WILPF Issues: The Right to Development

What is the Right to Development?

The right to development states that all nations are entitled to equal opportunities for development, and that it is the duty of the OHCHR to protect and support this right. Formally established by the Declaration on the Right to Development (1986), and affirmed by the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (1993), the right to development is an important part of creating an integral approach to human rights at the UN. What is unique and essential about this right is that it links economic, cultural, and social rights with civil and political rights, bridging the chasm between these two types of rights. Self-determination, sovereignty over natural resources, active civil participation in development, and the full enjoyment of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights are fundamental to the right to development. The right to development also facilitates to realization of Millenium Development Goal eight, which calls for creating global partnerships to reduce poverty.  The right to development puts the very human interest of social development at the center of discussion on economic development policy.

How does WILPF fit into this?

The discussion on the right to development is at risk of being diluted into a discussion on “extreme poverty,” a shift would change the focus from economic policies that cause extreme poverty to aid-based approaches that would perpetuate unbalanced trade relationships.  WILPF believes that the right to development must remain at the center of this discourse, and is initiating a discussion and analysis with the possiblity of advocating for the transformation of the declaration into a convention. This would serve to create a legally-binding tool that could be used to protect this fundamental human right.  Some argue that there is no need for a convention on the right to development, because the Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights in conjuction with the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights provide the necessary legal framework to support this right. Also, this is not the best political climate to push for a convention due to the extremely polarized opinions on the matter. Nonetheless, WILPF believes that this is a good time to start collaborating with willing WILPF members and other NGOs to explore these issues and create some analysis and advocacy tools to move RTD forward.  We invite you to consider the resources below, and engage with us in this process.

Resources on the Right to Development (RTD)

Fundamental UN Documents to Support RTD

The Declaration on the Right to Development establishes the right to development as a human right.

The International Human Rights Covenants are legal tools for international human rights protection. They divide human rights into two categories: economic, social, and cultural rights, and civil and political rights. There has been an historic imbalance in the attention paid to Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ESCR) as opposed to Civil and Political Rights (CPR) since the dawn of the Cold War. Their importance is especially relevant in issues of development, and at times they are overlooked by the "developed" world, because to advocate for true implementation of ESCR requires a serious analysis of the current models of globalization and world economic systems. For this reason, it is useful to re-examine the value of the Covenants, and examine what they can contribute to our discussion on the right to development.

WILPF monitored the Working Group on the Right to Development, which met from February 26- March 2, 2007. See WILPF coverage.

Manuals/Handbooks on ESCR

Additional resources on specific esc rights are also available at www.cetim.org

Concept Papers on RTD