The proposal is to reform ECOSOC and replace it with a new Economic and Social Security Council (ESSC) which would better reflect the reality of economic and political power in the world. A small semi-permanent membership and majority voting structure would make it a much more manageable body than ECOSOC. The ESSC would not execute any of its decisions, but would request other existing bodies to do so.
Implementing institutions
International Financial Institutions; UN Organizations
UN institutions have been criticized for failing to provide adequate governance on global economic and social issues. At the same time there are a number of externalities, operating beyond national borders, that require some form of regulation: for example, the pollution of the ozone layer, the effect of interest rate policy in one country on capital flows elsewhere etc. Many transnational activities cannot be regulated nationally: for example, international movements of labour and capital.
Analysis
There has been growing concern that international institutions have made little progress on important economic, social and environmental issues. The two most powerful financial institutions (the IMF and the World Bank) operate on a country-by-country basis and not globally. Moreover, there is concern that the rich, industrialized countries largely determine the agenda of the international financial institutions (IFIs). The remit of the WTO is confined to international trade. Various bodies of the UN, notably the General Assembly and The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), do have global social and economic mandates but do not use these effectively. This is partly due to their large size, and partly to their ¿democratic¿ structure, which makes the process of decision-making drawn out and cumbersome. As economically powerful countries can be overruled by developing countries, the major economic powers tend to give limited responsibilities to these bodies.
A UN Economic and Social Security Council (ESSC) would replace the present Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and with a similar mandate to that which the Security Council has on security matters. It would provide a forum where urgent global issues could be considered at the intergovernmental level. This would include i) reviewing the functioning of the world economy, ii) identifying major obstacles to ensuring sustainable economic growth and high levels of employment, iii) reviewing progress in the promotion of social goals and poverty reduction and iv) reviewing world environmental problems and identifying appropriate action.
Such action would be carried out by existing institutions at the request of the ESSC. It could set up new institutions, in cases where existing institutions were inadequate. The directions of the ESSC to other institutions, including the IMF and the World Bank, would be of a mandatory nature. National governments would not be compelled to take action, but penalties might be applied if they systematically rejected requests from the ESSC. The ESSC would need a small permanent secretariat to guide its work, and three advisory panels of experts: one focusing on the Council¿s economic, one on its social, and one on its environmental functions.
To be effective, membership should reflect the realities of power yet ensure adequate representation. The proposal is for a body of 21 countries. The 10 countries with the greatest economic power would have semi-permanent membership and the other 11 would be elected from the remaining countries, with due regard to ensuring representation from the main geographic areas of the globe. The constitution would contain provisions for reviewing the membership every 12 years, on the basis of economic variables. Decision-making would require a two-thirds majority to ensure the consent of both developed and developing country groupings, but no single country would be able to veto decisions.
The ESSC would have high-level meetings twice a year to review progress in the world economy, discuss social and economic rights and poverty reduction, receive reports on actions taken in response to requests it had previously made, and identify and debate any major new problems. Special interim meetings could be convened if a particular crisis arose. It would be expected that Ministers of Finance attend meetings. Prime Ministers or Presidents could attend if particularly important decisions are to be taken.
Significance of Policy Proposal
At a time when international aid flows are falling, poverty rising and environmental problems increasing, a new impetus is needed to strengthen the implementation of global resolutions on world poverty and environmental controls. One of the functions of the ESSC would be to review progress in these areas and to take necessary action.
Critique
The limitations of ECOSOC may not be resolved by simply replacing it with another body. This new body may also be severely constrained if the IFIs were unwilling to follow the requests of the ESSC. In many areas, including environmental concerns, some claim that the UN already has bodies mandated to cover those concerns.
Time Line and further development of proposal
This 2000 proposal is sponsored by the NGO Christian Aid.
Keywords
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