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Part C: Commitments28. Our global drive
for social development and the recommendations for action contained in the Programme of
Action are made in a spirit of consensus and international cooperation, in full conformity
with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, recognizing that
the formulation and implementation of strategies, policies, programmes and actions for
social development are the responsibility of each country and should take into account the
economic, social and environmental diversity of conditions in each country, with full
respect for the various religious and ethical values, cultural backgrounds and
philosophical convictions of its people, and in conformity with all human rights and
fundamental freedoms. In this context, international cooperation is essential for the full
implementation of social development programmes and actions.
29. On the basis of our common pursuit of social development, which aims at social
justice, solidarity, harmony and equality within and among countries, with full respect
for national sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as policy objectives,
development priorities and religious and cultural diversity, and full respect for all
human rights and fundamental freedoms, we launch a global drive for social progress and
development embodied in the following commitments.
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We commit ourselves to creating an economic, political, social, cultural and legal
environment that will enable people to achieve social development.
To this end, at the national level, we will:
(a) Provide a stable legal framework, in accordance with our constitutions, laws and
procedures, and consistent with international law and obligations, which includes and
promotes equality and equity between women and men, full respect for all human rights and
fundamental freedoms and the rule of law, access to justice, the elimination of all forms
of discrimination, transparent and accountable governance and administration and the
encouragement of partnership with free and representative organizations of civil society;
(b) Create an enabling economic environment aimed at promoting more equitable access
for all to income, resources and social services;
(c) Reinforce, as appropriate, the means and capacities for people to participate in
the formulation and implementation of social and economic policies and programmes through
decentralization, open management of public institutions and strengthening the abilities
and opportunities of civil society and local communities to develop their own
organizations, resources and activities;
(d) Reinforce peace by promoting tolerance, non-violence and respect for diversity,
and by settling disputes by peaceful means;
(e) Promote dynamic, open, free markets, while recognizing the need to intervene in
markets, to the extent necessary, to prevent or counteract market failure, promote
stability and long-term investment, ensure fair competition and ethical conduct, and
harmonize economic and social development, including the development and implementation of
appropriate programmes that would entitle and enable people living in poverty and the
disadvantaged, especially women, to participate fully and productively in the economy and
society;
(f) Reaffirm, promote and strive to ensure the realization of the rights set out in
relevant international instruments and declarations, such as the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, 6/ the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 7/ and the
Declaration on the Right to Development, 8/ including those relating to education, food,
shelter, employment, health and information, particularly in order to assist people living
in poverty;
(g) Create the comprehensive conditions to allow for the voluntary repatriation of
refugees in safety and dignity to their countries of origin, and the voluntary and safe
return of internally displaced persons to their places of origin and their smooth
reintegration into their societies.
At the international level, we will:
(h) Promote international peace and security and make and support all efforts to
settle international disputes by peaceful means in accordance with the Charter of the
United Nations;
(i) Strengthen international cooperation for achieving social development;
(j) Promote and implement policies to create a supportive external economic
environment, through, inter alia, cooperation in the formulation and implementation of
macroeconomic policies, trade liberalization, mobilization and/or provision of new and
additional financial resources that are both adequate and predictable and mobilized in a
way that maximizes the availability of such resources for sustainable development, using
all available funding sources and mechanisms, enhanced financial stability, and more
equitable access of developing countries to global markets, productive investments and
technologies and appropriate knowledge, with due consideration to the needs of countries
with economies in transition;
(k) Strive to ensure that international agreements relating to trade, investment,
technology, debt and official development assistance are implemented in a manner that
promotes social development;
(l) Support, particularly through technical and financial cooperation, the efforts of
developing countries to achieve rapid, broadly based sustainable development. Particular
consideration should be given to the special needs of small island and land-locked
developing countries and the least developed countries;
(m) Support, through appropriate international cooperation, the efforts of countries
with economies in transition to achieve rapid broadly based sustainable development;
(n) Reaffirm and promote all human rights, which are universal, indivisible,
interdependent and interrelated, including the right to development as a universal and
inalienable right and an integral part of fundamental human rights, and strive to ensure
that they are respected, protected and observed.
