ABSTRACT
The first mention of a possible United Nations conference on development financing appeared in a statement delivered by Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar at the opening of the second regular session of the Economic and Social Council of 1991. The long road towards what finally became the Monterrey conference, generally perceived to be one of the most successful events ever organized by the United Nations in the economic and social spheres. The road can be divided into three broad stages. The first, which roughly covers the period 1991 to 1998, falls in the category of the routine activities of the Economic and Social Council as well as the General Assembly. The second, which covers the period 1998-1999, reveals a more focused effort to define the scope, content, agenda, and organization of "an event" on financing for development. The third phase, which covered the preparatory process and the actual holding of the event, covered the period 2000-2002.
