African civil society calls for strengthening UNCTAD's role

Africa's civil society on Tuesday called for strengthening the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)'s role to enable the agency to perform its original mandate of helping developing countries overcome their socio-economic challenges.

Tax Justice Network Africa Deputy Executive Director Jason Braganza told journalists in Nairobi that developed countries want to limit its mandate so that there is a perpetual need for foreign experts' guidance by developing countries.

"Therefore to limit the UNCTAD's mandate to minor issues of implementation and reporting of development outcomes is dangerous for developing countries," Braganza said during the UNCTAD 14.

He called for the UN agency's mandate to be strengthened so that it includes issues around the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

The deputy executive director said any efforts to try to limit scope of the UNCTAD as an organization which is friendly to developing countries will be detrimental to many African states.

The civil society official said the UN agency has a special place in supporting developing countries to achieve their development agenda.

"It was also one of the few organizations that predicted global economic financial crisis ten years ago," he said.

"That is why the civil society is working hard to ensure that UNCTAD's mandate is not unduly and unjustly narrowed," he added.

The original mandate of UNCTAD, which was established in 1964, was to provide an alternative way of thinking in order to support and encourage developing countries meet and attain their development and industrial agenda.

Braganza noted that the UN body moved away from the status quo that was prevailing over 50 years ago.

The civil society official said the UNCTAD also provides technical assistance and cooperation as well as capacity building to developing countries' experts involved in bilateral and multilateral trade negotiations. Endit