*{Business and the UN: Common Ground [http://www.iccwbo.org/home/news_archives/1998/business_and_the_un.asp]

By Maria Livanos Cattaui Secretary General of the International Chamber of Commerce 

Paris, 3 August 1998 -} The way the United Nations and its agencies regard business has changed fundamentally in recent years. No longer is the relationship marked by mutual suspicion, or even antagonism. These days the UN, its specialized agencies and other key intergovernmental organizations seek to cooperate with the private sector rather than confront it. 

It did not all happen by magic or whim. The shift reflects the shared perception by the UN and business that the strengthening and opening of markets are a precondition for spreading the benefits of globalization, for integrating developing countries into the world economy and for improving living standards for all the world's peoples.
 
But how to give substance to the new relationship between business and the international organizations? To find the answers, the International Chamber of Commerce will convene the "Geneva Business Dialogue" on 23-24 September. During two crowded days, business leaders from all over the world will confer on these issues with the heads of the international organizations based in Geneva.

The Geneva Business Dialogue was conceived by the President of ICC, Helmut Maucher, Chairman of Nestlé. In Mr Maucher's words: "The most important task facing governments and business together will be to build a truly global framework for cross-border investment and worldwide business activities." That is what the Dialogue is all about.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan sees the challenge in similar terms. Addressing the Economic and Social Council in New York on 6 July, he said: "We need to address global interdependencies in all their complexity. We need to provide economic opportunities to those who remain excluded. And we need to unlock the potential for growth while avoiding instability. But to succeed, we need to take collective leadership and multilateralism to a new level."

There is no intention on the part of business to usurp the democratic function or to dictate to the international organizations. What the Geneva Business Dialogue will do is search for ways of channelling business know-how more effectively than in the past into the international organizations' activities and actions on financial, trade and economic issues. Business believes that the rules of the game for the market economy, previously laid down almost exclusively by national governments, must be applied globally if they are to be effective. 

For that global framework of rules, business looks to the United Nations and its agencies, as well as to other key international organizations, like the World Trade Organization.

Governments for their part are aware that that they need the help of business in meeting the immense challenges thrown up by the global economy and the advent of the information society. One example is the practical problems involved in the regulation of trading on the Internet when legislation is confined within national borders.

During the Dialogue, ICC will present the voluntary codes and standards that it is introducing to govern e-commerce. They build on almost 80 years of experience in drawing up voluntary rules for paper-based trade that are applied in commercial transactions all over the world every day. Once ICC rules for e-commerce gain similar worldwide acceptance, public and corporate confidence in trading over the Internet will be immeasurably increased.

Another crucial issue for the Geneva Business Dialogue is the risks inherent in global financial trading and the heightened dangers of contagion when economic and financial crises strike a nation or region. In light of the Asian crisis, should there be more internationally consistent and stringent international supervision of capital markets to discourage imprudent borrowing and lending practices? Is there scope for a set of international standards that would be accepted by national regulatory bodies?

Globalization raises living standards, speeds the transfer of technology and encourages the free flow of knowledge and ideas. Its benefits far outweigh the problems it raises. But that does not mean that global solutions to those problems are not needed urgently. The Geneva Business Dialogue will get that message across.

Why is ICC taking this initiative? It is the only business organization with a proven global perspective, with thousands of member companies and business associations in more than 130 countries, speaking for all sectors of industry and attached to no special interest group. 

The Geneva Business Dialogue fulfills ICC's mission to support all its member companies, large and small, in meeting the demands of an integrated global economy.

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