International Day for South-South Cooperation

Held on : 12th September

According to the U.N., the world has undergone a major economic and political transformation in the last two decades. The changes, particularly in the South, have been more rapid than at any time during a similar span in world history. Relationships within the South and between the South and the North have taken on entirely new dimensions. Key current issues such as the environment and climate change, energy and food security, global poverty, the linkage between growth and equity, and migration are today more global than North-South in nature. Many countries in the South have built up significant financial and technical capacities. They have begun to transfer some of these resources, on concessional and non-concessional terms, to other countries in the South in the context of an inclusive approach to the management of global problems, spreading the benefits of globalization more widely, creating new markets, and building a broader foundation for sustainable economic growth. In recent years, building on a long history of assistance and other cooperation among developing countries, several Southern countries have become significant partners for development cooperation. A new dimension is clearly being added to development cooperation, particularly for Africa and the Southern countries that remain specially disadvantaged, particularly the least developed countries (LDCs), the landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) and the small island developing States (SIDS). The United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation is annually observed on September 12. It commemorates the date when the United Nations (UN) General Assembly endorsed a plan of action in 1978 to promote and implement technical cooperation among developing countries.

History

In 1978 the UN General Assembly established the Special Unit for South-South Cooperation to promote, coordinate and support South-South and triangular cooperation on a global level. Two regional service centres, one in Asia and one in Africa, support South-South cooperation by pooling resources and by offering different types of services. The International Conference on Financing for Development, held in Monterrey, Mexico in March 2002, specifically encouraged South-South cooperation, including through triangular cooperation, to facilitate exchange of views on successful strategies, practices and experience and replication of projects. Further, it urged the strengthening of South-South cooperation in the delivery of assistance.The World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in August 2002, adopted a Declaration and an Implementation Plan that specifically endorsed South-South cooperation and strong regional and subregional action.

The Third United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries, held in Brussels in May 2001, emphasized the importance of South-South cooperation in capacity-building and setting best practices, particularly in the areas of health, education, training, environment, science and technology, trade, investment and transit transport cooperation. With the aim of mobilizing global awareness of, and support for, South-South cooperation for inclusive development, the United Nations General Assembly, in its resolution 58/220 of 23 December 2003, proclaimed the 19th of December as the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation, with the first such United Nations Day held on 19 December 2004. In December 2011, the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the Second Committee, decided that, beginning in 2012, the observance of the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation would be changed from 19 December to 12 September, to mark the day in 1978 when the United Nations Conference on Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries adopted the Buenos Aires Plan of Action for Promoting and Implementing Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries.

The event has since served as a vibrant platform for the international community to celebrate achievements; share development successes; explore new avenues for collaboration; forge innovative and inclusive partnerships; and launch concrete collaborative schemes towards achieving internationally development goals (IADGs), including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), under South-South, East-East, East-South, public-private, and North-South-South triangular arrangements. This event marks the date when the assembly endorsed the Buenos Aires Plan of Action for Promoting and Implementing Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries. The assembly urged all UN organizations and other institutions to enhance their efforts to mainstream the use of South-South cooperation in designing, formulating, and implementing their regular programs. These organizations were also asked to consider increasing various resource allocations to support South-South cooperation initiatives. Recent initiatives have been tied with the Tsunami relief projects. In recent times a silent revolution has taken place among fast-track performers such as Brazil, China, India, Malaysia, the Republic of Korea, South Africa and Thailand.

Events

The United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation aims to raise people's awareness of the UN's efforts to work on technical cooperation among developing countries. It also celebrates the economic, social and political developments made in recent years by regions and countries in the south. It is a time for individuals and organizations to agree on the importance of South-South cooperation, in complementing North-South cooperation, to support low-income countries in achieving development goals. On this day political leaders from different countries reaffirm their goals in working with UN leaders to reinforce or strengthen ties on their commitment to South-South cooperation in developing countries. This can be done through speeches, action plans, special seminars or conferences, or press announcements. Educators in the area of social or political sciences may highlight the day through classroom activities that bring forth an awareness of issues centred on the event.

Holiday Status - It is not a public holiday.