Eliminating Developing Country Poverty Piece by Piece

There are many dimensions to sustainable development. It is not just an ecological issue, as development must also be sustainable socially and economically. Finland will be taking part in the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 20-22 June.

MSAH Ministerial Adviser Anne Eriksson says that the aim of the Rio+20 conference is to put an end to the squandering of natural resources, with the needs of future generations in mind, and progress towards a fair and equitable world.

"Human activity and its impacts must be continually assessed in terms of their environmental, social and economic aspects, because they closely overlap."

The conference will aim to reaffirm political commitment to sustainable development, take stock of the progress made and of the problems in carrying through the results of major conferences on sustainable development, and examine new challenges.

Rio+20 will deal with two main themes: the green economy in the context of sustainable development and eradicating poverty, and the institutional framework for sustainable development.

According to the Rio+20 background information, the concept of the green economy entails a holistic, equitable and far-sighted approach to decision-making at all levels, and in this context is the mainstay of sustainable development.

The approach focuses on the intersection between environment and economy, in which the aim is not purely for strong economic performance but for equity that is both intragenerational and intergenerational.

"The problems of sustainable development cannot be solved unless we speak about the uneven distribution of consumption. At present some people consume way too much, whereas others are only left with crumbs. The problem is how rich countries will agree to consume less," says Eriksson.

The second theme of Rio+20 on the institutional framework aims to build on the work done at the first UN Conference on Sustainable Development, held in Rio in 1992 and at the first follow up to this, held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 2002.

The 1992 conference saw the adoption of a number of key agreements on sustainable development, such as the ‘Rio Conventions', Agenda 21, and led to the establishment of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development.

The 2002 conference further developed this early institutional framework by adopting the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation (JPOI), which sought to strengthen the implementation of agreements on sustainable development. This included efforts to bolster the work of various UN agencies responsible for sustainable development questions, such as the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

Subsequently, work has been carried out to coordinate the multitude of existing multilateral environmental agreements that have been adopted at different forums and to give greater coherence to the system of international environmental governance.

A main challenge is to coordinate all this with palpable results in meeting the crises of underdevelopment in many parts of the world.

From the perspective of the MSAH the crucial aspect of the conference is its focus on reinforcing social sustainability.

"Our goal concerns eradicating poverty. We can work form the assumption that everyone is guaranteed clean water, sanitation, the access to learning, decent work, social security and health care. Welfare is being built piece by piece."

UN studies show that the greening of economies is a path towards sustainable development by providing a new engine for growth, instead of being a drag on growth, and generating decent work in areas like agriculture in developing countries. In this way the green economy is seen as one element on eliminating persistent poverty.

Through the Nordic Council of Ministers the five Nordic countries are holding a number of seminars and exhibitions in the run up to and during Rio+20. They include a seminar titled Gender Equality is Sustainability.

The eradication of poverty worldwide is no easy task, but there are lessons to learn from the experience of different countries in how they furthered their own development. Post-World War II Finland provides one example. The country is now one of the most developed and wealthy in the world, though its beginnings were bleak.

Anne Eriksson points out that the Nordic welfare model is a useful and instructive tool, even if it cannot be directly applied in solving the problems of poor countries. The model provides good principles that can be applied variously to the cultural specifics of each country.

But Eriksson stresses that one thing is clear: poverty cannot be eliminated by temporary programmes introduced from outside.

"Developing country poverty cannot be eradicated using poverty programmes. We can't simply export our practices to poor countries and then say that that's how problems are solved. Change has to take place from within the countries themselves. There need to be state structures created in order that poverty can be eliminated."

Anne Eriksson also stresses that the MSAH needs to examine the problem of poverty on a broader level than nationally. She believes that the Rio conference is a good place to do this as it provides a global forum for discussing issues concerning natural resources, welfare and the sustainability of the planet.

In this respect the conference will provide a valuable basis for developing strategies and platforms for knowledge sharing in key areas, such as the green economy. The experiences of different countries in terms of their own development can also be useful.

Eriksson points out that though basic conditions in Finland are at a relatively good level, we can also learn new things from others.

"You can encounter new and good ways of thinking in unexpected places. For instance, ethics, conceptions of dignity, and attitudes towards the elderly vary from one country to another. They have nothing to do with wealth.

Eriksson says that many people think that the Rio conference is simply a meeting about environment and development. But the themes of the forum are far broader in scope. It is essential, she believes, to think globally.

"You can't create sustainable development unless there is democracy and a functioning social system. In many countries the realisation of social justice is still a long way off. This sort of issue cannot be resolved locally. It requires cooperation on a global level."