Financing
Financing Sustainable Development for All
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A Listing of Financing Mechanisms
Self-Financing World Marshall Plan
Introduction
During the Earth Summit preparatory proces and the CSD Lisinka Ulatowska co-founded with Richard Jordan and chaired the NGO Task Force on Financing. She was asked by Ambassador Bell of Canada, who chaired the Governmental Working Group on Financing to gather as many alternative financing mechanisms for development as possible. Eighty NGOs participated during the Third Prepcom and we created the following Listing of Financing Mechanisms with Approaches to their Implementation. Ulatowska sequenced the mechanisms and Dan King described the 8 approaches to implementation. The final part contains a summary of a self financing World Marshall Plan, designed by Pieter Kooistra. This section also contains a summary of this plan. A book describing how the plan can be implemented was published: To order:Ulatowska, Lisinka, Crossroads 2000 (available in English and Dutch)
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Financing Mechanism and their Implementation
Prepared upon request of the Chair of the UNCED Governmental Working Group on Financing
By The NGO UNCED Task Force, meeting daily over a three week period and updated for the WSSD in 2002. Compiled and arranged by:Dr. Lisinka Ulatowska, Chair and Co-convenor
The former UNCED NGO Task Force on Financing
United Nations Representative
The Association of World Citizens
Stichting UNO Inkomen
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1401 AK Bussum
the Netherlands
Tel/Fax +31 (0)35 691 9275
E-mail ulatowska@hetnet.nl
Summary
This Listing of Financing Mechanisms was prepared for Governments a decade ago, as they were developing Agenda 21, during the third preparatory meeting (prepcom) to the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The idea originated with Ambassador John Bell of Canada, who was then the Chairman of the Governmental Working Group on Financing. He suggested that the NGO UNCED Taskforce on Financing prepare a Listing of available financing mechanisms and make suggestions for their implementation. This NGO Task Force on Financing consisted of some 80 NGOs. The Listing was widely circulated among Governments after the third prepcom. Despite a generous financial gift by Japan, paragraph 33 of Agenda 21, which dealt with financing, was so weak that Implementing Sustainable Development, the Report by the Secretary General made a decade later, attributes much of the world's inability to carry out Agenda 21 to lack of financing. Despite the series of Summits held during the 1990's, each with its own Action Plan, financing has remained problematic. The 0.7% Official Development Assistance (ODA) committed to by developed countries (excluding the USA and Japan, respectively the largest and second largest economies) has been reached and/or suppassed only by five countries: Denmark, Liechtenstein, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. At the same time, the discussion on alternative financing mechanisms has been dominated by fears of the Tobin and the Carbon Tax which are seen by some to be detrimental to their individual economies. These fears have obscured the fact that there are dozens of alternative and innovative financing mechanisms that can be used which would stimulate the economies, raise consciousness on the need for sustainable development among those whose lifestyles must change, and at the same time promote sustainability. The expert study on innovative financing mechanisms, commissioned by Geneva 2000, the follow-up to the Social Summit, was overshadowed by these fears and so no time tables were set by Governments, nor any reporting procedures. This vagueness is likely to undermine the impact of this report, unless both time lines and reporting procedures are instituted. The usefulness of the expert study is further weakened because it is a one time study and sustainable development is an ongoing process consisting of very different steps, each step requiring quite diverse financing mechanisms. For this reason, the original Listing of Financing Mechanisms and their Implementation was divided into three sections. Each section dealt with a different phase of sustainable development: first capacity building and then gradually moving toward more incisive changes to the world economy, such as the Self-financing World Marshall Plan. The latter, with the input of experts in the UN Secretariat, as well as other more incisive economic changes have been detailed in books, which are mentioned in this updated Listing. Since UNCED a number of the financing mechanisms mentioned in this Listing have been instituted and new ones have become commonplace. The Listing has now been updated to ensure that our Governments have a wide range of financing mechanisms at their disposal, as they prepare to commit themselves to individual programs to ensure the speedy implementation of Agenda 21. Most of these have been developed and are being used by the grass roots. The Listing is by no means exhaustive. It does give an impression of the array of financing mechanisms that exist. These should be studied by experts and made available to Governments on a regular basis so that these can change to new financing mechanisms as the needs of sustainable development change. The updated Listing of Financing Mechanisms and their Implementation is being made available to our Governments, who are participating in the WSSD preparatory process with the request that 1. the expert study, which, we hear from the UN Secretariat, is slated to report to Governments just one time before the WSSD Summit itself in Johannesburg, be upgraded from a one-time study to an ongoing study, which provides Governments every year with a selection of innovative and other financing mechanisms that Governments can use to meet the challenges they face as they move toward sustainable development. Such a report would mention how each mechanism can best be used to make the most of its inherent qualities. The first report, for instance, would deal mainly with mechanisms well suited for capacity building and consciousness raising. At the same time the study would outline steps Governments can take to prepare the way for more incisive financing mechanisms, that can affect the lives of the individual citizen as well as the national and world economies. Of course, Governments would be free to choose whether they followed the suggestions or not. 2. That NGOs who have expertise in this area be invited to contribute to the expert study which would remain under the control of the UN itself or the organization of its choosing. (At present, it seems the WIDER INSTITUTE, which is associated with the United Nations University, is the organization of choice). Governments as coordinators of citizens actions are primarily responsible to ensure that the world economy can develop sustainable, that the necessary funds are available, and that timetables are agreed and adhered to. As citizens, many of us are, of course, eager to support our Governments as together we work for a sustainable world.Self-Financing World Marshall Plan
You may download brief summaries of the World Marshall Plan in these different languages (Word DOC-format)
EnglishFrench
German
To read about the World Marshall Plan in more detail. Here are some chapters from the book: The Year 2000. Crossroads for Mankind. A basic income for all people and a world Marshall plan for the Earth. Click on the tags to download these as Word documents
0. The World Marshall Plan. Introduction, about the author and the book1. The World Marshall Plan and its financing
2. Implementation. A story about how this could work: Vimala's Diary
3. The World Marshall Plan's infrastructure
4. The Impact of a World Marshall Plan
5. Step by Step Implementation Building on Existing Initiatives
6. Implementation Using a Global Decision Making Network
7. Frequently Asked Questions