Developing multilateral cooperation

The multilateral cooperation which has grown up in the United Nations system has proved itself to be irreplaceable, despite a host of difficulties. The desire to take collective responsibility for all the different world problems, based on the principle of the equality of states, was what gave rise to the UN system in the first place. This project to build a community of interdependent nations has taken on a wider dimension with the emergence within the international community of new sovereign states, anxious to play their full part in deciding and directing the affairs of the world.

1. The strengthening of multilateral cooperation is particularly vital in that the challenges of the past decade are addressed to all nations, and that what is at stake is the common destiny of humanity. There is now a pathwork of multilateral institutions, some effective, others less so, and many of them undertaking overlapping tasks. A comprehensive and wide-ranging review of current multilateral practices is required to identify areas for reform and improvement in the context of an interdependent world economic system. In reforming and improving such arrangements, the primary aim should be to ensure social and economic justice, fairness, equity and transparency in multilateral governance, and the application of democratic principles in decision-making processes. It is not essential that multilateral institutions should always be UN agencies. Multilateralism can thrive within and outside the UN system.

1. Strengthening
2. Motivating cooperation
3. Developing

1. Strengthening role of global multilateral organizations
2. Regionalizing multilateral cooperation
3. Reducing delay in supply of agreed multilateral assistance
4. Promoting multilateral framework agreements for benefit-sharing in biodiversity conservation
5. Promoting multilateral clearing arrangements
6. Promoting international cooperation in banking
7. Negotiating multilateral safeguard systems
8. Negotiating multilateral arms limitation
9. Making multilateral rules
10. Involving multilateral financial organizations in intergovernmental follow-up to Agenda 21
11. Increasing observance of multilateral trade agreements
12. Fostering access for civil society in multilateral processes
13. Ensuring compatibility between multilateral environmental agreements and World Trade Organization rules
14. Encouraging developing country participation in multilateral agreements
15. Creating compliance regimes for multilateral environmental agreements
16. Balancing disbursements of multilateral agencies and official contributions

1. Using multilateral sanctions
2. Providing multilateral financial assistance
3. Acting multilaterally

1. Requiring intergovernmental multilateral action
2. Monitoring multilateral population assistance

1. Balancing interpretations of multilateral principles

1. Restricting multilateral development aid

1. Undermining of multilateral forums
2. Policy cross-conditionality restrictions in multilateral development aid
3. Lack of international cooperation
4. Indecisive multilateralism
5. Inadequate funding of international programmes
6. Inability to negotiate effective multilateral safeguard systems
7. Consensus trap

1. Noncooperation
2. Cooperation