The right to development was proclaimed in 1986 in the Declaration on the Right to Development, Adopted by the UN General Assembly resolution 41/128. The right to development is also recognised in the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. The Right to development is a group right or peoples' right, as oppose to an individual right and was reaffirmed by the 1993 Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action.
The Right to Development remains a controversial right, some commentators disputing whether it is a right at all. Recently the notion of development rights has emerged and since the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action the issue of human rights, poverty and development has gained momentum.[1]
The Preamble of the Declaration on the Right to Development states "development is a comprehensive economic, social, cultural and political process, which aims at the constant improvement of the well-being of the entire population and of all individuals on the basis of their active, free and meaningful participation in development and in the fair distribution of benefits resulting therefrom."
The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights states in its Preamble "it is henceforth essential to pay a particular attention to the right to development and that civil and political rights cannot be dissociated from economic, social and cultural rights in their conception as well as universality and that the satisfaction of economic, social and cultural rights is a guarantee for the enjoyment of civil and political rights." And Article 22 states "(1) All peoples shall have the right to their economic, social and cultural development with due regard to their freedom and identity and in the equal enjoyment of the common heritage of mankind. (2)States shall have the duty, individually or collectively, to ensure the exercise of the right to development."
The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action states in Article 10 "The World Conference on Human Rights reaffirms the right to development, as established in the Declaration on the Right to Development, as a universal and inalienable right and an integral part of fundamental human rights. As stated in the Declaration on the Right to Development, the human person is the central subject of development. While development facilitates the enjoyment of all human rights, the lack of development may not be invoked to justify the abridgement of internationally recognized human rights. States should cooperate with each other in ensuring development and eliminating obstacles to development. The international community should promote an effective international cooperation for the realization of the right to development and the elimination of obstacles to development. Lasting progress towards the implementation of the right to development requires effective development policies at the national level, as well as equitable economic relations and a favourable economic environment at the international level."[2]
Following up on the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action the UN has thought to further elaborate the meaning of the right to development by establishing an open-ended Working Group and mandating an Independent Expert. The Independent Expert on the Right to Development, Dr. Arjun Sengupta, views the right to development as a right to a particular development process, which enables all fundamental freedom and rights to be realized, and expands the basic capacities and abilities of individuals to enjoy their rights. The overriding theme of his reports is equity and justice, which he recognizes as being at the heart of all human rights.[3]