A/RES/72/205 GA

United Nations A/RES/72/205 General Assembly Distr.: General 19 January 2018 17-23270 (E) 240118 *1723270* Seventy-second session Agenda item 17 (d) Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 20 December 2017 [on the report of the Second Committee (A/72/418/Add.4)] 72/205. Commodities The General Assembly, Recalling its resolutions 59/224 of 22 December 2004, 61/190 of 20 December 2006, 63/207 of 19 December 2008, 64/192 of 21 December 2009, 66/190 of 22 December 2011, 68/203 of 20 December 2013 and 70/191 of 22 December 2015 on commodities, Recalling also the United Nations Millennium Declaration adopted by Heads of State and Government on 8 September 2000,1 the 2005 World Summit Outcome adopted on 16 September 20052 and its resolution 60/265 of 30 June 2006 on the follow-up to the development outcome of the 2005 World Summit, including the Millennium Development Goals and the other internationally agreed development goals, Reaffirming its resolution 70/1 of 25 September 2015, entitled “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, in which it adopted a comprehensive, far-reaching and people-centred set of universal and transformative Sustainable Development Goals and targets, its commitment to working tirelessly for the full implementation of the Agenda by 2030, its recognition that eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty, is the greatest global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development, its commitment to achieving sustainable development in its three dimensions – economic, social and environmental – in a balanced and integrated manner, and to building upon the achievements of the Millennium Development Goals and seeking to address their unfinished business, Recalling implementation target 2.c under Sustainable Development Goal 2 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the aim of which is to adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food commodity markets and their derivatives and __________________ 1 Resolution 55/2. 2 Resolution 60/1. A/RES/72/205 Commodities 17-23270 2/8 to facilitate timely access to market information, including on food reserves, in order to help to limit extreme food price volatility, and implementation target 9.b under Goal 9 of the 2030 Agenda, the aim of which is to support domestic technology development, research and innovation in developing countries, including by ensuring a conducive policy environment for, inter alia, industrial diversification and value addition to commodities, Recalling also the Sendai Declaration3 and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030,4 Noting the ongoing efforts to implement the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2011–2020, adopted in May 2011 at the Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries, 5 the SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway, adopted in September 2014 at the third International Conference on Small Island Developing States, 6 and the Vienna Programme of Action for Landlocked Developing Countries for the Decade 2014– 2024, adopted in November 2014 at the second United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries,7 and recognizing the special challenges facing middle-income countries, Noting also the holding of the one-day informal interactive dialogue on commodity markets in New York on 16 May 2016, from which resulted a set of conclusions and observations aimed at cushioning the adverse impact of excessive commodity price volatility on global sustainable development efforts, Reaffirming the importance of supporting Agenda 2063 of the African Union, as well as its first 10-year implementation plan, as a strategic framework for ensuring a positive socioeconomic transformation in Africa within the next 50 years, its continental programme embedded in the resolutions of the General Assembly on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, and regional initiatives, Taking note of the targets set out in the Declaration of the World Summit on Food Security, held in Rome from 16 to 18 November 2009,8 which reaffirms the pledge to end hunger and poverty, Noting the High-level Task Force on Global Food and Nutrition Security, supporting the Secretary-General’s Zero Hunger Challenge initiative, initiated in 2012, and the twin-track approach enunciated in the updated comprehensive framework for action produced by the United Nations system High-level Task Force on Global Food and Nutrition Security in September 2010, Recalling the Conference on the World Financial and Economic Crisis and Its Impact on Development and its outcome document,9 Recalling also the International Conference on Financing for Development, held in Monterrey, Mexico, from 18 to 22 March 2002, and the Follow-up International Conference on Financing for Development to Review the Implementation of the Monterrey Consensus, held in Doha from 29 November to 2 December 2008, Reaffirming its resolution 69/313 of 27 July 2015 on the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development, which __________________ 3 Resolution 69/283, annex I. 4 Ibid., annex II. 5 Report of the Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries, Istanbul, Turkey, 9–13 May 2011 (A/CONF.219/7), chap. II. 6 Resolution 69/15, annex. 7 Resolution 69/137, annex II. 8 See Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, document WSFS 2009/2. 9 Resolution 63/303, annex. Commodities A/RES/72/205 3/8 17-23270 is an integral part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, supports and complements it, helps to contextualize its means of implementation targets with concrete policies and actions, and reaffirms the strong political commitment to address the challenge of financing and creating an enabling environment at all levels for sustainable development in the spirit of global partnership and solidarity, Recalling that, in the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, Heads of State and Government expressed concern about the excessive volatility of commodity prices, including for food and agriculture, and its consequences for global food security and improved nutrition outcomes, called for the adoption of measures to ensure the proper functioning of food commodity markets and their derivatives and for the adoption by relevant regulatory bodies of measures to facilitate timely, accurate and transparent access to market information in an effort to ensure that commodity markets appropriately reflect underlying demand and supply changes and to help limit the excessive volatility of commodity prices, noted the Agricultural Market Information System hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and called for the provision of access for small-scale artisanal fishers to marine resources and markets, consistent with sustainable management practices as well as initiatives that add value to outputs from small-scale fishers, Welcoming the Paris Agreement10 and its early entry into force, encouraging all its parties to fully implement the Agreement, and parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change11 that have not yet done so to deposit their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, where appropriate, as soon as possible, Welcoming also the outcome of the fourteenth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development,12 and taking note of the decisions and agreed conclusions on commodities adopted by the Trade and Development Board and its subsidiary bodies in 2014, 2015 and 2016, Taking note of the Arusha Declaration and Plan of Action on African Commodities, adopted at the African Union Conference of Ministers of Trade on Commodities, held in Arusha, United Republic of Tanzania, from 21 to 23 November 2005, and endorsed by the Executive Council of the African Union at its eighth ordinary session, held in Khartoum from 16 to 21 January 2006,13 Recalling the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg Plan of Implementation)14 and the outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 20 to 22 June 2012, entitled “The future we want”,15 Taking note of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development “Commodities and development reports” of 2012 and of 2015, and noting the role that the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development has been playing as an institution in looking at the interaction between commodity markets and economic development and in the elaboration of the concept of commodity-dependent developing countries, __________________ 10 Adopted under the UNFCCC in FCCC/CP/2015/10/Add.1, decision 1/CP.21. 11 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1771, No. 30822. 12 See TD/519, TD/519/Add.1, TD/519/Add.2 and TD/519/Add.2/Corr.1. 13 See A/60/693, annex II, decision EX.CL/Dec.253 (VIII). 14 Report of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg, South Africa, 26 August–4 September 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.03.II.A.1 and corrigendum), chap. I, resolution 2, annex. 15 Resolution 66/288, annex. A/RES/72/205 Commodities 17-23270 4/8 Deeply concerned by the fact that many commodity-dependent developing countries continue to be highly vulnerable to price fluctuations, and recognizing the need to continue efforts to diversify economies, as well as to improve the regulation, where appropriate, and the efficiency, responsiveness, functioning and transparency of financial and commodity markets nationally, regionally and internationally in order to address excessive commodity price volatility, Expressing concern that the global economy has yet to recover completely and remains in a challenging phase, notwithstanding the recent cyclical pickup in global economic activity, that growth remains weak in many countries and includes subdued trade growth, volatile capital flows, widespread fiscal strains and unsustainable debt in some countries, particularly developing countries, and that commodity exporters are particularly hard hit owing to their continued adjustment to a sharp step-down in foreign earnings, recognizing that, while short-term risks are broadly balanced, medium-term risks are still tilted to the downside, and in this regard stressing the need for continuing efforts to address systemic fragilities and imbalances, to reform and strengthen the international financial system and to make further progress towards sustaining and rebalancing global demand, Recognizing the adverse impact of excessive price volatility of commodities, especially on women, girls and young people, Recognizing also that the structural constraints that women face as economic agents, including segmentation in low-value-added or subsistence-oriented work, unequal access to productive resources, limited access to training and skill-building due to gender segmentation in education and labour markets and a lack of resources, as well as the heavy burden of unpaid work, make women and girls especially vulnerable to the adverse impact of excessive price volatility of commodities, Recognizing further that many developing countries continue to be highly dependent on primary commodities as their principal source of export revenues, employment, income generation and domestic savings and require additional sources of growth to become the driving force of investment, economic growth and social development, including poverty eradication, recognizing also the challenges and special needs of those countries, and stressing the critical importance of sustainable and inclusive industrial development for developing countries as a critical source of economic growth, economic diversification and value addition, Recognizing that uncertainty in global commodity markets reinforces the need to comprehensively deal with the commodity problematique, inter alia, the demand for commodities, supply capacities, commodity revenues and investments in commodity-dependent economies, while taking due account of the diversity of each country’s individual situation and needs and the promotion of their sustainable development, and to strengthen the nexus between, inter alia, trade, finance, investment in sustainable agriculture and food systems, energy and industrialization, Noting the work on consensus-building on commodity-related issues achieved through meetings of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, including the multi-year expert meetings on commodities and development, the Global Commodities Forum and the African Oil, Gas and Mines Trade and Finance Conference and Exhibition, Recognizing the adverse impact of excessive price volatility of commodities on both producer and consumer countries, particularly commodity-dependent developing countries, Noting the recent and marked reversal in commodity prices and that commodity net export economies may need to adjust to a possibly protracted period of lower export and fiscal revenues, Commodities A/RES/72/205 5/8 17-23270 Noting also the volatility and unpredictability of commodity prices, which have threatened, inter alia, the food security of net importers in the recent past, and noting further that the continuation of this long-term uncertainty and volatility, intensified by recent trends in commodity prices, can have an impact on the capacities of many developing