DAVOS, Switzerland: Africa should have a greater presence in the Group of 20 nations rather than be largely excluded and simply told how to run their economies, Botswana's central bank governor said on Thursday last week.
South Africa is the only African member of the G20, which groups G7 industrialised nations together with major emerging economies such as China, Russia and Saudi Arabia. "The representation of Africa in the G20 is almost non-existent. We don't just want to be told what to do, we want to participate," central bank chief Lina Mohohlo said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos. "South Africa is not there to represent the continent. It's not fair to them (South Africa) and it's not their mandate. You need to have more than one country," she said.
Resource-rich Africa, which boasts some of the world's fastest-growing economies, has become a focus for investors looking for high returns over a longer time frame. "The IMF (International Monetary Fund) is also lagging behind," said Mohohlo. "I'm almost sure the problems of Africa will not reach the board of the IMF."
At their meeting in October, G20 finance ministers conceded the quickening shift in economic power away from Western industrial nations by striking a surprise deal to give emerging nations a bigger voice in the IMF.
Mohohlo also said higher food inflation squeezes the poor -- the predominant portion of Africa's population.
Botswana saw inflation quicken to 7.4 percent last month, above the central bank's medium-term objective of 3-6 percent. Still, the central bank cut the bank rate by 50 basis points to 9.5 percent in December, citing sluggish global growth as a risk to its economy, along with weak local demand.
Like in many other emerging countries, Botswana's central bank is caught in a policy dilemma: if it does nothing, inflation will rise, while if it raises borrowing costs, the economy will slow down. "One of the major risks is that if we move forward with monetary tightening to contain inflation, that will be a detriment to growth," Mohohlo said.
Source: http://www.mmegi.bw
1/30/2011
France: G-20 should consider expansion
DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — The Group of 20 leading rich and emerging nations should consider ways to give representation to around 170 countries that are left out, France's finance minister said Friday.
France holds the presidency of the G-20, which has been criticized for failing to include the voices of many nations — developed, developing and poor.
French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde told a news conference at the World Economic Forum that one possibility is to include a number of countries in one seat and rotate membership — as the International Monetary Fund's Executive Board does.
"We need to keep our objective of an efficient G-20 that continues to be credible, and in a way there is a dichotomy between the two," she said.
Lagarde said the group's meetings now include not only the 20 members, but five invited guests, which is "already quite a number" of leaders at the table.
The G-20 members are South Africa, Canada, Mexico, United States, Argentina, Brazil, China, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, India, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Turkey, France, Germany, Italy, Britain, Australia and the European Union.
At the last summit in Seoul in November, the five invited countries were Ethiopia which chaired NEPAD, the New Partnership for Africa's Development; Vietnam which chaired the Association of Southeast Asian Nations; Malawi which chaired the African Union; Spain, one of the world's 10 largest economies, and the Netherlands, the 16th largest economy.
"To be efficient you need to have a closed circle," Lagarde said. "Equally, to be credible it has to be representative. and only having 25 nations is considered illegitimate or lacking representation by those 170 that are left out."
Lagarde said French President Nicolas Sarkozy alluded to a possible way to "close the gap between efficiency which requires a small number, and credibility that requires the representativeness of a much larger community."
In his address to the forum Wednesday, Sarkozy referred to the 25 participants at the G-20 summit but said he also referred to "24."
Lagarde reminded reporters that this is the size of the IMF Executive Board which has operated since its inception on the basis of chairs for major economic powers and chairs for groups of countries whose board participant rotates.
The U.S., Japan, Germany, France, Britain, China, Russia and Saudi Arabia currently have seats on the IMF board, but the rest rotate among different groups.
"Clearly, there must be consideration given to that interesting similarity between 25 on the one hand and 24 on the other," Lagarde said, "and that might be a key to this dichotomy between efficiency and credibility."
Source: http://www.bloomberg.com
France holds the presidency of the G-20, which has been criticized for failing to include the voices of many nations — developed, developing and poor.
French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde told a news conference at the World Economic Forum that one possibility is to include a number of countries in one seat and rotate membership — as the International Monetary Fund's Executive Board does.
"We need to keep our objective of an efficient G-20 that continues to be credible, and in a way there is a dichotomy between the two," she said.
Lagarde said the group's meetings now include not only the 20 members, but five invited guests, which is "already quite a number" of leaders at the table.
The G-20 members are South Africa, Canada, Mexico, United States, Argentina, Brazil, China, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, India, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Turkey, France, Germany, Italy, Britain, Australia and the European Union.
At the last summit in Seoul in November, the five invited countries were Ethiopia which chaired NEPAD, the New Partnership for Africa's Development; Vietnam which chaired the Association of Southeast Asian Nations; Malawi which chaired the African Union; Spain, one of the world's 10 largest economies, and the Netherlands, the 16th largest economy.
"To be efficient you need to have a closed circle," Lagarde said. "Equally, to be credible it has to be representative. and only having 25 nations is considered illegitimate or lacking representation by those 170 that are left out."
Lagarde said French President Nicolas Sarkozy alluded to a possible way to "close the gap between efficiency which requires a small number, and credibility that requires the representativeness of a much larger community."
In his address to the forum Wednesday, Sarkozy referred to the 25 participants at the G-20 summit but said he also referred to "24."
Lagarde reminded reporters that this is the size of the IMF Executive Board which has operated since its inception on the basis of chairs for major economic powers and chairs for groups of countries whose board participant rotates.
The U.S., Japan, Germany, France, Britain, China, Russia and Saudi Arabia currently have seats on the IMF board, but the rest rotate among different groups.
"Clearly, there must be consideration given to that interesting similarity between 25 on the one hand and 24 on the other," Lagarde said, "and that might be a key to this dichotomy between efficiency and credibility."
Source: http://www.bloomberg.com
1/27/2011
France includes commods position limits in G20 plan
G20-leader France will make concrete proposals to regulate commodity derivative markets, despite its recent focus on ways to make physical trade more transparent, farm ministry sources said on Thursday.
France will propose including position limits, identifying commodity players as either speculative or commercial, while also seeking a framework to record over-the-counter, or non-exchange, trades, the sources said.
It holds the 2011 presidency of the G20 group of major economies.
France had said it wanted to regulate increasingly volatile commodity derivative markets but had given few details on its concrete proposals. Instead it focused on making physical markets more coordinated -- a target seen more attainable than a derivative market revamp.
Speaking in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, President Nicolas Sarkozy reiterated the need for more transparency of global agricultural supplies in order to curb wild swings in food prices.
Position limits are already part of the European Commission's proposals to clamp down on speculators in commodities under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) but the source said the G20 would be a better option.
"The general outline is that when you are in a (derivative) market you can see who are the actors. Our second proposal is to try and limit the positions and to try to have a system to regulate -- but it will be extremely complicated -- OTC operations," one farm minister source said.
A regulation of EU markets in the same spirit as U.S. markets would shift trade to less regulated centers, it said, stressing that the G20 was the only body that could solve these questions.
Derivative market operators would need to declare themselves as speculative or commercial players depending on the basis of their main activities, the source said.
The farm ministry did not give details on position limits, stressing that financial issues would have to be negotiated by G20 financial ministers, rather than agricultural ministers.
For most of its proposals on derivative markets France would draw its inspiration from the U.S. Dodd-Frank financial reform law adopted last year, the source said.
PRAGMATISM
France's most concrete G20 plans for a better commodity markets regulation focused on physical markets.
The source detailed Sarkozy's proposal to create an agriculture database similar to the Joint Oil Data Initiative (JODI), administered by a producer/consumer body based in Saudi Arabia, which gathers oil data.
It could be called JADI for "Joint Agriculture Data Initiative" and gather information from sources including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the European Union, the International Grains Council (IGC), and countries.
"The idea is that the signals given by the big producers are harmonized," the source said.
Large countries such as India and China had not given their answer on a proposal of an harmonized database yet, it added.
"Our wish is to obtain, within the G20, a consensus on the fact that there is volatility -- notably excessive volatility -- and we agree to put in place in a pragmatic way, some measures of transparency on physical markets, of transparency on financial markets, on which we think we can move forward," the source said.
Source: http://www.reuters.com
France will propose including position limits, identifying commodity players as either speculative or commercial, while also seeking a framework to record over-the-counter, or non-exchange, trades, the sources said.
It holds the 2011 presidency of the G20 group of major economies.
France had said it wanted to regulate increasingly volatile commodity derivative markets but had given few details on its concrete proposals. Instead it focused on making physical markets more coordinated -- a target seen more attainable than a derivative market revamp.
Speaking in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, President Nicolas Sarkozy reiterated the need for more transparency of global agricultural supplies in order to curb wild swings in food prices.
Position limits are already part of the European Commission's proposals to clamp down on speculators in commodities under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) but the source said the G20 would be a better option.
"The general outline is that when you are in a (derivative) market you can see who are the actors. Our second proposal is to try and limit the positions and to try to have a system to regulate -- but it will be extremely complicated -- OTC operations," one farm minister source said.
A regulation of EU markets in the same spirit as U.S. markets would shift trade to less regulated centers, it said, stressing that the G20 was the only body that could solve these questions.
Derivative market operators would need to declare themselves as speculative or commercial players depending on the basis of their main activities, the source said.
The farm ministry did not give details on position limits, stressing that financial issues would have to be negotiated by G20 financial ministers, rather than agricultural ministers.
For most of its proposals on derivative markets France would draw its inspiration from the U.S. Dodd-Frank financial reform law adopted last year, the source said.
PRAGMATISM
France's most concrete G20 plans for a better commodity markets regulation focused on physical markets.
The source detailed Sarkozy's proposal to create an agriculture database similar to the Joint Oil Data Initiative (JODI), administered by a producer/consumer body based in Saudi Arabia, which gathers oil data.
It could be called JADI for "Joint Agriculture Data Initiative" and gather information from sources including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the European Union, the International Grains Council (IGC), and countries.
"The idea is that the signals given by the big producers are harmonized," the source said.
Large countries such as India and China had not given their answer on a proposal of an harmonized database yet, it added.
