Milan KARIC (Yugoslavia): The Yugoslav delegation supports the Report and expresses its appreciation of FAO's efforts in making such a comprehensive and objective analysis.
In our opinion the objectives of international agricultural adjustment are being achieved only partially or at a very slow pace. The process of polarization in world agriculture in the first six years of the current decade has been much faster than in the previous decade. The aggregate figures for the developing countries show that, although the growth of production remained at the level of 4% in the first four years, it later decreased, so that in the 1980-1986 period it amounted to 3.6%. Such a rate of growth was primarily due to the more dynamic growth in China and India. Not counting these two countries, the developing world as a whole recorded a drop in production as compared with the previous decade.
Moreover, the growth of agricultural production is very uneven. The least developed countries of Africa and Latin America are in the most difficult position since they are facing an ever greater disparity between the growth of their populations and of food production. In the first six years of this decade 56 countries recorded a negative per capita growth rate, which is 10 countries more than in the previous decade.
The self-sufficiency of the developing countries in general, and of their grain production in particular, is further decreasing with the exception of the two most populated countries of Asia.
The Guidelines also stressed the need for developed countries to refrain from discrimination against agricultural imports from the developing countries, but this request has not been fulfilled. The growing protectionism of the developed countries is, directly and indirectly, increasingly threatening the exports of the developing countries. The stability of the international market has not been achieved.
The international economic crisis may have far-reaching negative consequences on agricultural development in many developing countries during the forthcoming decade, which will unavoidably lead to negative social trends.
Development assistance in general, including agricultural assistance to the developing countries, has decreased in recent years. In 1985 it fell 30 percent short of the already low target, which points to the fact that the terms of assistance have deteriorated both in their technical and : political aspects. Moreover, the data we have before us are incomplete since they do not include the already massive, and still increasing, net transfers from the South to the North.
However, in spite of this bleak picture, some promising initiatives have announced positive development, at least in the agricultural trade. Liberalization in agricultural trade, however, will certainly require a long period of negotiation. Therefore, my delegation supports the FAO proposal that the Report in full form be submitted in the future every four years.
Francisco ZAMARRIEGO CRESPO (España): Agradecemos y felicitamos a la Secretaría por la buena preparación del Informe, según manifestó el Jefe de la delegación española en el debate general.
Las políticas excesivamente proteccionistas practicadas en relación con los mercados agrarios, la sobreproducción relativa y la realización de los excedentes resultantes, tienden a envilecer las relaciones económicas internacionales, pueden provocar la aparición de guerras comerciales y distorsionan la asignación de recursos a escala mundial, haciendo posible el juego de la ventaja comparativa. La consecuencia última es, inevitablemente, un reforzamiento de la propensión al aislacionismo y la búsqueda utópica de imposibles soluciones nacionales en demérito de la cooperación colectiva.
En el documento que nos ha entregado la Secretaría sobre el Reajuste Agrícola Internacional, se dice, abundando en lo anterior, que la baja de los precios de los productos básicos acompañada de un proteccionismo creciente y de un aumento de la deuda externa, ha multiplicado considerablemente las dificultades que experimentan los países en desarrollo para la financiación de las importaciones indispensables de alimentos o de insumes para su desarrollo agrícola.
Es pues necesario dar un enérgico golpe de timón y proceder a una drástica disminución del proteccionismo imperante. El panorama general que existe y que se refleja en este documento es realista, y por ende, con tintes pesimistas.
Nuestra delegación estima que, no obstante, existen esperanzadoras expectativas ante la actual Ronda Uruguay del GATT, en lo que respecta a la posible liberalización del comercio. Hace referencia el Informe, en su párrafo 120, a la entrada de España y Portugal en la Comunidad Económica Europea como un acontecimiento importante en el comercio internacional. Queremos destacar que, en ese marco, defendemos una política activa a favor de una regulación lo más racional posible de los mercados agrarios, en busca de la supresión de intervenciones y protecciones innecesarias y que acaben con las subvenciones a la producción con el fin de la producción en sí.
Dentro de la orientación número 3 del Informe, queremos referirnos a la investigación. Es preciso apoyar e impulsar la investigación, tanto la que se realiza en los Centros Internacionales como en los Servicios Nacionales de los países. Aunque en los últimos años, el grado de prioridad concedido a las inversiones en materia de investigación agraria ha aumentado, quedan aún grandes posibilidades de incrementarlas eficazmente.
No se trata solamente de aumentar los recursos dedicados a la Investigación Agraria sino de aumentar la eficacia de los actualmente disponibles, lo cual puede lograrse mejorando la cooperación y la coordinación entre los Organismos y Centros Internacionales, gubernamentales y no gubernamentales, en lo cual estimamos que la FAO debe intensificar sus esfuerzos.
Con respecto a la propuesta formulada de hacer los informes sobre la situación agrícola internacional con periodicidad cuatrienal, creemos es un margen de tiempo apropiado para poder hacer un mejor estudio de tendencias, y por ello, nos sumamos a esta propuesta.
Nguen SRISURUKSA (Thailand): This is a very important subject, although to some extent it is a duplication of other items, as other speakers have pointed out. I agree that the food and agricultural situation in many parts of the world, relevant to International Agricultural Adjustment, has changed only slowly from one country to another, and from region to region, depending upon many factors. The most important factor is the political goodwill and the willingness of the countries themselves.
Thailand is one of the developing countries to follow up the agricultural adjustment, taking into account the changing comparative advantage and the changing international economic order. We believe that, as with other aspects of agricultural policy, ti'me is an important factor. The longer we wait to increase food and agricultural production and the income of poor farmers, the more obstacles there will be and the more difficult it will be to remove them.
In this connection, allow me to highlight our agricultural adjustment along the guidelines laid out in the document. Agriculture remains the dominant sector of Thai economy, accounting for 17 percent of GDP, 58 percent of export earnings and 61 percent of employment in 1986. Crop production is the most important agricultural component, accounting for 68 percent of agricultural GDP, followed by livestock 15 percent, fisheries 10 percent, and forestry 7 percent.
From 1961 to 1976, the Thai economy experienced a relatively high rate of growth. The annual agricultural growth rate at 1972 constant price averaged 5 percent from 1961 to 1976, and 3 percent from 1977 to 1986. In contrast, from mid-1976 until early 1986 the agricultural growth rate progressively declined, primarily caused by declining world market prices.
Agricultural growth has been accompanied by structural change due to an increase in the relative importance of several principal crops, namely cassava, maize, sugar-cane and rubber, together with increases in several minor crops such as sorghum, cotton, soybean, mungbean and pineapple. Agricultural production increased because of expansion of agricultural land, government-built irrigation facilities, construction of a comprehensive road network providing ease of access to market, private sector-provided credit inputs, mechanization and market services, and also Thai farmers' response to competitive pricing of various commodities.
Fisheries development was also seriously affected by the depletion of fish resources and the impact of the Law of the Sea, Exclusive Economic Zone, enforced by neighbouring countries. On the other hand, commercial aquacultural production was stimulated by rising prices.
It is clear that agricultural production comprises not only a large share of the GDP but also it absorbs most of the rural population which in our country was 64 percent of total population in 1986. The recent growth and diversification of agricultural production has made a marked contribution towards impoving the level of living of the rural population. Official statistics show that from 1976 to 1986 the percentage of poor families had dropped from 57 percent to 30 percent. This growth, however, has not been homogeneous throughout the country as per capita income in agriculture is less by six times that of the non-agricultural from 1961 to 1986. This means that past development plans benefited primarily some groups of people and did not reduce income disparties among classes and regions.
The evidence shows that marketing is considered a part of production because it is concerned with the production of time, place, form and procession utility. In other words, it is devoted most particularly to the production of services and thus adds value to farm products. In fact, however the role of marketing in producing services is not only of more importance to farmers than to the marketing operator but also stimulates demand for farm products. Therefore, agricultural production development should be followed by marketing technology development. If this is not so, farmers may not take full advantage of increased production. In this connection, it is necessary to mention that the market for farm produce in Thailand is mainly controlled by the private sector. The Thai government has always intervened to a certain extent when necessary, because of the large number of small-scale farmers, wide price and profit fluctuations, occasional disorderly marketing, as well as the poor bargaining power of the farmers. Regarding the poor bargaining power, the small farmer is the weakest link in the production - marketing chain. In this respect, the absence of any significant government support would become evident in terms of price paid by traders which would be below remunerative levels, especially in times of crisis.
Re cognizing the constraints and potential identified in the previous section, agricultural development policy in earlier development plans in Thailand emphasized the fundamental neccessity for infrastructure development. Subsequent development plans placed due importance on employment creation, incomedistribution, rural development, commodity diversification, promotion of exports, export-oriented industries, and expansion of agricultural and industrial production together. Through this agricultural development process, Thailand has sustained economic growth and has been successful in expanding production in nearly every sector pf the economy.
Let me now turn to our development in 1986 and 1987. GDP in 1986 increased by 3.8 percent and is estimated to be 5.3 percent in 1987 mainly because of the good performance of the non-agricultural sector.
The GDP in the agricultural sector in 1986 went down by -0.6 percent while in 1987 it is estimated to decrease by -1.1 percent due to a continued decline in prices of some agricultural commodities and unfaVourabíé climatic conditions. In this connection, GDP in crop and forestry decreased by -0.9 percent and 4.6 percent respectively, not only because of lower prices and unfavourable weather but also decreased logging of closed forest, mainly for security reasons. In the mean time, GDP in livestock and fishery output increased minimally by 1.1 percent and 0.9 percent respectively.
Although the GDP in the agricultural sector in 1986 decreased slightly, the GDP in 1987 is expected to decline further at -1.1 percent due mainly to a decrease in crop production caused by insufficient early rainfall. On the other hand, livestock, fishery and forestry outputs are expected to grow by 3.6 percent, 0.3 percent and 1.5 percent respectively in 1987, due mainly to an increase in swine and broiler outputs, increased freshwater fish catches and increased logging activity in re-opened reserved forests.
As mentioned earlier, many factors are considered to have had a negative impact on the growth rate of the agricultural sector. The following are key problems facing the Thai economy at the present time:
- agricultural production structure
- low prices and competition in world markets and trade barriers
- low productivity coupled with high cost of production, and
- low quality of products
Thai farmers' income is mainly derived from traditional crops, namely rice, maize, cassava and rubber. At the same time, they face high risks from climatic variations, pests and diseases, price fluctuations, shifts in market demand, etc. Thus, farm incomes are relatively low and unstable. In addition, oversupply, low prices and more competition in the world market as well as intensive and growing protectionism and subsidies by the developed world have resulted in slow growth for agricultural production and trade of Thailand. As a consequence, low farm income and rural poverty have become worse among the poorest farmers. Moreover, farmers are confronted with problems of low yields and low quality products coupled with high cost of commodity production because of high prices of inputs, high interest rates on loans, improper farming practices, depletion of soil and water resources and insufficient development of appropriate technology. It is obvious that some products - namely maize, beans, frozen seafood, fresh fruits and vegetables - are of low quality due to. problems of aflatoxin, endrin, biotosins, insects and pests, as well as improper packaging and handling. These are still obstacles to increased volume and value of Thai agricultural exports that must be overcome if we are to compete in world markets.
I would like to say that under existing financial constraints and the ever-changing international economic environment, future directions for Thai agricultural development seem to indicate the promotion of the production of: a) Import - substitution commodities. These are cotton, soy-bean, milk and dairy products, b) Commodities with potential for export. These are fresh and canned vegetables and fruits, frozen chicken, frozen prawns, shrimps and lobsters, c) Agro-industrial products. These are processed foods, gasohol and pulp and paper products, and d) Diversification of agricultural production. These are some of the production mentioned in a), b), c) and d) and spices and cattle, with potential for meat and black pepper.
