Gambia

Allow me first of all to extend my delegation’s whole-hearted congratulations on the unanimous election of Mr. Hennadiy Udovenko to the high office of President of this session. His skills as a statesman are excellent qualifications for the presidency, and I wish to assure him of my delegation’s support and cooperation at all times during the proceedings of this session. My delegation’s appreciation also goes to the President of the fifty-first session, His Excellency Ambassador Razali Ismail, for the impressive work he accomplished during his presidency. His efforts to improve the work of the General Assembly and strengthen the role of the United Nations in international affairs have increased the momentum of the United Nations reform process. My delegation congratulates him on a job well done. On behalf of my delegation, I also wish to extend our congratulations to the Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Kofi Annan. Since he assumed office in January this year, he has been engaged in commendable efforts to reform the United Nations Organization. The presentation of his two-tracked proposals and measures 21 constitutes a bold and far-reaching reform programme, which is expected not only to revitalize the United Nations system but also to make it better suited to execute its mandates in the years ahead in a more efficient and cost- effective manner. The fifty-second session of the General Assembly is taking place at an important period during the international community’s effort to evolve an atmosphere of viable and equitable international cooperation in the areas of economic development, social advancement and the recognition of the important need for the maintenance of a balanced global ecosystem. The recent holding of the nineteenth special session of the General Assembly, on the overall review and appraisal of the implementation of Agenda 21, is one of the many factors and activities that symbolize the importance of this period and that mark our collective effort to shape a more meaningful atmosphere of international cooperation. The special session reaffirmed the international community’s effort to ensure that the blueprint for international development and the preservation of the environment, as enunciated in Agenda 21 and the Rio Declaration five years ago, are translated into concrete realities. The successes and constraints so far recorded in our effort to achieve sustainable development clearly point to the difficulty of creating a framework for international cooperation characterized by the full and continued commitment of both developed and developing countries. As stated by Her Excellency the Vice-President of the Gambia during the special session, “The difficult and protracted negotiations and the intellectual, expert and statesmanlike efforts that made these agreements possible reflected the goodwill and good faith of all Governments ... “... the constraints cited as obstacles to implementation during this review session tend to indicate the persistence of the contentious and also cross-cutting issues of additional financial resources, technology transfer, information sharing, training and institutional capacity-building and the unfulfillment of our differentiated responsibilities under these provisions”. [See Official Records of the General Assembly, Nineteenth Special Session, Plenary Meetings, 9th meeting] I wish to inform the General Assembly of the political evolution taking shape in my country, the Gambia. Since the Gambian delegation addressed the Assembly last year, we have successfully completed a two-year transition programme to democratic civilian rule with the entry into force of a new Constitution for the Second Republic in January this year. Successful free and fair presidential and National Assembly elections were held earlier, in September 1996 and early January 1997. Most of the institutions provided for under the new Constitution are already in place and have started to play their legitimate role in the promotion and entrenchment of a genuine democratic culture that is commensurate with the hopes and aspirations of all Gambians. Throughout the transition process, the people of the Gambia have been regularly consulted; their views and aspirations have guided the process. In this exercise we have been faithful to our wishes. The Gambian National Assembly, which is playing its important role in our nation-building, has been readmitted to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, where we will continue to participate actively. Alive to the fact that genuine democracy can neither thrive nor be nurtured and sustained in the midst of poverty, deprivation, hunger, ignorance and ill-health, the Gambia Government embarked on an ambitious socio- economic development programme during the two-year transition period, which focused basically on building schools, health facilities, roads and other infrastructure as well as on boosting agricultural development in order to ensure food self-sufficiency by the year 1999. The main objective of this programme was to lay the basis for a genuine and sustainable democracy that is in consonance with our own social and other specificities as a nation. The successful completion of the transition period intensified our Government’s determination to continue the effective implementation of measures and programmes designed to promote and achieve the sustained socio- economic development of the Gambia. In order to accomplish this