We commit ourselves to the goal of eradicating poverty in the world, through decisive
national actions and international cooperation, as an ethical, social, political and
economic imperative of humankind.
To this end, at the national level, in partnership with all actors of civil
society and in the context of a multidimensional and integrated approach, we will:
(a) Formulate or strengthen, as a matter of urgency, and preferably by the year 1996,
the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty, 9/ national policies and strategies
geared to substantially reducing overall poverty in the shortest possible time, reducing
inequalities and eradicating absolute poverty by a target date to be specified by each
country in its national context;
(b) Focus our efforts and policies to address the root causes of poverty and to
provide for the basic needs of all. These efforts should include the elimination of hunger
and malnutrition; the provision of food security, education, employment and livelihood,
primary health-care services including reproductive health care, safe drinking water and
sanitation, and adequate shelter; and participation in social and cultural life. Special
priority will be given to the needs and rights of women and children, who often bear the
greatest burden of poverty, and to the needs of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups and
persons;
(c) Ensure that people living in poverty have access to productive resources,
including credit, land, education and training, technology, knowledge and information, as
well as to public services, and participate in decision-making on a policy and regulatory
environment that would enable them to benefit from expanding employment and economic
opportunities;
(d) Develop and implement policies to ensure that all people have adequate economic
and social protection during unemployment, ill health, maternity, child-rearing,
widowhood, disability and old age;
(e) Ensure that national budgets and policies are oriented, as necessary, to meeting
basic needs, reducing inequalities and targeting poverty, as a strategic objective;
(f) Seek to reduce inequalities, increase opportunities and access to resources and
income, and remove any political, legal, economic and social factors and constraints that
foster and sustain inequality.
At the international level, we will:
(g) Strive to ensure that the international community and international organizations,
particularly the multilateral financial institutions, assist developing countries and all
countries in need in their efforts to achieve our overall goal of eradicating poverty and
ensuring basic social protection;
(h) Encourage all international donors and multilateral development banks to support
policies and programmes for the attainment, in a sustained manner, of the specific efforts
of the developing countries and all countries in need relating to people-centred
sustainable development and to meeting basic needs for all; to assess their existing
programmes in consultation with the concerned developing countries to ensure the
achievement of the agreed programme objectives; and to seek to ensure that their own
policies and programmes will advance the attainment of agreed development goals that focus
on meeting basic needs for all and eradicating absolute poverty. Efforts should be made to
ensure that participation by the people concerned is an integral part of such programmes;
(i) Focus attention on and support the special needs of countries and regions in which
there are substantial concentrations of people living in poverty, in particular in South
Asia, and which therefore face serious difficulties in achieving social and economic
development.
We commit ourselves to promoting the goal of full employment as a basic priority of
our economic and social policies, and to enabling all men and women to attain secure and
sustainable livelihoods through freely chosen productive employment and work.
To this end, at the national level, we will:
(a) Put the creation of employment, the reduction of unemployment and the promotion of
appropriately and adequately remunerated employment at the centre of strategies and
policies of Governments, with full respect for workers' rights and with the participation
of employers, workers and their respective organizations, giving special attention to the
problems of structural, long-term unemployment and underemployment of youth, women, people
with disabilities, and all other disadvantaged groups and individuals;
(b) Develop policies to expand work opportunities and productivity in both rural and
urban sectors by achieving economic growth, investing in human resource development,
promoting technologies that generate productive employment, and encouraging
self-employment, entrepreneurship, and small and medium-sized enterprises;
(c) Improve access to land, credit, information, infrastructure and other productive
resources for small and micro-enterprises, including those in the informal sector, with
particular emphasis on the disadvantaged sectors of society;
(d) Develop policies to ensure that workers and employers have the education,
information and training needed to adapt to changing economic conditions, technologies and
labour markets;
(e) Explore innovative options for employment creation and seek new approaches to
generating income and purchasing power;
(f) Foster policies that enable people to combine their paid work with their family
responsibilities;
(g) Pay particular attention to women's access to employment, the protection of their
position in the labour market and the promotion of equal treatment of women and men, in
particular with respect to pay;
(h) Take due account of the importance of the informal sector in our employment
development strategies with a view to increasing its contribution to the eradication of
poverty and to social integration in developing countries, and to strengthening its
linkages with the formal economy;
(i) Pursue the goal of ensuring quality jobs, and safeguard the basic rights and
interests of workers and to this end, freely promote respect for relevant International
Labour Organization conventions, including those on the prohibition of forced and child
labour, the freedom of association, the right to organize and bargain collectively, and
the principle of non-discrimination.
