"CEKOP" in African countries have been supplied in the framework of
the credits granted by the Polish Government.
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I take the liberty to mention also the many Polish experts who?
under agreements 0:1 co-operation and technical assistance? have been deputed to scientific institutes3 design offices and all kinds of
economic institutes wh^re they servo >:ith their knowledge and experience and contribute to the economic development of a number of African
countries.
This is in brief our: contribution to the industrialization of
*
Africa. We are fully aware that this contribution is a modest one when compared with the tremendous opportunities of this continent as presented by HCA in the paper under discussion. My country and the Organization "GEKOP" are vitally interested in the economic develop ment of Africa,
We shall keenly analyse the material submitted by the ECA end we shall consider the possibility of increasing our share in the programme of indust;:ializa=b:ion of the African continent.
We are fully aware, of course, that the scope of our engagement in the development programme of Africa is limited by the extent of the credit facilities i/hich \:e vould be in a position to place at the dis posal of the Afrio.-ir. ?iiTrAr'-Lortr; ~nd ':hct this would depend as well on other forms of assistance facilitating the implementation of the develop ment plans.
Poland has extendsd long-term credits on a government-to—government basis to several developing countries, and I believe this policy will be continued.
Apart from the credits on a government-to-government basis, the Polish Organization "OEKOP" is in a position to grant medium- and long-term credits covering nou=01v 30 per cent of the value of deliveries.
In oase of bigger contracts the said credit may reach 8 years upon completion of the contracts, which in respect of many investments constitutes a sufficient period of time for covering the credit in stalments from the profits.
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I believe that the commercial credits declared by us may consider ably extend the volume of the means based up to now mainly on a
government-to-government basis.
Following the principle of "Aid by Trade", Poland, in her trade and economic relations aims at introducing a new form of these relations with a view to helping the developing countries in the realization of their development plans. Poland was one of the sponsors of the recommendation of the Final Aot of the UffCTAD Conference in I964 oonoerning the hran^h agreements on partial division of labour, new institutional forms of economic co-operation with developing oountries. Poland can assist in promoting the development of certain branches of industry in developing countries starting the co-operation between the complementary industries in both countries. This kind of agreement among other stipulations provides such facilities for the developing countries as the repayment of credit - fully or partly - by export of local commodities.
Recently we have met in several African countries with proposals for establishing mixed companies for the erection and exploitation of various kinds of production plants.
The Organization which I represent is virtually not interested in locating its capital in foreign investments, and in gaining profits on this capital even in case of most promising enterprises.
However, we do not exclude the possibility of considering also this form of investment inducement, provided that it would bring about the development of a production branch useful for the country concerned. In such a case we adopt the principle of ceding our looal shares to the investors at their request, or to resign from them upon obtaining the value of the delivered machinery and equipment.
We are, of course, ready to oonsider also other forms of co-operation, if they comply with the principle of mutual interest both in direct dis»
cussions with the country and investor oonoerned. The ECA's assistance in this respect will be welcomed.
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Statement No. 9
STATEMENT BY KR. 3D0UAED DE SAN REPRESENTATIVE OF BELGIAN BANKERS AND
BELGIAN FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIALISTS
Gentlemen,
Since the end of the nineteenth century when its attention was drawn to the fact that the countries of Asia and Africa might prove interesting, Belgian industry which I have the honour to represent at this Conference, has "been constantly alive to the possibilities for expansion that might be met with in these new territories.
The experience acquired by Belgian industry in enterprises over seas, the successes and perhaps more than anything else the reverses and lessons learnt, appear to Belgian industry as a compelling reason why it should participate actively and positively in the work of the present Conference.
Nevertheless, the participation of Belgian industry also rests on other historical and economic motives, Belgium is a Christian country and as such its industrialists cannot be indifferent to the anguished appeals of such venerable persons as His Holiness the Pope whose appeals have placed the economically developed countries under an obligation to come to the help of their less favoured brothers in the developing countries of the Third World, without stint and as a matter of urgency.
Apart from all this, Belgium is also a country where true social liberalism exists anC, as such, tbose responsible for the management of private enterprises, however large those enterprises might be, cannot afford to take decisions without some concern for safeguarding the heritage with which they have been entrusted through the thrift of countless thousands,
Belgium is also a country of realists who realize that since their country is essentially a country which manufactures raw materials and
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produces equipment goods, its economic prosperity depends essentially on the growth of trade more particularly with the developing countries.
It is in this triple sense that the analysis of the changes that have taken place in the countries of the Third World during the last few years has "been made, and the proposal I have been instructed to lay "before conceived, in a constructive and progressive spirit.
There is hardly any need to remind you that the difference in the standard of living between the less developed countries and the countriss with a developed economy, the first category comprising all those coun
tries whose per capita National Product is less than $500 per annum
-a definition -accepted by the United N-ations Org-aniz-ation - is incre-asing all the time,For several years now, the average increase in absolute value of the Gross National Product of those countries has been of the order of approximately 4 per cent per annum, and at that level, f---lls below what it was in the 1950's. Actually, if one takes account of the increase in population this rate should be reduced to 2 per cent.
Such an average, as one can well suspect, denotes substantial dif ferences in situation, and some countries which are among the most thickly populated and poorest, are at present finding that there is a.retrogression in their standard of living, if indeed such a term may be used in referring to them.
If we were to examine the situation from another standpoint, we should find that the balance of payments of tie majority of these
countries is in fact such as will not brook further indebtedness, and this is perhaps the aspect which makes the present situation most
alarming. .