"Our wish is to obtain, within the G20, a consensus on the fact that there is volatility -- notably excessive volatility -- and we agree to put in place in a pragmatic way, some measures of transparency on physical markets, of transparency on financial markets, on which we think we can move forward," the source said.
Source: http://www.reuters.com
1/26/2011
Police Misled MPs Over G20 Covert Officers
Two of Scotland Yard's most senior commanders have been forced into an embarrassing apology to MPs after it emerged the force had misled a Parliamentary Committee over the presence of covert officers at the G20 protests.
Acting Met Commissioner Tim Godwin and Commander Bob Broadhurst told MPs on the Home Affairs Select Committe that Commander Broadhurst had been mistaken when he claimed no covert or plain clothes officers had been on duty at the protests in April 2009.
It has since emerged that both plain-clothes and covert officers were deployed.
Speaking to the Committee, Mr Broadhurst said: "May I first of all apologise. When I appeared before you on May 19, 2009, I gave you some information that now appears to be inaccurate.
"For that, I apologise, but at the time I made it it was true to the best of my knowledge, otherwise I certainly would not have said it at the time...I hadn't asked for covert policing at any of those protests and wasn't aware that I had any."
Asked if the Met Commissioner should also have known about the use of covert officers during the G20 protests, Mr Broadhurst said: "No sir. It's my operation. I should have known, I didn't and I've apologised."
Mr Broadhurst's admission raised questions over how the man in charge of the policing operation that day could be unaware that covert officers from his own force were being used.
He was also unaware that plain-clothes officers from the City of London Police were deployed at observation posts.
When he gave evidence in the month following the 2009 demonstrations, Mr Broadhurst had said: "It would have been dangerous for them to put plain-clothes officers in a crowd like that."
But questions arose about his evidence in the wake of the recent unmasking of undercover officer Mark Kennedy, who attended many demonstrations during seven years living as an undercover officer among green activists.
Mr Godwin, who also apologised to the MPs, defended his commander's actions, blaming the large scale of the operation and saying inquiries into what went wrong were under way.
However, the apologies have been met with scepticism by some within the protest movement.
Bradley Day, from Climate Camp, said: "The idea that you should have your entire life infiltrated just for expressing the right to protest is absolutely disgusting.
"The real issue now is to stop this ever happening again, and the police could start by revealing what's happened in the past rather than just making feeble apologies to MPs".
Source: http://news.sky.com
Acting Met Commissioner Tim Godwin and Commander Bob Broadhurst told MPs on the Home Affairs Select Committe that Commander Broadhurst had been mistaken when he claimed no covert or plain clothes officers had been on duty at the protests in April 2009.
It has since emerged that both plain-clothes and covert officers were deployed.
Speaking to the Committee, Mr Broadhurst said: "May I first of all apologise. When I appeared before you on May 19, 2009, I gave you some information that now appears to be inaccurate.
"For that, I apologise, but at the time I made it it was true to the best of my knowledge, otherwise I certainly would not have said it at the time...I hadn't asked for covert policing at any of those protests and wasn't aware that I had any."
Asked if the Met Commissioner should also have known about the use of covert officers during the G20 protests, Mr Broadhurst said: "No sir. It's my operation. I should have known, I didn't and I've apologised."
Mr Broadhurst's admission raised questions over how the man in charge of the policing operation that day could be unaware that covert officers from his own force were being used.
He was also unaware that plain-clothes officers from the City of London Police were deployed at observation posts.
When he gave evidence in the month following the 2009 demonstrations, Mr Broadhurst had said: "It would have been dangerous for them to put plain-clothes officers in a crowd like that."
But questions arose about his evidence in the wake of the recent unmasking of undercover officer Mark Kennedy, who attended many demonstrations during seven years living as an undercover officer among green activists.
Mr Godwin, who also apologised to the MPs, defended his commander's actions, blaming the large scale of the operation and saying inquiries into what went wrong were under way.
However, the apologies have been met with scepticism by some within the protest movement.
Bradley Day, from Climate Camp, said: "The idea that you should have your entire life infiltrated just for expressing the right to protest is absolutely disgusting.
"The real issue now is to stop this ever happening again, and the police could start by revealing what's happened in the past rather than just making feeble apologies to MPs".
Source: http://news.sky.com
1/25/2011
Met Commander Bob Broadhurst 'sorry' over G20 claim
A senior Metropolitan Police commander has apologised for giving false information to MPs over the 2009 G20 protests in London.
A month after the protest Commander Bob Broadhurst claimed no plain clothes officers were deployed in the crowd.
Scotland Yard has now admitted covert officers were used.
Mr Broadhurst told an MPs' Home Affairs Select Committee the information was "true to the best of my knowledge at the time".
n 2009 he told a parliamentary committee: "We had no plain clothes officers in the crowd.
"It would have been dangerous to have plain clothes officers in the crowd like that."
Commander Broadhurst was so-called 'gold commander' of the police operation on the day.
He told the latest hearing: "I first of all apologise. When I appeared before you I gave you information that appears to be inaccurate.
"At the time it was true to the best of my knowledge."
He was supported at the hearing by acting Met commissioner Tim Godwin, who said: "If you are running a huge operation like that you can't know everything all the time.
"In intelligence you don't always know the source."
Posed as activist
Commander Broadhurst's 2009 claim came under scrutiny after the unmasking of former undercover officer Mark Kennedy.
Mr Kennedy spent seven years posing as a green activist and reporting back to police.
He caused the trial of six men accused of conspiring to shut down Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station in Nottinghamshire to collapse after he said he would testify for the defence.
Police were heavily criticised after clashing with protesters at the 2009 G20 demonstrations.
Newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson died after being pushed over by a police officer, but no prosecution was brought.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk
A month after the protest Commander Bob Broadhurst claimed no plain clothes officers were deployed in the crowd.
Scotland Yard has now admitted covert officers were used.
Mr Broadhurst told an MPs' Home Affairs Select Committee the information was "true to the best of my knowledge at the time".
n 2009 he told a parliamentary committee: "We had no plain clothes officers in the crowd.
"It would have been dangerous to have plain clothes officers in the crowd like that."
Commander Broadhurst was so-called 'gold commander' of the police operation on the day.
He told the latest hearing: "I first of all apologise. When I appeared before you I gave you information that appears to be inaccurate.
"At the time it was true to the best of my knowledge."
He was supported at the hearing by acting Met commissioner Tim Godwin, who said: "If you are running a huge operation like that you can't know everything all the time.
"In intelligence you don't always know the source."
Posed as activist
Commander Broadhurst's 2009 claim came under scrutiny after the unmasking of former undercover officer Mark Kennedy.
Mr Kennedy spent seven years posing as a green activist and reporting back to police.
He caused the trial of six men accused of conspiring to shut down Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station in Nottinghamshire to collapse after he said he would testify for the defence.
Police were heavily criticised after clashing with protesters at the 2009 G20 demonstrations.
Newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson died after being pushed over by a police officer, but no prosecution was brought.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk
1/24/2011
Sarkozy’s G20 plans fail to impress
LONDON — France is to chair the G20 and Nicolas Sarkozy has declared his goals. Unfortunately, the French president’s calls for more commodity markets regulation, a financial transactions tax and reform of the world monetary system look more like gestures to please the gallery than practical proposals.
Markets are unruly and Sarkozy’s focus is on taming them. But quite what his “regulation of primary commodity financial markets” might imply is unclear. Much of the world is alarmed that oil costs more than $90 per barrel. Drivers find filling their tanks painful. But the unpredictability of commodity prices is well known and commodity prices are not readily controlled by governments. Most sensible governments will be against even trying.
Besides, if high prices reflect high demand, as most analysts believe, the prices serve a purpose. They help to bring fresh supply on-stream while encouraging lower consumption and reduced demand. Only if there are abuses of the market can intervention be really justified.
Sarkozy also says that France wants a financial transactions tax. The target is clear and popular: the big financial institutions and their often excessive bonuses. But a financial transactions tax will punish genuine investors and impede the efficient allocation of capital to enterprises. It will add a layer of bureaucracy too. Yet it’s hard to imagine the big bonus-takers being affected.
As for the global monetary system, Sarkozy appears to want a new Bretton Woods. But that is a goal from which he has already stepped back. The world has no appetite for reforms that risk replacing an imperfect system with one that doesn’t work at all.
Even gestures can sometimes do some good, however, and the spotlight Sarkozy is turning on food prices might possibly lead to something useful. It may be that some speculators have too much influence in food markets. Given the burden high food prices place on the poor, investigation there is warranted.
Source: http://blogs.reuters.com
Markets are unruly and Sarkozy’s focus is on taming them. But quite what his “regulation of primary commodity financial markets” might imply is unclear. Much of the world is alarmed that oil costs more than $90 per barrel. Drivers find filling their tanks painful. But the unpredictability of commodity prices is well known and commodity prices are not readily controlled by governments. Most sensible governments will be against even trying.
Besides, if high prices reflect high demand, as most analysts believe, the prices serve a purpose. They help to bring fresh supply on-stream while encouraging lower consumption and reduced demand. Only if there are abuses of the market can intervention be really justified.
Sarkozy also says that France wants a financial transactions tax. The target is clear and popular: the big financial institutions and their often excessive bonuses. But a financial transactions tax will punish genuine investors and impede the efficient allocation of capital to enterprises. It will add a layer of bureaucracy too. Yet it’s hard to imagine the big bonus-takers being affected.
As for the global monetary system, Sarkozy appears to want a new Bretton Woods. But that is a goal from which he has already stepped back. The world has no appetite for reforms that risk replacing an imperfect system with one that doesn’t work at all.
Even gestures can sometimes do some good, however, and the spotlight Sarkozy is turning on food prices might possibly lead to something useful. It may be that some speculators have too much influence in food markets. Given the burden high food prices place on the poor, investigation there is warranted.
Source: http://blogs.reuters.com
1/21/2011
The G20’s next project: Solve global crisis of unstable food prices
Even as the G20 wrestles with the aftermath of the financial crisis, the group of global powers is preparing to tackle another of the world's most urgent issues – wild swings in food prices.
Volatile commodity prices have wreaked havoc in the developing world, threatening food supplies in some countries and creating sharp inflation in others.