If the above commodities programme can be implemented, it is expected that economic growth rate, on average, will increase by 5.1 percent and the agricultural sector will increase by 3 percent in 1991 as well.
To avoid duplication with other items my delegation agrees that the proposal in para. 6 should change to every four years.
Jae Ok LEE (Korea, Republic of): I would like to compliment the Secretariat on the detailed and comprehensive report which suggests 12 separate Guidelines on International Agricultural Adjustment.
On behalf of the Korean Government, I should like briefly to comment on the Guidelines and to introduce what my Government has done for agricultural adjustment in Korea.
Firstly, in connection with Guideline 4, I also think that the development in human resources and the encouragement of full and effective participation of rural people in decision-making through promotion of rural organizations is very important for the long-term rural and agricultural development. In this context, my Government has provided active future farmers with financial support and technical assistance since the first Five-Year Economic Development Plan in 1962. At present, the number of young farmers who hopefully will develop the rural sector is 40,000, one in each village. These young farmers, by transferring their knowledge and expertise to their neighbours and by actively participating in rural workers' associations and cooperatives, carry out the role of leading Korean agriculture and rural development. We constantly monitor this project to ensure maximum utilization of the most up-to-date technology.
Secondly, in connection with Guideline 5, it is also our opinion that food production and nutrition policies should be integrated for the improvement of food consumption patterns and of food self-sufficiency. In this setting, my government has been implementing the studies on food consumption trends and making food balance sheets monthly and annually.
Thirdly, it is our point of view that agricultural policies in the developed countries should be changed, not only for the reduction in their domestic budgetary costs of agricultural support policies but also for the significant improvement of the international trading environment for agricultural products.
Despite a number of recent attempts to moderate increases in agricultural production and surpluses of a number of basic food and feed commodities, agricultural export markets are still intensively competitive, with the help of export subsidy programmes.
As one of the major food and feed importing countries, the Korean Government fully agrees with the view that international trade flows must be determined by the principle of comparative advantage so as to protect consumers as well as producers and to maximize national welfare of each individual country.
However, in the process of rapid economic growth and import liberalization during the last two decades, diverging income disparity between rural and urban sectors, and thus the huge migration of farmers into large cities, has brought the problems of traffic congestion, housing and pollution in large cities, as well as unemployment in rural areas, all of which are now considered to be obstacles to overall economic growth.
Accordingly, import liberalization policies must be implemented at a slower speed for the prevention of negative impacts on the national economy, especially on agricultural industry in newly industrialized countries.
Sra. Doña Grafila SOTO CARRERO (Cuba): La delegación de Cuba agradece a la Secretaría la presentación
de este sexto informe sobre el reajuste agrícola internacional. En especial saludamos y agradecemos al Profesor Islam por la completa presentación del mismo, mediante la cual hizo gala, una vez más, de su alta competencia técnica.
Teniendo en cuenta que mi delegación coincide con algunos aspectos planteados por otras delegaciones, en especial Brasil, México y Colombia, nos referimos a aquellos puntos que son de gran interés para mi país.
En términos generales, consideramos que algunas de estas directrices son algo obsoletas puesto que han pasado muchos anos desde que fueron aprobadas por los gobiernos, y muchos más desde que fueron concebidas, algunas en 1974 durante la Conferencia Mundial de la Alimentación. Coincidimos con la delegación de Colombia en que deben actualizarse a la luz de los acontecimientos desarrollados en el ámbito internacional.
Referente a la orientación 1. En el párrafo 22 se plantea que la producción bajó realmente en América Latina. Efectivamente, los países de nuestra región de América Latina y el Caribe enfrentan un período de dificultades sin precedentes. En ninguna otra etapa de su historia han experimentado las economías latinoamericanas y caribeñas mayores desajustes, y las perspectivas que se presentan son desalentadoras.
Consideramos necesario reiterar lo ya expresado por nuestra delegación y por otras: el hecho de que la deuda externa se ha convertido en uno de los más graves obstáculos al desarrollo regional de América Latina y el Caribe. El alto costo de su servicio y la pérdida de acceso a los mercados internacionales de capital, han transformado nuestra región en exportadora neta de recursos financieros. A nuestro entender ésta es una situación insostenible, pues, de mantenerse, prevalecerán las condiciones recesivas y continuarán precarias las posibilidades de recuperación de nuestras economías.
El párrafo 28 plantea que ha habido un ligero avance en los objetivos de reducir los recientes desequilibrios en la producción mundial. Sin embargo, señor Presidente, la situación de la alimentación en el mundo sigue caracterizándose por las tensiones y distorsiones ya expresadas por la mayoría de las delegaciones en esta Conferencia y en otros foros internacionales. Como se ha planteado en esta propia Comisión, continúa la miseria en medio de la abundancia.
Referente a la orientación 2. La delegación de Cuba apoya el párrafo 21 del documento y considera que se mantiene vigente la necesidad de continuar aumentando la corriente total de recursos financieros y de otro tipo hacia el sector de la alimentación y de la agricultura de los países en desarrollo.
En tal sentido, consideramos que, entre otras medidas, si el uso de una parte sustancial de lo que se derrocha en armamentos fuese dedicado al desarrollo, surtiría un efecto altamente positivo en las economías de todos los estados, en especial en las de los países en desarrollo; asimismo, se reducirían las tensiones existentes y se abrirían las perspectivas de un entendimiento racional sobre nuevas bases.
Referente a la orientación 4. La delegación de Cuba, considera que en algunos países se han dado pasos de avances fundamentales en la participación de la población rural en la adopción de decisiones y en la aplicación y evaluación del proceso de reforma agraria y desarrollo rural, pero todavía queda mucho por hacer, en la mayoría de los países, por la plena integración de la mujer en el desarrollo económico y social. Por consiguiente, mi delegación considera totalmente vigentes las directrices planteadas en la orientación 4. Debo señalar que en mi país la mujer tiene, en todos los campos, las mismas oportunidades que el hombre.
En lo que se refiere al párrafo 79, quisiera aclarar que en Cuba la totalidad de la población, incluyendo la que reside en las más remotas zonas rurales, tiene garantizados todos los servicios de salud totalmente gratuitos. Asimismo mi país, con un alto sentido de solidaridad, presta servicios médicos, también gratuitamente, a otros países menos adelantados en este campo. Esta ayuda solidaria se presta en Asia, Africa y América Latina. También hemos ayudado a otros países de América Latina y Africa en sus tareas de alfabetización y enseñanza.
Referente a la orientación 7. La delegación de Cuba coincide con las declaraciones de otras delegaciones sobre la importancia de la Ronda de Uruguay; sin embargo, consideramos que falta mucho por hacer en favor del término de imposición de barreras de todo tipo que entorpecen el comercio de los productos agrícolas provenientes de los países en desarrollo. Esperamos que se cumplimenten los planteamientos de los párrafos 111, 112, y 113.
Referente a la orientación 8. La delgación de mi país considera que no ha existido la voluntad política necesaria por algunos países a fin de que se logre una mayor estabilidad en los mercados mundiales de productos agrícolas. Refiriéndonos, en especial, al párrafo 145, esperamos que progresen las conversaciones a fin de que se logre, lo más pronto posible, un nuevo convenio internacional del azúcar con cláusulas económicas, para lo cual mi país hace ingentes esfuerzos.
Referente a la orientación 9. Consideramos que el cumplimiento de la misma es de gran importancia para los países en desarrollo y, si bien no se han experimentado muchos adelantos en el comercio entre estos países, consideramos que se debe en gran medida a una reacción de la situación económica mundial mas bien que a políticas nacionales encaminadas a entorpecer el comercio. Este aspecto se plantea muy claramente en el párrafo 157.
Finalmente, quisiera referirme a la orientación 10. La delegación de Cuba siempre ha apoyado las medidas encaminadas a garantizar la seguridad alimentaria mundial. Sin embargo, consideramos que algunas metas para lograrlas, como por ejemplo la Reserva Alimentaria Internacional de Emergencia, son obsoletas. A nuestro entender, esa meta debe actualizarse de acuerdo con las necesidades actuales y apoyamos que la misma se canalice mayoritariamente por la vía multilateral, considerando que el Programa Mundial de Alimentos ha jugado un excelente papel en este sentido.
La delegación de Cuba, al igual que otras delegaciones, reitera su condena al uso de los alimentos como arma de presión política. Desafortunadamente, algunos países somos víctimas de la aplicación de medidas económicas coercitivas, como la aplicación del embargo y del bloqueo económico, la congelación de fondos, la suspensión de préstamos y créditos y el entorpecimiento y el boicot a la obtención de financiamiento internacional con fines políticos.
Para terminar, la delegación de Cuba quiere expresar que considera que, teniendo en cuenta la complejidad de este informe y las coordinaciones que es necesario hacer con los países a fin de conocer sus esfuerzos y acciones encaminados a cumplimentar las orientaciones, sería más conveniente hacer este estudio cada cuatro años. Por consiguiente aprobamos la propuesta de la Secretaría en este sentido.
Omoefe James OYAIDE (Nigeria): I wish first of all to congratulate the Secretariat for this report which our delegation finds very comprehensive and which was ably presented by Professor Islam. Our delegation agrees with many of the earlier speakers that the report represents a valid analysis of the trend in the implementation of the guidelines. Nigeria has made tremendous efforts in the last years to implement the guidelines. The greatest advances have been made in the past two years in implementing the guidelines relating to effective participation of the rural people in agricultural and rural development, massive development of rural infrastructures and economic and social measures to achieve a more equitable distribution of income.
In the past year, Nigeria has embarked on a programme of structural adjustment as a means of stimulating sustained economic growth and also to cope with growing external debts. In implementing the SAP programme, Nigeria has witnessed encouraging responses in the agricultural sector which have potential for broadening the economic base. It is becoming increasingly obvious, however, that the benefits of the rather painful programme of structural adjustment cannot be fully realized without free access of agricultural products to the markets of the developed world.
My delegation would like to congratulate the delegate of Australia on his brilliant intervention with which we agree completely. The effects of excessive agricultural protectionism by the United States of America, Japan and the EEC countries in particular and the increasing government price support for a growing number of agricultural products has the effect of depressing economic growth in the developing and agriculturally dependent countries.
While Nigeria shares the optimism which the inclusion of agricultural products in the new round of GATT negotiations has generated among developing countries, we would like to emphasize the need to move away from mere debates on these vital issues to concrete action. The breaking of the agricultural trade barriers and price subsidies must be effected without further delay.
In this regard, my delegation welcomes the reported move by the United States of America to reduce export subsidies on agricultural products and break down agricultural trade barriers, even though we believe also that the period of ten years mentioned by the delegate of the United States is rather on the long side. We hope that the move is not merely cosmetic but a genuine effort to eliminate agricultural protectionism.
My delegation believes that the issue of international agricultural adjustment is too important to await a four-year review. Accordingly, we would like to agree with other delegations who support a continuation of the twoi-yearly reviews. We would like also to suggest that this subject should remain on the agenda for further discussion in subsequent meetings of this Conference.
Finally, my delegation wishes to take this opportunity to appeal to food donor countries and agencies to adopt an approach which will permit the purchase of traditional food staples of recipient countries for their use instead of introducing new crops and changing the food habits of the people. Such staples should be purchased from regional sources, not only to reduce transportation costs but also to stimulate agricultural production in those regions and promote intra-regiònal trade in agricultural products.
Per Harald GRUE (Norway): My delegation would first like to congratulate the Secretariat on this comprehensive document prepared for the Conference. We also appreciated Dr Nurul Islam's introductory statement from his position now as a special Advisor.
