Comments On Chapter 6 Of The Secretary-General's Report
Addressing Systemic Issues: Enhancingthe Coherence And Consistency Of The International Monetary, Financial And Trading Systems In Support Of Development

Chapter 6 of the Secretary-General's Report makes several recommendations to strengthen the coherence and ensure a consistency in the international system that is supportive of development. At one level, the Chapter proposes a set of values and principles, including cooperation, good governance, democratic decision-making, transparency and accountability to bring together and guide the different institutional stakeholders in working towards the Millennium Development Goals. At another level, there are recommendations in this chapter for specific mechanisms to translate these values and principles into concrete strategies to enable the international system to go forward in realizing the Millennium Development Agenda.

ICSW welcomes the proposed set of values and principles, in Chapter 6 of the Report, which CSOs/NGOs have been repeatedly campaigning for to enhance an international system that has not been coherently and consistently supportive of development in the past. In this statement of comments, ICSW wishes to address the recommendations pertaining to the specific mechanisms of operational implementation.

1. Establish an International Tax Forum

ICSW welcomes the recommendation "for enhancing tax-related international cooperation" and of establishing an international tax forum. As we proposed at the NGO hearings last year, such a forum should be under UN auspices and should be responsible for conducting research, exchanging information, identifying problems, drafting guidelines, monitoring implementation, arbitrating disputes and coordinating action to promote effective reform.

The forum should focus especially on ways in which international cooperation can reduce international tax evasion and avoidance and can achieve a fair and effective balance between taxation of different forms of income, consumption and assets. Its work could be supported by the existing ECOSOC expert committee on taxation. We note that, especially through the OECD and EU, developed countries have substantially strengthened their cooperation on tax policy issues in recent years. It is important that cooperation with developing countries is also strengthened.

2. Establish an ECOSOC Working Group on Economic Cooperation

ICSW welcomes the recommendation for strengthening the role of ECOSOC on international economic issues. In order to enhance ECOSOC's ability to play this role effectively, we suggest that it should establish a Working group on Economic Cooperation that concentrates especially on close and effective interaction with the principal international monetary, trade and financial institutions. It would, in effect, be an appropriate means for continuing the closer interaction initiated recently through annual meetings with the IMF and the World Bank and by the bureau during the FfD process.

The working group should be constituted in such a way as to adequately represent the full range of UN membership without being so large as to prevent the necessary degree of focused, expert and informal consideration of key issues in a timely manner. It should meet frequently, sometimes at senior ministerial level, and be closely supported by expert staff and independent consultants. It would, of course, be subject to the ultimate authority of the full ECOSOC and the General Assembly.

3. Strengthen Regional Cooperation and linkage with the UN

ICSW welcomes the recommendation for international support for regional and subregional cooperation. We believe that these types of associations need to be strengthened and that they should play key roles in representation of the various interests of developing countries in international institutions, especially the UN. By this means, such institutions could readily develop structures and processes that are broadly inclusive without being unduly cumbersome and ineffective. An example to follow is the EU which has achieved recognition in its own right not only in the UN process but also, for instance, in the G8 and the new G20.

The Secretary-General's Report proposes a number of areas in which greater regional cooperation should be encouraged and suggests closer interaction between the UN and regional associations of governments. Progress in this direction should be enhanced if ECOSOC convened an Annual Regional Consultation with these associations as well as with its own regional commissions.