ABSTRACT

The Right to Development (RTD) is a notable, but highly controversial, third-generation human right.1 It was first articulated in the 1970s and formally pronounced in 1986 in the Declaration on the Right to Development (Declaration) passed by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly. Article 1(1) of the Declaration defines the RTD as:

an inalienable human right by virtue of which every human person and all peoples are entitled to participate in, contribute to, and enjoy economic, social, cultural and political development, in which all human rights and fundamental freedoms can be fully realized.