The Globe and Mail has learned that, for first time, the work of the G20 will be expanded to include a special meeting of agriculture ministers who will advise leaders on ways of averting skyrocketing food prices. The solutions are far from easy. The idea of liberalizing trade policies – to tackle Russian wheat export bans or addressing concerns about speculators in commodities markets – is deeply contentious.
Canada could help forge consensus given its strong commodity exports and experience as last year’s chair of the G20.
Agricultural subsidies have long divided traditional and emerging powers. By putting the issue of food prices on the G20 agenda, France, which is this year’s host, is clearly reaching out to emerging economies like China, India and Brazil, where food inflation is a major concern.
Possible options for the G20 include building and managing larger food reserves, beefing up the United Nations’ monitoring of global crops and pushing for reduced farm subsidies. France also wants a clamp-down on stock market trading rules for the agricultural sector in response to concern that speculators are destabilizing the prices of the world’s most basic items.
Finding a way forward will be a huge challenge for the G20, which is quickly losing the spirit of co-operation that marked its response to the 2008 financial crisis.
Driving the new sense of urgency is the latest report from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, which found food prices are now higher than during the peak of the 2008 global food crisis. The spikes are highest for rice, sugar and oils.
Recent civil unrest in Tunisia, Algeria and Egypt is also connected to food prices.
France is hoping Canada will “bring its support” to the proposed changes in agriculture policy, France’s outgoing ambassador to Canada, François Delattre, said in an email.
While Canada has scaled back subsidies for its large farming base, Cecilia Rocha, an economist specializing in food security at Ryerson University, said the French and the European Union will likely come under fire from developing countries on the issue of subsidies.
“They will have to take a look at themselves and the policies that they have implemented in the past few years that have led to some of the problems that we are facing today,” she said.
Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com
Volatile commodity prices have wreaked havoc in the developing world, threatening food supplies in some countries and creating sharp inflation in others.
The Globe and Mail has learned that, for first time, the work of the G20 will be expanded to include a special meeting of agriculture ministers who will advise leaders on ways of averting skyrocketing food prices. The solutions are far from easy. The idea of liberalizing trade policies – to tackle Russian wheat export bans or addressing concerns about speculators in commodities markets – is deeply contentious.
Canada could help forge consensus given its strong commodity exports and experience as last year’s chair of the G20.
Agricultural subsidies have long divided traditional and emerging powers. By putting the issue of food prices on the G20 agenda, France, which is this year’s host, is clearly reaching out to emerging economies like China, India and Brazil, where food inflation is a major concern.
Possible options for the G20 include building and managing larger food reserves, beefing up the United Nations’ monitoring of global crops and pushing for reduced farm subsidies. France also wants a clamp-down on stock market trading rules for the agricultural sector in response to concern that speculators are destabilizing the prices of the world’s most basic items.
Finding a way forward will be a huge challenge for the G20, which is quickly losing the spirit of co-operation that marked its response to the 2008 financial crisis.
Driving the new sense of urgency is the latest report from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, which found food prices are now higher than during the peak of the 2008 global food crisis. The spikes are highest for rice, sugar and oils.
Recent civil unrest in Tunisia, Algeria and Egypt is also connected to food prices.
France is hoping Canada will “bring its support” to the proposed changes in agriculture policy, France’s outgoing ambassador to Canada, François Delattre, said in an email.
While Canada has scaled back subsidies for its large farming base, Cecilia Rocha, an economist specializing in food security at Ryerson University, said the French and the European Union will likely come under fire from developing countries on the issue of subsidies.
“They will have to take a look at themselves and the policies that they have implemented in the past few years that have led to some of the problems that we are facing today,” she said.
Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com
1/20/2011
G-20 had a vital role to play in India, Australia
Noting that India and Australia have resilient and strongly performing economies, External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna and his Australian counterpart Kevin Rudd on Thursday stressed that the G-20 had a vital role to play in working towards continued prosperity and stability in the global economy.
In a joint statement issued here, both ministers agreed that the recent reforms to the International Financial Institutions constituted a landmark achievement for the G20. hey further noted that India's participation in both the G20 and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in 2011-12 presented an opportunity for increased cooperation to meet global challenges.
They reiterated their intention to continue working together closely in the G20, the premier forum for international economic cooperation.
They also stressed the importance of an effective and comprehensive global response to climate change and noted India's key role in achieving a successful outcome at the Cancun conference of parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in December 2010.
They noted the significant capacity for enhanced regional cooperation, including through the East Asia Summit (EAS).
The ministers welcomed the recent admission of the United States and Russia into the EAS and looked forward to working together to strengthen the EAS agenda in 2011.
Both minsiters welcomed the decision to establish a Defence Policy Dialogue, the inaugural Talks of which were held in New Delhi in December 2010 and reiterated their strong support for nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament.
Krishna welcomed Australia's participation as an Observer in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) for the first time in 2010 at the Summit in Bhutan.
Rudd confirmed Australia's commitment to its engagement with South Asia and the Indian Ocean region and referred to the contribution Australia was making within SAARC, through a project to promote food security, better water usage and agricultural production. (ANI)
Source: http://www.sify.com
In a joint statement issued here, both ministers agreed that the recent reforms to the International Financial Institutions constituted a landmark achievement for the G20. hey further noted that India's participation in both the G20 and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in 2011-12 presented an opportunity for increased cooperation to meet global challenges.
They reiterated their intention to continue working together closely in the G20, the premier forum for international economic cooperation.
They also stressed the importance of an effective and comprehensive global response to climate change and noted India's key role in achieving a successful outcome at the Cancun conference of parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in December 2010.
They noted the significant capacity for enhanced regional cooperation, including through the East Asia Summit (EAS).
The ministers welcomed the recent admission of the United States and Russia into the EAS and looked forward to working together to strengthen the EAS agenda in 2011.
Both minsiters welcomed the decision to establish a Defence Policy Dialogue, the inaugural Talks of which were held in New Delhi in December 2010 and reiterated their strong support for nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament.
Krishna welcomed Australia's participation as an Observer in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) for the first time in 2010 at the Summit in Bhutan.
Rudd confirmed Australia's commitment to its engagement with South Asia and the Indian Ocean region and referred to the contribution Australia was making within SAARC, through a project to promote food security, better water usage and agricultural production. (ANI)
Source: http://www.sify.com
1/19/2011
Noyer: G-20 Needs Common Diagnosis Of Global Monetary Problems
PARIS -(Dow Jones)- The Group of the 20 industrialized and developing nations must come up with a common diagnosis of the causes of the current foreign exchange instability, European Central Bank governing council member Christian Noyer said Wednesday, amid persistent worries that world leaders are struggling to see eye to eye the issue.
"France wants to open the debate. It's not about triggering big changes, but about drawing the consequences of the in-depth evolutions" that took place on the global economic scene, Noyer, who is also governor of the Bank of France, said in an address to financial market professionals here.
France has made reforming the international monetary system the top priority of its G20 presidency and wants the global currency system to be less reliant on the U.S. dollar and more multi-polar. But fostering consensus may prove challenging amid persistent differences between G20 members.
The debate is in particular locked between China and the U.S., with the latter calling on China to let the yuan appreciate faster, while China says low U.S. saving and interest rates are fueling volatile capital flows into emerging economies, putting upward pressure on their currencies.
Noyer said the reform of the international monetary system should address volatile capital flows and currency misalignments, as well as the excessive accumulation of foreign exchange reserves, in order to create a more balanced global growth.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy is due to outline the priorities of its G20 presidency in a speech Monday.
Source: http://www.automatedtrader.net
"France wants to open the debate. It's not about triggering big changes, but about drawing the consequences of the in-depth evolutions" that took place on the global economic scene, Noyer, who is also governor of the Bank of France, said in an address to financial market professionals here.
France has made reforming the international monetary system the top priority of its G20 presidency and wants the global currency system to be less reliant on the U.S. dollar and more multi-polar. But fostering consensus may prove challenging amid persistent differences between G20 members.
The debate is in particular locked between China and the U.S., with the latter calling on China to let the yuan appreciate faster, while China says low U.S. saving and interest rates are fueling volatile capital flows into emerging economies, putting upward pressure on their currencies.
Noyer said the reform of the international monetary system should address volatile capital flows and currency misalignments, as well as the excessive accumulation of foreign exchange reserves, in order to create a more balanced global growth.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy is due to outline the priorities of its G20 presidency in a speech Monday.
Source: http://www.automatedtrader.net
1/18/2011
Hire Star to probe G20 police
Well, the Star has done it again. The Toronto police can’t seem to find any evidence of wrong doing by their own officers at the G20. The Star steps in to the investigative vacuum and finds enough evidence to get the Special Investigations Unit to look into two cases of possible police misconduct.
Mayor Rob Ford likes the idea of contracting out to save money. Maybe he should look into contracting out police services to the Star. They seem to have a better handle on investigations than the police do. Congratulations and well done!
Source: http://www.thestar.com
Mayor Rob Ford likes the idea of contracting out to save money. Maybe he should look into contracting out police services to the Star. They seem to have a better handle on investigations than the police do. Congratulations and well done!
Source: http://www.thestar.com
1/17/2011
Tallying the G20’s legal costs
More than six months after the last world leader jetted out of fortress Toronto, the impact of the G20 summit continues to reverberate across the city and the country, including the financial cost of the various legal proceedings and reviews that have resulted.
With a slew of reports, inquiries, reviews, class actions, criminal trials, and civil actions underway or still to come, the legal bills are threatening to add significantly to the famous billion-dollar security price tag.
Nathalie Des Rosiers, general counsel at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, continues to press for a single public inquiry into police actions that would consolidate at least some of the public probes. She insists it’s not too late to save money.
“When you have a multi-force policing effort, we ought to have had one public inquiry that has powers to compel testimony,” she says. “It’s sufficiently complex that a public inquiry would have been the cheaper and more comprehensive route. I think it would still be a cheaper route, but we’re still working with all the inquiries that are taking place.”
The CCLA is close to releasing its own report on G20 policing and public accountability after it held hearings in November. Des Rosiers says it’s also planning a book on the summit in addition to making submissions to most of the public inquiries underway.