countries, particularly commodity-dependent countries, to continue to implement policies for achieving sustainable development and poverty eradication, Stressing the importance of policies to address longer-term structural issues, including structural constraints faced by women as economic agents, to diversify commodity economies and to integrate commodity policies into wider development and poverty eradication strategies at all levels, Noting all relevant voluntary initiatives aimed at improving transparency in commodity markets and mitigating the impact of excessive price volatility, Underlining the importance of timely, accurate and transparent information in helping to address excessive food price volatility, noting global and regional initiatives, including the Agricultural Market Information System and its Rapid Response Forum, the joint organization data initiative and other regional data platforms and programmes, and urging the participating international organizations, private sector actors and Governments to ensure the public dissemination of timely and quality food market information products, Expressing deep concern at the adverse impact of climate change and extreme weather patterns on access to, and the utilization and prices of, agricultural commodities, 1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on world commodity trends and prospects;16 2. Recognizes the interlinkage between the adequate and transparent functioning of commodity markets and the capacity of some commodity-dependent developing countries to collect appropriate fiscal revenues from commodity exports and mobilize domestic sources to support their sustainable development, mainly through sustainable and inclusive economic growth, industrialization, decent work and market diversification; 3. Encourages support for developing countries, according to their national plans and policies, through technical assistance, to increase their capacity in detecting and averting trade mispricing in their commodities sectors in order to enhance their benefits from those sectors to support sustainable growth and development; 4. Reiterates the need for further efforts to address excessive commodity price volatility, in particular by assisting producers, especially small-scale producers, including women, in accordance with national plans and policies, in managing risk; 5. Calls upon the international community to support the efforts of commodity-dependent developing countries to address the factors that create structural barriers to international trade and impede, inter alia, diversification, including tariff and non-tariff barriers, limited access to financial services resulting in scarce resources for investing in the commodity sector, weak infrastructure, particularly regarding both the cost and availability of transportation and storage, and lack of skills in producing and marketing alternative products; 6. Looks forward to the convening of the Eleventh Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization in Buenos Aires from 10 to 13 December 2017; __________________ 16 A/72/254. A/RES/72/205 Commodities 17-23270 6/8 7. Notes with concern the slow and uneven recovery from the severe economic and financial crisis of 2008, despite the recent strengthening of global economic activity, since growth remains weak in many countries and agricultural and other commodity prices remain depressed while inequalities are rising, and acknowledges that international trade can play a role in achieving sustainable, robust and balanced growth for all; 8. Calls for a coherent set of policy actions at the national, regional and international levels to address excessive price volatility and support commodity- dependent developing countries in mitigating negative impacts, in particular by facilitating value addition and enhancing their participation in commodity and related product value chains, by supporting large-scale diversification of these economies and by encouraging the use and further development of market-oriented risk management tools, instruments and strategies; 9. Stresses the importance of developing and strengthening agricultural policies and strategies that recognize and address women’s critical role in food security and improved nutrition outcomes as an integral part of both short- and long- term responses to food insecurity and malnutrition, excessive price volatility and food crises in developing countries; 10. Recognizes the potential for innovation, productivity improvements and the promotion of non-traditional exports in most commodity-dependent developing countries, particularly in Africa, and calls for enhanced support by the international community as well as exchanges of experience in these areas within the framework of South-South economic cooperation; 11. Underscores the importance of increased investments in quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure as a means of promoting agricultural development and enhancing commodity diversification, including value-added production, and trade, and urges the international community to assist commodity- dependent developing countries to mainstream trade as well as sound investment and financial policies as key elements of development strategies, based on national circumstances and development priorities, and to invest in and support research and development of agriculture productivity; 12. Recognizes the endorsement of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security17 by the Committee on World Food Security in 2012; 13. Also recognizes the endorsement of the Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems18 by the Committee on World Food Security in 2014; 14. Stresses that technical assistance and capacity-building aimed at improving the commodity export competitiveness of producers are particularly important for developing countries, especially in Africa, and invites Member States and all relevant stakeholders to provide the necessary resources for commodity- specific financial and technical assistance, in particular for human and institutional capacity-building, including gender-responsive measures, as well as quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure development of developing countries, with a view to reducing their institutional bottlenecks and transaction costs and enhancing their commodity trade and development in accordance with national development plans; __________________ 17 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, document CL 144/9 (C 2013/20), appendix D. 18 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, document C 2015/20, appendix D. Commodities A/RES/72/205 