As I have already said, my delegation found document C 87/21 was a comprehensive one. Our ensuing remarks should therefore not be taken as criticisms of this particular document. However, our feeling is that much of what is contained in document C 87/21 we can also read in papers reporting upon the State of Food and Agriculture and in the Progress Report on the WCARRD programme. This duplication of reporting is also reflected upon in paragraph 3.
Against this background the Secretariat should, in the opinion of my delegation, try to minimize duplication of information and discussions in different documents. We can therefore also go along with the proposal that the frequency of reporting upon agricultural adjustment should be changed to every four years.
Looking now more closely at the document before us, we find that there is a reasonable reporting on strategy formulation according to the different guidelines. We also find reporting on whether or not there has been progress in putting agreed guidelines into effect. To some extent we may also find reports on progress in relation to plans and targets.
What my delegation feels are lacking, however, are the coneclusions which can be reached from this reporting. For example, is it possible to measure any connection between whether or not the actual guidelines are put into effect on the one hand and agricultural development on the other? Are countries with rapid increase in food production per capita characterized by general adoption of guidelines similar to FAO's, and countries with slow increase or a decrease in per capita food production characterized by not putting such guidelines into effect? In other words, is it possible to report upon and draw conclusions on the relevance of the FAO adopted guidelines in relation to agricultural development?
My delegation therefore looks forward to seeing a less descriptive and a more analytical Seventh Progress Report on International Agricultural Adjustment.
Yiadom K. ATTA-KOHADU (Ghana): On behalf of my delegation, I should like to thank the Secretariat for their Sixth Progress Report on International Adjustment, and also to express our gratitude to. Professor Islam, not only for his presentation which was eloquently given, but for his immense contribution to the development of African agriculture. We are happy to know that Professor Islam is still maintaining a link with FAO by being a Special Advisor to the Director-General. I hope he will continue to function in this capacity and render more useful service to Africa until the good Lord decides to withdraw him for higher services above.
It can be observed that in an attempt to implement the guidelines given in document C 87/21 a number of countries have initiated programmes to help small farmers, and there has been visible progress in most African countries. However, it cannot be said that these programmes have been adequate either in their scale or effectiveness. The difficulties being encountered have been comprehensively treated by previous speakers at this Conference. Of the difficulties being expressed, none are as devastating as: developments in external economic environment; induced inflation; crushing external debts and debt servicing obligations; protectionism; and falling primary commodity prices. I need not discuss all of them in detail. They are obvious constraints which we have to remove. We should all work together to go beyond mere rhetoric and take positive action to have them removed in the interests of global food security.
My intervention will centen around Guidelines 1,2,3,4, and 12, since they seem to be interrelated.
It is significant to note that African countries have adopted far-reaching reform measures expected of them to restructure their economies. The 21st Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of States and Governments of the OAU meeting in July 1985 in Addis Ababa, in accepting APPER, spelt out clearly what reforms need to be put in place. African governments were further urged to devote 20 to 25 percent of total public investment to the agricultural sector alone. Such investment is aimed at assisting in resuscitating the agricultural sector through improved action-orientated research, construction of dams for water harvesting, and irrigation facilities, and greater assistance to smallholders and women in the form of technical assistance, credit and essential inputs. I am happy to observe that African governments have taken up these challenges.
However, sustained agricultural growth in the medium and long-term would require continued price incentives and additional resources to overcome existing constraints, particularly the weak research base, extension and research linkage, and continued ineffectiveness in input procurement and distribution.
Guidelines 2 and 3 particularly call for increased infusion of aid for the production of food, especially by smallholders. For them, there has been a willingness of the international community to assist with solutions that tend to be hydra-headed and sometimes diffuse, thus creating a conglomeration of micro projects and crash programmes. These shortcomings are as much the responsibility of donor agencies as they are of African countries. More often than not aid agencies have resorted to micro projects with no coordination whatsoever, and they forget that the implementation of these projects also has macro-economic consequences. It is our contention that lack of development plans or food strategy programmes share some of the blame.
My delegation would therefore like to stress the importance of putting in place food strategy programmes and assisting nationals to develop the capacity and techniques of formulating and implementing them In so doing, food strategies will become the integrating focus for directing our aid programmes.
In this connection, I would like to stress the importance of food led growth rather than export led growth. Also, I would like to put at the back burner the contentious issue of whether we should go in for self-reliance programmes or self-sufficiency, for the mere fact that we have agreed to accept or to implement reforms assumes that we are trying to find market solutions to our problems which automatically means that you go in for crops which have comparative advantage and avoid crops which really have a comparative disadvantage.
My delegation would like to re-emphasize the importance of the four "i's", especially the infrastructure component of them. Infrastructure for roads, storage and processing would help avoid post-harvest losses and increase food security. Improved access roads are by far the most important single factor. Better roads ensure national market integration targeted at three reform areas, namely, the urban food distribution system; the rural markets for assembly of agricultural projects; and the input distribution systems. Nutritional and food security considerations would therefore call for a comprehensive and coordinated market reform programme to stimulate effective interaction between rural and urban areas. These kinds of market reform measures are worth considering, for they would promote efficient use of resources, within the agricultural production and distribution system which would ultimately be passed on to consumers in the form of lower food prices.
Guideline 4 appropriately belongs to the WCARRD agenda item. However, a brief comment on it here is in order.
In Ghana women are fairly well integrated into the food production and distribution system. Most of the food market activities, that is processing, storage, transportation and distribution, are carried out by women. However, women in the food industry face particular problems. Women who operate without a man must have labour for land clearing and tree felling. Female farm owners have been observed to have smaller plots than their male counterparts, and women have generally received little extension advice and disproportionally little credit.
The deterioration in social and economic infrastructure has, among other things, included longer distances to water and higher incidence of water-borne diseases. The deteriorating economic conditions have also created great difficulties for women in meeting their cash requirements, for example, for clothing their children, purchasing household items and production and processing inputs. It is against this background that the ongoing structural adjustment programme must be judged.
As far as Guideline 4 is concerned we see clearly that action is most urgently needed in the institutional areas. Effective assistance to the rural farmers requires a shift in operational responsibility of the ministries responsible for agriculture from headquarters to the regions and districts. Such operational decentralization has to be complemented by establishing linkages with decision-making entities in the rural areas and the NGOs which are best suited for mobilizing people for participatory development, especially women and the rural youth. These reforms are currently taking place in Ghana.
Regarding the periodicity for the submission of the Report on International Agricultural Adjustment, it is the contention of my delegation that for such an important issue we should not settle on a four-year cycle. It has been said that four years is too long and we all know that in the long run we are all dead, so we don't want to die fast so that we can really identify our programmes and deal with them adequately.
Lastly, it seemed to us that there is a need to update the guidelines to include, for instance, the social costs of the ongoing structural adjustments in Africa and also the implications of the reform of state-owned organizations or state-owned enterprises which is taking place in African countries now.
Robert J. PRINS (Canada): The Canadian delegation would like to extend its appreciation to the Secretariat for the preparation of the document before us. We also appreciate the concise introduction to this item given by Dr Islam. We are very pleased to see Dr Islam back here at the Conference. We should like to thank him for the many years of competent service he has provided FAO member countries and would like to wish him much success in his new endeavours.
Structural changes in the farm sector have taken place and will continue to take place, with rural communities being subjected to substantial adjustment pressures.
These changes have come about as a response principally to supportive policies and ongoing technological change. International agricultural adjustment, of course, has long been a discussion item at FAO, for which we are grateful. But the discussion of this item at this Conference is particularly significant because on the one hand there is serious disarray and tension in agricultural trade while on the other hand initiatives are underway at the GATT as a result of the launching of the Uruguay Round.
As has been recognized elsewhere, the economic costs of the current situation are not insignificant for farmers, the agricultural sector and for national economies. Canada believes that agricultural trade reform is critical for the future of agricultural adjustment and for agricultural development in general.
Trade barriers and trade distorting agricultural policies are severely hurting developed and developing countries alike. Artifically depressed world prices are cutting into exporters' revenues and are reducing their ability to invest. At the same time farmers see their income shrink and cannot compete with subsidized imports.
Canada has been working to devise solutions to this crisis with other members of the Cairns Group of agricultural exporters, a group which includes the majority of developing countries. Canada appreciates that the impact of trade distortions has been particularly severe for them and that they would benefit from a more secure and predictable trade environment.
The Uruguay Round of the GATT multilateral trade negotiations represents an exceptional opportunity to achieve the kind of long-term fundamental reform needed in agricultural trade. All countries should support the growing consensus in favour of agricultural policy reform and the reversal of protectionist trends,, and should encourage early progress in the Uruguay Round negotiations in agriculture. The FAO Conference should lend its full support to the Uruguay Round negotiations.
Canada has tabled its negotiating proposal at the GATT which seeks the elimination of all trade distorting subsidies and access barriers over a period to be negotiated, and a major reduction of them over the short term. Or proposal is in line with the objectives for freer trade as expressed in Guideline 7 of the Progress Report, C 87/21, before this Commission.
The emerging international principles and approaches for a more efficient and effective global marketplace for agricultural products are likely to lead to the need for much greater discipline in the use of domestic policies that have a damaging impact on trade and efficient producers. In view of these developments Canada is reviewing in detail the structure of its farm sector. The changes that are currently impacting on the sector and the consequences of alternative structural scenarios in the short run and in the long run. The current pressures on Canadian farmers, on the rural community and on rural businesses are unprecedented. It is expected that in the years ahead the numbers of our farmers leaving agriculture could well increase, particularly among those who are in the middle of their working lives. Such adjustments will result in new demands on our Government at a time when the Government is also attempting to reduce its budgetary deficit. Clearly our agri-food sector faces major challenges.
In conclusion, we would like to draw attention to the positive role FAO has been playing in the global discussions on agricultural trade and policy reform. While the GATT is the forum where actual trade negotiations are taking place, we would like to acknowledge the supportive role of FAO in assisting the GATT, the OECD, and in particular individual countries with appropriate background and other technical information, and in providing a forum for constructive discussion. We would like to encourage FAO to continue to carry out that good work. We are pleased with the supportive role that FAO has been able to play.
Finally, we would like to support the proposal that programme reports be issued less frequently to reduce duplication.
Ernst ZIMMERL (Austria) (original language German): I wish to thank and commend the Secretariat for preparation of the excellent document C 87/21, and also to commend Dr Islam for his excellent introduction.
We have already pointed out that we are in favour of four-yearly reporting on agricultural adjustment. Austria has repeatedly pointed out that in order to avoid duplication, any overlapping of work with other international organizations should be avoided. With respect to the publication on the State of Food and Agriculture we are in favour of retaining the annual publication.
With respect to paragraph 35 onwards it has been established that the OECD work on PSE and CSE values is particularly important and significant to our country. Cooperation of FAO with the OECD bodies is certainly advisable.
With regard to paragraph 48, it has been pointed out that Austria has supported the CGIAR work and has allocated US dollars 1 million per annum by way of contribution.
With regard to national pricing and income policies, we refer to OECD work particularly, the new negotiations of the ministerial mandate and also the ministerial meetings of the OECD last May.
The work done by the GATT in the Uruguay Round is being given particular attention on the part of Austria. With regard to production reduction measures to be taken by Austria, I would like to point out that in order to reduce cereal surpluses we have now stopped producing cereals over a consider-able area and we will continue such action.
Furthermore, we support the policies that aim at reducing subsidization gradually as it would provide better income for other countries that are disadvantaged. In the future we should strive towards bringing about a socially orientated and environmentally friendly agricultural policy in order that the international agrarian situation can be brought to a better level.