task, the Government of the Gambia, in collaboration with the private sector, has embarked on the implementation of a national development programme to transform the country economically and socially over a 25-year period into a developed, economically viable State. The blueprint for this socio-economic development is called Vision 2020. The overall orientation of this development blueprint, as enunciated in its mission statement, is: “To transform the Gambia into a financial centre, a tourist paradise, a trading export-oriented agricultural and manufacturing nation, thriving on 22 free market policies and a vibrant private sector, sustained by a well-educated, trained, skilled, healthy, self-reliant and enterprising population, and guaranteeing a well-balanced ecosystem and a decent standard of living for one and all, under a system of government based on the consent of the citizenry”. It is obvious from that mission statement that we in the Gambia have opted for a holistic development strategy that is human-centred and export-oriented, and founded on free market principles. As rightly pointed out by His Excellency President Yahya A. J. J. Jammeh in his foreword to Vision 2020, “This means that the production base of the economy will be strengthened and diversified to cater for the needs of an export-oriented industry. In pursuit of pragmatism, Vision 2020 will build on the sound macroeconomic policies of our recent past while launching a new partnership contract between the public and private sectors to spin faster growth with equity.” In this connection, the Gambia has embarked on a sustained effort to enhance bilateral and multilateral cooperation with all friendly countries and institutions in order to ensure the realization of our development goals as enshrined in Vision 2020. In pursuit of these goals, we will not relent in our efforts to develop and enhance intra- African cooperation and solidarity in all vital sectors for the attainment of sustained economic growth. It is in fact the Gambia’s firm belief and conviction that it is only through such cooperation, founded on self-reliance and hard work, that African countries can adequately rise to the daunting development challenges facing them. To complement our own efforts at the national, subregional and regional levels, no effort will be spared to develop and enhance cooperation with all traditional development partners as well as new friends in conformity with the underlying principles of the Gambia’s foreign policy objectives, which are predicated on openness, peaceful coexistence, genuine respect for each other’s point of view and full equality in international intercourse with all countries. We strongly believe that it is only through dialogue and the constant quest to understand the points of view of others that we can aspire to attain world peace, mutual trust and understanding. Here, I would like to underline again that the centrepiece of the Gambia’s foreign policy is the promotion of African solidarity and self-reliance and the enhancement of world peace. That is why we are friends of all countries of the world irrespective of ideological or political differences. This policy is predicated on our strong belief that the world is one family, and that it pays no dividends to isolate any member of that great family, because any member of the family which feels isolated quickly becomes intransigent and hostile in its dealings with the rest of us. It is therefore paramount for us to maintain lines of dialogue between ourselves, which can only promote understanding. On global economic issues, we note that the world economic outlook continues to be influenced strongly by the forces of economic globalization and trade liberalization, which in themselves are not negative trends, provided they are underpinned by a genuine desire on the part of all concerned to promote partnership, in an environment where equality reigns supreme. The persistent slow rate of development in Africa can be traced to certain factors and impediments. Africa’s foreign debt crisis remains a major impediment to growth. The international community’s effort to resolve Africa’s external debt problem continues to fall short of the desired result. The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative, recently adopted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, while complementing the global effort, also fell short of the expected target of complete cancellation of the debt stock of developing countries. Unless this is done, the debt burden will naturally continue to have a negative impact on the availability of existing resources to finance Africa’s economic recovery and social development. Also, the growth and expansion of the incidence of poverty in Africa has contributed to the failure to achieve sustainable development on the continent. The sombre conclusions on the increase of poverty reflect, in a wider sense, the seeming lack of the required commitment by the international community to promote social progress and the qualitative improvement of the human condition, as recommended by the World Summit for Social Development. Here I want to state that my country, the Gambia, has embarked on a bold national plan of action for the eradication of poverty, and I want to commend the United Nations system, the World Bank and other bilateral partners that are actively assisting us to achieve our goals in this domain. We thank them for their continued support. Poverty, we all