General Economic Scope of the Problem

Abstract

In the process of finding adequate solutions to the problem of commodity stabilisation, developing nations have searched incessantly over the years for the establishment of contractual arrangements because, as principally primary producers, fluctuations in world prices of their commodities do affect the development growth of their nations. In this process, they had in the past ignored political issues arising therefrom and the appropriate approach towards tackling them. This could be inferred from the fluid nature of the negotiation tactics of the ‘Group of 77’ during the 2nd UNCTAD Conference in New Delhi in 1968, for their lack of preparedness and consequently cohesiveness. However today this situation has been reversed because of their greater awareness of their relationship with the consumers of raw materials and manufacturers of finished goods. This awareness expressed itself during the 3rd UNCTAD Conference in Santiago, Chile, in 1972 and during the 1974 Raw Material Conference in New York for the establishment of a new international economic order.