org/en/Programme/Other-Events/Parallel-and-Side-Events/South-Centre-side-event/Key-Issues/
High Level Technical Meeting on EPAs: The Way Forward for the ACP
Ms. Luisa Rodriguez and Mr. Darla F. Marti, Programme Officers, Trade for Development Programme at the South Centre participated in the high-level technical meeting on EPAs organized by the Commonwealth Secretariat (UK) in Cape Town, South Africa from April 7-8, 2008.
Ms. Rodriguez gave a presentation on "Safeguards in EPAs" while Mr. Marti's presentation was on "EPA provisions regarding the Competition Policy."
The overall agenda of the meeting was to undertake a comprehensive stocktaking of EPAs that have been concluded in order to provide countries with an objective and accurate assessment of the content, character and implications of the various agreements that will help guide and inform their policy choices.
Decision-Making in the Global Trading System
Mr. Vice Yu, Coordinator - Global Governance for Development Programme (GGDP) made a presentation on "Developing Country Coalitions in the WTO" at the the event "Decision-Making in the Global Trading System" organized by the Swiss National Centre of Competence on 11 April 2008 in Research in Bern, Switzerland
South Centre launches online course of IP and Development
South Centre in partnership with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) have launched the first e-Learning course on the theme of “Intellectual Property Policy and Development”. The online course will be run from 9 June - 25 July 2008.
With the adoption of the WIPO Development Agenda, the international community and developing countries in particular will have to address various IP policy issues such as public health and patents, protection of traditional knowledge, and access to digital content. This instructor-led online course, which has been reviewed by leading academics and policy makers, will provide participants from the South and North with the necessary background knowledge to address IP policy issues in various areas such as public health, agriculture, traditional knowledge, and digital and internet content.
The course is FREE for delegates and government officials from South Centre member countries. - USD 150 for other participants/institutions from South Centre member countries, and for all participant/institutions from Goup of 77 member countries which are not South Centre member countries.- USD 400 for all other participants/institutions.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
African Union Ministerial Conference on Trade and Finance
Dr. Yash Tandon, Executive Director of the South Centre is attending the Conference of the African Ministers of Trade and Finance taking place at the Conference Centre of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from 1 - 3 April 2008. The meeting is being held in two phases. The Meeting of the Senior Officials will hold from 1-2 April 2008, followed by the Ministerial Meeting on 3rd April 2008.
The Conference of the African Ministers of Trade and Finance will dwell on the following issues: Panel Discussion on the Assessment of Interim Economic Partnership Agreements; the state of the EPA negotiations and that of the WTO negotiations; Operationalisation of Aid for Trade; Harmonisation of EPA texts and Monitoring and Evaluation of the implementation of EPAs;
Regarding the state of the EPA negotiations, the representatives of the five African Negotiating groups will present up to date reports on the status of the EPA negotiations. The focus will be on the main areas of divergences with the EU. The negotiating groups would also inform the meeting on the approach to be used in the continuation of the negotiations with the EC.
Press Release: New Voting Formula at IMF Falls Short of Bringing Genuine Change
Last week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cautiously backed plans for some redistribution of voting power among its 185 member countries.
Dr. Yash Tandon, Executive Director of the South Centre, a Geneva-based intergovernmental thinktank for developing countries, said that "the proposed changes with respect to votes in the IMF as a result of a new voting formula – while positive in recognizing the need for such changes – do not however go far enough to remedy the governance imbalance in the IMF. What is being proposed is too little and preserves developed country control over the IMF. To be genuine about sharing governance power in terms of votes, the increase should be much more.
Genuine IMF governance reform will not occur simply through marginal increases of voting rights. The real issue is how developing countries can have a stronger ‘voice’ in IMF governance and actually shaping how the institution is run. This means that other aspects of IMF governance must also be dealt with – e.g. enhancing developing country collective action and voice in the IMF by making the constituency system more representative and strengthening the multilateral and developing country institutions that support them."
See South Centre press release at: http://www.southcentre.org/info/news_views/IMF_Voting_Rights_1April08.pdf
See quote appearing in the article "IMF governance renovations: fresh paint while foundations rot" by Bretton Woods Project: http://www.brettonwoodsproject.org/art-561041