One of the few proceedings yet to hear from the CCLA is the Toronto Police Services Board’s independent civilian review led by former associate chief justice John Morden.
Based at the offices of his firm, Heenan Blaikie LLP, Morden will make non-binding recommendations after tackling 35 questions posed by the review’s terms of reference about the board’s role in planning and leading the G20 security effort.
The review was only supposed to take 12 weeks when it was announced in July. But by the time of Morden’s selection, the deadline had become much more vague with no specific budget for the review.
Morden has been instructed to deliver monthly invoices while working at a rate of $480 per hour with other members of the small team remunerated on a sliding scale. Only the first month’s bill of $24,000 is publicly available so far, but the board is expected to approve additional costs at its next meeting in February.
Review counsel Ryan Teschner says there are four phases to the process: background research, document review, interviews, and report writing. After four months, he notes the team is just beginning the document review phase but he can’t say when it’ll be ready to hear from witnesses.
“We understand this review is being conducted with public money, so we are working hard to be as efficient and effective as possible and to make sure there is no overlap and no duplication of efforts,” Teschner says.
Former chief justice and Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP counsel Roy McMurtry has clearly cut the provincial government a deal for his review of the so-called secret law under the Public Works Protection Act.
He’s working at a bargain rate of $300 per hour. Joe Kim, spokesman for the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services, won’t say how much the review has spent so far. “We want to provide one final tally once the report is submitted,” he says. That’s expected in April, he adds.
Ontario ombudsman André Marin conducted his own review of the act using his office’s regular budget. The Special Investigations Unit also kept its probe of six allegations of police brutality in-house.
The new Office of the Independent Police Review Director has hired additional investigators in order to meet the demands of its systemic review of G20 policing, but spokeswoman Allison Hawkins says it’s difficult to isolate the cost of that in its overall budget.
In addition to the police services board proceedings, the Toronto Police Service is also conducting its own internal review related to the G20, although spokeswoman Meaghan Gray says it’s all within the normal budget.
The service has, however, hired Borden Ladner Gervais LLP to represent it in various G20-related civil suits, but Gray notes an insurer covers the legal fees.
Seeking to put a significantly larger dent into public coffers than any of the multitude of G20 reviews and investigations are two class action lawsuits launched within weeks of one another in the summer.
But before the litigants take on the police, they may have to face off against one another. Murray Klippenstein, the lawyer on a $45-million class action against Toronto police and the RCMP, says it’s likely only one of the matters will proceed. The members of his class include about 800 people arrested and released without charge during the G20.
David Midanik is the lawyer for a $115-million class action that represents all of those arrested — estimated at about 1,170 people — during the G20 weekend. He says it’s important to include those who were charged.
“Most of the people who were charged were at the forefront of exercising democratic rights, so in terms of preserving civil liberties and democratic rights, it’s essential those people get representation,” Midanik says.
Klippenstein, meanwhile, says he’s considering expanding his class to include those who faced charges that were later withdrawn or stayed.
Initially, Midanik’s matter also included business owners who suffered property damage during the summit. That’s no longer the case due to a fear it made the class too broad for certification. Both lawyers are preparing applications for certification, but neither expects a court hearing for months.
Adam Goodman acted for several of those charged by acting at bail hearings on a pro bono basis. Although most of them had their charges dropped at the first appearance in court, one of his clients is facing a trial in April.
Goodman says he’s looking forward to hearing testimony from police when trials get underway in courtrooms across the city next month.
“There’s been mostly silence from the police officers, but at trial, they’ll be on the stand and under oath. There might be some who don’t like what happened but feel they have to be quiet right now.”
According to the most recent statistics released by the Ministry of the Attorney General, of the 320 people charged with criminal offences in the aftermath of the G20, just 86 are still before the courts.
Around 60 had charges diverted, pleaded guilty or were subjects of peace bonds. Just over half of those charged had their charges stayed or withdrawn, the bulk of those on the first day of mass court appearances.
In several cases, the withdrawal of charges led to a switch of focus to civil suits from criminal matters.
Clayton Ruby, for example, is preparing a civil suit on behalf of Charles Veitch, a British satirist charged under the act for failing to identify himself within five metres of the security fence. Ruby also defended him on the charges that were later withdrawn.
Another client, Natalie Gray, has sued Toronto police after they allegedly hit her with rubber bullets. She was charged with obstructing a police officer, but those charges were later withdrawn.
Ruby is also representing Dorian Barton, who claims officers assaulted him during the G20 weekend. The SIU closed an investigation into his case late last year after concluding there wasn’t enough evidence to lay charges, but new photos of the alleged assault have since emerged.
“The SIU is a fake agency,” Ruby says. “It’s a fraud and a sham. They’re not interested in investigating effectively.”
In Ruby’s view, the raft of G20 investigations is ineffective because each is too narrowly focused. “There’s no sign that enough pressure is going to be exerted to bring about a royal commission, and I can’t imagine anything less will do. So we’re left with the civil law system, which unfortunately only results in damages and publicity.”
Des Rosiers says she’s not surprised at the G20’s staying power in the public consciousness and expects it to remain a big file for the CCLA well into the future.
“What we have seen from people on the ground and from what our monitors saw presents a significant violation of civil rights that weekend. Our view is that the story has to be told, and accountability, no matter how long and how difficult it will be, needs to be brought to bear because what happened was unacceptable.
It takes some time for processes of accountability to unfold, so I think the story will be told for quite some time yet.”
Source: http://www.lawtimesnews.com
With a slew of reports, inquiries, reviews, class actions, criminal trials, and civil actions underway or still to come, the legal bills are threatening to add significantly to the famous billion-dollar security price tag.
Nathalie Des Rosiers, general counsel at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, continues to press for a single public inquiry into police actions that would consolidate at least some of the public probes. She insists it’s not too late to save money.
“When you have a multi-force policing effort, we ought to have had one public inquiry that has powers to compel testimony,” she says. “It’s sufficiently complex that a public inquiry would have been the cheaper and more comprehensive route. I think it would still be a cheaper route, but we’re still working with all the inquiries that are taking place.”
The CCLA is close to releasing its own report on G20 policing and public accountability after it held hearings in November. Des Rosiers says it’s also planning a book on the summit in addition to making submissions to most of the public inquiries underway.
One of the few proceedings yet to hear from the CCLA is the Toronto Police Services Board’s independent civilian review led by former associate chief justice John Morden.
Based at the offices of his firm, Heenan Blaikie LLP, Morden will make non-binding recommendations after tackling 35 questions posed by the review’s terms of reference about the board’s role in planning and leading the G20 security effort.
The review was only supposed to take 12 weeks when it was announced in July. But by the time of Morden’s selection, the deadline had become much more vague with no specific budget for the review.
Morden has been instructed to deliver monthly invoices while working at a rate of $480 per hour with other members of the small team remunerated on a sliding scale. Only the first month’s bill of $24,000 is publicly available so far, but the board is expected to approve additional costs at its next meeting in February.
Review counsel Ryan Teschner says there are four phases to the process: background research, document review, interviews, and report writing. After four months, he notes the team is just beginning the document review phase but he can’t say when it’ll be ready to hear from witnesses.
“We understand this review is being conducted with public money, so we are working hard to be as efficient and effective as possible and to make sure there is no overlap and no duplication of efforts,” Teschner says.
Former chief justice and Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP counsel Roy McMurtry has clearly cut the provincial government a deal for his review of the so-called secret law under the Public Works Protection Act.
He’s working at a bargain rate of $300 per hour. Joe Kim, spokesman for the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services, won’t say how much the review has spent so far. “We want to provide one final tally once the report is submitted,” he says. That’s expected in April, he adds.
Ontario ombudsman André Marin conducted his own review of the act using his office’s regular budget. The Special Investigations Unit also kept its probe of six allegations of police brutality in-house.
The new Office of the Independent Police Review Director has hired additional investigators in order to meet the demands of its systemic review of G20 policing, but spokeswoman Allison Hawkins says it’s difficult to isolate the cost of that in its overall budget.
In addition to the police services board proceedings, the Toronto Police Service is also conducting its own internal review related to the G20, although spokeswoman Meaghan Gray says it’s all within the normal budget.
The service has, however, hired Borden Ladner Gervais LLP to represent it in various G20-related civil suits, but Gray notes an insurer covers the legal fees.
Seeking to put a significantly larger dent into public coffers than any of the multitude of G20 reviews and investigations are two class action lawsuits launched within weeks of one another in the summer.
But before the litigants take on the police, they may have to face off against one another. Murray Klippenstein, the lawyer on a $45-million class action against Toronto police and the RCMP, says it’s likely only one of the matters will proceed. The members of his class include about 800 people arrested and released without charge during the G20.
David Midanik is the lawyer for a $115-million class action that represents all of those arrested — estimated at about 1,170 people — during the G20 weekend. He says it’s important to include those who were charged.
“Most of the people who were charged were at the forefront of exercising democratic rights, so in terms of preserving civil liberties and democratic rights, it’s essential those people get representation,” Midanik says.
Klippenstein, meanwhile, says he’s considering expanding his class to include those who faced charges that were later withdrawn or stayed.
Initially, Midanik’s matter also included business owners who suffered property damage during the summit. That’s no longer the case due to a fear it made the class too broad for certification. Both lawyers are preparing applications for certification, but neither expects a court hearing for months.
Adam Goodman acted for several of those charged by acting at bail hearings on a pro bono basis. Although most of them had their charges dropped at the first appearance in court, one of his clients is facing a trial in April.
Goodman says he’s looking forward to hearing testimony from police when trials get underway in courtrooms across the city next month.
“There’s been mostly silence from the police officers, but at trial, they’ll be on the stand and under oath. There might be some who don’t like what happened but feel they have to be quiet right now.”
According to the most recent statistics released by the Ministry of the Attorney General, of the 320 people charged with criminal offences in the aftermath of the G20, just 86 are still before the courts.
Around 60 had charges diverted, pleaded guilty or were subjects of peace bonds. Just over half of those charged had their charges stayed or withdrawn, the bulk of those on the first day of mass court appearances.