agree, is a global problem that needs to be addressed by all of us. 23 The pursuit of global peace and security remains a fundamental responsibility of our Organization. It is, however, regrettable that the international community’s effort to achieve international peace and security has been constrained by continued conflicts and other forms of tension between States and communities. In our own subregion of West Africa, the situation evolving in Sierra Leone remains of grave concern, not only to us but also to the international community. Failure to resolve the problem and restore stability, security and constitutionality in Sierra Leone can only prolong the ordeal of the innocent and peace-loving people of that country. Therefore, we all hope that the initiatives embarked upon by the Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS) within the framework of the Committee of Five will yield the anticipated results. I am pleased to note that the approach adopted by the Committee of Five to find a solution to the Sierra Leone crisis has the support of the United Nations Security Council and the Organization of African Unity (OAU). It is hoped that the restoration of constitutional democracy in Liberia following the national elections held on 19 July 1997 will lead to a permanent peaceful solution to the country’s crisis, paving the way for sustained national reconstruction. All of us in the subregion are giving our material and moral support to the sister Republic of Liberia to help it stay on the path of national reconciliation in order to recover fully from its tragedies of the recent past. With regard to the Middle East, despite the significant progress of the past few years in the Middle East peace process, especially since the signing of the Oslo accords, we note with concern the erosion of the peace dividend accumulated in the international community’s effort to achieve durable peace there. The recent escalation of tension between Israel and Palestine over the extension of Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem constitutes a serious threat to peace and security in the region. The adoption by the General Assembly of resolution ES-10/3 of 15 July 1997, as well as other peace initiatives by the international community should, however, provide the basis for a peaceful and permanent solution to the conflict. On a more general note, we in the Gambia strongly believe that the containment of tension and conflict globally can be enhanced by transparency, the restoration of mutual trust and confidence and respect for the rights of peoples, communities and nations in the execution of the role and mandates of the United Nations. As I indicated earlier, it is only through genuine dialogue and the desire and will to understand each other that we can achieve global peace. In this regard, my delegation strongly supports the aspiration of the 21.3 million people of the Republic of China on Taiwan to exercise their right to share and participate in the activities of intergovernmental organizations on international cooperation by joining this comity of nations. The legitimacy of their aspirations, both legal and national, has been reinforced by similar actions and measures taken by the United Nations on the issue of parallel representation, which now serve as useful reminders and examples. The Taiwan question is also a test of the international community’s interpretation of democracy. As we are all aware, the Republic of China on Taiwan has existed, physically, legally and politically, since the foundation of the United Nations. My Government therefore believes that our Organization will do itself a great service by admitting Taiwan into our midst, in the true spirit of the application of democratic principles. The presence of the Republic of China on Taiwan among us can only enrich our Organization. In this regard, we therefore believe that resolution 2758 (XXVI) adopted at the twenty-sixth session of the General Assembly, needs to be reviewed. Concerning the legal dispute surrounding the bombing of Pan Am flight 103, the Gambia supports the resolution on the matter adopted by the OAU Heads of State or Government in Harare last May as providing a viable framework for resolving the present impasse. With regard to Cuba, it is incomprehensible to us Gambians why a whole people, a whole nation, should be made to suffer the denial of the basic necessities of life simply because it chooses to live under a different political ideology. Therefore, in the present climate of greater international cooperation and reconciliation, the people of Cuba and their Government deserve the support and assistance of the international community in their continued efforts to engage in more meaningful national development in order to achieve greater socio-economic progress. We fully support the measures being taken by this body to provide this support. In doing so, our Organization will only be upholding the principle of respecting the basic human rights of the Cuban people. It is in this same spirit that we call on the international community to continue to preserve the 24 dignity and security of the people and the Government of Kuwait and to support the full implementation of the relevant Security Council resolutions on payment of reparations and compensation, release of prisoners of war and other conditions imposed on Iraq for its internationally condemned act of aggression against Kuwait. Therefore, while we encourage greater