Towards a New International Economic Order

Abstract

A serious dialogue is under way in the international community between rich and poor nations (North and South) to determine the structure of international economic relations in future decades. At stake are the rules which govern international trade, finance, investment and the allocation of world income. The new international order, first proclaimed on May 1, 1974, in the Declaration of the Establishment of a New International Economic Order (Resolution 3201 S-VI) and the Programme of Action (3202 S-VI) at the closing of the Sixth Special Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, has spawned an ongoing series of negotiations which can be expected to continue for some time to come. Current events have borne-out the statement made by Mr. Richard of the United Kingdom on May 3, 1974 at the conclusion of the Sixth Special Session: I believe that this Assembly will, in later years, be seen as a turning point: the United Nations is committing itself to a serious attempt to create a new world economic structure through the processes of rational discussion and orderly change. We have thus proclaimed the agenda of much of the international community's business for the next decade. Things will never be the same again.