In several cases, the withdrawal of charges led to a switch of focus to civil suits from criminal matters.
Clayton Ruby, for example, is preparing a civil suit on behalf of Charles Veitch, a British satirist charged under the act for failing to identify himself within five metres of the security fence. Ruby also defended him on the charges that were later withdrawn.
Another client, Natalie Gray, has sued Toronto police after they allegedly hit her with rubber bullets. She was charged with obstructing a police officer, but those charges were later withdrawn.
Ruby is also representing Dorian Barton, who claims officers assaulted him during the G20 weekend. The SIU closed an investigation into his case late last year after concluding there wasn’t enough evidence to lay charges, but new photos of the alleged assault have since emerged.
“The SIU is a fake agency,” Ruby says. “It’s a fraud and a sham. They’re not interested in investigating effectively.”
In Ruby’s view, the raft of G20 investigations is ineffective because each is too narrowly focused. “There’s no sign that enough pressure is going to be exerted to bring about a royal commission, and I can’t imagine anything less will do. So we’re left with the civil law system, which unfortunately only results in damages and publicity.”
Des Rosiers says she’s not surprised at the G20’s staying power in the public consciousness and expects it to remain a big file for the CCLA well into the future.
“What we have seen from people on the ground and from what our monitors saw presents a significant violation of civil rights that weekend. Our view is that the story has to be told, and accountability, no matter how long and how difficult it will be, needs to be brought to bear because what happened was unacceptable.
It takes some time for processes of accountability to unfold, so I think the story will be told for quite some time yet.”
Source: http://www.lawtimesnews.com
1/14/2011
Japan Noda: to actively join FX debate at G20
Jan 14 (Reuters) - Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said on Friday that Japan is ready to act decisively against rapid currency moves and that he would actively join the debate on currencies at a G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bankers next month.
"I expect debate on the global economy including currencies and I'd like to actively participate in the discussion," Noda told a news conference after a cabinet meeting, referring to the upcoming G20 meeting.
Prime Minister Naoto Kan revamped his cabinet on Friday to cope with a divided parliament and tackle reforms to rein in public debt, but his ruling Democratic Party of Japan remain divided over policy and hurdles to success are high.
Source: http://www.reuters.com
"I expect debate on the global economy including currencies and I'd like to actively participate in the discussion," Noda told a news conference after a cabinet meeting, referring to the upcoming G20 meeting.
Prime Minister Naoto Kan revamped his cabinet on Friday to cope with a divided parliament and tackle reforms to rein in public debt, but his ruling Democratic Party of Japan remain divided over policy and hurdles to success are high.
Source: http://www.reuters.com
1/13/2011
Toronto police sued over G20 injuries
TORONTO (CP) — A Toronto man is suing the police, alleging his shoulder was broken and he was denied proper care after his arrest at the G20 summit.
In a statement of claim Dorian Barton says he went to the legislature protest site on June 26 to observe and take pictures of the protest.
Barton alleges the protest was peaceful until Toronto police officers in riot gear rushed in and targeted random people for violent arrests.
Barton says while he was taking a picture of a police horse he was knocked to the ground by an officer with a riot shield and then "viciously assaulted" by six officers.
Hours after complaining of extreme pain, Barton says he was brought to the hospital and treated for a broken shoulder.
Source: http://thechronicleherald.ca
In a statement of claim Dorian Barton says he went to the legislature protest site on June 26 to observe and take pictures of the protest.
Barton alleges the protest was peaceful until Toronto police officers in riot gear rushed in and targeted random people for violent arrests.
Barton says while he was taking a picture of a police horse he was knocked to the ground by an officer with a riot shield and then "viciously assaulted" by six officers.
Hours after complaining of extreme pain, Barton says he was brought to the hospital and treated for a broken shoulder.
Source: http://thechronicleherald.ca
1/12/2011
Toronto man sues police after suffering injury during G20 arrest
TORONTO, Ont. - A Toronto man is suing the police, alleging his shoulder was broken and then he was denied proper care after his arrest during last June's G20 summit.
In a statement of claim, Dorian Barton said he went to the legislature protest site on June 26 simply to observe and take some photos of the protest.
Barton said that the protest was peaceful until Toronto police stepped in. He alleged that officers in riot gear targeted random people for violent arrests.
While Barton was taking a picture of a police horse, he said he was knocked to the ground by an officer with a riot shield, following which he was 'viciously assaulted' by six officers.
He said he was in extreme pain for hours before he was taken to a hospital and treated for a broken soldier.
Source: http://www.680news.com
In a statement of claim, Dorian Barton said he went to the legislature protest site on June 26 simply to observe and take some photos of the protest.
Barton said that the protest was peaceful until Toronto police stepped in. He alleged that officers in riot gear targeted random people for violent arrests.
While Barton was taking a picture of a police horse, he said he was knocked to the ground by an officer with a riot shield, following which he was 'viciously assaulted' by six officers.
He said he was in extreme pain for hours before he was taken to a hospital and treated for a broken soldier.
Source: http://www.680news.com
1/11/2011
G20 to tackle food prices as countries reassure
(Reuters) - The world's biggest economies are working to find ways to bring down soaring food prices, a G20 official said on Friday, as top exporter Thailand vowed to keep rice supply steady and avert a repeat of the 2008 food crisis.
Global food prices hit a record high last month, outstripping the levels that sparked riots in several countries in 2008, and key grains could rise further, the United Nations' food agency said this week.
Policymakers are concerned that, if unchecked, rising food prices could stoke inflation, protectionism and unrest.
High food prices and unemployment were blamed for a second day of rioting in Algeria Friday with police deployed around mosques and authorities suspending football matches.
Rhee Chang-yong, who represents South Korea at the G20, said working-group talks were under way aimed at improving global cooperation to resolve food security problems.
"France is emphasizing food security. As a former host country of G20, we would like to deal with the price volatility problem thoroughly," Rhee said.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has asked the World Bank to conduct urgent research on the impact of food prices, a source familiar with the matter said.
French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said this week that one of France's priorities at the G20, where it holds the rotating presidency, was to find a collective response to "excessive volatility" in prices of food and energy.
One concern is that high food prices could hit consumer spending in fast-growing emerging countries that are leading the revival of the global economy.
CEREAL PRICES UP IN 2010
Last year, wheat futures prices rose 47 percent, buoyed by bad weather including drought in Russia and its Black Sea neighbors. U.S. corn rose more than 50 percent and U.S. soybeans jumped 34 percent.
The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization said in a report Wednesday that sugar and meat prices were at their highest since its records began in 1990. For wheat, rice, corn and other cereals, prices were at their highest since the 2008 crisis.
During that crisis, riots broke out in countries from Egypt to Haiti. Import prices jumped, forcing many countries' trade balances into a deep and costly deficit, and several governments in Asia imposed export restrictions on rice.
The U.N.'s World Food Program (WFP), which was feeding some 100 million people last year, noted that cereals including rice had not hit 2008 price peaks, but that sugar and cooking oil were pushing up the food index.
"We're ready to step up assistance specifically to countries that are vulnerable to these high prices, especially focusing also on risks to children," WFP spokeswoman Emilia Casella told a news briefing in Geneva.
She said a fairly good harvest in a number of African countries in the past year had helped, and that reserves were higher than in the 2008 crisis while fuel prices, which affect fertilizer and the transport of food, were lower.
Robert Prior-Wandesforde, an economist at Credit Suisse in Singapore, said food commodity prices were unlikely to rise much further, barring weather catastrophes.
"The estimated global and exporting countries' stock-to-use ratios of both wheat and rice are considerably higher today than in 2007-08, making shortages and drastic export bans unlikely," he said in a report.
But the London-based venture capital firm Emergent Asset Management, which holds swathes of land across southern Africa, still sees much more mileage in food prices.
"The world is still in denial about food prices," its chief investment officer, David Murran, told Reuters.
"If you look at demographics, if you look at production, if you look at the impact of climate change, then we are only at the beginning of this."
CHILIS, RICE AND ONIONS
Many countries, including Brazil, India and China, have seen food inflation jump to double digit levels. Inflation rates accelerated across Latin America in December as costs spiked for food, increasing pressure on policymakers to raise interest rates. Prices rose sharply for Mexican tortillas and Chilean beef last month, while Brazilian bean costs surged over 2010.
China has imposed price controls to try to ensure stable prices for consumers. On Friday, Ethiopia announced similar measures.
Thailand, the world's biggest rice exporter, sought to reassure the market, with Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai telling reporters it would maintain 2011 exports at 9 to 9.5 million tonnes after shipping 9 million in 2010.
The Philippines, the world's biggest buyer of rice, said it would cut its 2011 imports by at least half, compared with record purchases in 2010, further easing concerns of a tight rice market this year.
Still, the head of the National Food Authority, which oversees rice imports, said it might increase its buffer stock to cover a minimum 40 days of demand, from 30 now.
A senior food official in Bangladesh said it was worried about food security and had imported 250,000 tonnes of rice from Vietnam.
In Indonesia, which has the world's fourth-largest population, a fivefold rise in the price of chillies in the past year has helped drive overall inflation to near 7 percent.
Farmers are operating around-the-clock patrols to protect their chili plants and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has urged households to plant chillies in their gardens.
In India, where onion prices have triggered protests in the past, prices have jumped after weather damaged the crop and officials have opened talks with Pakistan about resuming imports.
Source: http://www.reuters.com
Global food prices hit a record high last month, outstripping the levels that sparked riots in several countries in 2008, and key grains could rise further, the United Nations' food agency said this week.
Policymakers are concerned that, if unchecked, rising food prices could stoke inflation, protectionism and unrest.
High food prices and unemployment were blamed for a second day of rioting in Algeria Friday with police deployed around mosques and authorities suspending football matches.
Rhee Chang-yong, who represents South Korea at the G20, said working-group talks were under way aimed at improving global cooperation to resolve food security problems.
"France is emphasizing food security. As a former host country of G20, we would like to deal with the price volatility problem thoroughly," Rhee said.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has asked the World Bank to conduct urgent research on the impact of food prices, a source familiar with the matter said.
