Speech on Regional co-operation
June 16th 2003
International seminar on
"Regional Co-operation – the Nordic Experience"
June 16th 2003 in Sofia
Speech by Siv Fridleifsdottir, Icelandic Minister
for the Environment and Nordic Co-operation
on Regional Co-operation
Why is a regional concept important today and in the future?
An example from the field of Sustainable Development.
Excellencies, honourable colleagues, ladies and gentlemen:
Regional cooperation is extremely important today. It can get us much further than if we do not cooperate within our regions.
We, the Nordic countries, have experience of this in the field of sustainable development. Environmental problems do not stop at the borders of countries. We must fight them together, regionally and globally.
"Sustainable development" was among the main focuses of the 1992 UN Summit on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. There the nations of the world pledged to work towards sustainable development both globally and nationally.
In November 1998, the Nordic prime ministers and political leaders of the three autonomous territories signed a declaration on Sustainable Nordic Countries. It was based on the Agenda 21, the Rio Declaration and the definition of the Brundtland Committee of the concept of sustainable development. Guided by the Nordic declaration, the Ministers for the Environment and Nordic co-operation took on the task of formulating a cross disciplinary strategy aimed at sustainable development in the Nordic countries. This strategy was to place emphasis on the areas where the Nordic countries have common interests, where they have especially good premises to make a contribution to sustainable development and where Nordic co-operation contributes value-added. The Nordic Council of Ministers was entrusted with carrying out this major project, which was completed at the beginning of 2001 when the ministers for Nordic co-operation approved the strategy. The strategy is called "Sustainable development – New Bearings for the Nordic Countries".
In this programme the Nordic countries point out that, since they are among the richest countries of the world, they have a special responsibility to encourage sustainable development. Their main objective, as responsible societies, is to implement this strategy so it will result in positive improvements within the foreseeable future. The strategy focuses especially on what each individual Nordic country can do and what they can do through Nordic co-operation.
The strategy marked a turning point, because it was the first comprehensive regional programme for sustainable development in the world. It set out objectives and projects for the period 2001-2004 and long-term goals for sustainable development in the Nordic countries until the year 2020. As previously mentioned, the strategy is intended to serve as an overall framework, a basis upon which to build individual Nordic sub-programmes.
It can be roughly divided into three parts:
· Cross-disciplinary issues include climate change, biodiversity, the oceans, chemicals and food safety.
· Sectors of emphasis are energy, communications, agriculture, economic activity, fisheries and forestry.
· Other areas of emphasis include actions to increase public participation, encourage efforts under Agenda 21, the development of the scientific basis, control mechanisms and resource utilisation.
A few examples of joint actions during the period 2001-2004 can serve to demonstrate what is involved:
· The Nordic countries aim at working jointly towards having the nations of the world ratify the Kyoto Protocol on measures to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, so that it may come into effect as soon as possible.
· The Nordic countries also intend to work jointly in developing the Baltic Sea Region as an experimental region for the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol. A Nordic investment fund has been established for this purpose.
· The countries intend to work jointly in international fora to have the UN Convention on Biological Diversity enforced.
· By the year 2004, all the countries are to have drafted their own programmes and action plans for protection of biodiversity. These must include taking into consideration biodiversity in sectors such as agriculture, forestry, fisheries and communications.
· During the period 2001-2004 the Nordic countries intend to work together to have existing treaties on the marine environment fulfilled and strengthened.
· The Nordic countries intend to work towards introducing in EU legislation requirements that, within a specific time frame, information must be provided on all chemicals used in manufacturing. Substances for which no information is made available within these time limits may no longer be used.
· As an example of actions to increase food safety, the Nordic countries intend to limit the use of antibiotics by adopting rules on maximum quantities for traces of antibiotics in foodstuffs.
The national Nordic governments bear the chief responsibility for working towards the objectives and implementing the strategy measures. A special implementation committee comprised of representatives of the five states and three autonomous territories was appointed to supervise the implementation of the strategy. Its first task was to develop suitable indicators to measure the success of the actions in as objective and easily understood a manner as possible. As everyone must realise, attaining a sustainable society is no small task; it is an on-going process that will, in the years to come, require full co-operation from all spheres of Nordic societies and the widespread co-ordination of many social forces. We are still in the very early stages of this task and at this moment it is to soon to foresee how successful we will be.
At the summit conference on sustainable development held in Johannesburg in late summer 2002, the sustainable development strategy was presented as a common Nordic initiative. It also offered an opportunity to present the implementation committee's first interim report on the success of the actions listed in the first short-term programme. The implementation committee's report was only the first step in regular reporting on the implementation of the strategy. I have just returned from a meeting of Nordic co-operation ministers which discussed a draft of the Committee's new interim report for 2003. Preparation is already underway on formulating the next short-term programme which will define emphases, objectives and actions for the period 2005-2008. It is thus our sincere determination to make the strategy for sustainable Nordic countries a vital document, making regular reviews of its success and reviewing the strategy as a whole in the light of these assessments. It is my opinion that the Nordic Strategy is an important part of Iceland's work regarding sustainable development, and I am sure the same applies to the other Nordic countries.
The Nordic countries are at the forefront of global efforts to achieve sustainable development. All attempts to measure achievement in the area of sustainable development support this claim. The so-called Human Well-being Index is compiled with support from the World Conservation Union to measure the success of nation states in creating general well-being without depleting natural resources. Here the Nordic countries all occupy the top ranks. The leadership of the Nordic countries in this area is the result of their traditional efforts to build societies based on universal welfare, equality and emphasis by the authorities and the general public on environmental protection. This does not mean, however, that the Nordic countries can become self-satisfied, because much remains to be done. We have to continually seek to do better because, as the authors of the Human Well-being Index rightly point out, no state can claim to have achieved a completely sustainable society.
The Nordic countries' joint policy formulation for sustainable development encourages these states to stand together in international fora and to speak with one voice where this is appropriate, for the purpose of optimally influencing the direction of the international community.
Is the Nordic Strategy for Sustainable Development a model for other regions to emulate? I think so, but there is no simple answer to this question. It will depend on whether the region in question faces common problems and concerns, and whether it is natural for the countries involved to co-ordinate their policies. Pollution, and many environmental problems, are cross border problems. That is one argument for working on a regional basis for sustainable development. Another argument is that we get better results with cooperation between neighbours in general.
So, dear guests, I find regional co-operation, like Nordic cooperation in the field of sustainable development, extremely useful.