It should also be a priority in the other countries in transition, which are frequently forced to offer their populations sub-standard drinking water. More generally, the transition countries should contribute actively to the mobilization of the international community in favour of sustainable development, in particular on the occasion of the Johannesburg World Summit in 2002. In this connection, it is impossible to imagine ecodevelopment without ensuring that individuals enjoy basic security and solidarity. Economic concerns are inseparable from social ones, first and foremost health. The deterioration in health in some countries should be a source of concern for all.
Epidemics recognize no frontiers.
The international financial institutions can, and increasingly must, help to improve public health by encouraging, for example, investment in the pharmaceuticals industry and hospital modernization, the distribution of medicines and the dissemination of means of prevention. That is a factor on which the ability of economies to anticipate and innovate is increasingly dependent. It will increasingly tend to tip the scales when decisions have to be made on where to make investments linked with the new technologies. The long-term strength of the transition economies, many of which have inherited some of the very best scientists and engineers, depends on their making the best possible use of their human resources, which should be developed by investing in education, research and training. The task of enhancing economic security in countries which must simultaneously consolidate their democracy, strengthen their market economy and adapt to globalization will therefore require a combined effort on the part of all concerned.