French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said this week that one of France's priorities at the G20, where it holds the rotating presidency, was to find a collective response to "excessive volatility" in prices of food and energy.
One concern is that high food prices could hit consumer spending in fast-growing emerging countries that are leading the revival of the global economy.
CEREAL PRICES UP IN 2010
Last year, wheat futures prices rose 47 percent, buoyed by bad weather including drought in Russia and its Black Sea neighbors. U.S. corn rose more than 50 percent and U.S. soybeans jumped 34 percent.
The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization said in a report Wednesday that sugar and meat prices were at their highest since its records began in 1990. For wheat, rice, corn and other cereals, prices were at their highest since the 2008 crisis.
During that crisis, riots broke out in countries from Egypt to Haiti. Import prices jumped, forcing many countries' trade balances into a deep and costly deficit, and several governments in Asia imposed export restrictions on rice.
The U.N.'s World Food Program (WFP), which was feeding some 100 million people last year, noted that cereals including rice had not hit 2008 price peaks, but that sugar and cooking oil were pushing up the food index.
"We're ready to step up assistance specifically to countries that are vulnerable to these high prices, especially focusing also on risks to children," WFP spokeswoman Emilia Casella told a news briefing in Geneva.
She said a fairly good harvest in a number of African countries in the past year had helped, and that reserves were higher than in the 2008 crisis while fuel prices, which affect fertilizer and the transport of food, were lower.
Robert Prior-Wandesforde, an economist at Credit Suisse in Singapore, said food commodity prices were unlikely to rise much further, barring weather catastrophes.
"The estimated global and exporting countries' stock-to-use ratios of both wheat and rice are considerably higher today than in 2007-08, making shortages and drastic export bans unlikely," he said in a report.
But the London-based venture capital firm Emergent Asset Management, which holds swathes of land across southern Africa, still sees much more mileage in food prices.
"The world is still in denial about food prices," its chief investment officer, David Murran, told Reuters.
"If you look at demographics, if you look at production, if you look at the impact of climate change, then we are only at the beginning of this."
CHILIS, RICE AND ONIONS
Many countries, including Brazil, India and China, have seen food inflation jump to double digit levels. Inflation rates accelerated across Latin America in December as costs spiked for food, increasing pressure on policymakers to raise interest rates. Prices rose sharply for Mexican tortillas and Chilean beef last month, while Brazilian bean costs surged over 2010.
China has imposed price controls to try to ensure stable prices for consumers. On Friday, Ethiopia announced similar measures.
Thailand, the world's biggest rice exporter, sought to reassure the market, with Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai telling reporters it would maintain 2011 exports at 9 to 9.5 million tonnes after shipping 9 million in 2010.
The Philippines, the world's biggest buyer of rice, said it would cut its 2011 imports by at least half, compared with record purchases in 2010, further easing concerns of a tight rice market this year.
Still, the head of the National Food Authority, which oversees rice imports, said it might increase its buffer stock to cover a minimum 40 days of demand, from 30 now.
A senior food official in Bangladesh said it was worried about food security and had imported 250,000 tonnes of rice from Vietnam.
In Indonesia, which has the world's fourth-largest population, a fivefold rise in the price of chillies in the past year has helped drive overall inflation to near 7 percent.
Farmers are operating around-the-clock patrols to protect their chili plants and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has urged households to plant chillies in their gardens.
In India, where onion prices have triggered protests in the past, prices have jumped after weather damaged the crop and officials have opened talks with Pakistan about resuming imports.
Source: http://www.reuters.com
1/10/2011
France, US to make G20 monetary propositions: Sarkozy
France and the United States plan to make G20 propositions on world monetary reform, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Monday at a meeting with US President Barack Obama at the White House.
France "will work hand in hand" with Washington in the Group of 20 rich and emerging economies, Sarkozy said on his one-day visit as his country embarks on its year at the helm of the G20 and Group of Eight (G8) powers.
Sarkozy has says he wants to use France's dual presidencies to reform currency and commodity markets and world governance.
The two leaders also discussed commodity prices during their one-hour talk.
Source:http://www.expatica.com
France "will work hand in hand" with Washington in the Group of 20 rich and emerging economies, Sarkozy said on his one-day visit as his country embarks on its year at the helm of the G20 and Group of Eight (G8) powers.
Sarkozy has says he wants to use France's dual presidencies to reform currency and commodity markets and world governance.
The two leaders also discussed commodity prices during their one-hour talk.
Source:http://www.expatica.com
1/09/2011
Sarkozy takes G20 case to Obama as food prices soar
French President Nicolas Sarkozy takes his campaign for greater global food price and currency stability to Washington next week when he seeks Barack Obama's support for France's goals as head of the Group of 20 powers.
Soaring food prices and riots in places like Algeria offer Sarkozy ammunition to press for more coordination between G20 governments to combat wild swings in vital commodity prices as well as exchange rates versus the long-dominant U.S. dollar.
The French president wants to use his run at the G20 helm in 2011 to start, if not finish, reforms of the monetary system at a time when many countries are tempted to let their currency drop to promote exports and growth after the worst downturn since World War Two, even if that can be at each others' expense.
Paris is also pressing for international efforts to impose greater transparency in commodity markets trading and pricing, and for tougher regulation of trading in commodity derivatives along the lines pursued for other investment derivatives in the wake of the financial markets crisis that preceded the economic downturn of 2008-2009, and the government debt crisis now.
"As we sense it, more multilateralism is the best answer to the increased instability in the world," a Sarkozy adviser said of a meeting happening on Monday in Washington, where Sarkozy will be accompanied by wife and ex-model Carla Bruni-Sarkozy as well as his finance and defense ministers.
"We want to broach this thinking with the Americans and see if they are willing to join in such an approach, whereafter we can produce more precise proposals," said the advisor, who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity.
South Korea, which has just handed the rotating presidency of the G20 to France, said on Friday working-level meetings had already begun on food price rises that have revived fears of a repeat of the 2008 food crisis.
The problem is moving up the political agenda in Asia, where China has recently sold corn, sugar, rice and other commodities out of state reserves to cool prices.
In North Africa, hundreds of youths clashed with police over food prices and chronic unemployment in several cities this week, including in the capital.
Some of the concrete ideas being considered for G20 talks include: obliging commodity investors to trade through exchanges rather than less transparent over-the-counter transactions and pressing for better sharing of data and crop forecasting.
French Prime Minister Francois Fillon underlined the point this week when he told a conference in Paris one of France's top G20 priorities was to find a collective response to "excessive volatility" in commodity prices, notably for food and energy.
DOLLAR DEBATE
The French president who played a key role in cooordinating a European response in the earlier stages of the financial crisis in his own part of the world, is also keen to make some headway as G20 presidency on his long-held view that the time has come to wean the world off decades of dollar-dependence.
"For us this is not about reducing the dollar's role. We want the dollar to continue to play a major role but exchange rate forces are inexorably set to change, which brings with it phases of major financial tension and great instability," said the Sarkozy adviser.
With the rise of the likes of G20 members China and Brazil, Sarkozy is seeking to rally the group as a whole to the idea of a more diversified monetary system after decades where the U.S. dollar has served as the world's reserve currency and a major unit of international trade settlement.
"We want to encourage the international development of other currencies, such as the yuan," said the adviser.
Brazil has been blazing a trail to curb speculation and a rise in its own currency. Its central bank announced further measures this week that increases banks' reserve requirements when betting that the real will strengthen against the dollar.
Obama is expected to visit France in May for a meeting of the G8, which includes the wealthy Western countries of the G20 economic forum plus Russia, but is shifting toward a focus more centered on foreign policy discussion since the G20 became the forum of preference for fighting the global economic crisis.
White House National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer said Sarkozy and Obama would also confer on that front during their Monday meeting in Washington.
"As close allies, the presidents will also review the situations in Afghanistan, Lebanon, Iran, Ivory Coast, Sudan and Middle East Peace efforts," said Hammer. "They will also discuss counterterrorism cooperation."
Source: www.reuters.com
Soaring food prices and riots in places like Algeria offer Sarkozy ammunition to press for more coordination between G20 governments to combat wild swings in vital commodity prices as well as exchange rates versus the long-dominant U.S. dollar.
The French president wants to use his run at the G20 helm in 2011 to start, if not finish, reforms of the monetary system at a time when many countries are tempted to let their currency drop to promote exports and growth after the worst downturn since World War Two, even if that can be at each others' expense.
Paris is also pressing for international efforts to impose greater transparency in commodity markets trading and pricing, and for tougher regulation of trading in commodity derivatives along the lines pursued for other investment derivatives in the wake of the financial markets crisis that preceded the economic downturn of 2008-2009, and the government debt crisis now.
"As we sense it, more multilateralism is the best answer to the increased instability in the world," a Sarkozy adviser said of a meeting happening on Monday in Washington, where Sarkozy will be accompanied by wife and ex-model Carla Bruni-Sarkozy as well as his finance and defense ministers.
"We want to broach this thinking with the Americans and see if they are willing to join in such an approach, whereafter we can produce more precise proposals," said the advisor, who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity.
South Korea, which has just handed the rotating presidency of the G20 to France, said on Friday working-level meetings had already begun on food price rises that have revived fears of a repeat of the 2008 food crisis.
The problem is moving up the political agenda in Asia, where China has recently sold corn, sugar, rice and other commodities out of state reserves to cool prices.
In North Africa, hundreds of youths clashed with police over food prices and chronic unemployment in several cities this week, including in the capital.
Some of the concrete ideas being considered for G20 talks include: obliging commodity investors to trade through exchanges rather than less transparent over-the-counter transactions and pressing for better sharing of data and crop forecasting.
French Prime Minister Francois Fillon underlined the point this week when he told a conference in Paris one of France's top G20 priorities was to find a collective response to "excessive volatility" in commodity prices, notably for food and energy.
DOLLAR DEBATE
The French president who played a key role in cooordinating a European response in the earlier stages of the financial crisis in his own part of the world, is also keen to make some headway as G20 presidency on his long-held view that the time has come to wean the world off decades of dollar-dependence.
"For us this is not about reducing the dollar's role. We want the dollar to continue to play a major role but exchange rate forces are inexorably set to change, which brings with it phases of major financial tension and great instability," said the Sarkozy adviser.