7/8 17-23270 15. Also stresses that the Aid for Trade initiative should aim to help developing countries, particularly the least developed countries, to build the supply-side capacity and trade-related infrastructure that they need to assist them to implement and benefit from World Trade Organization agreements and, more broadly, to expand their trade; 16. Recalls the agreement to keep under regular review, by the Ministerial Conference and appropriate organs of the World Trade Organization, the impact of the results of the Uruguay Round on the least developed countries as well as on the net food-importing developing countries, with a view to fostering positive measures to enable them to achieve their development objectives, and in this regard calls for the implementation of the Marrakesh Ministerial Decision on Measures Concerning the Possible Negative Effects of the Reform Programme on Least Developed and Net Food-Importing Developing Countries; 17. Encourages developed countries that have not already done so and developing countries declaring themselves in a position to do so to take steps towards the goal of realizing timely implementation of duty-free and quota-free market access on a lasting basis for all least developed countries, consistent with the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration adopted by the World Trade Organization in 2005; 18. Strongly encourages international financial institutions and development banks to assist developing countries, in particular commodity-dependent developing countries, in managing the effects of excessive price volatility; 19. Reaffirms that every State has and shall freely exercise full permanent sovereignty over all its wealth, natural resources and economic activities; 20. Recognizes the importance of increasing efficiency, effectiveness and transparency in the management of public and private sector revenues in developed and developing countries derived from all commodities and commodities-related industries, including final processed goods, in support of development; 21. Notes the important contributions of the Common Fund for Commodities and other international commodities organizations, and encourages them, in cooperation with the International Trade Centre, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization and other relevant bodies, to strengthen coordination among them and to identify and implement innovative measures to enable the sustainable contribution of the commodity sector to economic development, including ways to reduce vulnerability to volatility in commodities, as well as to enhance activities in developing countries to improve access to markets and the reliability of supply, enhance diversification and the addition of value, improve the competitiveness of commodities, strengthen the market chain, improve market structures, broaden the export base and ensure the effective participation of all stakeholders, on the basis of a shared understanding of the contribution of commodities to sustainable development; 22. Stresses that the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and its partners, in the spirit of inter-agency cooperation and multi-stakeholder partnerships, within their respective mandates, should continue to engage actively in collaborative research and analysis of the commodity problematique and related capacity- and consensus-building activities, with a view to providing regular analysis and policy advice relevant to the sustainable development of commodity-dependent developing countries, particularly low-income countries; 23. Emphasizes the importance of facilitating accession to the World Trade Organization, particularly for commodity-dependent developing countries, in full compliance with its rules; A/RES/72/205 Commodities 17-23270 8/8 24. Underlines the urgent need for the provision of and access to trade finance to commodity-dependent developing countries, given the tightened access to all types of credit and noting debt sustainability; 25. Welcomes the commitment to redouble efforts to substantially reduce illicit financial flows by 2030, with a view to eventually eliminating them; 26. Stresses that revenues from commodity production and exports remain critical for developing countries, in particular in the context of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, given that developing countries need to mobilize resources in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and that commodity prices have been decreasing since 2011, which has put pressure on government budgets in developing countries, notes with concern the fall in commodity prices despite their increase in 2016, and recognizes with concern that African countries, the least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States face particular challenges as lower commodity prices threaten the sustainable growth and the debt positions of such countries, and therefore calls upon those Member States to diversify their economies in order to achieve economic growth and the Sustainable Development Goals; 27. Decides to hold a one-off one-day informal interactive dialogue of the General Assembly on commodity markets during the first half of 2019 to review world commodity trends and prospects, particularly in commodity-dependent countries, on a date and in a format to be decided by the President of the General Assembly; 28. Calls upon all relevant bodies, agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations system and other relevant intergovernmental, global, regional and subregional organizations, in particular the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and all relevant international financial and economic institutions, within their respective mandates, to continue to address the issue of the low industrialization and diversification of the economies of some commodity-dependent developing countries in relation to the capacity of Member States to achieve all the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030;19 29. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to the General Assembly at its seventy-fourth session, in collaboration with the secretariat of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, a report on the implementation of the present resolution, and decides to include in the provisional agenda of its seventy-fourth session, under the item entitled “Macroeconomic policy questions”, the sub-item entitled “Commodities”. 74th plenary meeting 20 December 2017 __________________ 19 See resolution 70/1.

UN Project. “A/RES/72/205.” UN Project, https://un-project.org/votes/resolution/A-RES-72-205/. Accessed .

Copy citation