U.N. talks aim to aid world’s poorest

Press, 2 September 1981, Page 9

U.N. talks aim to aid world’s poorest

NZPA-Reuter Paris A two-week United Nations conference will start in Paris today to try to draw up a programme for the 1980 s to reduce the gap between the 31 poorest and least literate nations and the rest of the world. Nearly 2000 delegates from all United Nations countries and international organisations are attending the conference which many hope will adopt the. “substantial new programme of action," called for by the United Nations Conlerence on Trade and Development two years ago.

Under the plan, rich nations would quadruple their official development aid during the next 10 years to help the poor countries achieve minimum standards of nutrition, health, housing, education, and transport.

Officials said, however, the aid record of the developed world had been extremely disappointing over the last few years and industrial nations such as the United States. Britain and West Germany either opposed the Increased aid or faced severe budget problems during the recession. Stephane Hessel. head of the French delegation to the conference, told reporters: “We are living in an economic climate which does not allow for much generosity. Between the policies of realism and utopia we shall have to find a balance." The officials said the 31” least developed countries slipped even further behind the rich nations during the 1979 oil price crisis because they had few exports to offset their rising costs and no major industries.

In a report to the conference, U.N.C.T A.D.'s secre-tary-general, Gamani Corea, said programmes drawn up by the least developed countries showed the aid they received would have to rise 80 per cent to reach $47.6 a year for each of their 280 million inhabitants during the 1980 s to meet their requirements. The report called for each developed country to provide 0.2 per cent of its gross national product in official development aid to the group by 1990. ’

President Francois Mitterrand of France, who wants to increase development aid but faces a sharp rise, in his domestic Budget deficit, will make the inaugural speech. The UN. Secretary-General (Dr Kurt Waldheim) will also address the conference.