JOHANNESBURG, Sept 2 (Hina) - The President of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, on Monday called on statesmen attending the UN World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg to jointly establish a North-South pact to
decrease poverty in the world and put an end to the destruction of the environment.
JOHANNESBURG, Sept 2 (Hina) - The President of the European
Commission, Romano Prodi, on Monday called on statesmen attending
the UN World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg to
jointly establish a North-South pact to decrease poverty in the
world and put an end to the destruction of the environment. #L#
In the past few years significant progress has been made with regard
to international co-operation, Prodi said, noting examples of
successful conferences in Doha (on trade) and Monterey (on
financing development). He also pointed to the failure to implement
the objectives of the Rio de Janeiro summit of ten years ago.
Prodi said the EU market was ready to further open up to goods from
developing countries and decrease export subsidies for local
producers thus giving a major contribution to the yet unfinished
negotiations on the trade chapter of the Summit Action Plan.
The EU wishes to promote peace and development also outside its
borders, particularly in the Mediterranean and Africa, Prodi said.
He reminded that the EU's development assistance was unprecedented
and that EU companies accounted for 70 percent of all investments in
developing countries.
Prodi said that the pact he was proposing rested on the joint
recognition of the fundamental values of democracy, good rule and
social involvement, which had to go together with various forms of
solidarity.
Based on its obligations taken on in Monterey, as of 2006 the EU will
offer developing countries assistance worth 22 billion euros,
particularly for water management, power supply, food production,
education and health projects. In keeping with the Convention from
Cotonu, the EU will secure an additional 13.5 billion euros in
assistance to eight countries in Africa, the Caribbean and the
Pacific, the EC President said.
The success of the Johannesburg summit is the responsibility of all
its participants, Prodi said expressing full support for efforts to
decrease poverty and preserve the natural balance of the planet.
(hina) sp rml sb