Global Policy Forum

Under alleged pressure from the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, Indonesian police have banned grassroots and international NGOs from participating in the International People's Forum, a conference held parallel to the annual meeting of the financial institutions. Authorities cite security concerns for the ban, after local groups with close ties to business reportedly "expressed fears that the [Forum] will undermine investments on their island." While criticizing regional governments for putting "business interests" ahead of development, NGO representatives perceive the restriction as a way for the IMF and World Bank to silence their loudest critics. (Inter Press Service)

The fifth annual People's Forum in Mali, held parallel to the July 2006 Group of Eight (G8) Summit in Russia, focused on poverty- and trade-related issues. Participants included NGO representatives, farmers, women and young people from all over Africa, Europe and the US. Speakers criticized the "feeble" progress on debt relief for 18 countries, a commitment made by G8 leaders at their 2005 meeting in Gleneagles, Scotland. (Christian Aid)

The UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS) "has tested relations between government and civil society in South Africa," reports Inter Press Service. NGOs complain that, despite UN encouragement to do so, Pretoria did not incorporate their views in the report detailing their country's progress in fighting the pandemic. NGOs in South Africa also accuse the government of failing to acknowledge NGO efforts in the battle against AIDS as well as excluding the organizations from policymaking at the national level.

At the Fourth Summit of the Americas, in November 2005, the focus is on job creation. José Miguel Insulza, the Organization of American States' Secretary General, spoke emphatically about the need for NGO involvement in the process of working towards improved employment opportunities all over the Americas. Only when governments are willing to involve NGOs and civil society will decision-making processes and public policy be truly democratic, Insulza said.

NGO campaigners stepped up their advocacy in preparation for the civil society counter-summit to the Fourth Summit of the Americas. Their increased activity has paid off: Experts credit NGOs with keeping the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas (FTAA) off of the official Summit agenda. NGOs have been vocal about their disapproval of the FTAA, arguing that the FTAA is irreconcilable with the Summit theme of "creating jobs to fight poverty and strengthen democratic governance." (Inter Press Service)

After a landmark three-day conference with civil society, the UN Under Secretary General for Political Affairs announced that the world body was "looking forward with renewed focus to cooperating with grass roots organizations." One of the recommendations ensuing from the conference which was aimed at implementing a global agenda to prevent conflict was the "need to incorporate a more prominent civil society component into the mandate of the proposed Peacebuilding Commission through a structural mechanism for consultation." (UN News)

A UNDP expert discussed the potential future role of NGOs at a conference in Iran, citing that development in "advanced western countries is indebted to activities of Non Governmental Organizations." He encouraged NGOs in the Middle East to seek governmental support and secure grassroots cooperation in order to fight successfully against poverty. (Islamic Republic News Agency)

Foreign NGOs must work to involve local actors and recipients of aid in the post-conflict rebuilding process, according to a panel discussion at a UN conference called "Rebuilding Societies Emerging from Conflict: A Shared Responsibility." (M2 Presswire)

This thorough discussion of "Re-establishing the Rule of Law and Encouraging Good Governance" workshop illustrates the difficulty for NGOs in creating post-conflict peace and order. (M2 Presswire)

In a statement to the General Assembly, Secretary General Annan acknowledges the importance of NGOs in the fight for the world's children, stating that they "give life and meaning to the concept of "We, the Peoples"." (UN Press Release)

While the FAO pushes for more financial aid, NGOs argue that "governments and the international community have failed to comply with one of their fundamental obligations to protect human rights" to food sovereignty and development. (Inter Press Service)

Despite the media focus on violence at the Genoa G8 summit in 2001, ATTAC believes the protests triggered a "mushrooming" of local groups and sparked wide interest in the anti-globalization movement. (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung)

NGOs often organize their timetables around global summits and the meetings of organizations such as the World Bank and the IMF. ZNet argues that "a fixation on these official activities 'detract[s] from urgent challenges of supporting existing peoples' struggles on the ground, and building communities of resistance."

Members of a counter-World Economic Forum being held at Columbia University express their feelings of political disenfranchisement in a globalized world, and alienation from the corporate leaders meeting at the Waldorf Astoria. (BBC)

Concern and criticism surfaced at the Copenhagen+5 summit when NGOs denounced Secretary General Kofi Annan's A Better World for All report. Critics claimed that it was inappropriate for Annan to share the report with the World Bank and the IMF prior to publishing since these institutions are the very "perpetrators of the problems of poverty and inequality in the world".(UN Wire)

NGOs from all over are gathering in Geneva this week to assess global social development. Known as the "alternative summit," NGOs will assemble to analyze the progress made since the Copenhagen conference five years earlier.

The source of environmental degradation, poverty, and the increasing income divide, has been identified as environmental and social injustice. This statement calls for an integrated, inclusionary approach to solving this global challenge and a drive toward sustainable development coordinated by NGOs for the Rio+10 conference.

Statement to the second PrepCom of the UNGASS on Social Development by Izzat Abdel Hadi, on behalf of the Development Caucus, on April 7, during the afternoon plenary session. The speech was made in Arabic and drew a lot of attention from the delegations, particularly from the Arabian delegations. (ATTAC Information List)

Manifesto pledging resistance to the scourge of globalization.