Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Allow me to share with you some of my thoughts at the end of my period as Chairman of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE).
Last year we celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the Economic Commission for Europe. For those who admire round figures, the 51st Anniversary does not seem to be particularly remarkable. However, if we look back at the events in the ECE region over the last twelve months, one cannot but recognize that last year was an extraordinary one. History books of the 21st century will probably state that the last years of the millennium, notably 1997 to 1998, were a turning point in the history of our region; we saw the further deepening of the institutions of the European Union and it was the time when strategic decisions were taken on the enlargement of the EU to include eleven associated countries. The European Conference held at the end of last March finally disposed with the remnants of the Yalta world order and has demonstrated that within less than ten years, Europe has moved from being a continent of political and economic division, to a continent of countries with profoundly shared values and interests. For the six countries deemed most prepared to start the accession process, actual negotiations on accession have already begun.
Some could say, however, that so soon after witnessing the dismantling of the iron curtain, we are now seeing, again, the emergence of new camps in Europe. A camp of more developed countries which belong, or will soon belong, to the European Union...and The Rest: countries which are still struggling with a long and painful transition from the dark decades of harsh dictatorship and command economy. Yes, the danger of new walls being built across Europe is real. But, I hope that this danger will be avoided as the division of Europe into rich and poor, serves nobody's interest in the region. On the contrary, all countries of our continent have an interest in living in a flourishing neighborhood. It is clear that the incentives for economic cooperation with a stagnating region are weak. Poverty and crime, let alone large-scale social disturbances and civil wars, have a serious impact on neighboring countries, even if the frontiers of those countries are well guarded. Ecological disasters, nuclear accidents or floods, as we have experienced, do not respect political frontiers either and enter alien territories without entry visas. This is just to mention a few of the obvious reasons why the future of different regions of the continent are interrelated.
I believe that in the long run we have important reasons for being optimistic about an emerging unity in Europe. The ECE region was divided for decades, but even in the most difficult years the two opposing parts, in a large extent due to the ECE, could be engaged in a dialogue which helped avoid the sharpening of conflicts. We may have had different political and economic institutions, but at a deeper level of human understanding, at the level of the arts, literature and sciences, the region has developed a specific identity, the foundations of which have well resisted the forces of division. People who have been united in enjoying Balsac, Cervantes, Dickens, Goethe, Tolstoy, Van Gogh, da Vinci, Bartok, Dvorak and Chopin can not be separated by insurmountable barriers in other areas. Of course, this cannot be reflected in statistical data. But please, interpret statistical data in the appropriate context, and always keep in mind that it is mainly the human factor that matters. And it is precisely in this human factor, that our optimism for the future can take root and grow. Thanks to political and market economy reforms, the valuable qualities of the labor in central and eastern Europe are expected to make a decisive contribution to the increased international competitiveness and flourishing of our region. This process can be accelerated by the Western half of the region as the area needs a transfer of expertise in economic and social management and the fine tuning of basic institutions.
I strongly believe that the activities of the Economic Commission for Europe can not be determined without a vision of Europe in the next century. The Commission will do a good job if its activities, co-ordinated with other international organizations, promote the realization of that vision. Transition economies, especially those still at a less advanced stage of transition, need help and assistance organized by the ECE. I take the view that the general guiding principle of the activities of the Commission should be the recognition that the members of the European region are in a phase of strengthening inter-relationship and co-operation. The experience of many years shows that the Commission can play an important role in strengthening European unity through rule making, capacity building and co-ordination in the areas of environmental protection, road and water transport, forestry, statistics, trade promotion, trade facilitation, enterprise development, standard setting or economic analysis, to mention just some of the numerous activities of the Commission. The Commission can contribute to the foundation of a basic European infrastructure which will facilitate the further progress of the integration process in the future.
A year ago, at the jubilee session, important decisions were taken on the reform of the Commission. Since last April, the different bodies of the Commission have been actively working on the implementation of these decisions. As a result, today we have a streamlined, more efficient and less costly Commission whose structure and working principles better reflect the changes which have occurred in our region over the last decade. We can not say, however, that we have come to the end of the implementation period. The remaining steps have to be made in the next year.
I wish to inform you that the Bureau of the Commission has done its best to promote the implementation of the reform decisions. We have met with the representatives of a number of ECE committees and other bodies in order to find solutions to questions raised by the implementation phase. The work of the Bureau has been assisted by the Executive Secretary Mr. Yves Berthelot, under whose able leadership the Secretariat has been re-shaped in full accordance with the decisions made by the Commission. Our work has been supported by representatives of the member governments, permanent missions in Geneva and especially by the members of the ECE expert group. Our objective has been to create a closer relationship with our constituency through informal meetings and consultations. These contacts have helped us understand the aspirations and concerns of our membership, which, in such a decisive period for our region, we found particularly important. I hope that this practice will be followed also in the future.
Now it is time to start our annual session, the structure and
content of which has also been reformed. The essence of the changes
has been guided by the desire to concentrate on some important
economic policy aspects rather than on housekeeping. I am convinced
that we all agree on these changes as we are eager to contribute to
making the Economic Commission for Europe an organization fully
capable of helping its members as they face the challenges of our
difficult but promising epoch. I wish success to your work.
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