With the rise of the likes of G20 members China and Brazil, Sarkozy is seeking to rally the group as a whole to the idea of a more diversified monetary system after decades where the U.S. dollar has served as the world's reserve currency and a major unit of international trade settlement.
"We want to encourage the international development of other currencies, such as the yuan," said the adviser.
Brazil has been blazing a trail to curb speculation and a rise in its own currency. Its central bank announced further measures this week that increases banks' reserve requirements when betting that the real will strengthen against the dollar.
Obama is expected to visit France in May for a meeting of the G8, which includes the wealthy Western countries of the G20 economic forum plus Russia, but is shifting toward a focus more centered on foreign policy discussion since the G20 became the forum of preference for fighting the global economic crisis.
White House National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer said Sarkozy and Obama would also confer on that front during their Monday meeting in Washington.
"As close allies, the presidents will also review the situations in Afghanistan, Lebanon, Iran, Ivory Coast, Sudan and Middle East Peace efforts," said Hammer. "They will also discuss counterterrorism cooperation."
Source: www.reuters.com
1/06/2011
France says 2011 make or break year for G20
French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said on Thursday that 2011 is a make or break year for the G20 forum of top global economies to prove its worth by tackling economic reform or risk being marginalised.
1/05/2011
Court may release G20 probe documents
An Ontario court will decide later this week whether to release details of the SIU investigation into charges of police brutality against Adam Nobody — who says he was assaulted during the G20 summit — a decision that could have an impact on another trial.
Nobody suffered a broken nose and a shattered cheekbone during his arrest in late June and later filed a brutality complaint against Toronto police.
On Tuesday, Toronto lawyer Mike Leitold said he wants to get his hands on the documents prepared by the province's Special Investigations Unit when it was investigating Nobody's complaint — because two of the officers involved in Nobody's arrest are also alleged to have beaten his client, Abbas Jama, 25.
Jama is on trial on weapons offences. He was arrested in June 2009 by two undercover officers — Todd Story and Luke Watson.
Jama alleges he was beaten by Story and Watson during his arrest.
In court it was revealed for the first time that the SIU investigated those same two officers in the Adam Nobody case. Nobody alleged that he was beaten twice by police on June 26.
One scuffle was caught on camera and a Toronto police officer has been charged in connection with that alleged assault. But Nobody says he was then taken to another obscured area and that's where he says undercover police continued beating him.
Propensity for violence
The SIU investigated but said it did not have any corroborating evidence and did not lay charges.
Lawyer Leitold said the alleged attack on Nobody and the alleged attack on Jama point to "a pattern of police brutality in a strikingly similar method ... and that the documents might show a propensity for violence."
But the Crown and five other lawyers representing the SIU and the Toronto police are opposed to releasing the documents.
Crown lawyer Danielle Scott said with Jama the officers "used three to five distractionary punches to handcuff Jama, as is necessary when someone is resisting."
Justice Rob Clark said he'll deliver a decision later this week on whether the SIU's documents will be disclosed.
Source: http://www.cbc.ca/
Nobody suffered a broken nose and a shattered cheekbone during his arrest in late June and later filed a brutality complaint against Toronto police.
On Tuesday, Toronto lawyer Mike Leitold said he wants to get his hands on the documents prepared by the province's Special Investigations Unit when it was investigating Nobody's complaint — because two of the officers involved in Nobody's arrest are also alleged to have beaten his client, Abbas Jama, 25.
Jama is on trial on weapons offences. He was arrested in June 2009 by two undercover officers — Todd Story and Luke Watson.
Jama alleges he was beaten by Story and Watson during his arrest.
In court it was revealed for the first time that the SIU investigated those same two officers in the Adam Nobody case. Nobody alleged that he was beaten twice by police on June 26.
One scuffle was caught on camera and a Toronto police officer has been charged in connection with that alleged assault. But Nobody says he was then taken to another obscured area and that's where he says undercover police continued beating him.
Propensity for violence
The SIU investigated but said it did not have any corroborating evidence and did not lay charges.
Lawyer Leitold said the alleged attack on Nobody and the alleged attack on Jama point to "a pattern of police brutality in a strikingly similar method ... and that the documents might show a propensity for violence."
But the Crown and five other lawyers representing the SIU and the Toronto police are opposed to releasing the documents.
Crown lawyer Danielle Scott said with Jama the officers "used three to five distractionary punches to handcuff Jama, as is necessary when someone is resisting."
Justice Rob Clark said he'll deliver a decision later this week on whether the SIU's documents will be disclosed.
Source: http://www.cbc.ca/
1/04/2011
New EU bank bonus rules now enforced
European regulators have ushered in a tough set of restrictions on the bonuses that banks will be allowed to pay off their staff.
Under the proposed guidelines announced by the Committee of European Banking Supervisors (Cebs), only 20-30 per cent of bonuses can be paid in upfront cash, which is much tougher than those agreed by the G20 countries claimed Tomorrow's Company.
Under the so-called Basel III rules, international banks will have to provide a ‘score card’ for each banker to prove they deserve a bonus.
Tony Manwaring, chief executive of the independent international think tank, said the rules could help bring about a profound and welcome change of culture in the sector, but warned of dangers to the future success of the City if they were implemented in isolation and not fully thought through.
He said: "These reforms could be an important step forward in changing the culture of financial services by tackling the incentives for bankers to take dangerous risks to inflate their own earnings, at the expense of individual clients and customers, and the economy as a whole.
"These reforms should also help reinforce rebuilding the capital reserves of banks.
"In so doing, they can help rebuild restore trust and renew the City’s ‘licence to operate’.
"For the UK, the litmus test of these reforms must be the sustainable future success of the City. From this perspective, they are part of, but not the whole solution. On their own could even damage the UK economy."
Source: http://www.ftadviser.com
Under the proposed guidelines announced by the Committee of European Banking Supervisors (Cebs), only 20-30 per cent of bonuses can be paid in upfront cash, which is much tougher than those agreed by the G20 countries claimed Tomorrow's Company.
Under the so-called Basel III rules, international banks will have to provide a ‘score card’ for each banker to prove they deserve a bonus.
Tony Manwaring, chief executive of the independent international think tank, said the rules could help bring about a profound and welcome change of culture in the sector, but warned of dangers to the future success of the City if they were implemented in isolation and not fully thought through.
He said: "These reforms could be an important step forward in changing the culture of financial services by tackling the incentives for bankers to take dangerous risks to inflate their own earnings, at the expense of individual clients and customers, and the economy as a whole.
"These reforms should also help reinforce rebuilding the capital reserves of banks.
"In so doing, they can help rebuild restore trust and renew the City’s ‘licence to operate’.
"For the UK, the litmus test of these reforms must be the sustainable future success of the City. From this perspective, they are part of, but not the whole solution. On their own could even damage the UK economy."
Source: http://www.ftadviser.com
1/03/2011
Bullying, crime on Internet rises with social networking
Crime met social networking in 2010, as some of the most heinous human acts spilled over onto Facebook, Twitter and YouTube and streamed into social consciousness.
From photos being posted on Facebook of a 16-year-old girl being raped at a B.C. rave to video and commentary from the G20 riots in Toronto being shared on Twitter, crime is becoming difficult to avoid in a connected world.
Cyberbullying is reaching an epidemic point, said Sidneyeve Matrix, an assistant media professor at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont.
"Bullying isn't new," Matrix said. "Peer pressure isn't new. But it's been amplified. It's not just on the playground anymore -- it's 24/7."
The prevalence of crime appearing on social media platforms is becoming much more vast -- and is very public -- Matrix said.
More youths are sexting -- sending sexually explicit messages, photos and videos. In 2010, a string of U.S. suicides were reportedly related to young people being outed online as homosexuals And there are mounting concerns about the production and distribution of child pornography on social networks -- some of it unwittingly by uneducated minors.
"The power of these publishing platforms is pretty astounding," Matrix said. "It can be so devastating when people don't realize the reverberations."
Many Canadians don't have as much digital literacy as they should, Matrix said. But she expects to see some of that change over the coming years, especially as those in the generation Y age group approaches child-rearing age.
"Gen-Y is pretty web-savvy and will use the web to push back (against some of the crime and bullying)," she said.
Social media will play an increasingly important role in participatory citizenship, Matrix said, pointing to the G8/G20 meetings as an example.
The summit this summer in Toronto was a "game changer" for how Canadians interacted with social media, she said.
Organizers used social networks sites to post updates as the demonstrations unfolded in Toronto and activists and rioters interacted with police -- sometimes violently.
The summit was also a turning point for law enforcement's interaction with social media, said Scott Mills, the Toronto Police Force's social media officer.
"After the G20, the decision-makers could really see ... this is something we should do and started asking, how do we do this?" Mills said.
Social media allows police to have a two-way conversation, he said.
Mills said the use of social media has allowed Toronto police to stop at least five youth suicides, intervene ahead of two possible school shootings, prevent some gang-related activity, investigate suspected terrorist plots and deter bullying.
Society shouldn't be intimidated by social media, he said. "We really do have to look at paradigm shifts."
Social media can be used for social good but any communication tools can also be used for other purposes, Matrix said. "But participatory citizenship is happening if you're plugged in or not."
Police will be using social networks even more in 2011, Mills said.
"It's going to be more interactive. If it's a one-way conversation, it's not going to be any different then what we've done before," he said.
Source: http://www.niagarafallsreview.ca
From photos being posted on Facebook of a 16-year-old girl being raped at a B.C. rave to video and commentary from the G20 riots in Toronto being shared on Twitter, crime is becoming difficult to avoid in a connected world.
Cyberbullying is reaching an epidemic point, said Sidneyeve Matrix, an assistant media professor at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont.
"Bullying isn't new," Matrix said. "Peer pressure isn't new. But it's been amplified. It's not just on the playground anymore -- it's 24/7."
The prevalence of crime appearing on social media platforms is becoming much more vast -- and is very public -- Matrix said.