At the international level, we will:
(j) Ensure that migrant workers benefit from the protections provided by relevant
national and international instruments, take concrete and effective measures against the
exploitation of migrant workers, and encourage all countries to consider the ratification
and full implementation of the relevant international instruments on migrant workers;
(k) Foster international cooperation in macroeconomic policies, liberalization of
trade and investment so as to promote sustained economic growth and the creation of
employment, and exchange experiences on successful policies and programmes aimed at
increasing employment and reducing unemployment.
We commit ourselves to promoting social integration by fostering societies that are
stable, safe and just and that are based on the promotion and protection of all human
rights, as well as on non-discrimination, tolerance, respect for diversity, equality of
opportunity, solidarity, security, and participation of all people, including
disadvantaged and vulnerable groups and persons.
To this end, at the national level, we will:
(a) Promote respect for democracy, the rule of law, pluralism and diversity, tolerance
and responsibility, non-violence and solidarity by encouraging educational systems,
communication media and local communities and organizations to raise people's
understanding and awareness of all aspects of social integration;
(b) Formulate or strengthen policies and strategies geared to the elimination of
discrimination in all its forms and the achievement of social integration based on
equality and respect for human dignity;
(c) Promote access for all to education, information, technology and know-how as
essential means for enhancing communication and participation in civil, political,
economic, social and cultural life, and ensure respect for civil, political, economic,
social and cultural rights;
(d) Ensure the protection and full integration into the economy and society of
disadvantaged and vulnerable groups and persons;
(e) Formulate or strengthen measures to ensure respect for and protection of the human
rights of migrants, migrant workers and their families, to eliminate the increasing acts
of racism and xenophobia in sectors of many societies, and to promote greater harmony and
tolerance in all societies;
(f) Recognize and respect the right of indigenous people to maintain and develop their
identity, culture and interests, support their aspirations for social justice and provide
an environment that enables them to participate in the social, economic and political life
of their country;
(g) Foster the social protection and full integration into the economy and society of
veterans, including veterans and victims of the Second World War and other wars;
(h) Acknowledge and encourage the contribution of people of all age groups as equally
and vitally important for the building of a harmonious society, and foster dialogue
between generations in all parts of society;
(i) Recognize and respect cultural, ethnic and religious diversity, promote and
protect the rights of persons belonging to national, ethnic, religious or linguistic
minorities, and take measures to facilitate their full participation in all aspects of the
political, economic, social, religious and cultural life of their societies and in the
economic progress and social development of their countries;
(j) Strengthen the ability of local communities and groups with common concerns to
develop their own organizations and resources and to propose policies relating to social
development, including through the activities of non-governmental organizations;
(k) Strengthen institutions that enhance social integration, recognizing the central
role of the family and providing it with an environment that assures its protection and
support. In different cultural, political and social systems, various forms of the family
exist;
(l) Address the problems of crime, violence and illicit drugs as factors of social
disintegration.
At the international level, we will:
(m) Encourage the ratification of, the avoidance as far as possible of the resort to
reservations to, and the implementation of international instruments and adherence to
internationally recognized declarations relevant to the elimination of discrimination and
the promotion and protection of all human rights;
(n) Further enhance international mechanisms for the provision of humanitarian and
financial assistance to refugees and host countries and promote appropriate shared
responsibility;
(o) Promote international cooperation and partnership on the basis of equality, mutual
respect and mutual benefit.
We commit ourselves to promoting full respect for human dignity and to achieving
equality and equity between women and men, and to recognizing and enhancing the
participation and leadership roles of women in political, civil, economic, social and
cultural life and in development.
