UN General Assembly
1982

resources of the world's oceans. The single most important issue facing the world community today is the current global economic recession, especially the adverse impact it has had on the economic and social well being of all nations. Against the background of the current world economic crisis, Papua New Guinea joins other nations in recognizing that co operation at the international level is urgently requested in order to arrest and improve the deteriorating economic situation. We are aware that the world economy has suffered over the past decade from problems arising from inflation, high interest rates, exchange rate instability, deteriorating terms of trade in commodities, rising unemployment, slow growth and protectionism. Because of the general downturn in economic growth, industrial countries have had to apply so called safeguard measures in order to cope with their own domestic pressures. Thus we have seen substantial falls in the industrial countries' demands for non industrial country products, the proliferation of tariff and non tariff barriers and a general drift towards protectionism. In addition there has been, a substantial reduction m the flow of