WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/L/339
18 November 1999
(99-5019)
General Council Original:  English
FANCOURT COMMONWEALTH DECLARATION ON GLOBALIZATON
AND PEOPLE-CENTRED DEVELOPMENT
Communication from South Africa
The following communication, dated 17 November 1999, has been received from the
Permanent Mission of South Africa.
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Please find herewith a copy of the above-mentioned Declaration1 which was an outcome of
the Commonwealth Head of Government Meet ing, held in South Africa from 12 to
15 November 1999.  On behalf of the Member s of the Commonwealth, the South African
Government submits the Fancourt Commonwealth Declaration on Globalization and People-Centred
Development  and requests that it be circulated to all WTO Members as part of the documentation for
General Council preparations for the 3rd WTO Ministerial Conference in Seattle.
                                                     
1 Reproduced in the Annex.WT/L/339
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ANNEX
The Fancourt Commonwealth Declaration on Globalization and People-Centred Development
1. In today's world, no country is untouched by the forces of globalization.  Our destinies are
linked together as never before.  The challenge is to seize the opportunities opened up by
globalization while minimizing its risks.
2. On the positive side, globalization is creating unprecedented opportunities for wealth creation
and for the betterment of the human condition.  Reduced barriers to trade and enhanced capital flows
are fuelling economic growth.
3. The revolution in communications technologies is shrinking the distance between nations,
providing new opportunities for the transfer of knowledge and the development of skills-basedindustries.  And technological advance globally offe rs great potential for the eradication of poverty.
4. But the benefits of globalization are not shared equitably.  Prosperity remains the preserve of
the few.  Despite the progress of the past fifty years, half the world's population lives on less than two
US Dollars per day.  Many millions live in conditions of extreme deprivation.  The poor are being
marginalized.  Expanded capital flows have also brought with them the risk of greater financialinstability, undermining the hope that a commitment to open markets can lift the developing world,
especially the least developed countries, out of poverty and debt.
5. The persistence of poverty and human deprivation diminishes us all.  It also makes global
peace and security fragile, limits the growth of markets, and forces millions to migrate in search of a
better life.  It constitutes a deep and fundamental structural flaw in the world economy.
6. The greatest challenge therefore facing us today is how to channel the forces of globalization
for the elimination of poverty and the empowerment  of human beings to lead fulfilling lives.
7. The solution does not lie in abandoning a commitment to market principles or in wishing
away the powerful forces of technological change.  Globalization is a reality and can only increase in
its impact.  But if the benefits of globalization are to be shared more widely, there must be greaterequity for countries in global markets.
8. We call on all nations fully to implement the Uruguay Round commitments to dismantle
barriers to trade for the mutual benefit of all.  Moreover, recognizing in particular the significant
contribution that enhanced export opportunities can make for reducing poverty, we call for improved
market access for the exports of all countries, particularly developing countries, and the removal of all
barriers to the exports of the least developed countries.
9. Strong export growth remains a key element in the ability of developing countries to improve
their living standards to the levels enjoyed in the industrialized world.  We support efforts that would
enable developing countries to build up their skills and manufacturing capacities, including the
production and export of value-added goods, so as to enhance growth and achieve prosperity.
10. Likewise, we urge that the forthcoming Ministerial Meeting of WTO to launch the next round
of global negotiations on trade be one with a pr onounced developmental dimension, with the aim of
achieving better market access in agriculture, industrial products and services in a way that provides
benefits to all members, particularly developing countries.  The Round should be balanced in process,
content and outcome.WT/L/339
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11. We fully believe in the importance of upholding labour standards and protecting the
environment.  But these must be addressed in an appropriate way that does not, by linking them to
trade liberalization, end up effectively impeding free trade and causing injustice to developing
countries.
12. We also call on the global community to establish innovative mechanisms to promote capital
flows to a wider number of countries; and to urgently initiate reform of international financial
architecture to minimize financial instability and its impact on the poor.
13. We believe that the elimination of poverty is achievable - but only if we take determined and
concerted action at national and international levels.  We reiterate our commitment to work for a
reversal of the decline in official development assistance flows.  Urgent action is also required to
tackle the unsustainable debt burden of developing countries, particularly the poorest, building on the
recent initiatives agreed internationally.  We believe such development assistance must be focused onhuman development, poverty reduction and on the development of capacities for participating in
expanding world markets for goods and capital.  Above all, we recognize the responsibilities of
national governments to promote pro-poor policies and human development.
14. If the poor and the vulnerable are to be at the centre of development, the process must be
participatory, in which they have a voice.  We believe that the spread of democratic freedoms andgood governance, and access to education, training and health care are key to the expansion of human
capabilities, and to the banishment of ignorance and prejudice.  Recognizing that good governance
and economic progress are directly linked, we affirm our commitment to the pursuit of greater
transparency, accountability, the rule of law and the elimination of corruption in all spheres of public
life and in the private sector.
15. We are concerned at the vast gap between rich  and poor in the ability to access the new
technologies, at the concentration of the world's research resources in market-driven products and
processes, the increasing tendency to claim proprietary rights on traditional knowledge, and at bio-
piracy.  We call on the world community to use the opportunities offered by globalization for
adopting practical measures for overcoming these challenges; for example, by extending the benefitsof global medical research through the provision of drugs at affordable prices to the poor in
developing countries.
16. We welcome the spread of ideas, information and knowledge in building civil support for
social equality, and in opposing all forms of discrimination and other injustices based on ethnicity,
gender, race and religion.  But, while better communications have increased human contact, there is
for some a growing sense of social exclusion and a general failure of moral purpose.  Persistence of
inequalities faced by women, continued high levels  of youth unemployment, lack of adequate support
systems for the aged, children and the disabled in many parts of the world and increased threats to the
diversity of cultures and beliefs all contribute to the undermining of just and stable society.  We
therefore call for a renewed commitment to eliminate all forms of discrimination and to take measures
that promote respect for the diverse languages, cultures and beliefs, and traditions of the world, which
enrich all our lives.
17. Recognizing that the full exploitation of th e opportunities for development created by
globalization is not possible without security, political stability and peace, we commit ourselves, in
partnership with civil society, to promote processes that help to prevent or resolve conflicts in a
peaceful manner, support measures that help to stabilize post-conflict situations, and combat terrorism
of all kinds.
18. Good governance requires inclusive and participatory processes at both national and
international levels.  We call on the global community to search for inclusive processes ofWT/L/339
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multilateralism which give a more effective voice in the operations of international institutions to
developing countries, and which recognize the particular vulnerabilities of small states.
19. We believe that the Commonwealth, an association of diverse sovereign nations reflecting
different stages of development and united by common values, has a vital role to play in promoting
consensus at national and international levels and in providing practical assistance for the creation ofcapacities needed to promote people-centred devel opment.  At the threshold of a new millennium, we
look to the Commonwealth, and its family of organizations, to contribute significantly to making the
above aspirations a reality.
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