To this end, at the national level, we will:
(a) Promote changes in attitudes, structures, policies, laws and practices in order to
eliminate all obstacles to human dignity, equality and equity in the family and in
society, and promote full and equal participation of urban and rural women and women with
disabilities in social, economic and political life, including in the formulation,
implementation and follow-up of public policies and programmes;
(b) Establish structures, policies, objectives and measurable goals to ensure gender
balance and equity in decision-making processes at all levels, broaden women's political,
economic, social and cultural opportunities and independence, and support the empowerment
of women, including through their various organizations, especially those of indigenous
women, those at the grass-roots level, and those of poverty-stricken communities,
including through affirmative action, where necessary, and also through measures to
integrate a gender perspective in the design and implementation of economic and social
policies;
(c) Promote full and equal access of women to literacy, education and training, and
remove all obstacles to their access to credit and other productive resources and to their
ability to buy, hold and sell property and land equally with men;
(d) Take appropriate measures to ensure, on the basis of equality of men and women,
universal access to the widest range of health-care services, including those relating to
reproductive health care, consistent with the Programme of Action of the International
Conference on Population and Development; 5/
(e) Remove the remaining restrictions on women's rights to own land, inherit property
or borrow money, and ensure women's equal right to work;
(f) Establish policies, objectives and goals that enhance the equality of status,
welfare and opportunity of the girl child, especially in regard to health, nutrition,
literacy and education, recognizing that gender discrimination starts at the earliest
stages of life;
(g) Promote equal partnership between women and men in family and community life and
society, emphasize the shared responsibility of men and women in the care of children and
support for older family members, and emphasize men's shared responsibility and promote
their active involvement in responsible parenthood and responsible sexual and reproductive
behaviour;
(h) Take effective measures, including through the enactment and enforcement of laws,
and implement policies to combat and eliminate all forms of discrimination, exploitation,
abuse and violence against women and girl children, in accordance with relevant
international instruments and declarations;
(i) Promote and protect the full and equal enjoyment by women of all human rights and
fundamental freedoms;
(j) Formulate or strengthen policies and practices to ensure that women are enabled to
participate fully in paid work and in employment through such measures as positive action,
education, training, appropriate protection under labour legislation, and facilitating the
provision of quality child care and other support services.
At the international level, we will:
(k) Promote and protect women's human rights and encourage the ratification of, if
possible by the year 2000, the avoidance, as far as possible, of the resort to
reservations to, and the implementation of the provisions of the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women 10/ and other relevant
instruments, as well as the implementation of the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for
the Advancement of Women, 11/ the Geneva Declaration for Rural Women, 12/ and the
Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development;
(l) Give specific attention to the preparations for the Fourth World Conference on
Women, to be held at Beijing in September 1995, and to the implementation and follow-up of
the conclusions of that Conference;
(m) Promote international cooperation to assist developing countries, at their
request, in their efforts to achieve equality and equity and the empowerment of women;
(n) Devise suitable means to recognize and make visible the full extent of the work of
women and all their contributions to the national economy, including contributions in the
unremunerated and domestic sectors.
We commit ourselves to promoting and attaining the goals of universal and equitable
access to quality education, the highest attainable standard of physical and mental
health, and the access of all to primary health care, making particular efforts to rectify
inequalities relating to social conditions and without distinction as to race, national
origin, gender, age or disability; respecting and promoting our common and particular
cultures; striving to strengthen the role of culture in development; preserving the
essential bases of people-centred sustainable development; and contributing to the full
development of human resources and to social development. The purpose of these activities
is to eradicate poverty, promote full and productive employment and foster social
integration.
