India has asked rich nations of the world to ensure that the ongoing financial crisis does not adversely affect their commitments to poverty eradication programmes in the developing nations.
Contending that the world is not on track to achieve the Millennium Development Goals especially on poverty eradication front, India asked the industrial nations to show greater enthusiasm in fulfilling their pledges to Official Development Assistance and debt relief for poor nations, besides market access and technology transfer.
"It is important that poverty eradication, which is the greatest global challenge facing the world today, should continue to receive the highest attention of the UN and the international community," Indian delegate Vishvjit P Singh told the Economic and Financial Committee of the UN General Assembly.
India, he said, considers industrial development to be a fundamental requirement for achieving high economic growth, without which the eradication of poverty and the achievement of the development objectives would not be possible.
Therefore, greater international support is required to assist the efforts of developing countries towards industrialisation, he said, adding, "we urge greater focus in industrial development cooperation on the crucial objectives of promoting the expansion, diversification and modernisation of productive capacities in developing countries."
Referring to the 'crucial question' of how to integrate pro-poor growth strategies with appropriate industrial policies, Singh said industrialisation must include support to small and medium enterprises, which leads to large employment generation.
He also expressed concern over demands by developed countries, which, he said, undermined the principle of 'less than full reciprocity' in the Doha trade negotiations on non-agricultural market access threatening the limited industrial advances made by developing countries.
"Instead, we need to work towards a multilateral trade regime that incorporates flexibilities that promotes the expansion of the industrial and manufacturing capacities of developing countries," he said.
Technology, he said, is a key driver for industrial development, without access to which efforts of developing countries will remain constrained.
"We would urge developed countries to take concrete steps for transfer of technology to developing countries as a key element of international development cooperation," he said
"While South-South and triangular cooperation can play a role in industrial development cooperation, we must not forget that North-South cooperation remains the main cooperation modality," he added.
In this context, he underlined that much of the bilateral aid remains asymmetrical and earmarked towards sectors and programmes chosen by the donors themselves.
"This goes against the core principle of national ownership and steps need to be urgently taken to reverse it," he told the delegates.