United Nations intervention in bringing solace to the suffering, innocent Iraqi civilian population, we strongly urge the Government of Iraq to comply with the provisions of these Security Council resolutions, in order to alleviate the suffering, especially that of the children. That catalogue of conflicts and misunderstandings has prompted my Government and people to formulate the following wish, which we want to express to the international community: we want the United Nations and the international community to make a solemn pledge to ensure that all conflicts are peacefully resolved by the year 2000. In order to achieve this noble aim, we propose, first, that 1998 be declared a year for the resolution of all conflicts between Member States; and, secondly, that 1999, as it is on the eve of the twenty-first century, be a year devoid of conflicts and misunderstanding, to become the year of reconciliation. This, we believe, will enable humankind to enter the twenty-first century as a united, peaceful family that can proudly bequeath to ensuing generations a developed, peaceful world, where democracy, justice, freedom and equality are guaranteed to everyone, irrespective of origin, race, religion or political ideology. That is what the Gambia wants to bequeath to coming generations, and we strongly believe that all it takes is tolerance, mutual respect, love, patience and understanding. With regard to global trade relations, we followed with high expectation the conclusion of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations and its implementation. While encouraging globalization and liberalization, it deprived developing countries, particularly those in Africa, of the opportunities and benefits predicted during its implementation. We note, however, that the liberalization of trade and investment policies has yet to foster international cooperation for the achievement of economic development and genuine partnership among all nations. Developing countries in general, and African and the least developed countries in particular, are yet to be effectively integrated into the world economy. The commitments agreed in the Final Act of the Uruguay Round have not been fully implemented. International cooperation has, however, continued to flourish in other equally important areas. The promotion and expansion of South-South cooperation continues to receive greater support among developing countries. These cooperation initiatives have resulted in the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, among many other initiatives. Within the context of promoting South-South cooperation, Japan has successfully held the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD I) and it is now planning to host a follow-up conference, TICAD II, next year, in an effort to develop a practical, achievable and sustainable development programme for Africa. It is indeed commendable that this Japanese initiative is not restricted to Africa, but also includes the evolution of a new development strategy responsive to the present international development climate, and is providing the motivating force for a concerted global effort. We commend Japan for these initiatives, including financial contributions which serve as a practical demonstration of South-South cooperative interaction and application. It should, however, be pointed out that the promotion and application of South-South cooperation within the context of technical and economic cooperation among developing countries can only succeed as an important aspect of international development cooperation if both the South and North remain committed to its full realization. Intra-African economic cooperation and integration have also been growing. Regional activities are now directed to the socio-economic transformation and integration of the economies of African States. The adoption and implementation of the Abuja Treaty, putting in place economic integration arrangements, is a positive effort in building an African Economic Community. The inaugural session of the African Economic Community was held during the thirty-third summit of Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in June this year. We in Africa are becoming more and more aware of the paramount importance of self-reliance. Any assistance from development partners must be seen as a complement to what we can or should do by ourselves. 25 Within the context of subregional cooperation, the Gambia hosted the twelfth summit of Heads of State and Government of the Permanent Inter-State Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS), held in Banjul from 11 to 12 September 1997. The summit unanimously elected His Excellency Colonel Yahya A. J. J. Jammeh, President of the Republic of the Gambia, as chairman of the organization for the next three years. These meetings and activities testify to the importance attached to the issues of drought and desertification, not only in Africa, but also in other parts of the world, and to the urgent need for a sustained collaborative effort to combat the twin menace. In this regard, the Gambia is fully and actively participating in the ongoing Rome Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa. In fact, we should redouble the resources provided and the measures so far adopted to combat drought and desertification and improve our environment in accordance with the provisions of the Convention, and also of chapter 12 of Agenda 21, adopted at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. In