Forty-ninth session
Agenda item 87 (c) and (d)
RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
The General Assembly,
Reaffirming its resolutions S-18/3 of 1 May 1990, the annex
to which contains the Declaration on International Economic Cooperation,
in particular the Revitalization of Economic Growth and Development
of the Developing Countries, and 45/199 of 21 December 1990, the
annex to which contains the International Development Strategy
for the Fourth United Nations Development Decade,
Recalling its resolutions 44/232 of 22 December 1989 on
trends in the transfer of resources to and from the developing
countries and their impact on the economic growth and sustained
development of those countries, and 47/178 of 22 December 1992
on the net transfer of resources between developing countries
and developed countries,
Recalling also its resolution 43/197 of 20 December 1988
and Agenda 21, Report of the United Nations Conference on Environment
and Development, Rio de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992 (A/CONF.151/26/Rev.1
(Vol. I and Vol. I/Corr.1, Vol.II, Vol. III and Vol. III/Corr.1))
(United Nations publication, Sales No. E.93.I.8 and corrigenda),
vol. I: Resolutions Adopted by the Conference, resolution 1, annex
II. adopted by the United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development, which address the fulfilment of the internationally
agreed commitment for official development assistance,
Taking note of the World Economic and Social Survey, 1994,
United Nations publication, Sales No. E.94.II.C.1 and corrigendum.
in particular chapter IV thereof, entitled "International
resource transfers and financial development", and the report
of the Secretary-General on the net transfer of resources between
developing and developed countries, A/49/309 and Corr.1.
Recognizing that the international community has a responsibility
to give strong support to the efforts of the developing countries
to solve their grave economic and social problems through the
creation of a favourable international economic environment,
Noting that capital flows to capital-importing developing
countries have been increasing strongly and that the net transfer
of resources to them has been positive for the past four years,
reaching the highest level recorded so far, and noting also that
the most dynamic components of this development have been private
short-term capital, including repatriation, and foreign direct
investment,
Noting further that only a limited number of developing
countries have benefited from the increase in the transfer of
financial resources from developed countries,
Noting that the future course of the net transfer of resources
to developing countries depends on a growth-oriented supportive
international economic environment and on sound domestic economic
policies,
Noting also that the resources needed to finance investment
for development have benefited from a substantial increase in
export earnings in a considerable number of developing countries,
Noting with concern that developing countries have continued
to experience a deterioration in their terms of trade, which has
reduced the resources available for their economic growth and
development, and that, in this context, instability in the terms
of trade is higher in those countries that depend on a few export
commodities,
Stressing the unpredictable character of short-term private
capital movements, which are particularly subject to interest-rate
variations and other possible fluctuations in the domestic and
international economic environment,
Noting that in the 1990s the net transfer of resources
from the Bretton Woods institutions to developing countries has
been negative in real terms, although it has been positive to
countries in Africa and to some countries in Asia, and noting
also that the net transfer of regional banks taken together has
been positive in the 1990s,
Noting further the recent decline in the overall level
of official development assistance,
Concerned about the persistent insufficiency of resources
for most developing countries over the past decade for their sustained
economic growth and sustainable development,
Recalling the successful outcome of the eighth session
of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and
the spirit of multilateralism that permeated the Conference, as
reflected in its final document entitled "A New Partnership
for Development: The Cartagena Commitment", Proceedings of
the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Eighth
Session, Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, 8-25 February 1992, Report
and Annexes (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.93.II.D.5),
part one, sect. A.
