PRAGUE, Czech Republic, JUNE 2, 2004 (Zenit.org).- The Holy See called for mechanisms to guarantee the redistribution of global resources, given the inequalities caused by the process of economic liberalization.
Monsignor Ettore Balestrero, an official of the Vatican Secretariat of State, made that appeal when addressing the Economic Forum of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The forum ends Friday.
“Liberalization and technological change have not benefited all the participating states equally, thus contributing, in some cases, to deepening economic disparities between and also within our countries,” the papal representative said.
“The future of developing countries is in their hands: in the effectiveness of their fight against corruption, for the rule of law and for transparency, in their capacity of enacting clear and adequate legislation with some tax incentives, in the national treatment for foreign investors and in modern infrastructures,” he added. “No single condition can guarantee the success, but a single condition missing guarantees failure.”
“Thus a fundamental requirement for building up an institutional capacity for economic development consists in creating adequate instruments for the redistribution of global resources,” Monsignor Balestrero said.
“A greater supply of global public goods, those indispensable goods related to basic health conditions, environment protection, agricultural research and information technologies, must be guaranteed,” the priest added.
“This however is often beyond the possibilities of a single government. It requires a concerted effort and economic and financial investments,” he said. “These goods need to be transferred without barriers to different countries since they are not just to the advantage of a single state but must be considered of interest to the international community as such.”
Monsignor Balestrero continued: “We know that international institutions and mechanisms which might possibly favor such a transfer are still lacking. Yet we are also aware of the fact that developed countries at the national level adopt policies aimed at correcting market failures and reduced opportunities for depressed regions.”
“In some countries it may well be that public decision taking and the public sector itself are excessive. But the central point to be made is that on the global level the opposite is the case: Institutional development has stopped at market-related structures,” he noted.
OSCE is the largest regional security organization with 55 participating states from Europe, Central Asia and North America. It is active in early warning, conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation.