Production of renewable forms of energy and raw material cannot only contribute to ensuring income for farmers but also can help to offset the destruction of certain areas and of forests. The question is whether the agrarian industry with all of its burdens and all of the -dangers should be moved forward or whether we are going to find a healthy way to have a structured landscape and sufficient income for farmers in the future. FAO as an Organization should particularly move along those lines in the future.
In the Plenary the head of the Austrian delegation has stated that Austria in the future will further contribute to food emergency aid. I think we do this through the World Food Programme.
Furthermore, Austria welcomes the triangular transactions mentioned in paragraph 195 with regard to the purchase of food surpluses in developed countries in order to help to supply food-deficit African countries, which is already being done there with great success. The advantages listed in paragraph 195 are certainly supported by Austria.
A. SZABO (Czechoslovakia): On behalf of the Czechoslovak delegation let me add some comments concerning document C 87/21, the Sixth Progress Report on International Agricultural Adjustment.
We agree fully with the suggestion that the reports on progress in this field should be issued in four-year intervals since we feel that such intervals are fully sufficient. The essence of what is stated in this report is also contained in other forms regarding the status and. prospects of world agriculture and food production, the World Food Report, in various reports of the Commodity Committee, and in the statistical surveys issued by the FAO. Because of this the present report is fully sufficient for giving a general picture of the progress of work in this field. In addition, the four-year interval between the reports will also provide some financial savings for the FAO, an important fact at present because of the pressures to reduce the cost items in our Organization's budget. Hence, such a decision is beneficial and savings can be realized.
Now let me present some comments on the contents of the document itself, the major part of which rightly deals with the problems of the developing countries and with efforts to improve the nutrition of their population, the provision of food, and their general economic situation, as can be seen from the text of the document.
Czechoslovakia is a country with advanced intensive agriculture and with large-capacity processing industries. Nevertheless, we still have problems in agrarian policy and agricultural economics that we try to solve with a view to our final goal, which is to reach a high effectiveness of agricultural production and a generally better quality of final product. These are in essence the main tasks for which we use our planning system, our system of economic tools, the wages and remuneration package and other organizational measures in the system of management of the agro-industrial complex.
I would like briefly to characterize these measures. In present and future stages the Czechoslovak planning and management will pursue a process of integrating the agricultural sector with other sectors of the national economy. Since Czechoslovakia is a country with a centrally planned economy, as our country is referred to in FAO's documents, it should be stressed that our system includes only two obligatory planned items for farms, the production of grain and meat. Otherwise it is entirely left to the farmers to decide what to produce.
This flexible system brings about good results. Last year agricultural production developed fully in accordance with the needs and possibilities of the national economy. Gross agricultural production grew by 0.5 percent in 1986 compared with 1985, and when the 1986 level is compared with the aver age for 1981/85 the increase in gross agricultural production is 4 percent; market production has increased by 1.2 percent. Hence, crops and the output of foodstuffs in Czechoslovakia have stabilized in recent vears.
The successes of Czechoslovakian agriculture are due to a strong material base and in particular to the good work of qualified experts in farm management and research. In this context I would like to comment on Guideline 4 of the document. In the last paragraph it states that in countries where the production and processing of agricultural raw materials fail to reach the desired levels, an improvement can be achieved with the introduction of agricultural cooperatives.
Several times in the past Czechoslovakia has offered, and is still willing to make available to FAO and UNDP programmes a number of highly qualified specialists, agricultural organizers, economists and managers, who would be able to fulfil new tasks for agricultural adjustment in those countries that show interest in such assistance. I would like to add that these specialists have gained ample experience both in FAO field projects and in the framework of bilateral technical assistance.
Mohsen BOUJBEL (Tunisie) (langue originale arabe): Permettez-moi tout d'abord de remercier les conseillers techniques qui ont préparé le rapport 87/21 à l'étude actuellement.
Ma délégation, après avoir pris connaissance de ce document, voudrait avancer quelques remarques à ce propos.
Tout d'abord, nous pensons que les lignes d'orientation pour l'ajustement agricole international mériteraient une modernisation qui prendrait en considération la réalité des politiques appliquées dans nombre de pays en développement, dans le cadre de l'ajustement agricole international.
En second lieu, le rapport à l'étude, en dépit des informations précieuses et nombreuses qu'il contient, se restreint le plus souvent à décrire ce qui s'est réellement produit dans le cadre de l'ajustement agricole international. Il serait donc souhaitable qu'un tel rapport procède davantage à l'analyse de ces réalités. La FAO a un rôle primordial dans ce domaine, celui de procéder à des analyses approfondies au sujet des répercussions que peuvent avoir les politiques agricoles dans certains pays en développement.
Le paragraphe 185 relatif aux ajustements internes des pays en développement et au fait que ces politiques nécessitent un soutien de la part de la communauté internationale, mérite une pleine attention et un examen minutieux afin que nous puissions dégager les rapports étroits entre la con-joncture économique internationale et les situations internes.
En troisième lieu, nous pensons que dans pas mal de pays en développement des politiques agricoles sont actuellement dictées par des conjonctures financières, donc cela crée certaines difficultés dont souffrent tout d'abord les catégories les plus pauvres de la population. Cela se répercute forcément sur le niveau d'alimentation.
Je voudrais donc proposer à la FAO de procéder à des analyses de ce phénomène, en particulier dans le cadre de l'ajustement agricole international.
En conclusion, nous soutenons les rapports sur les suites données aux lignes d'orientation tous les quatre ans. Je vous remercie.
Âdel Helmy EL-SARKI (Egypt) (original language Arabic): Having read this document, my delegation would like to express its complete satisfaction with it. We would also like to thank Dr Nurul Islam for his excellent introduction to the document. We support the suggestions that were put forward by some speakers concerning the need to avoid any duplication between this document and all the others that also deal with the world food situation.
We also look favourably at the progress made in the implementation of the Guidelines for Interna-tional Agricultural Adjustment. We think it would be far more useful to have these reports every four years.
Daniel DANG MEKOULA (Cameroun): La délégation du Cameroun a étudié avec un grand intérêt le document que nous examinons. Ce document présente en thèmes globaux les niveaux de performance comparés du développement des secteurs agricoles et alimentaires tant dans les pays en développement que dans les pays développés. Cette vue d'ensemble complète, comme beaucoup de délégués l'ont dit, le point traitant la situation mondiale de l'alimentation.
Nous souscrivons nous aussi à la proposition du Secrétariat qui tend à porter la périodicité de présentation du rapport sur l'ajustement agricole international de deux ans à quatre ans. Ce déca-lage, à notre sens, devra permettre au Secrétariat de réunir et de mettre à notre disposition des informations plus détaillées dans l'espace et dans le temps, ce qui nous permettra d'apprécier les tendances.
Les douze lignes d'orientation sont pour nous autant d'axes sur lesquels nous devrons greffer les politiques et stratégies du développement agricole.
Mais la stagnation des engagements publics, la diminution de la part de l'aide à des conditions de faveur, renforcées par les crises économiques qui frappent de plein fouet la quasi-totalité de nos pays sont autant de contraintes qui vont fatalement compromettre le processus timidement amorcé dans le secteur de la production alimentaire et agricole dans les pays à faible revenu et à déficit vivrier.
Notre attention a été particulièrement attirée sur la ligne d'orientation nº 2 qui examine le flux des ressources financières et autres allant aux secteurs agricoles et alimentaires dans les pays en développement.
Il ne fait aucun doute que la charge de développer l'agriculture et le secteur rural aux fins d'améliorer les conditions de vie et de nutrition des populations incombe avant tout aux gouverne-ments concernés, notamment dans les pays à faible revenu et à déficit vivrier.
Dans le processus de mobilisation des ressources humaines et matérielles pour le développement agricole, le Gouvernement camerounais attache un grand intérêt au rajeunissement de la population rurale, c'est-à-dire à la lutte contre l'exode rural par la mise en place d'un programme de promotion des exploitations agricoles de moyenne importance désignées sous le sigle des FAMI. Le renforcement et l'encadrement du secteur traditionnel et des activités des centres de formation rurale vont bénéficier plus que par le passé de toute la sollicitude du gouvernement. Il ne fait aucun doute que la réalisation de cetam bitieux programme de relance de l'agriculture repose avant tout sur les efforts du gouvernement et la rationalisation des méthodes d'approche technique des organisations d'intervention en milieu rural.
Nous devons reconnaître que les chances de succès de ce programme dépendent largement du volume des ressources financières qu'il va falloir mobiliser dans le budget national à cette fin, tout en comptant également sur l'assistance technique et financière toujours bienvenue des pays développés et de la communauté internationale.
Mohamed El Bashir MUFARAH (Sudan) (original language Arabic): I should like to thank Dr. Nurul Islam for his presentation of this excellent Report which is so useful and so interesting to read.
Mr Chairman, if you would allow me, I should also like to touch upon certain comments involving the Guidelines. The first of these Guidelines proposes increasing productivity in the third United Nations Development Decade, in order to safeguard an annual rate of growth of at least 4 percent. Of course, those who drafted this Report understood clearly the great difficulty experienced by developing countries in attracting cash. This is a fact that must be taken into account by them, as they must take account of the world food situation. These countries must cut back the protectionism that is a feature of their policy, so as to enable the developing countries for their part to increase aid to production in fact.
Developing countries in Africa, in particular, are not short of natural resources, no more than they are short of a favourable climate or of human resources. It is money that is in short supply. In paragraph 24 of the Report it says that it is very necessary for production to increase in LDC's and to other developing countries of special categories. We need equipment for that in crops, fertili-zers, electricity supplied abundantly and on a regular basis. We also need to adopt a pricing policy which will encourage the private sector and stimulate small farmers to increase their productivity.
Table 1.2 shows the distribution of developing countries according to the rate of growth of their agricultural and per capitafood production. This rate was roughly 5 percent, but, so far as the countries south of the Sahara are concerned, it was minus 5 percent. In other countires it was 3 percent.
Guideline 2 states that agricultural research should be increased at national regional and inter-national levels. If this advice were followed to the letter, we would be very satisfied because we would be able to avoid all duplication and the financing of projects that then start to rival each other. There would be a rationalization in research in many countries which afterwards would be able to exchange relevant information with each other..
This is what we have done with Egypt in so far as integration is concerned. We have also done it with Libya. Our trade with Chad, on our western borders, was perfectly normal before recent events intervened. We were also able to carry out a fair trade with Guinea, Zaire and other countries for as long as it was possible.
In other Guidelines it says that prices should be kept as stable as possible for agricultural commodities. I think that we need to set a floor price for these commodities so as to be able to guarantee some profits for our farmers, and then we can allow supply and demand to operate freely because we need to encourage our farmers and producers, and we do not want them to be discouraged by low prices. In my country we have set a floor price for commodities but there is no ceiling price so far as maize, sesame, groundnuts and rubber are concerned. We have also set a floor price for commodities, and in this way we have created a surplus in maize production in 1985 and 1986. So far as sesame seeds are concerned, we are expecting a bumper crop this year.
Livestock production could not receive its fair share of attention in the report, especially so far as improving livestock production is concerned. The same is true for plant genetic resources. I think that that has been a subject much neglected in the past. That is why we feel that the quality of natural range lands must be improved through irrigation to avoid disorder in grazing, especially in times of drought.
Paragraph 81 following Guideline 4 speaks of the role of women in agricultural production. Here I should like to say that in my country women bear great responsibility, both for producing food and for trading it. Many of them are. heads of their families, and of course they bear total responsibility if their husbands die. They also share responsibility with their husband. As the Koran says, men are responsible in the first place so their responsibility is the greater in the harder tasks. For example, they are responsible for building the houses and cutting down trees. But women share in other responsibilities. Women also benefit from an equal footing under our new constitution.
