G77 The G77 and China is a product of the North/South divide and the political economy of the late

e 20th century. It is broadly based on a self-definition of exclusion from world affairs.

G77 establishment.
The Group of 77 (G-77) was established on 15 June 1964 by seventy-seven developing countries signatories of the Joint Declaration of the Seventy-Seven Countries issued at the end of the first session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva. Beginning with the first Ministerial Meeting of the Group of 77 in Algiers (Algeria) on 10 25 October 1967, which adopted the Charter of Algiers

 , a permanent institutional structure gradually developed which led to the creation of Chapters of the Group of 77 with Liaison offices in Geneva (UNCTAD), Nairobi (UNEP), Paris (UNESCO), Rome (FAO/IFAD), Vienna (UNIDO), and the Group of 24 (G24) in Washington, D.C. (IMF and World Bank). Although the members of the G-77 have increased to 130 countries, the original name was retained because of its historic significance

Aims of G77
The Group of 77 is the largest intergovernmental organization of developing states in the United Nations, which provides the means for the countries of the South to articulate and promote their collective economic interests and enhance their joint negotiating capacity on all major international economic issues within the United Nations system, and promote South-South cooperation for development.

Structure of G77
The operation and modalities of work of the G-77 in the various Chapters have certain minimal features in common such as a similarity in membership, decision-making and certain operating methods. A Chairman, who acts as its spokesman, coordinates the Groups action in each Chapter. The Chairmanship, which is the highest political body within the organizational structure of the Group of 77, rotates on a regional basis (between Africa,

Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean) and is held for one year in all the Chapters. Currently the Republic of the Yemen holds the Chairmanship of the Group of 77 in New York for the year 2010. Ambassador Abdullah M. Alsaidi is the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Yemen to the United Nations and Chairman of the Group of 77 in New York.

Is it group of parallel UN
The Group of 77 at the United Nations is a loose coalition of developing nations, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 founding members of the organization, but the organization has since expanded to 131 member countries. Practically speaking (as of 2010), the group can be described as comprising all of UN members

 The G77 can be described as not a policymaking body in a narrow sense; rather it is a body that aggregates the range of views of its members and prepares a common position in international negotiations. The forum recognizes and accepts that diversity exists within the group, but the basic requirement for membership is adherence to the common positions.

Current founding members

Afghanistan Algeria (19811982, 2009) Argentina Benin Bolivia (1990) Brazil Burkina Faso Cambodia Cameroon

Nicaragua / Niger/ Nigeria (2000)/ Pakistan (19761977, 1992, 2009)/ Panama / Paraguay Peru (19711972) / Philippines (1995) / Rwanda

 Syria/ Tanzania (1997)/ Thailand/ Togo

Trinidad and Tobago/ Tunisia (19781979, 1988)/ Uganda/ Uruguay/ Venezuela (19801981, 2002)/ Vietnam/ Yemen /Saudi Arabia Senegal/ Sierra Leone/ Somalia/ Sri Lanka Sudan (2009)

Other current members

Angola/ Antigua and Barbuda (2008)

Bahamas/ Bahrain/ Bangladesh (1982 1983) Barbados/ Belize/ Bhutan/ Bosnia &Herzegovina/ Botswana/ Brunei/ Burun di Cape Verde / China / Comoros/ Cte d'Ivoire Djibouti

 Dominica/ Equatorial Guinea Eritrea/ Fiji/ Gambia/ Grenada Guinea-Bissau/ Guyana (1999) Lesotho/ Malawi/ Maldives

Marshall Islands/ Mauritius Micronesia/ Mongolia Mozambique/ Namibia North Korea/ Oman Palestine/ Papua New Guinea

 Qatar (2004) / Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia/ Saint Vincent and the Grenadines/ Samoa/ So Tom and Prncipe/ Seychelles/ Singapore Solomon Islands

 South Africa (2006) Suriname Swaziland/ Tajikistan Timor-Leste/ Tonga Turkmenistan/ United Arab Emirates Vanuatu/ Zambia/ Zimbabwe

 The G77 also needs to be seen as a product of its time and an outcome of the political economy of the North/South divide. The 1950s and 1960s represent a period when many countries in the South were gradually coming loose from their colonial associations with European countries and were looking toward the future with much optimism in terms of rapid social and economic development.

What happened in Copenhagen

The China factor ?

Chinas active role in forming the BASIC coalition of emerging economies in the run up to Copenhagen took experienced diplomats and analysts by surprise

 Prior to Copenhagen, China leaked and criticized a draft text coordinated by Denmark, despite cooperating with the COP presidency for months in creating that draft. The backroom development of a draft negotiating text was labeled by many developing countries as a significant cause of the escalated mistrust between North and South in Copenhagen.

Blocks within groups.

G77 Subgroups
BASIC Emerging economies China, India, Brazil and South Africa LDCs Group of 49 Least Developed Countries, whose special situation is officially recognized by the UNFCCC
African Group The 53 member states of the African Union

G77 Subgroups
AOSIS Alliance of 42 small island states, including some non-G77 members such as Tuvalu and Singapore ALBA Bolivarian alliance of Latin American countries, of which Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Cuba and Nicaragua coordinate climate change positions

OPEC Group of 12 oil exporting countries, led by Saudi Arabia