OUTLINES OF COTONOU DECLARATION

The 12th Ministerial Conference of LDCs rounded up by the Cotonou Declaration adopted on Wednesday, August 7th 2002.

This declaration is an important follow-up document for the implementation process of the Brussels Program of Action for the LDCs.

The Declaration recalls the commitments made during International Conferences organised over last years on development issues, namely the 3rd UN conference of LDCs held in Brussels, the 4th Ministerial Conference of the WTO in Doha (Qatar), the UN Conference on Financing for Development held in Monterrey (Mexico).

With this document, participants expressed satisfaction especially on the appointment by the UN Secretary General of a High Representative for the LDCs, the Developing Landlocked Countries and the Small Island Developing Countries as well as the decisions taken by some international organizations to incorporate the Brussels Programme of Action into their work programme.

The participants urged the international community to fulfil its commitments to LDCs, which particularly consist in increasing public assistance to development, alleviating external debt, increasing private investment and in filling the technological gap between rich countries and developing countries.

The Declaration recommends, moreover, the establishment of a special allocation fund under the responsibility of the High Representative of the UN Secretary-General for LDCs and Developing Landlocked and Small Island Developing Countries, for the financing of tle LDCs ‘ activities coordination as regards the implementation of the Brussels Programme of Action.

In addition, it express the participants’ support to measures aiming at strengthening of South-South cooperation.

It advocates for a better coordination of LDCs’ positions and actions, and, in this line, expresses satisfaction the initiative taken by the Head of State of the Republic of Benin, on behalf of the LDCs, towards the G8 Heads of States and Governments on the occasion of the Kanasnakis (Canada) summit.

Finally, the Declaration expresses the participants’ gratitude to the people and Government of Benin for the warm welcome they have enjoyed and for the arrangement made so as to ensure the success of the Cotonou meeting.