Mokhtak NAANANI (Maroc): Etant le dernier ou l'avant-dernier à prendre la parole, je tâcherai d'être plus bref.
La délégation marocaine, qui a examiné avec grand intérêt le sixième rapport de la FAO sur l'ajuste-ment agricole international, se réjouit de la clarté de son contenu et voudrait,à cet effet,exprimer ses félicitations au Secrétariat ainsi qu'au Dr. Islam pour la lucidité de son exposé.
Le Maroc s'est lancé depuis 1985 dans la mise en oeuvre d'un programme d'ajustement pour le secteur agricole qui répond tout à fait aux orientations générales de l'ajustement agricole international, et je peux dire que nous commençons d'ores et déjà à cueillir les effets bénéfiques de ce programme. Néanmoins, ma délégation déplore deux faits fondamentaux qui ne peuvent qu'entraver la croissance de notre agriculture, et, d'une manière générale, celle de l'agriculture de l'ensemble des pays en développement. Ces faits sont d'une part le protectionnisme accru des pays développés et ses consé-quences sur nos exportations agricoles, et d'autre part les subventions croissantes qu'accordent les pays développés tant à la production qu'à l'exportation, et qui ont pour effet une concurrence déloyale de nos produits agricoles.
Monsieur le Président, ma délégation observe avec grande satisfaction les résultats positifs décrits dans le document C 87/21 et notamment pour ce qui est des échanges Sud-Sud. Nous souhaitons que cette tendance se confirme dans l'avenir, et pour cela nous lançons un appel à tous les pays membres pour qu'ils oeuvrent pour un respect de l'application des orientations de l'ajustement agricole international.
Enfin, permettez-moi d'apporter l'appui de ma délégation à la proposition consistant à présenter un rapport tous les quatre ans et non plus tous les deux ans.
Jean-Jacques RATEAU (CEE): Je vous remercie de bien vouloir me donner la parole et me permettre ainsi de remercier le Secrétariat pour le document C 87/21 sur l'ajustement agricole international qui nous a été communiqué dernièrement. Les points abordés dans ce document étant également traités dans d'autres documents de la Conférence, il me faudra peut-être revenir sur quelques-uns: des propos traités, notamment à d'autres points de l'ordre du jour de cette commission et je vous prierai de bien vouloir m'en excuser.
En ce qui concerne le paragraphe 6, qui traite du paramètre ESP équivalent de la subvention à la production, la Communauté considère ce paramètre de référence très utile pour apprécier l'importance de ses subventions accordées à la production agricole. Je ferai toutefois remarquer que si l'utili-sation de ce paramètre montre à juste titre l'existence, dans certains pays de subventions parfois excessives, il convient néanmoins de savoir qu'il doit être utilisé avec précaution et que le niveau de ce paramètre dépend de la méthodologie utilisée. C'est ainsi qu'une aide directe aux revenus des agriculteurs non liée au volume de la production agricole et une aide à la production d'un montant égal,ayant par suite des ESP identiques, pourront avoir des effets très différents sur la production.
Par ailleurs, sans mettre en question les chiffres cités par le Secrétariat au paragraphe 36, une étude de l'OCDE en cours d'élaboration pour une période plus récente donne des chiffres, et par suite des rapports, très différents entre les pays membres de l'OCDE en ce qui concerne les ESP.
En ce qui concerne d'autres paragraphes, et plus particulièrement le paragraphe 128, nous pourrions avoir une discussion assez longue sur la notion du concept d'excédents utilisés par le Secrétariat.
En ce qui concerne le paragraphe 137 sur les produits horticoles, je voudrais informer votre commission que, depuis l'élaboration du rapport du Secrétariat, la plupart des pays méditerranéens se sont déterminés dans ce secteur et que les accords survenus ont été publiés au Journal officiel des Communautés européennes.
En ce qui concerne la ligne d'orientation n° 8, je voudrais souligner que la situation difficile que les marchés mondiaux ont connue pendant ces dernières années a mis à rude épreuve les accords internationaux sur les produits. La Communauté considére que l'expérience a confirmé l'utilité de ces accords qui ont permis d'obtenir sur les marchés des informations et des analyses qu'on n'aurait pas pu trouver ailleurs. Il s'est avéré en outre que les accords internationaux assortis des dis-positions économiques ne sont fiables que si l'application des ces derniers tend à modérer l'ampli-tude des fluctuations de prix, sans chercher à maintenir les prix à des niveaux arbitraires.
En ce qui concerne l'accord international sur le sucre, il convient d'actualiser le paragraphe 145, en indiquant que les discussions entre les quatre principaux exportateurs mondiaux du sucre n'ayant pas permis d'aboutir à un nouvel accord international contenant des clauses économiques et que le nouvel accord qui entrera en application le 1er janvier prochain est essentiellement un accord administratif.
Enfin,en ce qui concerne le secteur laitier, il convient de souligner que l'arrangement international du GATT. relatif à ce secteur, dont il est fait mention au paragraphe 47, a eu des effets positifs importants sur le maintien des prix internationaux et des courants d'échange, en dépit des difficultés dont il est fait mention dans ce paragraphe.
Je pourrais bien entendu entreprendre une analyse plus précise du document qui nous a été soumis par le Secrétariat, et corriger ainsi quelques inexactitudes ou compléter les informations. J'estime cependant que ce document est un bon document d'information et de réflexion, tout en souhaitant comme certaines délégations et comme le Secrétariat lui-même l'ont fait, qu'un tel document ne soit soumis que tous les quatre ans à l'examen de la Conférence.
Pour en terminer, permettez-moi de rappeler, comme cela a déjà été présenté au GATT ces dernières semaines, des propositions susceptibles de favoriser les négociations, notamment dans le secteur des produits tropicaux. Ainsi la Communauté a fait et continue à faire dans le cadre du GATT, des propositions susceptibles d'améliorer de façon importante et à court et long terme, les problèmes décrits par le Secrétariat dans son rapport final.
Avram E. GUROFF (United States of America): I apologize for asking for the floor a second time, but I am concerned about references which have been made by a few delegates during the course of the debate to updating and modifying the International Agricultural Adjustment Guidelines. As a veteran of the very time and resource consuming exercise that took place here only four years ago, my delegation would disagree with any outcome of this debate that might mandate another exercise in revision at a time when we are all painfully aware that resources available to FAO will be scarce and there will be an extreme need to be very careful in allocating those resources to the highest priority activities and most productive activities of the Organization.
Nurul ISLAM (Special Adviser to the Director-General): I have very few questions to answer. First, a question has been raised regarding the statement in the document that higher prices in some countries did not lead to higher outputs. It was stated that this tends to de-emphasize the role of price incentive and stimulating growth. But, if one looks carefully at the same paragraph in which this statement occurs, it is stated in paragraph 34 what the likely cause was of such inadequate response to higher prices. This was due to a lack of supplementary technological packages and infrastructure. The importance of non-price factors in price policy, the effectiveness of price policy has been recognized all along. Therefore, I would not think there is any fundamental distinction or disagreement between the delegate from the United Kingdom and the statement in the paragraph. FAO, in its earlier study on pricing policy, has elaborated in great detail the consequences of such price changes on growth and equity on the basis of the experience of a large number of countries. It is now common knowledge, I thought, that in the short run stimulating or raising prices to stimulate output adversely affects the net purchasers of food such as the landless labourer, the urban poor and small farmers who are deficit farmers, in other words net purchasers of food. Whether the stimulating effect on output of price changes in the long run offsets adequately the adverse effects on the net poor purchasers of food depends on the relative strength of the opposed tendencies, one stimulating output and employment, the other depressing the consumption of the poor in the short run.
In the same vein, one can answer the question that additional financial resources without policy reforms cannot effectively contribute to development. There is no disagreement on that either, both are needed. But in many instances in recent years, for example in Africa, significant policy reforms have been undertaken which have not been associated with a substantial increase in resource flows, with the result that the credibility of policy reforms is now suspect.
Does the document emphasize that a structural adjustment does not lay the foundation for future growth? No, it does not. It merely states that in the short run structural adjustments involving drastic curtailment of public and private investment does indeed slow down growth and even have negative results on income growth. Whether in the future, as adjustment measures take effect, growth will be stimulated, will again depend on the mobilization of additional resources from both internal sources and external or stimulating investment.
One delegate recommends that FAO should undertake studies on structural adjustment problems and their consequences. FAO has indeed been engaged in such studies and has been participating in inter-agency meetings on this subject.
The use of self-sufficiency ratios in the document has been questioned but these ratios are given in the document not as objectives of agricultural policy but as indicators or measures of the extent to which domestic production has been able to meet the requirements of food. It is not intended that all countries should strive for food self-sufficiency and the importance of trade and food security and food supplies has been referred to under the guidelines on trade.
Why were environmental issues not discussed in greater detail in the document? Because it is not one of the important elements of the guidelines, it was monitoring the guidelines as they are stated. But in spite of that, paragraph 50 deals with environmental issues in a short paragraph and the State of Food and Agriculture earlier on had detailed discussion on environmental issues on food and agriculture on which a debate was held earlier.
As regards the comments by one delegate that the producer subsidy equivalents quoted in paragraph 36 from the OECD Study are merely issued on the responsibility of the Secretary-General of OECD, it is our understanding that the general report from which the figures in paragraph 36 are quoted was approved for publication by the Council of the OECD, at the ministerial level at their meeting in May 1987. But, of course, the reports on individual countries prepared by the OECD are issued on the authority of the Secretary-General, in contrast to the general report.
Many delegations have mentioned the duplication and repetition between this document and other documents on the State of Food and Agriculture, WCARRD etc. which have been submitted to this Conference. This is indeed true and is precisely one of the reasons why the Secretariat document had suggested that the periodicity of the monitoring report on guidelines should be changed from two to four years. In fact, it is not only this problem of duplication, but also the time lag before adequate information and data are available to monitor many of the guidelines is much larger than the two-year period, the present biennial period during which the report has to be made.
CHAIRMAN: Thank you, Professor Islam, We now come to the end of the discussion on Agenda Item 8, Progress Report on International Agricultural Adjustment, in which 44 country delegates and one observe have participated.
The 12 guidelines adopted by the Conference in 1975 and reiterated in 1983 constitute goals and policy approaches at the national and international levels. The Member Nations have agreed to take these goa and policy approaches into consideration while formulating their own policies. It was in this context that the Conference has been reviewing for the last five sessions, this being the sixth, the progress achieved by the Member Nations in attaining these goals and incorporating these policy approaches into government policies and in their actual implementation.
Though there are in all 12 guidelines, the focus in the discussion was mainly on 10, as Guidelines 3 and 4 relate to the WCARRD Programme of Action which is coming before us as Agenda Item 9, after we complete the discussion on Agenda Item 8.
Of the ten guidelines actually under discussion, only five, namely Guidelines 1,2,7, 8 and 12 seem to have attracted the maximum attention from most of the participants in the discussion. Guideline 1, the 4% growth target in agricultural production for the developing countries, as also Guideline 2 relating to increased resource allocation, were referred to by many of the participants. It was noted that having peaked to 3.8% as against the target of 4%, in the 1980-85 quinquennium, the agri-cultural production growth rates have declined in the last two years. A satisfactory development, however, was that the needs of the agricultural sector have been receiving greater attention than in the past in the developing countries.
By the same token, the need for tackling the serious imbalances and policy disharmonies has also been receiving greater attention in the developed countries. Delegates will have noticed this, particularly when some of the delegates from the Pacific made their forceful and effective interventions this morning.