To this end, at the national level, we will:
(a) Formulate and strengthen time-bound national strategies for the eradication of
illiteracy and universalization of basic education, which includes early childhood
education, primary education and education for the illiterate, in all communities, in
particular for the introduction, if possible, of national languages in the educational
system and by support of the various means of non-formal education, striving to attain the
highest possible standard of learning;
(b) Emphasize lifelong learning by seeking to improve the quality of education to
ensure that people of all ages are provided with useful knowledge, reasoning ability,
skills, and the ethical and social values required to develop their full capacities in
health and dignity and to participate fully in the social, economic and political process
of development. In this regard, women and girls should be considered a priority group;
(c) Ensure that children, particularly girls, enjoy their rights and promote the
exercise of those rights by making education, adequate nutrition and health care
accessible to them, consistent with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, 13/ and
recognizing the rights, duties and responsibilities of parents and other persons legally
responsible for children;
(d) Take appropriate and affirmative steps to enable all children and adolescents to
attend and complete school and to close the gender gap in primary, secondary, vocational
and higher education;
(e) Ensure full and equal access to education for girls and women, recognizing that
investing in women's education is the key element in achieving social equality, higher
productivity and social returns in terms of health, lower infant mortality and the reduced
need for high fertility;
(f) Ensure equal educational opportunities at all levels for children, youth and
adults with disabilities, in integrated settings, taking full account of individual
differences and situations;
(g) Recognize and support the right of indigenous people to education in a manner that
is responsive to their specific needs, aspirations and cultures, and ensure their full
access to health care;
(h) Develop specific educational policies, with gender perspective, and design
appropriate mechanisms at all levels of society in order to accelerate the conversion of
general and specific information available world wide into knowledge, and the conversion
of that knowledge into creativity, increased productive capacity and active participation
in society;
(i) Strengthen the links between labour market and education policies, realizing that
education and vocational training are vital elements in job creation and in combating
unemployment and social exclusion in our societies, and emphasize the role of higher
education and scientific research in all plans of social development;
(j) Develop broad-based education programmes that promote and strengthen respect for
all human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the right to development, promote the
values of tolerance, responsibility and respect for the diversity and rights of others,
and provide training in peaceful conflict resolution, in recognition of the United Nations
Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2005); 14/
(k) Focus on learning acquisition and outcome, broaden the means and scope of basic
education, enhance the environment for learning and strengthen partnerships among
Governments, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, local communities,
religious groups and families to achieve the goal of education for all;
(l) Establish or strengthen both school-based and community-based health education
programmes for children, adolescents and adults, with special attention to girls and
women, on a whole range of health issues, as one of the prerequisites for social
development, recognizing the rights, duties and responsibilities of parents and other
persons legally responsible for children consistent with the Convention on the Rights of
the Child;
(m) Expedite efforts to achieve the goals of national Health-for-All strategies, based
on equality and social justice in line with the Alma-Ata Declaration on Primary Health
Care, 15/ by developing or updating country action plans or programmes to ensure
universal, non-discriminatory access to basic health services, including sanitation and
drinking water, to protect health, and to promote nutrition education and preventive
health programmes;
(n) Strive to ensure that persons with disabilities have access to rehabilitation and
other independent living services and assistive technology to enable them to maximize
their well-being, independence and full participation in society;
(o) Ensure an integrated and intersectoral approach so as to provide for the
protection and promotion of health for all in economic and social development, taking
cognizance of the health dimensions of policies in all sectors;
(p) Seek to attain the maternal and child health objectives, especially the objectives
of reducing child and maternal mortality, of the World Summit for Children, the United
Nations Conference on Environment and Development and the International Conference on
Population and Development;
(q) Strengthen national efforts to address more effectively the growing HIV/AIDS
pandemic by providing necessary education and prevention services, working to ensure that
appropriate care and support services are available and accessible to those affected by
HIV/AIDS, and taking all necessary steps to eliminate every form of discrimination against
and isolation of those living with HIV/AIDS;
(r) Promote, in all educational and health policies and programmes, environmental
awareness, including awareness of unsustainable patterns of consumption and production.
At the international level, we will:
(s) Strive to ensure that international organizations, in particular the international
financial institutions, support these objectives, integrating them into their policy
programmes and operations as appropriate. This should be complemented by renewed bilateral
and regional cooperation;
(t) Recognize the importance of the cultural dimension of development to ensure
respect for cultural diversity and that of our common human cultural heritage. Creativity
should be recognized and promoted;
(u) Request the specialized agencies, notably the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization and the World Health Organization, as well as other
international organizations dedicated to the promotion of education, culture and health,
to give greater emphasis to the overriding goals of eradicating poverty, promoting full
and productive employment and fostering social integration;
(v) Strengthen intergovernmental organizations that utilize various forms of education
to promote culture; disseminate information through education and communication media;
help spread the use of technologies; and promote technical and professional training and
scientific research;
(w) Provide support for stronger, better coordinated global actions against major
diseases that take a heavy toll of human lives, such as malaria, tuberculosis, cholera,
typhoid fever and HIV/AIDS; in this context, continue to support the joint and
co-sponsored United Nations programme on HIV/AIDS; 16/
(x) Share knowledge, experience and expertise and enhance creativity, for example by
promoting the transfer of technology, in the design and delivery of effective education,
training and health programmes and policies, including substance-abuse awareness,
prevention and rehabilitation programmes, which will result, inter alia, in endogenous
capacity-building;
(y) Intensify and coordinate international support for education and health programmes
based on respect for human dignity and focused on the protection of all women and
children, especially against exploitation, trafficking and harmful practices, such as
child prostitution, female genital mutilation and child marriages.
