Public Goods - the work by UNDP on Public Goods
could open up a significantly debate. Issues such as equity and justice,
market efficiency, environment and cultural heritage, health, knowledge and
information, peace and security. The public goods debate also looks at the key
weaknesses in the current arrangements for providing global public goods
the jurisdictional, participation and incentive gaps;
Investment - should there be a new
multi-lateral agreement on investment negotiated under the United Nations,
taking into consideration the environment, human rights and labour conventions? Promotion of the UNEP Banking and Insurance Initiatives;
New Financial Mechanisms - the development of
new financial mechanisms such as:
a) Air fuel Tax - If Europe could
agree an Air fuel Tax by 2002 the income could be focused on sustainable
development in developing countries;
b) Tobin Tax - now needed even more than before to put a damper on current
speculation;
c) Tax on Internet in the north.
UN Agency involvement: World Bank,
IMF, WTO, UNCTAD and UNDP
Globalization
- Private Capital Flows
This issue is probably the most important the world has to face in the near and
medium term future. The richest 225 persons in the world now control more than $1 trillion
in wealth equal to the annual income of the poorest 47% of the world's
population. When one adds to this the amount of private capital under the
direction of mutual funds and other investment mechanisms, we have a situation
where a small group of individuals and institutions have the power to
determine the economic development or collapse of economies world wide. This situation calls out for supra- national or multilateral regulatory
mechanisms, without which development for most of the world will be outside
the control of the countries who most need it. The Regional Preparatory UN Conferences should address this and bring
recommendations forward.
Conventions
1. Rio Conventions - there are a series of Conventions
that were negotiated for Rio or came out of Rio/CSD. These are known as the
Rio Conventions.
a) Climate Change
b)Bio-Diversity
c)Desertification
d) Straddling and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks
e) Persistent Organic Pollutants and Prior Informed Consent (to be completed by 2001)
UN Agency Involvement: UNEP and
Convention Secretariat
2. Earth
Summit 2002 - should produce a review of the implementation of the present set, a quantification of
their impacts and the obstacles that need to be addressed by 2002. This
analysis should also include conventions such as Basel, CITES and the Montreal
Protocol which predated Rio.
The relationship between these conventions and the WTO needs to be agreed formally
and may need to be incorporated into the Millennium Round of the WTO.
There are some possible new conventions that might be negotiated by
2002:
Forests - the Inter-governmental Forum on
Forests will make its recommendations to the CSD in 2000 on whether there
should be a new convention on forests or not. If the CSD does not recommend
the setting up of an INC then it may keep the option open for the Summit to
address in 2002.
UN Agency involvement: FAO, UNEP, DCSD
3. Access to Information - the UN ECE negotiated
in 1998 the Aarhus Convention - on Access to Information, Participation in
Decision Making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters. There are
three possible ways forward on this area:
a) a global convention;
b) promotion of regional conventions;
c) signing on to the Aarhus Convention.
UN Agency involvement: UNECE, UNEP and other UN Commissions.
4.
Chemicals - a chemical framework convention
could be started after the POPs (targeted for completion by 2001) and PICs
(completed in 1998 needs 50 ratifications) have been
UN
Agency involvement: UNEP
5.
Bio-Safety - renewed impetus needs to be given
to work on the bio-safety protocol to the biodiversity convention.
6.
Bio-Prospecting and Benefit Sharing - a
bio-prospecting protocol to the bio-diversity convention could be ready.
UN
Agency involvement: UNEP,
Biodiversity Convention
7.
Regional Conventions
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