On Guideline 2, increased resource allocation, as pointed out by Professor Islam in his introductory remarks, the record has been mixed, though in the African countries efforts were made to allocate an increasing share of public expenditure to the agricultural sector. A suggestion has been made from : the floor that a minimum percentage of the GDP should be fixed as the floor level for allocation to the agricultural sector. It may however not be advisable to get into any quantification exercise.
In terms of the attention that they were able to garner from the participants, it must be admitted that Guidelines 5 and 6 which deal with nutritional policies, food consumption and food self-suffic-
iency clearly fall into the category of also-rans. It is really Guideline 7, agricultural trade and protectionism, and Guideline 8, stability of world markets for agricultural products that hogged most of the attention from the delegates who participated in the discussion. The huge economic costs of the protectionist measures are now well documented and have been highlighted in the discussions here, as they were in various other world fora by representatives and political leaders of many a Member Nation.
The increasing conflicts which marked the agricultural trade scene are also quite well known to all the participants. While the inclusion of agriculture in the Uruguay Round of the GATT negotiations -is a major step, we are well aware that much more remains to be done. The prospects for internationa commodity agreements do not look particularly bright, despite the advances made in cocoa, rubber and coffee and also in UNCTAD VII.
Everybody seems to agree that agricultural trade protectionism must be dismantled; similarly there is general agreement that fair and stable prices must be ensured for agricultural commodities. The problem, however, seems to be how exactly these goals ought to be achieved, the time frame over which these should be done and whether all countries indulging in protectionism should act together simultaneously and in unison. Considering the importance which the agricultural lobbies have in these countries, it would be reasonable to expect that the process of agreeing on the exact steps and the time schedule is bound to take some time. One can only hope that the time needed will be short rathe than long.
Guideline 9 advocating greater ECDC and TCDC in food and agriculture engaged the attention of some of the delegations, particularly those from the developing countries.
Guideline 10 on food security and Guideline 11 on food aid attracted only cursory attention from the participants. On Guideline 12 it was clear that targets of external assistance to agriculture were not reached. Neither were they likely to be reached in the future as the consensus seems to be that the flow of aid is tending to level off.
On the point whether reporting on these 12 guidelines should be once in two years or once in four years, almost all the delegations have reacted, but the overwhelming majority felt that we should switch over to a four-year regimen. However, there was a minority viewpoint, voiced forcefully by three or four participants, for a two-yearly review at least of some of the guidelines, particularly in the context of the beginning of the next development decade. A possible compromise could be that three of the guidelines 7,8 and 12, could come up before the 1989 Conference, either as a part of th State of Food and Agriculture or as separate items or sub-items in the Agenda for the Conference.
The Commission will now take up Agenda Item 9 and I shall request my colleague, D. Ismael Diaz Yubero, from Spain to take over from me and conduct the proceedings.
D.Ismael Díaz Yubero, Vice-Chairman of Commission I, took the Chair.
D.Ismael Díaz Yubero, Vice-Président de la Commission I, assume la présidence.
Ocupa la presidencia D. Ismael Díaz Yubero, Vicepresidente de la Comisión I.
PRESIDENTE: Es para rai un honor presidir el debate del nuevo punto del orden del día, el punto 9, que trata sobre el segundo informe acerca de los progresos realizados en la aplicación del Programa de Acción de la Conferencia Mundial de Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural que les va a presentar don Rafael Moreno, Subdirector General ad-interindel Departamento de Política Económica y Social. Este es el segundo informe en el programa de informes de progreso que se preparan cada cuatro años sobre la puesta en marcha del Programa de Acción de la Conferencia Mundial de Reforma Agraria sobre Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural que se celebró en 1979. Tal como lo solicitó la Conferencia de la FAO en 1983, este informe trata también - y yo diría que trata sobre todo y con especial dedica-ción - sobre los progresos realizados respecto a la función y a la actividad de la mujer en el desa-rrollo rural.
El objeto del informe son los cambios en las políticas nacionales, así como los desarrollos y polí-ticas internacionales que afectan a los objetivos, la población beneficiaria y las áreas de acción que entran en el ámbito de la Conferencia Mundial sobre Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural.
Señores delegados,"pasó la palabra a don Rafael Moreno para que les haga la presentación del tema.
Rafael MORENO ROJAS (Subdirector General a.i., Departamento de Política Economica y Social): La
Conferencia Mundial sobre Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural propuso como objectivo específico del desarrollo rural la lucha contra la pobreza. Para lograr unacontinuidad en los esfuerzos realizados en este sentido, el Programa de Acción de dicha Conferencia, pedía a los países que examinaran sus políticas y los progresos realizados en la lucha contra la pobreza e informaran al respecto cada cuatro anos a la Conferencia de la FAO. El primero de estos Informes, como Ud. muy bien dijo, se presentó a la Conferencia en el año 1983. El presente Informe constituye el segundo de esta serie, y está basado en cincuenta informes nacionales más otras fuentes obtenidas en los diversos países y en organismos internacionales. Este informe examina lo ocurrido entre los años 1980 y 1987, pero prestando especial atención al período de 1983-87. No obstante, como es obvio deducir, el documento que examinaremos trata los siguientes cinco temas principales.
Primero, analiza, en términos generales, la evolución de las políticas y estrategias nacionales. Segundo, evalúa los progresos realizados por las naciones en las distintas áreas específicas de acción, señaladas por la Conferencia Mundial sobre Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural. Tercero, tal como se estableció en la Conferencia de 1983, cuando se presentó el primer informe, se presta una especial preocupación a la función de la mujer en el desarrollo rural y agrícola. Cuarto, examina los efectos de las políticas internacionales en relación con el desarrollo rural y la reforma agraria. Y por último, teniendo en cuenta la importancia de los aspectos sociales del desarrollo rural y la urgencia con que debían formularse y aplicarse las políticas destinadas a paliar la pobreza rural, el documento presenta un diagnóstico sobre las dimensiones y tendencias actuales de la pobreza rural en el mundo.
Sin embargo, antes de entrar en el análisis más pormenorizado del contenido del documento, quisiera referirme a un punto de procedimiento, referente a la presentación de informes relativos a la imple-mentación del Programa de Acción de la Conferencia Mundial sobre Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural.
En el documento que estamos presentando, se señala que la experiencia habida con los dos primeros informes de 1983 y el de este año, ha puesto de manifiesto las dificultades que crea a los países la periodicidad cuatrienal en la presentación de los informes nacionales.
Por otra parte, la necesidad de presentar un análisis de carácter general en el actual informe, impide efectuar un análisis más detallado sobre temas concretos que son de especial relevancia para la mitigación de la pobreza rural. Por ello, es que se sugiere, al igual como se ha discutido en el caso de las medidas de ajuste agrícola, cambiar la periodicidad con que los países y la FAO deben presentar sus informes generales sobre la CMRADR, y se propone que en vez de presentar un informe cada cuatro años, se presente un informe global cada ocho años. Adicionalmente, se propone preparar un informe analítico pormenorizado sobre un tema de importancia señalado por la Conferencia Mundial de Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural cada cuatro años en forma alternada con este procedimiento de los ocho años. De tal manera de permitir que cada cuatro años, la Conferencia General de la FAO se aboque a la discusión de un tema sustantivo señalado en el Programa de Acción, y cada ocho años tenga un informe evaluativo completo sobre lo ocurrido durante el período señalado. Se solicita a esta Comisión y a la Conferencia, un pronunciamiento sobre esta proposición.
Entrando en el análisis sustantivo de lo planteado en el documento, es necesario poner de manifiesto que lo sucedido a nivel mundial y en materia de reforma agraria y desarrollo rural, entre 1983 y hoy día, no puede ser analizado sin hacer referencia concreta a la recesión económica mundial, que ha provocado graves problemas en las economías en los países en vías de desarrollo. No necesito refe-rirme a ellos en esta presentación. Han sido extensamente discutidos estos aspectos en la presentación del tema 6.1 en esta misma Comisión.
Así como los factores económicos internacionales no han favorecido dar un impulso en el desarrollo rural en los países en desarrollo, tampoco lo han hecho los factores estructurales de las propias regiones en desarrollo. Al respecto, es necesario señalar que han persistido elevadas tasas de crecimiento demográfico, sobre todo en Africa y América latina, las que no encontraron una compensación adecuada en el aumento de los recursos de tierras o capitales.
Esta presión sobre los recursos se manifiesta con especial claridad en el acceso a la tierra. Al mismo tiempo que han perdurado las grandes desigualdades en cuanto se refiere al tamaño de las ex-plotaciones vigentes, se asiste a una preocupante proliferación de explotaciones muy pequeñas y marginales, y al aumento, en algunos casos explosivo, del número de campesinos sin tierra en casi todas las regiones del mundo. Por todo ello, y por el retroceso que se ha experimentado de las exportaciones agrícolas, las tasas de crecimiento de la producción de alimentos por persona han sido negativas en todas las regiones, excepto en Asia.
La conclusión importante de señalar es que la mayor parte de los países del mundo en desarrollo, no han dispuesto de los medios necesarios para emprender programas ambiciosos de lucha contra la pobreza, o se han visto, cosa que es más grave, forzados a adoptar medidas de política nacional que, en algunos casos, han provocado un agravamiento de la pobreza rural.
Por otra parte, debe señalarse que en este período se ha aumentado la preparación de planes nacionales que han tratado de mitigar la pobreza en algunos grupos especiales que requieren una cierta ayuda. Ha habido también una apreciable reorientación de políticas en la agricultura, silvicultura y pesca, señalando en estas políticas las necesidades de los pequeños agricultores, y se han evidenciado algunos intentos de lograr la participación dé los sectores más débiles en algunos países en el proceso de desarrollo.
En lo que se refiere al acceso a la tierra, como ya se ha indicado, los factores demográficos, estructurales y económicos han provocado una disminución de la disponibilidad de tierras per cápita en la población agrícola de la mayor parte de los países del mundo. A pesar de esta situación, en muchos países no se observan programas importantes de reforma agraria, y en los casos de países que han mantenido sus programas de colonización, éstos han sido insuficientes para responder al aumento anual de sus poblaciones agrícolas y a su vinculación estable a los recursos productivos.
Sin embargo, algunos síntomas son positivos de mención, y se ha notado en países tales como Brasil, El Salvador en América Latina, Filipinas en el caso de Asia, donde los respectivos gobiernos han recientemente iniciado o anunciado programas que apoyan la expansión o la realización de los procesos de acceso a la tierra por los campesinos que no tienen disponibilidad de ella.
Los progresos realizados en lo que se refiere al acceso a insumos, mercados y servicios, que es otro de los campos de acción señalados por la CMRADR, desgraciadamente tampoco han sido brillantes. En realidad, dadas las dificultades económicas, la disponibilidad y utilización de insumos agrícolas ha disminuido de hecho durante este perío-do de 1983-87 en la mayor parte de las regiones, y esto tiene especial énfasis entre los pequeños agricultores.
En el informe, se destaca la importancia del empleo rural, no agrícola, como clave en la batalla contra la pobreza rural. En la mayor parte de las regiones en desarrollo, la mano de obra no agrícola crece en la actualidad con un ritmo entre dos y cuatro veces superior al de la mano de obra agrícola. El estudio de las experiencias de algunos países, en lo que se refiere a programas de elaboración de productos agrícolas, industrialización rural, empleo rural y obras públicas, que tienen una connotación en el medio rural, demuestran que su naturaleza, alcance e intensidad no corresponden a la gravedad de la situación que se vive. Como consecuencia, un gran número de per-sonas de las zonas rurales no tienen esperanzas de encontrar empleo en el campo. Este es uno de los principales temas que se someten a consideración en este informe a la Conferencia.
