The link between development and security, the need to work towards sustainable development and the creation of an enabling environment for developing countries were highlighted during the annual ministerial debate of the General Assembly, which ended Friday.

During the week-long debate, the developing countries joined a chorus to call on the developed countries to pay attention to the importance of common development and create favorable conditions for the implementation of the millennium development goals (MDGs).

Addressing the assembly, Kiribati President Anote Tong Beretitenti said shortcomings in promoting sustainable development were due to the inability to deliver on commitments previously made.

With globalization and the increasing interdependency in the world, individual nations could not achieve sustainable development acting alone, particularly small island developing States, he noted.

Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Mohammad Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah called for resolutions on sustainable development to be the basis for new partnerships to boost economic relations and promote a fair global trading system.

Also, he said, countries of the North should honor their pledges for debt relief and financial assistance, as well as facilitate access to technology.

Guatemala Foreign Minister Jorge Briz Abularach stressed the need for developing countries to have a level playing field with regard to trade and wider access to dynamic markets.

"The December meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) should place development at the center of its negotiations," he stressed.

Carlos Gomes, prime minister of Guinea-Bissau said the link between security and development was proof that a gesture of solidarity on the question of financing for development was needed now more than ever.

Lao Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad said globalization offered a great deal of opportunities, but it also presented challenges and risks for the developing world, particularly the least developed countries and the landlocked developing countries.

"Globalization has not produced equal benefits. The gap between the developed and the developing world is widening," he warned. " In order for developing countries to reap benefits from globalization, an enabling external economic environment for development is required."

Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Mohammad Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah expressed the hope that resolutions on sustainable development adopted at numerous international meetings would lay the ground for new partnerships between developed and developing nations, which would boost economic relations among them, as well as promote a fair and balanced international trading system.

"In building such a partnership, the economic structures of Southern countries must be bolstered, and nations of the North should fulfill their pledges to provide financial and technical assistance, as well as debt relief," he emphasized.

He called on the developed nations to lift customs restrictions on products from poor countries and facilitate access to technology that would help them integrate into the new economic system.

Development was among the major topics of the General Assembly ministerial debate, which started last Saturday.

Source: Xinhua