2012 ANNUAL MINISTERIAL REVIEW
The 2012 Annual Ministerial Review (AMR) will be held during the High-level Segment (HLS) of the substantive session of the ECOSOC in July at UN headquarters in New York. Its focus is “Promoting productive capacity, employment and decent work to eradicate poverty in the context of inclusive, sustainable and equitable economic growth at all levels for achieving the MDGs”.
Improving productive capacity and job creation is central to poverty eradication, the achievement of the MDGs and equitable, inclusive and sustainable development. The global economic and financial crisis exacerbated pre-existing challenges to the achievement of full and productive employment developing and developed countries alike. While unemployment and inequitable labour market outcomes remain high in developed countries, labour markets in developing countries continue to be characterized by high rates of underemployment, vulnerable employment and informal work. Young people are faring particularly poorly; jobs are not being created quickly enough to absorb growth in the working-age population, which can contribute to social exclusion, political instability and conflict.
The 2012 AMR provides an opportunity for ECOSOC to:
- Assess the state of implementation of the United Nations Development Agenda with a focus on its employment-related goals and objectives;
- Analyze key challenges affecting the achievement of the internationally agreed goals and commitments related to productive capacity, employment and decent work;
- Consider recommendations and proposals for action, including new initiatives and partnerships to accelerate the implementation of employment-related objectives at all levels;
- Promote broad-based engagement by encouraging input from a broad-range of stakeholders.
The Secretary-General’s Report on the 2012 AMR provided the basis for the discussion.
The AMR session will also feature keynote addresses on issues related to the 2012 theme, with the participation of Ministers of Economics, Finance, Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation, as well as Executive Heads of UN Agencies, Funds and Programmes, and representatives of civil society, private sector and academia.
Nine countries - Algeria, Brazil, Ecuador, Kenya, Mauritius, Qatar, Russia, Senegal and Ukraine – are making National Voluntary Presentations (NVPs) during the 2012 AMR session. The NVPs focus on progress made at the national level in implementing the Internationally Agreed Development Goals (IADGs), including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Several other activities will, or have, taken place at the national, regional and global levels in preparation for the 2012 AMR:
- Global Preparatory Meeting, 3 April 2012, New York
- Regional Preparatory Meeting on “Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as drivers of productive capacity and job creation”, 25 March 2012, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- Partnerships Event on “Breaking new ground: partnerships for more and better jobs for young people”, 27 February 2012, New York
- E-discussion on Jobs, Decent Work and Inclusive Growth, 8 February-14 March 2012
- Regional Preparatory Meeting on “Promoting productive capacity, employment and decent work in Asia and the Pacific: a regional approach to sustained, inclusive and equitable growth and achieving the MDGs”, 7 December 2011, Kyoto, Japan
- National workshops in preparation for the NVPs
- Youth Forum on “Creating a sustainable future: Empowering youth with better job opportunities”, Early June 2012, New York
Outcome: Ministerial Declaration on "Promoting productive capacity, employment and decent work to eradicate poverty in the context of inclusive, sustainable and equitable economic growth at all levels for achieving the MDGs"