ABSTRACT
While the heydays of the 1970s saw UNCTAD gain a great deal of
international profile and prestige-something which the organization
had to battle for on an almost constant basis in the face of acute
hostility from the developed world-the 1980s and 1990s saw a retreat
and reconfiguration of the body. This stemmed from not only Western
antagonism but also from the gathering importance and influence of
neoliberal ideas about how best to organize both economies and
societies-something which was, it can be asserted, somewhat of the opposite to UNCTAD’s established positions that emphasized the role
of the state in promoting development. Consequently, UNCTAD
began to reinvent itself and shift position on the big economic issues.
In doing so, the organization sought to remain relevant and to escape
condemnation (if not closure) by the developed world. The implica-
tions that this has had for the organization are discussed in the ensu-
ing chapter.
