text: muchstillremains tobedone. TheUnited Nations Children's Fund(UNICEF) has beensuccessful indesigning innovative strategies aimedatimproving the well-being ofchildren, youths andwomen. 142.TheUnitedNations Educational, Scientific andCultural Organization (UNESCO) hasledthewayintheinternational struggle against illiteracy. Perhaps more couldbedonebyUNESCO, however, tofocusitsactivities oneducation andtraining insuchawaythattheywouldbeofdirectbenefit tothepoor,helptoredress discrimination against womenandhavealargeeconomic payoff. Theotheragencies shouldbeencouraged toreviewtheirpriorities andprogrammes, strengthening those elements mostdirectly concerned withtheeradication ofpoverty andreallocating resources awayfromprogrammes which, thoughvaluable, arelessimportant. The FoodandAgriculture Organization oftheUnited Nations (FAO)andtheUnited NationsIndustrial Development Organization (UNIDO) couldplaypotentially more important rolesinagricultural andindustrial development, respectively. The emphasis oftheiractivities, however, shouldbereconsidered. FAOshouldfocus lessonplants andanimals andmoreonthepoorwhocultivate thelandandraise thelivestock, lessonagronomy andmoreonruralinstitutions, landandwater rights,ruralinfrastructure andpublicpolicies thatdetermine howthebenefits of agricultural growtharedistributed. Similarly UNIDOshoulddevote muchmore attention tothepromotion oflabour-intensive industrial processes, tosmall-scale enterprises andtoactivities thatcanbefairlywidelydispersed throughout a country. Suchanapproach wouldhelptocreate moreemployment, promote entrepreneurship andsmallbusinesses andspreadthebenefits ofindustrialization toawidersection ofthepopUlation inbothurbanandruralareas. 143.Technical assistance ofthetraditional sortwillcontinue tobeuseful, but technical assistance -andparticularly thetraining component oftechnical assistance _should beseenasreinforcing theemphasis onhumanresource development aspartofapoverty eradication strategy. Technical assistance is likelytobeneededinmanyareasandatvarious levels -e.g.,totrainpersonnel toprepare poverty eradication programmes, totrainpeople whointurncanteach skillsneeded bylargenumbers ofthepoor,totraintechnicians tocarryout area-specific agricultural research, tohelpintheintroduction ofnewtechnology suchashigh-yielding, disease- anddrought-resistant varie~ies: totrainrural peopleinwaterresource management techniques etc.Thep01nt1Sthat,givena limitedtechnical assistance budget, theproportion allocated toactivities which haveagoodprospect ofreducing poverty directly shouldbeaslargeaspossible. 144.Whatistrueoftechnical assistance isequally trueoftherestofforeign aid.Bilateral official development assistance should focusmoreonpoverty eradication. Thedonorcountries haveagreedthatmeasures toimprove theliving -41-standards ofwomenshould beanimportant component ofbilateral aidprogr~es. Even,ifgreater emphasis isplaced onpoverty eradication, however, itwouldbe unrealistic toimagine thatforeign aid-however generous andhowever carefully targetted -coulderadicate poverty orimprove women's statusintheabsence of facilitating national institutional structures (including landtenure systems) a~ appropriate governmental policies. Quiteoften, however, foreign aiddoeslittle toalleviate poverty eveninthosecountries wherethepoorhaveaccessto productive resources andgovernmental policies areeffective. Thereasonforthis haslesstodowiththequantity ofbilateral aid-meagre thoughitis-thanviU itsquality. Fartoomuchaidserves nodevelopmental purpose butisused ins~~ topromote theexports ofthedonorcountry, toencourage theuseof(imported) capital-intensive methods ofproduction ortostrengthen thepolice andarmed forcesoftherecipient country. 145.Muchcouldbedonetoincrease theeffectiveness ofbilateral aidprogr~es andtochannel aidresources insuchawaythattheycomplement national effortsto, eradicate poverty. -42-V.SELF-EVALUATION OFTHECOMMITTEE 146.Atitstwenty-fifth session, theCommittee decided "totakestockofitswork bywayofaself-evaluation atitstwenty-sixth session in1990,considering the usefulness ofitsadvicetotheCouncil anditseffectiveness incontributing to
analysis: The text discusses the role of international organizations, specifically the United Nations, in addressing poverty and promoting development. It highlights the importance of focusing on education, agriculture, and industrial development, as well as the need for technical assistance and foreign aid. The text also emphasizes the need for self-evaluation and effective use of resources. Given these themes, it is likely that the text falls under the categories of economic development, education, and humanitarian aid and relief.