ifda dossier 74 - Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation

of the efforts of existing bodies, not to mention the wastage of
resources, both human and material. If it becomes apparent that the
question posed is legitimate, then the subsequent line of action that
suggests itself is to proceed with a study along the lines indicated by
the question raised.
In the early days after the end of the Second World War, in the period
1945 to 1947, the United Nations (UN), the Bretton Woods institutions
of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Bank for
Reconstruction and Development (IBRD, known also as the World
Bank) and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) were
the first global organizations to be established. Many of the Third
World countries were, at that point in time, still colonies. But, as soon
as they became independent, they immediately applied to be admitted
to the UN as that was their announcement of the change of their status
from that of a dependent territory to a fully-fledged member of the
world community.1 Membership was not, however, translated into
influence over decision-making in these international bodies.* As the
newly independent Third World countries felt that their voices were not
being heard, not surprisingly, this gave risc to the formation of their
'own' organizations so that their viewpoint would be accorded their due.
The early fifties witnessed the emergence of the Afro-Asian bloc which
evolved into the non-aligned movement (NAM) in 1961 when countries,
who designated themselves as non-aligned, convened their First Summit
Conference in Belgrade. The NAM has since come to function as the
political voice of the South.3 Thereafter, the United Nations Conference
on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) came into being in 1964 with
Paul Prebisch, who was seen as a Third World spokesman, at its helm
as Secretary-General. As UNCTAD was largely a Third World creation
with its agenda incorporating Third World concerns and demands, it was
viewed as the alternative international trade body to GATT, presenting
a Third World perspective on world trade. Be that as it may, nonethc-
less, UNCTAD membership comprises not only of the countries of the
Third World but also the industrial ones of the West and of the
Socialist or Communist Bloc. It is thus, strictly speaking, not a Third
World body. Instead, the Group of 77 (G77) which originated as a
caucus of Third World countries prior to UNCTAD I, has evolved to
be the body which serves as the Third World organization on economic