We commit ourselves to accelerating the economic, social and human resource
development of Africa and the least developed countries.
To this end, we will:
(a) Implement, at the national level, structural adjustment policies, which should
include social development goals, as well as effective development strategies that
establish a more favourable climate for trade and investment, give priority to human
resource development and further promote the development of democratic institutions;
(b) Support the domestic efforts of Africa and the least developed countries to
implement economic reforms, programmes to increase food security, and commodity
diversification efforts through international cooperation, including South-South
cooperation and technical and financial assistance, as well as trade and partnership;
(c) Find effective, development-oriented and durable solutions to external debt
problems, through the immediate implementation of the terms of debt forgiveness agreed
upon in the Paris Club in December 1994, which encompass debt reduction, including
cancellation or other debt-relief measures; invite the international financial
institutions to examine innovative approaches to assist low-income countries with a high
proportion of multilateral debt, with a view to alleviating their debt burdens; and
develop techniques of debt conversion applied to social development programmes and
projects in conformity with Summit priorities. These actions should take into account the
mid-term review of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the
1990s 17/ and the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the 1990s, 18/
and should be implemented as soon as possible;
(d) Ensure the implementation of the strategies and measures for the development of
Africa decided by the international community, and support the reform efforts, development
strategies and programmes decided by the African countries and the least developed
countries;
(e) Increase official development assistance, both overall and for social programmes,
and improve its impact, consistent with countries' economic circumstances and capacities
to assist, and consistent with commitments in international agreements;
(f) Consider ratifying the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in
Those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in
Africa, 19/ and support African countries in the implementation of urgent action to combat
desertification and mitigate the effects of drought;
(g) Take all necessary measures to ensure that communicable diseases, particularly
HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, do not restrict or reverse the progress made in
economic and social development.
We commit ourselves to ensuring that when structural adjustment programmes are agreed
to they include social development goals, in particular eradicating poverty, promoting
full and productive employment, and enhancing social integration.
To this end, at the national level, we will:
(a) Promote basic social programmes and expenditures, in particular those affecting
the poor and the vulnerable segments of society, and protect them from budget reductions,
while increasing the quality and effectiveness of social expenditures;
(b) Review the impact of structural adjustment programmes on social development,
including, where appropriate, by means of gender-sensitive social impact assessments and
other relevant methods, in order to develop policies to reduce their negative effects and
improve their positive impact; the cooperation of international financial institutions in
the review could be requested by interested countries;
(c) Promote, in the countries with economies in transition, an integrated approach to
the transformation process, addressing the social consequences of reforms and human
resource development needs;
(d) Reinforce the social development components of all adjustment policies and
programmes, including those resulting from the globalization of markets and rapid
technological change, by designing policies to promote more equitable and enhanced access
to income and resources;
(e) Ensure that women do not bear a disproportionate burden of the transitional costs
of such processes.
At the international level, we will:
(f) Work to ensure that multilateral development banks and other donors complement
adjustment lending with enhanced targeted social development investment lending;
(g) Strive to ensure that structural adjustment programmes respond to the economic and
social conditions, concerns and needs of each country;
(h) Enlist the support and cooperation of regional and international organizations and
the United Nations system, in particular the Bretton Woods institutions, in the design,
social management and assessment of structural adjustment policies, and in implementing
social development goals and integrating them into their policies, programmes and
operations.
