852 



Rodr?er W Sichoh 



FIGURE 4. UNCSTD Secretariat's Proposal for Six larget Areas. 

 Target Area Topic 



I Sharing of knowledge' and experience hy all members of the Inter- 



national Community 



II Increasing the capability for p<ilicy making in science and technokigy 



framework of development planning 



III Transfer of technology for the benefit of development 



IV Enhancing endogenous capabilities in a context of national seli-reliance. 



V Promoting collective self reliance through cooperation among develop 

 ing countries. 



VI Strengthening the role of the United Nations m the field of science 

 and technology cooperation. 



This proposal was offered during late December 197S in UN Document 

 A/CONF.81/PC.21 



Despite the highly critical reactions of some observers during 1977 and 

 1978— who, for example, called one of the Secretariat's earlier drafts a "smorgas- 

 bord instead of a plan' ''—this new draft makes it more plausible to conceive of work 

 during the first half of 1979 as leading to a coherent frainework for agreeing on 

 meaningful actions to be taken after Vienna. But surges of flamboyant, divisive 

 rhetoric about radical international economic changes still dampen (optimism about 

 obtaining significant agreement.' 



Such brief survevs of global activities may give the impression that the preparatory 

 work is intense, continuous, broad, and well known to the public. This is not the 

 case. 



Few of the world's scientific and technological professionals are mvolved at all in 

 the Conference. The business community, seeing potential for soine trouble and a lot 

 of rhetoric, has been quietly observing the trends. Becaii.se scientists and engineers 

 have never been well integrated into most of the official programs of development 

 aid, e\en the professional "development planners" have not been engaged fully. 



The general public— those everywhere whom the Conference is supposed to serve 

 - -certainly does not know abcnit the meeting. Since the subject is complex, gaining 

 greater popular recognition is difficult. In DCs. the challenge is probably insur 

 mountable not only because foreign aid generallv has almost no support from voters, 

 but also because technical aid specifically is debatable at best and unpopular at 

 worst.'" In LDCs, the sought after popular invoKement is almost unattainable until 

 the foundations are laid for raising the levels of scientific literacv while investing in 

 local technological enterprises. 



If this estimate of low public involvement is correc t. the Cimfcrence may come and 

 go without receiving much attention." But the professionals and diplomats who 



