Secretary-General's blueprint for action provokes widespread debate.

• Position: United Nations Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali

Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali's highly anticipated "Agenda for Development" was released on 2 5 May, immediately precipitating widespread debate in UN quarters and beyond. His blueprint for action on a whole array of economic and social issues was the focus of intense review at expert hearings at UN Headquarters (6-10 June, New York), organized by the General Assembly President.

It was also the subject of intergovernmental debate in the high-level segment of the Economic and Social Council's 1994 session, as well as a Ministerial Statement issued on 24 June by the "Group of 77" developing countries.

"Development is still the major activity of the United Nations", the Secretary-General told the press at Headquarters the day his report was issued. He hoped the new "Agenda" would serve "to correct a distorted perception" that the UN was dealing only with peace-keeping operations, and to underscore the integral linkage between development and peace.

A coordinated, comprehensive approach to development was, in his view, the only way to effectively mobilize public opinion, address the problem of donor fatigue and attract development assistance in a world overburdened with competing priorities. The Secretary-General characterized his report as a "document of reflection", a first step to stimulate further discussion and recommendations by Member States. His final conclusions and recommendations on the "Agenda" are to be presented to the Assembly later in 1994.

Conceived as a counterpart to his 1992 report "An Agenda for Peace", which addresses the Organization's peace-keeping and peacemaking activities, "An Agenda for Development" was prepared in response to Assembly resolution 47/181 of 22 December 1992. The Assembly had asked for an analysis and recommendations on ways to enhance the UN role in promoting international cooperation for development.

The Secretary-General's 50-page Agenda for Development" (A/48/935) draws upon contributions from Member States and UN agencies and programmes, as well as from public and private sources worldwide.

In an introduction, Mr. Boutros-Ghali maintains: "The concept of development, and decades of effort to reduce poverty, illiteracy, disease and mortality rates, are great achievements of this century." He warns, however, that "development as a common cause is in danger of fading from the forefront of our agenda" in the post-cold war era.

Today, he continues, the competition to bring development to the poorest countries has ended; therefore, development "is in crisis". Responding to concerns that the UN was putting a greater emphasis on peace-keeping than on development, the Secretary-General states: "These fears are not borne out by the regular budgets or the numbers of staff members engaged in peace and in development."

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