A Helsinki Process Report
Global governance structures are out of sync with the processes of globalization. New multi-stakeholder efforts between governments, business and civil society need to be established, that will bridge the gap between the richest and poorest nations in a forum of equality and increase the role of states from the Southern hemisphere in global economic stewardship, says the Helsinki Group in the Helsinki Process Report entitled
Mobilising Political Will.
The Helsinki Process Report, a culmination of three years consultation, makes recommendations aimed at overcoming the problems of globalisation. The release of the report coincides with the forthcoming G8 Summit in Gleneagles, Scotland and will be shared with each of the governments and delegations from the G8 nations. It is hoped that the report findings will provide useful input for discussion at the meeting and during subsequent negotiations.
The
Helsinki Process was set up by the governments of Finland and Tanzania in 2002. Both of the governments were inspired by the co-leadership of Finnish and Tanzanian Presidents as they were heading ILO World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalisation in the same year. The Helsinki Process amalgamates the contributions of leaders from governments, business and civil society around the world, and produces workable solutions to the problems of globalisation. The Helsinki Process took the framework of United Nations Millennium Declaration as a starting point for its work. The Helsinki Process Proposals include recommendations in poverty and development, human rights, environment, peace and security, and governance. Proposals that stress the importance of multi-stakeholder dialogue include:
- Review the Geneva Convention to make it more relevant to current realities
- Improve decision-making, negotiation procedures and transparency at the WTO
- Seek agreement on a further limitation of greenhouse gas emissions
at the level of 15-30 percent by 2050 compared to the levels estimated
in the Kyoto Protocol
- Create a new UN Human Rights Council
- Establish a World Environmental Organisation
- Provide better donor governance for large aid programmes that react to events such as Darfur and the Tsunami disaster
- Continue the reduction of agricultural subsidies.