Noting that the historic achievement represented by the
conclusion of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations
is expected to strengthen the world economy and lead to more trade
investment, employment and income growth throughout the world,
Welcoming the tenth replenishment of the International
Development Association, although it did not result in an increase
in commitments compared with the ninth replenishment,
Bearing in mind that all countries, particularly the major
industrialized countries, which have significant weight in influencing
world economic growth and the international economic environment,
should continue their efforts to promote sustained economic growth
and sustainable development, to narrow imbalances and to cooperate
with the developing countries so as to enhance the ability of
those countries to address and alleviate their major problems
in the areas of money, finance, resource flows, trade, commodities
and external indebtedness,
Noting that the Summit of the group of seven major industrialized
countries, held at Naples, Italy, from 8 to 10 July 1994, See
A/49/228-S/1994/827, annex I. and the annual meetings of the Bretton
Woods institutions, held at Madrid from 4 to 6 October 1994, recognized
the need for private and official resource flows to developing
countries,
1. Stresses the need to increase efforts to ensure the
flow of substantial resources for sustained economic growth and
sustainable development in the developing countries, taking into
account the following:
(a) The developed countries should consider increasing financial flows to developing countries in order to assist them in their diversification and structural adjustment efforts and to facilitate their sustained economic growth and sustainable development through, inter alia, an expansion of multilateral credits, promoting foreign direct investment and increasing concessional and non-debt resources;
(b) Governments of the developed countries and other countries in a position to do so should promote an adequate flow of resources to developing countries; developed countries that have reaffirmed their commitment to reach the accepted United Nations target of 0.7 per cent of gross national product for official development assistance should, to the extent that they have not yet achieved that target, agree to augment their aid programmes in order to reach that target as soon as possible; and substantial new and additional funding for sustainable development and the implementation of Agenda 21 should be required;
(c) To increase the effectiveness of development assistance, developed and developing countries should strive towards a true partnership, which includes, inter alia, ownership and broad-based participation in recipient countries, implementation of domestic economic policies tailored to local conditions, efficient administration, transparent institutions and strong institutional capacities, including at the local level;
(d) In many developing countries, where the burden of debt and debt service constitutes a major obstacle to the revitalization of growth and development, there is a need for further progress towards alleviating their external debt burden;
(e) All countries should undertake, in accordance with their specific situations, efforts at the national level to implement structural adjustment policies and reforms conducive to the flow of external resources, including relevant laws to promote foreign private capital investment and an open framework for international trade;
(f) Governments should fully implement the Uruguay Round agreements, including the specific provisions for developing countries included in the Final Act Embodying the Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations, See Legal Instruments Embodying the Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations, done at Marrakesh on 15 April 1994 (GATT secretariat publication, Sales No. GATT/1994-7), vol. 1. signed at the Ministerial Meeting of the Trade Negotiations Committee, held at Marrakesh, Morocco, from 12 to 15 April 1994, and support an open, free, equitable, non-discriminatory and rule-based multilateral trading system that improves access to the markets of all countries, in particular access for the exports of developing countries in order to ensure their sustained economic growth and sustainable development;
(g) Producers and consumers of individual commodities should continue to explore ways and means of reinforcing their cooperation and consider actively participating in international commodity agreements and arrangements that take into account market trends in order to achieve more efficient international commodity cooperation;
(h) Developing countries should continue to strengthen their efforts in the area of vertical and horizontal diversification in order to enlarge their export bases and, in this context, assistance should be provided to them to enable those countries which have not yet reached this stage to create the conditions appropriate to attract foreign capital;
(i) All Governments, particularly those of the developed countries, should cooperate more closely in order to promote an international financial system which is more conducive to stable and sustained economic growth through, inter alia, a higher degree of stability in financial markets, reducing the risk of financial crisis, improving the stability of exchange rates, stabilizing and striving for low real interest rates in the long run and reducing uncertainties of financial flows;
(j) All Governments, particularly those of the developed countries, should take appropriate measures to create a favorable international economic environment;
(k) All Governments, particularly those of the developed countries, should strive for multilateral surveillance aimed at correcting existing external and fiscal imbalances so as to expand multilateral trade and foreign investment, particularly to the developing countries, and in this context, more effective participation by developing countries should be encouraged;
(l) Consideration should be given to ways to coordinate macroeconomic policies effectively in competent, broad-based multilateral forums;
(m) Consideration should be given by the international community to ways of dealing, as appropriate and in cooperation with national Governments, with the possible negative effects of sudden outflows of private capital from developing countries on the development programmes of these countries;
2. Requests the Secretary-General to continue to monitor
developments in the net flows and transfer of resources between
developing and developed countries, and utilizing all relevant
reports, such as those provided by the World Bank, the International
Monetary Fund and the regional banks, to report thereon in the
World Economic and Social Survey, 1995, and also requests the
Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-first
session on the implementation of the present resolution.
92nd plenary meeting
19 December 1994