obstacles, hasbeenabletohonouritscommitmentsvis-it-vis theInternational MonetaryFund(IMF)andprivateinternationalbanks. Themostrecentassessments oftheinternational economic situation showthat thehopedforrecovery hasnotledtoasustained rateofgrowthinthegross product ofourregion. Inviewofsuchprospects, itisevenmorenecessary to haveapolitical dialogue amongcreditors anddebtors asaneffective meansof producing general solutions tothedebtproblem.JSM/mh A/40/PV.24 72.--------- --~--- (Kr,VegaImbert,Dominican Republic) Thesedemand£'> areafundamental partoftheCartagena Consensus, whichunited theefforts offoreign andfinance ministers of11countries oftheregion, vigorously supported bytheirHeadsofState. Thestatements byqualified spokesmen fromtheregion andrecentstatements madehereinthisOrganization by thePresidents ofBrazil, Peru,uruguay andVenezuela reflect theneedforthe political dialogue thatweareadvocating. Without anydoubt,theCartagena Consensus, asaconcerted-action group,has largely helpedtoconsolidate LatinAmerican solidarity andhasproduced positive effects ontheprocesses ofrescheduling thP.c~t~rnal debtsofourcountries. Weshouldreferheretoaconcept thattheCartagenaConsensus groupof countries hassystematically rejected. Iamspeaking oftheformation ofa so-called debtors' club~ Weopposethatidea,havingalwaysunderstood thatit wouldmeanglobalandcollective negotiation oftheLatinAmerican external debt. However, weemphatically advocate theinstitutionalization ofawholesetof principles andcommonparameters thatwouldserveasapointofreference and cootributetothesuccess oftheseparatenegotiationsofeachcountry• Amongsuchguidelines Iwouldcitethoseestablished bytheCartagena Groupto grantthesamemostfavourable possible conditions toallcountries asareobtained byasinglecountry initsindividual relations. Similarly, itisVitally important toestablish aviablerelationship between export income, theflowofnew capitaland.foreign debt-servicing soastoguarantee thepayment ofexternal commitmentsinthesameratioastheregion'seconomic growth. L_JSM/mh A/40/PV.24 73 (Mr.VegaImbert, Dominican Republic) Furthermore, thereisnooverlooking thefactthattheefforts ofCartagena, anditsmuch-needed andreasonable proposals, havecont:ributed largely tothe entireinternational community's perceptibly growing awareness oftheproblems. Thisisapparent fromstatements byhigh-ranking political figures fromthe developed countries andfromconcrete proposals thatarebeginning tobeoutlined inthosecountries. Theseproposals, iftheybecomeeffective intheshortterm, couldcontribute -ifnottosolving theentireserious debtproblem -atleastto initiating effective remedial processes inthequestforasolution. Inthiscontext, ourattention isconcentrated ontheresults thatmayemerge fromthemeeting nowbeingheldinSeoul,andfromtheforthcoming negotiating roundontheGeneral Agreement onTariffs andTrade(GATT). Theoverwhelming debtsituation isofsuchmagnitude anditsconsequences are ofsuchproportions thatitiscurious butencouraging toseethatsuch influential, andyetsuchdissimilar spokesmen asHenryKissinger andFidelCastro, agreeontheperemptory necessity ofseeking asolution tothisserious problem. Ofcourse, eachhashisownproposals andapproaches. Despite theaforementioned gloomyprospects, thirdworldcountries are striving tomeetthechallenge imposed onthembythepresent economic crisis. Thisisapparent fromtheboominSouth-South co-operation, encouraged bytheGroup of77,theMovement ofNon-Aligned Countries andtheactiveparticipation of developing countries intheunitedNations Conference onTradeandDevelopment (UNCTAD), theUnitedNationsIndustrial Development Organization (UNIDO) andother forumsofaneconomic character wherenegotiations areunderway. IJSM/mh A/40/PV.24 74 (Hr.VilaImbert, Dominican Republc) Aspartoftheseefforts, thethirdworldnations haveputforward initiatives, suchastheArushaandCaracas programmes, theyhaveencouraged programmes ofco-operation withintheUnitedNations andhavepromoted thecreation ofspecialized agencies todealwithproblems chiefly affecting thethirdworld. Inparticular, LatinAmerica andtheCaribbean, withtheirfirmdetermination toengageindialogue andconsultation, havealsocreated manymechanisms for integration andregional andsubregional co-operation. Amongthemwewouldcite theparticular iqx>rtance oftheLatinAmerican Economic System (SEIA), whichwas
**Analysis**
The text discusses the economic situation of Latin America and the Caribbean, specifically the debt problem and the need for international cooperation and dialogue to address it. It also mentions the importance of regional and subregional cooperation, as well as initiatives such as the Arusha and Caracas programs. The text does not focus on any specific sector, but rather on the overall economic development and international relations of the region.

**Category**
Economic development, International trade