Jul 26, 1985

THIRD WORLD URGES HALT TO EROSION OF MULTILATERAL SYSTEM.

NEW DELHI, JULY 24 (IPS/VENUGOPALA RAO) – Third World nations have stressed the need to end "further erosion" of the "principles, rules and regulations of the Multilateral Trading System".-

This appeal is contained in a draft declaration on the international trading environment finalised here Wednesday by senior officials from 64 developing countries.-

The officials have been meeting since Monday to prepare for a two-day Ministerial meeting of developing nations on a Global System of Trade Preferences (GSTP) which begins here Thursday.-

The Ministers will consider the draft declaration along with the main one on the GSTP itself.-

It reaffirms the commitment of developing countries to an open multilateral trading system and to trade liberalisation, and notes with concern the threat posed to the system.-

The draft also refers to the attempt being made "to erode the role of the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development" (UNCTAD) based in Geneva.-

Developing countries are determined to "preserve intact the mandate of UNCTAD and prevent any attempt to curtail its functioning in an independent and objective manner", asserts the draft.-

It says the multilateral system can be preserved and strengthened only if developed countries "adhere strictly to their commitment to a standstill and rollback on protectionism undertaken by them in 1982 at several international fora.-

The draft also asks developing countries to "dismantle the existing protectionist measures and other restrictive measures inconsistent with the rules of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade" (GATT).-

At the same time, there is need to simultaneously seek the necessary adjustments and structural reforms in the world monetary, financial and trading systems.-

Recently, several developing countries have undertaken liberalisation measures despite very heavy constraints on their balance of payments positions and the tightening of the developed country import regimes, it says.-

But this process cannot continue unless access of developing countries to the markets of the developed world is "significantly expanded".-

In a general review of the international economic situation, the draft declaration notes that the crisis that engulfed the world economy in the early 1980’s is still continuing.-

The "weak and uneven recovery}" in developed market economy countries has "virtually bypassed the developing countries", it says.-

World exports which witnessed some expansion in 1984 have declined in early 1985, the draft notes, adding that all projections for the future indicate a relatively slow rate of growth in developing countries.-

The document says this continuing crisis is a largely due to the "inability of the international community to tackle the underlying structural factors".-

It underlines that the existing world monetary, financial and trading system is fundamentally weak.-

The inability of the recent cyclical upturn to reverse any of the underlying trends in the world economy "confirm the structural nature of the crisis", says the draft declaration.-