More youths are sexting -- sending sexually explicit messages, photos and videos. In 2010, a string of U.S. suicides were reportedly related to young people being outed online as homosexuals And there are mounting concerns about the production and distribution of child pornography on social networks -- some of it unwittingly by uneducated minors.
"The power of these publishing platforms is pretty astounding," Matrix said. "It can be so devastating when people don't realize the reverberations."
Many Canadians don't have as much digital literacy as they should, Matrix said. But she expects to see some of that change over the coming years, especially as those in the generation Y age group approaches child-rearing age.
"Gen-Y is pretty web-savvy and will use the web to push back (against some of the crime and bullying)," she said.
Social media will play an increasingly important role in participatory citizenship, Matrix said, pointing to the G8/G20 meetings as an example.
The summit this summer in Toronto was a "game changer" for how Canadians interacted with social media, she said.
Organizers used social networks sites to post updates as the demonstrations unfolded in Toronto and activists and rioters interacted with police -- sometimes violently.
The summit was also a turning point for law enforcement's interaction with social media, said Scott Mills, the Toronto Police Force's social media officer.
"After the G20, the decision-makers could really see ... this is something we should do and started asking, how do we do this?" Mills said.
Social media allows police to have a two-way conversation, he said.
Mills said the use of social media has allowed Toronto police to stop at least five youth suicides, intervene ahead of two possible school shootings, prevent some gang-related activity, investigate suspected terrorist plots and deter bullying.
Society shouldn't be intimidated by social media, he said. "We really do have to look at paradigm shifts."
Social media can be used for social good but any communication tools can also be used for other purposes, Matrix said. "But participatory citizenship is happening if you're plugged in or not."
Police will be using social networks even more in 2011, Mills said.
"It's going to be more interactive. If it's a one-way conversation, it's not going to be any different then what we've done before," he said.
Source: http://www.niagarafallsreview.ca
1/01/2011
United Nations needs a new direction
The United Nations today leads what seems at times like a double life. On the one hand, pundits criticize it for not solving all the world's ills. On the other hand, UN member states and people around the world are asking it to do more, in more places, than ever before -- a trend that will continue in 2011.
It is not hard to see why. We have only to read the newspaper, turn on the television, or go online to appreciate the sheer scale of the need. Conflicts rage in too many places. Natural disasters strike with greater fury, and in greater numbers, than ever before.
On top of all this, we face a new generation of threats, unlike any in history, which spill across borders and have global reach. No single country or group, however powerful, can deal with them alone. All must work together — in common cause for common solutions — to address challenges like climate change, poverty, and nuclear disarmament.
But there is profound skepticism that we can do so. The world looks to the UN as never before, yet the conventional wisdom is that we are not up to the job. The problems are too complicated. Resources are too few. The UN itself appears too divided to make the vital difference.
The conventional wisdom is, however, wrong; worse, it is dangerous, for we have all seen how quickly it can take hold, distort reality, and then harden like cement. For example, four years ago, when I came to office, only a handful of global leaders knew enough even to talk about climate change - the defining challenge of our times, whose effects we see every day, all around us. Today, we have moved climate change to the top of the global agenda.
But make no mistake: it has been a difficult road. In December 2009 in Copenhagen, world leaders talked far into the night, and emerged, according to the conventional wisdom, with virtually nothing. In fact, though we did not get a comprehensive, legally binding treaty that would usher in an era of sustainable, low-carbon prosperity, as we had hoped, there were significant achievements in Copenhagen.
For the first time ever, developed and developing countries acknowledged their responsibility to curb emissions of greenhouse gasses and agreed on the goal of limiting global temperature rise to below two degrees Celsius. And, for the first time ever, countries made large pledges to finance mitigation and adaptation efforts: $30 billion over the next three years for fast-start financing, and $100 billion per year by 2020.
The lesson is that we should not dream of overnight breakthroughs, or allow ourselves to fall into despair in the absence of immediate progress. Let us work, instead, to build on many smaller advances, wherever we can make them — by mobilizing support, creating broad alliances, building coalitions, and taking into account a web of moving parts and complex issues — because that will set the stage for the eventual breakthroughs of tomorrow.
Collective action has never been easy, but it has never been more necessary than in achieving the UN's Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) — the world's blueprint for ending extreme poverty.
Way forward
The conventional wisdom will tell you that the MDGs targets — reducing poverty and hunger, improving the health of mothers and children, combating HIV/Aids, increasing access to education, protecting the environment, and forging a global partnership for development — are simply unattainable. In fact, we are controlling disease — polio, malaria, and Aids — better than ever before, and making big new investments in women's and children's health — the key to progress in many other areas.
Nevertheless, on climate change, poverty, and other issues, the conventional wisdom is that the UN should cede responsibility to the G20. But the G20, by itself, is not the answer. Despite strenuous debate about currency issues and trade imbalances at its summit in Seoul in November, the sole area of agreement concerned an issue on the G20's agenda for the first time — economic development.
Recognizing that global recovery depends on the emerging economies — that is, the developing world — G20 leaders embraced investments aimed at lifting the world's most vulnerable people out of poverty. That is why they accept the need to work closely with the UN — after all, no organization does development better. The G20 and the UN are finding new ways to work constructively together - not as rivals, but as increasingly close partners. And that is the way it should be.
Forty years ago, a great American statesman, Dean Acheson, looked back at the excitement he felt in helping to build the post-Second World War order. Present at the Creation, he called his memoir.
Today, we find ourselves at an equally exciting moment, no less critical to the future of humankind. We, too, are present at a new creation. And the UN must constantly re-create itself as well. We must evolve and keep pace with a rapidly changing world.
We must be faster and more flexible, efficient, transparent, and accountable. In an age of austerity, resources are precious; we must make every dollar count. These are testing times for everyone. People everywhere live in growing anxiety and fear. There is near-universal loss of trust in institutions and leaders.
Amid such uncertainty, our future depends on a UN that brings together the countries of the world not only to talk and debate, but also to agree and to act; that mobilizes civil society, business, philanthropists, and ordinary citizens to help the world's governments solve current problems; and that delivers peace, development, human rights, and global public goods — in a word, hope — to people around the world every day.
By Ban Ki-moon
Source: http://www.tehrantimes.com
It is not hard to see why. We have only to read the newspaper, turn on the television, or go online to appreciate the sheer scale of the need. Conflicts rage in too many places. Natural disasters strike with greater fury, and in greater numbers, than ever before.
On top of all this, we face a new generation of threats, unlike any in history, which spill across borders and have global reach. No single country or group, however powerful, can deal with them alone. All must work together — in common cause for common solutions — to address challenges like climate change, poverty, and nuclear disarmament.
But there is profound skepticism that we can do so. The world looks to the UN as never before, yet the conventional wisdom is that we are not up to the job. The problems are too complicated. Resources are too few. The UN itself appears too divided to make the vital difference.
The conventional wisdom is, however, wrong; worse, it is dangerous, for we have all seen how quickly it can take hold, distort reality, and then harden like cement. For example, four years ago, when I came to office, only a handful of global leaders knew enough even to talk about climate change - the defining challenge of our times, whose effects we see every day, all around us. Today, we have moved climate change to the top of the global agenda.
But make no mistake: it has been a difficult road. In December 2009 in Copenhagen, world leaders talked far into the night, and emerged, according to the conventional wisdom, with virtually nothing. In fact, though we did not get a comprehensive, legally binding treaty that would usher in an era of sustainable, low-carbon prosperity, as we had hoped, there were significant achievements in Copenhagen.
For the first time ever, developed and developing countries acknowledged their responsibility to curb emissions of greenhouse gasses and agreed on the goal of limiting global temperature rise to below two degrees Celsius. And, for the first time ever, countries made large pledges to finance mitigation and adaptation efforts: $30 billion over the next three years for fast-start financing, and $100 billion per year by 2020.
The lesson is that we should not dream of overnight breakthroughs, or allow ourselves to fall into despair in the absence of immediate progress. Let us work, instead, to build on many smaller advances, wherever we can make them — by mobilizing support, creating broad alliances, building coalitions, and taking into account a web of moving parts and complex issues — because that will set the stage for the eventual breakthroughs of tomorrow.
Collective action has never been easy, but it has never been more necessary than in achieving the UN's Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) — the world's blueprint for ending extreme poverty.
Way forward
The conventional wisdom will tell you that the MDGs targets — reducing poverty and hunger, improving the health of mothers and children, combating HIV/Aids, increasing access to education, protecting the environment, and forging a global partnership for development — are simply unattainable. In fact, we are controlling disease — polio, malaria, and Aids — better than ever before, and making big new investments in women's and children's health — the key to progress in many other areas.
Nevertheless, on climate change, poverty, and other issues, the conventional wisdom is that the UN should cede responsibility to the G20. But the G20, by itself, is not the answer. Despite strenuous debate about currency issues and trade imbalances at its summit in Seoul in November, the sole area of agreement concerned an issue on the G20's agenda for the first time — economic development.
Recognizing that global recovery depends on the emerging economies — that is, the developing world — G20 leaders embraced investments aimed at lifting the world's most vulnerable people out of poverty. That is why they accept the need to work closely with the UN — after all, no organization does development better. The G20 and the UN are finding new ways to work constructively together - not as rivals, but as increasingly close partners. And that is the way it should be.
Forty years ago, a great American statesman, Dean Acheson, looked back at the excitement he felt in helping to build the post-Second World War order. Present at the Creation, he called his memoir.
Today, we find ourselves at an equally exciting moment, no less critical to the future of humankind. We, too, are present at a new creation. And the UN must constantly re-create itself as well. We must evolve and keep pace with a rapidly changing world.
We must be faster and more flexible, efficient, transparent, and accountable. In an age of austerity, resources are precious; we must make every dollar count. These are testing times for everyone. People everywhere live in growing anxiety and fear. There is near-universal loss of trust in institutions and leaders.
Amid such uncertainty, our future depends on a UN that brings together the countries of the world not only to talk and debate, but also to agree and to act; that mobilizes civil society, business, philanthropists, and ordinary citizens to help the world's governments solve current problems; and that delivers peace, development, human rights, and global public goods — in a word, hope — to people around the world every day.
By Ban Ki-moon
Source: http://www.tehrantimes.com
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