The Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Network --of which Center of Concern is a member-- has elaborated this Statement through the much appreciated input and review of a broad array of organizations and individuals involved in the efforts of the Network.

Trade and Finance Linkages

Statement for World Conference on Financial and Economic Crisis and Development 

The financial crisis will subject developing countries to great challenges. In many of their economies, shaped to strongly rely on exports, a high degree of commodity dependence and lack of diversification will magnify the impact of trade trends on their revenue. Escalating to products with higher industrial content might, in the light of global recession and lower revenue, become even more difficult, while at the same time more necessary than ever before to secure developing countries’ future.

"This is the day the world came together to fight recession," said Mr. Gordon Brown, the UK prime minister, in his closing speech at the G20 Summit in London.

On April 25, 2009, the Center of Concern and the Commonwealth Foundation co-organized "The Financial Crisis and Trade: Towards an Integrated Response-a Consultation with Commonwealth Finance Ministers."  The meeting was chaired by the Honourable Pierre Titti, Minister Delegate, Ministry of Finance, Cameroon, and Chair of the Commonwealth Ministerial Debt Sustainability Forum.
 

The Economic and Social Council held a panel discussion on "Civil Society Perspectives on the Financing for Development Agenda." The panel was held on Monday, 20 April 2009 at the UN Headquarters in New York, in preparation for its Special high-level meeting with the Bretton Woods institutions, the World Trade Organization and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. 

The UN Conference on the world financial and economic crisis and its impact on development is now scheduled to take place from June 1 -3, 2009. The agreement on the date is part of a number of agreements on modalities contained in a modalities resolution of the UN General Assembly. The agreements were finally reached after protracted negotiations that revealed a continued conflict of  views, mostly along developed and developing country lines, regarding the role that the UN is called to play on issues of financial reform.
 

London G-20 Summit: No ‘Bretton Woods II’ here, either