furtherance of these targets we intend to achieve, as President Yahya Jammeh stated, sustainable development and food security through research into the underlying phenomena of drought, desertification and ecological instability and by designing and implementing programmes for natural resource management and the improvement of agro-food sectors in the Sahel, as well as the sustainability of farming systems. I will conclude with the subject of reform of the United Nations system, a subject very dear to the hearts of Gambians. The reform of the United Nations system continues to engage our collective attention. Reform activities — including the restructuring and revitalization of the United Nations in the economic, social and related fields, especially the work of the Economic and Social Council; and the efforts of the High-level Open-ended Working Group on the Strengthening of the United Nations System in formulating innovative mechanisms to enhance the role and functions of the General Assembly and its main Committees, as well as of the Open-ended Working Group on the Question of Equitable Representation on and Increase in the Membership of the Security Council — continue to attract wide debate, both at the United Nations and in other forums. These include OAU, which at the summit of Heads of State and Government held in Harare in June adopted a Declaration on the reform of the Security Council to which the Gambia remains firmly committed. It is my Government’s firm belief and conviction that there is an urgent need to democratize the United Nations, and especially the Security Council, to make it more responsive to the hopes and aspirations of all its Members for a world devoid of intolerance, injustice and inequality. There is therefore a need to curb the use of the veto, which is exercised by some Powers in the Security Council against the wishes of the vast majority of the Members of our Organization. The geopolitical and historical considerations that were at the heart of the present composition and mandate of the Security Council no longer prevail. The composition of the Security Council should therefore be reflective of the realities of our times, and the powers of the individual Member States therein seen in the same light. We also firmly believe that it is necessary to ensure that United Nations resolutions and, indeed, decisions by the International Court of Justice are respected, obeyed and implemented by all countries. It is not fair that while some countries are chastised for violating United Nations resolutions, others seem to violate them with impunity. With regard to the Secretary-General’s Track 2 reform proposals, the report (A/51/950) entitled “Renewing the United Nations: A Programme for Reform” includes bold and far-reaching measures and proposals. The Gambia generally supports the Secretary- General’s reform proposals, in particular the following. First, we have that of creating a dividend for development. The effectiveness of this initiative would depend on Member States meeting their financial contributions to the Organization on time. Moreover, the initiative should serve as a catalyst for donors to provide greater support for development by meeting the agreed target contribution of 0.7 per cent of their gross national product. Secondly, the creation of the post of Deputy Secretary-General is timely, given the increasing mandates of the Organization. However, it is expected that the role of the Deputy Secretary-General would go beyond mobilization of funds for the Organization to incorporate administrative coordination. The length of stay in office of the incumbent should be determined. Thirdly, restructuring and regrouping of organs and agencies to facilitate their effectiveness and productivity should be guided by agreed principles, procedures and operational objectives to prevent a reduction of their 26 usefulness while enhancing the achievements of their specific goals. Fourthly, the fiscal measures, including zero growth and personnel cuts, are necessary. It is expected that this will not impair the Organization’s capability to fully discharge all its responsibilities. Fifthly, the putting into effect of “UN House” — the common premises system for all United Nations agencies serving in one country — is necessary and timely, given the substantial savings to be derived from the sharing of common services. Additionally, maintaining a common identity and location in a country would enhance the United Nations presence as a world Organization, as well as its accessibility in terms of speed and effective communication. It will also minimize confusion, waste and duplication of efforts. Suffice it to say that the Gambia will continue to study the Secretary-General’s reform proposals and their broad implications for the Organization and Member States in the years ahead. Lastly, as we continue with the reform of the United Nations system after over 50 years of operations, so must we also continue to address the weaknesses, inequalities and inadequacies inherent in the international economic and social system, global trade, finance and investment, international development and so on in order to achieve more meaningful international cooperation and global partnership, the promotion and preservation of human rights and fundamental freedoms, the right to development, good governance and economic growth — all cherished hallmarks of sustainable development and human achievements.