Otro tema de gran importancia, y como lo ha señalado el Sr. Presidente en su introducción, es el tema de la participación de la mujer en el desarrollo. El documento C 87/19 ilustra los progresos realizados por los países, mientras que el documento LIM/16 expone con mayor detalle los programas y actividades de la FAO en este sector. Se puede decir que la legislación de la mayor parte de los países reconoce la igualdad de la mujer en lo que se refiere a su condición jurídica, remuneración por un trabajo idéntico, acceso a la tierra, a las cooperativas, al crédito y a la educación, a la extensión y a la capacitación agrícola.
Esto refleja que los esfuerzos realizados a escala nacional e internacional, están comenzando a dar frutos, aunque con lentitud, ya que existe todavía una gran diferencia entre las intenciones, las leyes y la práctica recogida. Los planes nacionales han comenzado a señalar a las mujeres como destinatarias y protagonistas de algunos programas especiales.
Muchos países han establecido puntos de contacto en sus estructuras políticas y administrativas para orientar e integrar los problemas de la mujer en los programas de desarrollo. Otra innovación, todavía más significativa, es la aparición en estos años de organizaciones femeninas de base, cuyo objetivo es evitar la explotación, lograr el control de los recursos, facilitar el acceso a los servicios públicos y orientar sus propias actividades económicas.
Una sección completa del Capítulo IV del Informe de este tema, complementada ampliamente por el documento LIM/16, dice la relación y la forma cómo la FAO ha orientado sus programas y políticas a fin de responder a las nuevas exigencias del desarrollo, en lo que se refiere al papel de la mujer en la agricultura y desarrollo rural. Varias son las fuentes que contienen el mandato de la FAO en este campo, más allá de lo que a este respecto incluye el Programa de Acción aprobado por la Conferencia Mundial sobre Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural.
A ello se agrega, entre otras fuentes que pueden ser mencionadas, lo aprobado en distintas oportu-nidades por las Conferencias Regionales de la FAO, las Estrategias sobre el futuro de la Conferencia de las Naciones Unidas de Nairobi en 1985, con la que se concluyó el Decenio de las Naciones Unidas para la Mujer, y las más recientes indicaciones señaladas durante el 91° período de sesiones de la FAO, tenido a cabo recientemente, a mediados del presente año.
Sobre esta base, las nuevas direcciones programáticas de la FAO se orientan hacia dos enfoques básicos que tienen por objeto mejorar la participación de la mujer en los programas y proyectos de desarrollo.
La FAO propone proyectos dirigidos exclusivamente a la mujer, tomando como base la necesidad de medidas especiales para darle a ellas la posibilidad de obtener un trato equitativo y facilitar su acceso a los recursos. Así mismo, propone componentes en favor de la mujer dentro de los proyectos de contenido más amplio, reconociendo la necesidad de incorporar los problemas de la mujer y la participación de ésta en todos los programas y proyectos que la FAO ejecuta a nivel de campo. A pesar de que ambos enfoques básicos son actualmente válidos, hay una tendencia creciente a apoyar los esfuerzos por convertir la temática relativa a la mujer, en parte integrante de todas las actividades programadas de la FAO.
La aplicación de estos enfoques, tiene como objetivo principal dar a la Organización, mayor eficacia en sus iniciativas relacionadas con la mujer campesina y el desarrollo rural. Es importante al respecto agregar que para lograr un impacto duradero, los mismos países en desarrollo deben reforzar y subrayar la integración de la mujer en la formulación de sus planes de acción y en sus políticas nacionales. Así, los apoyos que la FAO preste a los gobiernos, servirán de complemento a las ini-ciativas que estos tiendan a tomar para mejorar y apoyar debidamente la contribución de la mujer a la realidad productiva de sus propios países.
Otra de las áreas principales de acción del programa de la CMRADR, es la participación de la población en las políticas y programas gubernamentales. Se ha reconocido ampliamente lo difícil que resulta fomentar la participación de los pobres marginados. Como fruto de este reconocimiento, se han realizado numerosos intentos renovadores de integrar a los campesinos pobres en grupos pequeños, homogéneos y funcionales capaces de realizar actividades de autoayuda y generadoras de ingresos. La FAO, en estos años, ha estado a la vanguardia de estos intentos que han permitido experiencias enriquecedoras en algunos países del Asia, y más recientemente, de Africa y América Central.
Otro avance significativo en este terreno, ha sido la participación creciente y fructífera de organizaciones no gubernamentales, tanto a nivel nacional como internacional, en los intentos por movilizar, organizar y financiar apoyos a los grupos de campesinos pobres interesados en realizar actividades económicas de autoayuda.
La CMRADR señaló también en el campo de la educación, extensión y capacitación agrícola, la nece-sidad que existía de orientar estas actividades para mejorar la situación de los campesinos más pobres. Se han realizado ciertos progresos en este sentido al adaptar los sistemas de extensión en algunos países a las necesidades de los agricultores más pequeños. Ha aumentado el número de países que realizan experimentos sobre sistemas activos de extensión, por ejemplo, recurriendo a la utilización de grupos de agricultores o sus dirigentes como agentes de extensión, lo que ha supuesto una mayor participación campesina, una reducción de los costos del sistema de extensión, y en muchos casos, es necesario señalarlo, una mayor eficacia en el funcionamiento del sistema.
Aunque aun siguen siendo minoría los sistemas de extensión agrícola que alcanzan a las numerosas mujeres y a las jóvenes campesinas que trabajan en el medio rural, está comenzando recientemente a aumentar el número de países que se preocupan de perfeccionar a su vez estos sistemas para lograr llegar a la mujer con un sistema de extensión rural debidamente orientado hacia sus necesidades y a sus sistemas productivos.
El documento que presentamos destaca también algunos problemas que creo necesario señalar en forma particularizada. Exactamente, me referiré solamente a tres de ellos. El primero que ya lo he mencionado anteriormente, se refiere a las personas que, a pesar de vivir en el medio rural, no pueden encontrar empleo en la agricultura. Para evitar una grave crisis en las zonas rurales, es preciso adoptar, con urgencia, iniciativas que den a estas personas nuevas posibilidades de empleo en el sector rural no agrícola. Esto ha sido recientemente debatido en el curso de la presentación del tema que acabamos de finalizar.
El segundo problema, se refiere al desequilibrio entre la población rural y urbana. La manutención de la pobreza y el atraso en las zonas rurales está, empujando a millones de personas hacia las ciudades. En Africa, por ejemplo, la población de sus principales ciudades se ha multiplicado más de siete veces entre 1950 y 1980. En la mayor parte de los países en desarrollo, el ritmo de crecimiento de la población urbana es entre dos y diez veces superior al ritmo de crecimiento de la población rural.
Sin embargo, se han producido dos novedades interesantes que creo útil señalar. En primer lugar, comienza a disminuir la tasa de crecimiento de la población urbana. Y en segundo lugar, en el período 1980-85, se ha reducido la disparidad entre los ingresos agrícolas y los ingresos no agrícolas per cápita. Es curiosa esta referencia. Se observa, por lo tanto, el comienzo de una tendencia a la reducción de las desigualdades intersectoriales, ya que la migración de la población rural pobre hacia los sectores urbanos, está haciendo bajar la renta per cápita de las ciudades en las cuales ellos se asientan.
Es curioso que se esté logrando uno de los principales objetivos establecidos por la CMRADR en 1979, el de reducir la disparidad de ingresos rurales con los ingresos urbanos, pero desafortunadamente con una orientación y procedimientos que no son loables. En vez de aumentar los ingresos rurales, han disminuido los promedios de los ingresos urbanos al aumentar, como ya lo he dicho, la pobreza, en dichas áreas, producto en muchos casos exclusivamente de la movilización constante de poblaciones pobres del medio rural hacia los medios urbanos. Queda así demostrada, como ya ha sido debatido, la imposibilidad de, al menos durante esta década, queda en evidencia, encontrar una solución al problema de la ciudad que no se logrará si no se tiene en cuenta indisolublemente lo que está ocurriendo en el medio rural, y viceversa.
En tercer lugar, el informe plantea la relación entre la pobreza rural y el medio ambiente. El ambiente influye en la pobreza, pero también la pobreza influye en el medio ambiente. La presión que la población ejerce sobre los recursos limitados está dando lugar, en muchas regiones del mundo, a una explotación excesiva de dichos recursos naturales, y a su consiguiente deterioro. Sin embargo, se ha comprobado la importancia que tienen diversas variables para este efecto, como el régimen de tenencia de la tierra, por ejemplo, ya que esto puede regular el impacto de la presión demografica sobre el medio ambiente, lo que subraya la importancia e interrelación de los problemas sociales e institucionales en la conservación ambiental.
Permítame concluir esta presentación haciendo una referencia a la serie de cuestiones de política y recomendaciones que se someten a la consideración de la Conferencia y de esta Comisión, y que aparecen recogidas en los párrafos 43 a 55 del documento que estamos analizando.
Sin necesidad de entrar en un análisis específico de cada una de ellas, deseo recordar que dichas recomendaciones reiteran la filosofía que siempre han inspirado las medidas que la FAO impulsa en relación con la Declaración de Principios y el Programa de Acción aprobados con ocasión de la Conferencia Mundial sobre Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural.
PRESIDENTE: Muchas gracias a Ud., Sr. Moreno, por el informe tan completo y documentado que nos ha presentado. Estoy seguro que nos va a ser mucho más fácil trabajar a todos después de haberle oído a Udo cómo llamaba la atención sobre aquellos puntos que deben preocuparnos, y que, de hecho, nos preocupan a todos los que aquí estamos reunidos, sobre el futuro de una importante parte del mundo.
Vamos a empezar a continuación el coloquio, pero antes, la Secretaría me hace llegar una nota para que les comunique que sabemos que, al menos, se va a presentar una resolución, y es posible que haya alguna más, sobre este tema. A efectos de convocar formalmente el Comité de Resoluciones pedimos que, por favor, quienes vayan a presentar estos proyectos de resolución nos lo confirmen ahora de manera firme. Tiene la palabra la representación de Suecia.
Mrs Astrid BERGQUIST (Sweden): Yes, Mr Chairman, the Nordic countries, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, have prepared a draft resolution that we have already submitted to the Secretariat and to the Resolutions Committee. I am pleased to be able to say at this stage that the resolution has been co-sponsored by a considerable number of countries in various regions and we are confident that it will gain support of many more, hopefully the entire Conference.
EL PRESIDENTE: Gracias señora delegada de Suecia. Agradecemos su gentileza al anunciarnos la presentación de su resolución.
Señores, vamos abrir un coloquio. Han pedido la palabra las delegaciones de Suecia, Kuwait, Argentina, México, Estados Unidos, Japón, Tailandia, Marruecos, Perú, y Canadá. Creo que tenemos suficientes oradores para esta tarde y quizá ni siquiera sea posible agotar la lista. Tiene la palabra la señora representante de Suecia.
Mrs Astrid BERGQUIST (Sweden): On this item I have the privilege to speak on behalf of the Nordic countries, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Having participated actively in the WCARRD • Conference in 1979, we attach great importance to the WCARRD development strategy and have thus with great interest and care studied the second progress report now before us.
In this intervention I will, first, give some general comments and reactions to the Report. I will then address specifically the chapter of the Report dealing with the role of women in rural develop-ment .
As to some general comments, we find the document very interesting, although perhaps rather too descriptive. We also find that the analytical approach is somewhat weaker than we may have wished. The document reports very well on strategy formulation in various countries on progress made in putting WCARRD procedures into effect and to some extent on progress related to plans and targets. However, the analytical discussion of the experience made after 8 years of WCARRD follow-up and of the adequacy of the mechanisms and procedures agreed upon in WCARRD is not there. We, therefore, very much welcome the proposal of presenting in-depth analytical reports on selected WCARRD themes to future FAO Conferences in order to keep the momentum of WCARRD.
