WSSD 2002 should be remembered as the occasion when world leaders took bold steps to eradicate poverty and to achieve global sustainable development, says Valli Moosa, South Africa’s Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.
What does sustainable development mean?
Since its elevation at the Rio Summit sustainable development has generated much debate, and continues to do so, among national and international NGOs, agencies, researchers, etc.
Sustainable development refers to a kind of development that aims for equity within and between generations, and adopts an approach where the economic, social and environmental aspects of development are considered in a holistic manner.
The economic, social and environmental aspects are referred to as the three pillars of sustainable development. It is useful to think of the three pillars as a tripod with the three legs corresponding with the economic, social and environmental pillars. A weakening of one leg will weaken the whole structure, and without one leg the structure cannot stand. A country’s governance framework constitutes the glue that holds the different legs together.
In trying to understand what the three different pillars consist of it is useful to use the Sustainable Livelihoods (SL) framework, which is a tool to improve our understanding of livelihoods. The SL framework spells out the different forms of “capital” that exist within a society at all levels, from household level to the level of the macroeconomic framework. The five different types of capital are: natural, physical, social, financial and human. Sustainable development is to increase equitable access to these capitals in a sustainable fashion. Sustainable development requires each element to be conserved over time.
Sustainable development is not a contradiction in terms. It is essential to understand that environment and development is interlinked; that poverty is the major threat to sustainable development and that you cannot achieve sustainable development without recognising that trade-offs need to be made at times in order to reach the overall objectives.
Sometimes it is useful to take a step back and make matters simple again. If we return to the Brundtland Report and use the definition they offered issues become clear: Sustainable Development is development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs.
Some environmental organisations complain that the WSSD agenda has moved too far away from the environmental focus of Rio 92 – that it is concentrating too much on poverty alleviation and development, and not enough on sustainability of the planet. How do you respond to these criticisms?
Sustainable development is not just about the environment. If the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) is to succeed it must address all three pillars of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental.
Obviously environmental protection will be a major part of the agenda. But sustainable development cannot be achieved by focusing exclusively on the environment. The key is to integrate economic, social and environmental considerations in the policy-making process. People want a clean environment, but they also need jobs, health care and a good education. That is also why South Africa has argued very hard that poverty eradication should be the over-arching theme for the summit.
Poor people are more vulnerable to the effects of environmental degradation. For example, communities which make their living from the land or the sea will suffer if those natural resources are depleted. So it is crucial that we tackle poverty as part of our efforts to promote sustainable development.
How will the World Summit further sustainable development in Southern Africa, and Africa?
The United Nations Secretary General’s assessment of the implementation of Agenda 21 since Rio highlighted the fact that Africa as a continent had benefited the programmes aimed at the implementation of Agenda 21, particularly due to lack of resources. It further highlighted the fact that Africa is the poorest continent in the world, a situation further exacerbated by Africa’s continued marginalisation in the global economy.
In an attempt to eradicate poverty in Africa, and to integrate the continent into the global economy, the WSSD has a whole chapter that is dedicated to African development problems in the three pillars of sustainable development. In addition, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (Nepad) has been integrated into the WSSD process as one of the vehicles that will deliver on the WSSD implementation programmes, focusing on programmes, targets and resources that will contribute to sustainable development in Africa.
Further, the fact that the WSSD is being hosted in Africa, and Southern Africa, provides the region and the continent with an opportunity to put the region’s issues on the agenda. The fact that about 65 000 people are converging in Johannesburg also presents the region with opportunities to showcase its tourism and investment potential to a large audience.
During the Bali Preparatry Commitee meeting in June, some sticking points became evident. Do you expect these be resolved at WSSD – and how?
Certainly Bali did not achieve as much as many people had expected, but significant progress was made. Yes, there are some issues that still require further ironing out – these are in the areas of finance and trade, means of implementation and international sustainable development governance, some issues around the “common but differentiated responsibility” principle, and specific sectoral issues.
I am positive that these issues will be resolved at the summit. South Africa and other countries that are keen on seeing positive WSSD outcomes are involved in informal discussions to facilitate reaching consensus in all these issues before the end of the summit. The “sticking points” you refer to are typical of such a significant event, and should by no means be construed to mean that they will not deliver on its original mandate.
Will the Southern approach at WSSD differ from the Northern agenda?
There is a broad consensus that WSSD should be about poverty eradication and that its outcomes must be action-oriented. But views differ as to what that means in practice. Developing countries want to see WSSD deliver concrete implementation plans in priority areas like water, energy, health and food, with clear targets, timeframes and funding arrangements. Many developed countries want to avoid specific commitments, arguing that WSSD should no more than indicate strategic priorities.
North and South also have conflicting views on the role WSSD should play in relation to trade and finance issues. The North would prefer to keep trade and finance off the summit agenda, on the grounds that these issues should be addressed separately in the Doha trade round and in the follow-up to the Monterrey Conference on financing for development.
Southern countries believe WSSD should build on the outcomes of Doha and Monterrey. We want to ensure the World Trade Organisation negotiations deliver real results for developing countries, by opening up developed countries’ markets to developing country products and through the elimination of trade-distorting subsidies in key sectors like agriculture. We also want to see expeditious implementation of the Monterrey Consensus, with increased financial flows from North to South and a commitment to lasting solutions to the debt burden of developing countries.
The European Union and the United States have their own agendas too. The EU tends to put more emphasis on environmental issues, whereas the US is strongly promoting good governance. Both are clearly important. But we cannot allow environmental protection to become a barrier to development in the South – we must strike the right balance between the environment and development.
And while we all support good governance and the fight against corruption, we are opposed to the imposition of conditions which could ultimately lead to donors withholding development aid and thereby worsening the suffering of poor people in developing countries.
What do you hope will be the legacy of WSSD?
The WSSD should be remembered as the occasion at which world leaders took bold steps to eradicate poverty and took the necessary commitments for the achievement of global sustainable development. The WSSD should result in practical programmes that will deliver on basic services such as, among others, water, energy, education, health and infrastructure, in order to improve the quality of life of all our people.
As host country, South Africa is involved in the setting up of various “legacy projects” and initiatives that will serve as a reminder of this historic event to local communities.