We commit ourselves to increasing significantly and/or utilizing more efficiently the
resources allocated to social development in order to achieve the goals of the Summit
through national action and regional and international cooperation.
To this end, at the national level, we will:
(a) Develop economic policies to promote and mobilize domestic savings and attract
external resources for productive investment, and seek innovative sources of funding, both
public and private, for social programmes, while ensuring their effective utilization;
(b) Implement macroeconomic and micro-economic policies to ensure sustained economic
growth and sustainable development to support social development;
(c) Promote increased access to credit for small and micro-enterprises, including
those in the informal sector, with particular emphasis on the disadvantaged sectors of
society;
(d) Ensure that reliable statistics and statistical indicators are used to develop and
assess social policies and programmes so that economic and social resources are used
efficiently and effectively;
(e) Ensure that, in accordance with national priorities and policies, taxation systems
are fair, progressive and economically efficient, cognizant of sustainable development
concerns, and ensure effective collection of tax liabilities;
(f) In the budgetary process, ensure transparency and accountability in the use of
public resources, and give priority to providing and improving basic social services;
(g) Undertake to explore new ways of generating new public and private financial
resources, inter alia, through the appropriate reduction of excessive military
expenditures, including global military expenditures and the arms trade, and investments
for arms production and acquisition, taking into consideration national security
requirements, so as to allow possible allocation of additional funds for social and
economic development;
(h) Utilize and develop fully the potential and contribution of cooperatives for the
attainment of social development goals, in particular the eradication of poverty, the
generation of full and productive employment, and the enhancement of social integration.
At the international level, we will:
(i) Seek to mobilize new and additional financial resources that are both adequate and
predictable and are mobilized in a way that maximizes the availability of such resources
and uses all available funding sources and mechanisms, inter alia, multilateral, bilateral
and private sources, including on concessional and grant terms;
(j) Facilitate the flow to developing countries of international finance, technology
and human skill in order to realize the objective of providing new and additional
resources that are both adequate and predictable;
(k) Facilitate the flow of international finance, technology and human skill towards
the countries with economies in transition;
(l) Strive for the fulfilment of the agreed target of 0.7 per cent of gross national
product for overall official development assistance as soon as possible, and increase the
share of funding for social development programmes, commensurate with the scope and scale
of activities required to achieve the objectives and goals of the present Declaration and
the Programme of Action of the Summit;
(m) Increase the flow of international resources to meet the needs of countries facing
problems relating to refugees and displaced persons;
(n) Support South-South cooperation, which can take advantage of the experience of
developing countries that have overcome similar difficulties;
(o) Ensure the urgent implementation of existing debt-relief agreements and negotiate
further initiatives, in addition to existing ones, to alleviate the debts of the poorest
and heavily indebted low-income countries at an early date, especially through more
favourable terms of debt forgiveness, including application of the terms of debt
forgiveness agreed upon in the Paris Club in December 1994, which encompass debt
reduction, including cancellation or other debt-relief measures; where appropriate, these
countries should be given a reduction of their bilateral official debt sufficient to
enable them to exit from the rescheduling process and resume growth and development;
invite the international financial institutions to examine innovative approaches to assist
low-income countries with a high proportion of multilateral debt, with a view to
alleviating their debt burdens; develop techniques of debt conversion applied to social
development programmes and projects in conformity with Summit priorities;
(p) Fully implement the Final Act of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade
negotiations 20/ as scheduled, including the complementary provisions specified in the
Marrakesh Agreement establishing the World Trade Organization, 20/ in recognition of the
fact that broadly based growth in incomes, employment and trade are mutually reinforcing,
taking into account the need to assist African countries and the least developed countries
in evaluating the impact of the implementation of the Final Act so that they can benefit
fully;
(q) Monitor the impact of trade liberalization on the progress made in developing
countries to meet basic human needs, giving particular attention to new initiatives to
expand their access to international markets;
(r) Give attention to the needs of countries with economies in transition with respect
to international cooperation and financial and technical assistance, stressing the need
for the full integration of economies in transition into the world economy, in particular
to improve market access for exports in accordance with multilateral trade rules, taking
into account the needs of developing countries;
(s) Support United Nations development efforts by a substantial increase in resources
for operational activities on a predictable, continuous and assured basis, commensurate
with the increasing needs of developing countries, as stated in General Assembly
resolution 47/199, and strengthen the capacity of the United Nations and the specialized
agencies to fulfil their responsibilities in the implementation of the outcome of the
World Summit for Social Development.
