December 2008 The Response of the United Nations to the Global Financial Crisis STEPHANIE HELL Summary The global financial and economic crisis emerged in the summer of 2008 and soon affected the whole world. With its origin in the United States, the crisis spread to other developed economies before it increasingly hit emerging markets and developing countries. Within a short time, both Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as well as General Assembly President, Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann have convened a number of meetings and task forces in reaction to the crisis. Action taken by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon On 24 October, Ban Ki-moon convened the semi­annual meeting of the Chief Executive Board for Coordination(CEB) 1 , which includes the heads of the UN System organizations as well as officials of the International Monetary Fund(IMF) and World Bank. In addition to the regular session, the CEB had a retreat session on the issues surrounding the financial crisis. The High-level Committee on Programmes of the CEB recognized an increasing demand“for the United Nations system to play a leadership role” which would imply:“maintaining focus on development needs and human security; providing an inclusive forum for discussions; helping countries and people cope; monitoring and assessing the impact of the crisis”. Prior to this, French President Nicolas Sarkozy on behalf of the EU suggested holding a G-20 Leaders Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy in November 2008. Ban offered to host the summit at the United Nations Secretariat in New York. However, the G-7 finance ministers together with US President George W. Bush decided to meet instead on November 15 in Washington 2 , a meeting to which the UN Secretary-General was invited. It was the first time 1 CEB Session Report. See http://unsystemceb.org/reports/semi­annual/CEB%20Fall%202008%20Summary­%207%20Nov%2008.pdf/view 2 Declaration of the Summit. See http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/11/print/200 81115-1.html all leaders of the G-20 countries had come together 3 . Until then, the G-20 existed only as a forum for the finance ministers. In the final declaration of the summit, all G-20 countries agreed on the need for new market regulations and for reforming the international financial institutions. The summit concluded with instructions to the finance ministers to take further steps until the next G-20 summit, which is scheduled to be held on 2 April 2009 in London. Action taken by General Assembly President Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann On 30 October, General Assembly President, Mr. Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann invited selected international experts and all member states to an Interactive Panel of the United Nations General Assembly on the Global Financial Crisis. The panel covered similar ground as the G-20 meeting, but involved a broader range of countries. At the panel, the member states emphasized the important role of the UN in the crisis reform process and supported an approach inclusive of all countries. Due to the UN’s universality and legitimacy, the body could facilitate a“well­coordinated reform of the international financial system” given the perspectives of all member states. D’Escoto stated that“long-term solutions must include the G-192. Only full participation within a truly representative framework will restore the confidence”. Although the United States recognized the UN’s key role“in convening such forums”, the US“looks forward to reporting the results of these discussions back to[the] capital.” 3 Leaders of the G-20 countries, IMF Managing Director, World Bank President, UN Secretary-General and Chairman of the Financial Stability Forum.