My second comment relates to the reporting as such. The reporting so far has shown the difficulties in obtaining adequately disaggregated data. Specifically as concerns the time factor or registrating visible change in the rural communities. It is, therefore, suggested that reporting be lengthened from once every four years to once every eight years. With some hesitation the Nordic countries may favour this proposal. Our condition is, however, that the relevant discussions according to the WCARRD procedures are fully integrated also in other FAO documents, such as the State of Food and Agriculture and in the reports on International Agricultural Adjustment.
We certainly know and understand the difficulties for countries and thus ultimately FAO to get adequate information. That is why the Nordic countries are so strongly insisting on FAO 's statistical role in order to assist countries to improve the statistical base for planning and development. Statistics are not just figures and numbers. They tell us something about the reality behind. As to the WCARRD follow-up, the level of reporting and the magnitude of data to be supplied probably need to be looked into. Maybe, there is a need for differentiated reporting and also in some cases a somewhat lower level of ambition.
Another of the conclusions of the report is that the adversed effects of the international recession have resulted in a renewed preoccupation with growth rather than with rural poverty alleviation. Experts in our countries who have commented on the report would agree with this conclusion only to some extent, mainly regarding Africa. In our opinion the conclusion is less valid for Asia. In this context we also want to underline the conclusions in section B of the summary, paras 43 and 44, on the merits of a strategy based on small enterprises, and would strongly recommend that this Conference reconfirm its commitment to strategies and policies for broader-based growth to meet the needs of the poor rural communities. One element of such a policy is an extension service that meets the needs of the small farmers, in particular the women. Experience has shown that it is difficult to meet the needs of the rural communities. We would therefore be in favour of intensified efforts and closer links between research and extensions to meet the needs of the small farmers.
This matter is discussed to some extent in document C 87/21 on International Agricultural Adjustment and some information is given in guideline 3 on pilot projects and other efforts to reach small farmers with training and extension services. Also on this document we find the information given is of a descriptive nature and more precise data still seem to be lacking.
Another area for concern, research and action is the relation between rural poverty and the environment. Within the WCARRD concept strategies and policies have to be designed to promote a sustainable development. Also in this area much greater attention to research and action for environmental conservation and improvement in the rural areas is needed. The report from the World Commission on Environment and Development is now being widely studied within the United Nations System. Its visions must be transformed into concrete action. In this respect we feel that FAO has a vital role to play.
Finally in this part of my intervention, we also want to underline the vital role played by nongovernmental organizations in promoting improved life in rural areas.
We are of the opinion that organizations based on the free will of people who share common ideas and aspirations to unite and promote development within the communities is one of the fundaments for a successful development. We therefore strongly support recommendations from this Conference as outlined in para 47 to urge countries to ensure the legal, political and structural prerequisites for effective participation and to encourage the role of NGOs in promoting participatory development at the grass-roots level.
In this context, we would also like to stress the need for the dissemination of experience gained through such activities for the benefit particularly of grass-roots organizations.
I will now turn to Chapter IV - the role of women in rural development.
The efforts made within the United Nations system to improve the status of women, since 1975, have been many and have had a strong support of the Nordic countries.
The Nairobi Forward Looking Strategies, being translated into the Systemwide Medium-Term Plan for Women is an important tool to this end. The Report now before us is an important contribution to our understanding of the mechanisms in different societies that promote or prevent women from participating in rural development. Its findings and conclusions will, we hope, be of help to both governments and FAO in implementing systemwide plans for women.
One of the issues strongly addressed in our joint Nordic statement at the WCARRD Conference was the necessity to provide women with legal rights on equal terms with men, as to land, access to credits, public services, participation in cooperatives and organisation etc. Thus it is with great concern we note that the lack of access to land still remains the major obstacle to the full participation of women in rural development. Land ownership is often the key to having control of major decisions in rural areas as to what to grow, what techniques to use, what to consume and what to sell of the produce. Furthermore, land ownership can allow the woman farmer herself to keep the proceeds and to use them in a productive way either for the betterment of the family or the land.
Only a few countries seem to have taken steps to improve women's access to land. Most studies point to an increased landlessness among women. With this conclusion of the Report in mind, we urge governments and the FAO to address this issue with vigour as women in a number of countries have expressed a common need for legal control of land.
From women's lack of legal control of land also follows difficulties in access to cooperatives, to credit, to marketing services and to agricultural extension and training. Though considerable improvements have been made in many countries, the overall picture is not very encouraging.
We certainly know that the status of women cannot be changed over night and that centuries of inequality cannot be that easily eradicated. When judging the situation of women it is necessary to take into account the situation of society as a whole. The need to address women's issues in the context of economic development and growth has been underlined in a recent statement made by the Nordic countries in the Second Committee of the UN General Assembly. We want to underline this need also in this forum.
In particular we want to draw the attention to the effects of various adjustment policies on women. Adjustment policies are bound to have a strong social and political impact, not least if seen in the perspective of women in development. In many cases adjustment policies have considerably hit women farmers and other women in rural areas most severely. Economic recovery programmes should be based on full considerations of their effects on employment, incomes and working conditions of women and should utilize the potentials of women as producers and entrepreneurs. The Nordic countries, therefore, strongly advocate an adjustment policy with a human face.
The specific follow-up report on women in rural development shows that though life conditions for women have improved in some countries, in many more still women's lot seems to remain as precarious as has been the case for centuries. There are certainly limits as to what FAO can do to reduce this situation since so much depends on governments' commitment to, and interest in the subject of women in rural development. The Nordic countries, however, are of the opinion that a strong and vigorous FAO could greatly contribute to the advancement of women in rural areas.
Having followed FAO activities related to women for a number of years we note with satisfaction that since 1975, when, for the first time within the United Nations System, questions related to women in development were being taken seriously, FAO has developed an institutional framework and guidelines dealing with women in agricultural and rural development. Document C 87/LIM/16 is a good illustration of this. We are particularly pleased to note the emphasis given in latter years to women's role as producer, not just as consumer as was the case in the earlier years of the Organization.
As I said earlier, The Nordic countries have together with countries in other regions prepared a draft resolution which we hope will gain the support of this Conference. The purpose of the resolution is to encourage FAO to continue the cooperation with other organizations of the United Nations system in the implementation of the Nairobi Forward Looking Strategies and Systemwide Medium-Term Plan for Women and Development, and also prepare a comprehensive action plan encompassing all major sectors and programmes of our Organization for the integration of women in development. We will be pleased to discuss the resolution with interested delegations. We have already registered the interest of many delegations, and hope still more will join us.
Ms Fatma H.J. HAYAT (Kuwait)(original language Arabic): Document C 87/19 gives a very good descrip-tion of the work of FAO in rural development. Despite the Nairobi Conference in 1985, on which occasion I had the honour of representing my delegation, we are still extremely worried by events. We do not feel that this is an issue which has been given sufficient attention commensurate with the importance of promoting the role of women in the rural environment. Too much is done solely to emphasize the maternal and family role of women. We must not forget the progress which some countries have recently achieved in this field, in attempting to find high-grade administrative and political posts to promote the role of women and help women to become integrated in the social and administra-tive process.
What exercises my delegation is the obstacles at a level of principle which continue to exist. We feel that these are obstacles in the way of women's participation which prevent the proper role of women from being recognized- women as producers, quite apart from women's role in the family. That is why we need to collect information and data so as to promote women's role in productive activities and to recognize and properly appreciate women's role. I would emphasize this, the basic thrust of WCARRD. We need to safeguard women's legal situation. We need to have true equality. Often there may be legal equality, but still women suffer from bias against them and from persistent discrimination. There is a very great difference between what the law says women's role should be and what happens in practice. The law confers rights on women but in many countries, including those of the Near East where I come from, where civil rights are granted to women by the law, where there is equality, it is a basic principle of Islamic law, as the delegate from Sudan said in his speech.
Even there we need to reinforce women's rights: right to access to land, right to participate in cooperatives, right to obtain credit. All these points are clearly set out in the document before us. Women must be helped to gain access to markets, particularly in those countries where women play traditionally a major role at the marketing stage. Rural women must be enabled to benefit from agricultural organization. Their potential role there is of great importance. One thing that it encourages in rural development is the proliferation of women's movements to counter exploitation. Women are a real force in the world, and they should be able to take advantage of this force to gain access to the services they need.
We should not forget women's rights at all levels: right to education, right to health, right to job possibilities.
It is quite clear that these organizations on their own cannot do the job of promoting women's rights successfully without help from governments in order to draw attention to the role of women. As you yourself said in presenting the document before us, the success of projects and programmes devoted to women largely turn on the policies pursued by governments as part of their planning in regard to women in order to recognize women's truly productive role.
It seems to me that the draft resolution before us, which was read by the representative from Sweden, endorses everything I have said. I should like in particular to emphasize point 2 of the draft resolution in document C 87/LIM/16 and points 3 and 6. When the representative of Sweden spoke in Commission II yesterday he said that they wanted to see women occupying D1 and D2 posts at the OAU.
Moisés TELIZ ORTIZ (Mexico): La Delegación de Mexico expresa su felicitación al Secretariado de esta Comisión por la presentación del Documento G 87/19 que da seguimiento a los cambios por realizar en las políticas de los países en favor de la reforma agraria y el desarrollo rural.
Sobre el contenido amplio y valioso de este estudio, deseo hacer referencia específica al informe que preparó y presentó Mexico para contribuir al mencionado segundo Informe. En la contribución de México se señala, en la parte relativa a la integración de la mujer al desarrollo rural, lo siguiente:
"Las estrategias que se han instrumentado para promover, impulsar y desarrollar las actividades económicas y sociales de la mujer en el campo, se encuentran enmarcadas en la Reforma Agraria Integral.
Se impulsa la participación organizada de la mujer campesina en actividades generadoras de ingresos que ayudan a elevar su nivel de vida, el de sus familias y comunidades a través de la Unidad Agrícola Industrial para la mujer campesina, cuyas siglas son UAIM, para aprovechar integralmente los recursos de que disponen los núcleos agrarios.
Se fortalece la participación de la mujer campesina en la producción alimentaria, así como en acti-vidades que permiten el abasto comunitario integrando la producción, transformación y comercialización de productos básicos.
Por otra parte, se promueve la coordinación, continuidad y congruencia interinstitucionales de los programas instrumentados, especialmente aquéllos encaminados a lograr la participación de las mujeres del campo, mediante el otorgamiento oportuno de insumos y servicios que demanda su actividad.
Para su integración al desarrollo rural en México, también se instrumentan cursos de alfabetización para aumentar los niveles de instruccción y escolaridad de la población femenil campesina.
Se realizan cursos para fortalecer y elevar los niveles de capacitación e información de mujeres campesinas, para el desarrollo de sus actividades administrativas, contables y productivas.
Se impulsa y apoya el desarrollo de investigaciones relacionadas con las condiciones actuales de la mujer campesina.
En las comunidades de pescadores destaca la participación de la mujer, y para ello está previsto la ejecución de proyectos específicos para optimizar el desarrollo de sus actividades, a fin de complementar el ingreso familiar e incrementar su participación en las actividades productivas."
Respecto a la modificación que se propone someter a la consideración de la Conferencia para modificar el sistema de presentación de informes de la Conferencia Mundial sobre Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural, la Delegación de México expresa su inconformidad, insistiendo en que continúe el sistema actual. Proponemos, en cambio, que en la reunión normal de cada cuatro años se presenten a la Conferencia informes especiales sobre un tema determinado de la misma, adicional al informe principal.
The meeting rose at 17.45 hours
La séance est levée à 17 h 45
Se levanta la sesión a las 17.45 horas