We commit ourselves to an improved and strengthened framework for international,
regional and subregional cooperation for social development, in a spirit of partnership,
through the United Nations and other multilateral institutions.
To this end, at the national level, we will:
(a) Adopt the appropriate measures and mechanisms for implementing and monitoring the
outcome of the World Summit for Social Development, with the assistance, upon request, of
the specialized agencies, programmes and regional commissions of the United Nations
system, with broad participation of all sectors of civil society.
At the regional level, we will:
(b) Pursue such mechanisms and measures as are necessary and appropriate in particular
regions or subregions. The regional commissions, in cooperation with regional
intergovernmental organizations and banks, could convene, on a biennial basis, a meeting
at a high political level to evaluate progress made towards fulfilling the outcome of the
Summit, exchange views on their respective experiences and adopt appropriate measures. The
regional commissions should report, through the appropriate mechanisms, to the Economic
and Social Council on the outcome of such meetings.
At the international level, we will:
(c) Instruct our representatives to the organizations and bodies of the United Nations
system, international development agencies and multilateral development banks to enlist
the support and cooperation of these organizations and bodies to take appropriate and
coordinated measures for continuous and sustained progress in attaining the goals and
commitments agreed to by the Summit. The United Nations and the Bretton Woods institutions
should establish regular and substantive dialogue, including at the field level, for more
effective and efficient coordination of assistance for social development;
(d) Refrain from any unilateral measure not in accordance with international law and
the Charter of the United Nations that creates obstacles to trade relations among States;
(e) Strengthen the structure, resources and processes of the Economic and Social
Council and its subsidiary bodies, and other organizations within the United Nations
system that are concerned with economic and social development;
(f) Request the Economic and Social Council to review and assess, on the basis of
reports of national Governments, the regional commissions, relevant functional commissions
and specialized agencies, progress made by the international community towards
implementing the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development, and to report to the
General Assembly, accordingly, for its appropriate consideration and action;
(g) Request the General Assembly to hold a special session in the year 2000 for an
overall review and appraisal of the implementation of the outcome of the Summit and to
consider further actions and initiatives.
Notes
1/ See First Call for Children (New York, United Nations Children's Fund, 1990).
2/ See Report of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio de
Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992, vol. I, Resolutions Adopted by the Conference (United Nations
publication, Sales No. E.93.I.8 and corrigenda).
3/ See Report of the World Conference on Human Rights, Vienna, 14-25 June 1993
(A/CONF.157/24 (Part I)).
4/ See Report of the Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island
Developing States, Bridgetown, Barbados, 25 April-6 May 1994 (United Nations publication,
Sales No. E.94.I.18 and corrigenda).
5/ See Report of the International Conference on Population and Development, Cairo,
5-13 September 1994 (A/CONF.171/13 and Add.1).
6/ General Assembly resolution 217 A (III).
7/ General Assembly resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex.
8/ General Assembly resolution 41/128, annex.
9/ See General Assembly resolution 48/183.
10/ General Assembly resolution 34/180, annex.
11/ Report of the World Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievements of the
United Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development and 国产AV, Nairobi, 15-26 July 1985
(United Nations publication, Sales No. E.85.IV.10), chap. I, sect. A.
12/ A/47/308, annex.
13/ General Assembly resolution 44/25, annex.
14/ See General Assembly resolution 49/184.
15/ See Report of the International Conference on Primary Health Care, Alma-Ata,
Kazakhstan, 6-12 September 1978 (Geneva, World Health Organization, 1978).
16/ See Economic and Social Council resolution 1994/24.
17/ General Assembly resolution 46/151, annex, sect. II.
18/ Report of the Second United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries,
Paris, 3-14 September 1990 (A/CONF.147/18), part one.
19/ A/49/84/Add.2, annex, appendix II.
20/ See The Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations: The Legal
Texts (Geneva, GATT secretariat, 1994).
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