A/HRC/10/65 page 18 83. The 2008 Social Forum welcomed the decision of the Human Rights Council to preserve the Social Forum as a unique space for interactive dialogue between the United Nations human rights machinery and various stakeholders, including grass-roots organizations. 84. The Social Forum should be open to all stakeholders, particularly grass-roots organizations, and efforts should be made to bring to future sessions of the Forum representatives from a broader range of stakeholders, in particular from developing countries and including those living in poverty, particularly women. Civil society organizations are recognized as amplifiers of the voice of the poor. 85. The Social Forum is considered ideally placed to identify best practices and to promote the incorporation of a human rights approach into poverty reduction. 86. There was prevailing agreement that poverty and human rights are linked in at least three ways: (a) poverty can be both a cause and consequence of human rights violations; (b) the realization of all human rights and efforts to eliminate extreme poverty are mutually reinforcing; and (c) human rights norms and principles provide the framework for poverty reduction and/or eradication. In this respect, it was stressed that the fight against poverty from a human rights perspective should remain a priority of OHCHR. 87. A multifaceted human rights-based approach was considered paramount to poverty reduction. Participation of the poor, accountability and access to remedies were highlighted as the most important added values of the human rights-based approach to poverty reduction strategies. 88. Participation of the poor is considered vital in the design and implementation of strategies and programmes aimed at poverty reduction. The Social Forum provides the opportunity to exchange good practices with a participatory approach to development policymaking. 89. International assistance and cooperation play a fundamental role in poverty eradication. In this context, it is regrettable to note the difficulties of the majority of developed countries in meeting the target reaffirmed in the Monterrey Consensus of allocating 0.7 per cent of their GDP to ODA. 90. While it was recognized that trade as such does not directly mitigate poverty and that there is no assurance that trade-generated wealth will have an impact on the poor, it was also noted that international trade has the potential of reducing poverty levels. The importance of an open, equitable and non-discriminatory international trading system was highlighted. 91. The role of the private sector in poverty eradication was recognized as an enabler of social and economic progress since business is a major source of investment and job creation. However, attention was also drawn to the negative impact of the business sector on human rights and to the fact that economic growth and the creation of employment are but contributing factors to the reduction of poverty.