Mr. Wu Hongbo Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Secretary-General for the International Conference on Small Island Developing States

Luncheon Side Event in Preparation for DCF Germany High-level Symposium
“Effectiveness and accountability in the post-2015 development agenda – lessons from the MDG experience”

25 September 2013, New York

Ms. Kopp,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,

I am delighted to join in welcoming you to this timely event.

Let me also take this opportunity to extend our deep appreciation to the Government of Germany, for hosting the DCF Symposium, to take place on 19-21 March next year, and for co-organizing today’s event.

Experience with the MDGs underscores the need for a strong monitoring framework and robust accountability mechanisms at all levels.

The current cycle of the ECOSOC DCF is examining global accountability, with the aim of making concrete contributions to a global accountability framework. This includes the renewed global partnership for development that must underpin the post-2015 development agenda.

We will soon launch the third UN DCF survey on global accountability. The survey will map out the status and progress of national mutual accountability efforts in all developing countries. The results it generates will also contribute to the Global Monitoring Framework – one of several joint efforts to strengthen synergies between the work of the DCF and the Busan Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation.

We have launched a related project to support capacity development for mutual accountability in four countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

And each of the DCF high-level preparatory symposiums, especially the culminating symposium in Germany in March of next year, takes global accountability as a priority theme.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The emerging post-2015 development agenda aims to be universal and unified. It would apply to all countries. It would unify the objectives of poverty eradication and sustainable development and advance a truly integrated approach.

The DCF Germany Symposium will call on us to think about the implications these features might have, especially on global accountability.

First, we have to think about the main pillars. What key concepts define a global accountability framework? What defining features are necessary for its success? Where, for example, do key concepts such as monitoring and effectiveness of development cooperation fit in?

Second, what would be the core elements of such a framework? How can we be sure it addresses both development cooperation and sustainable development? How can we promote a bottom-up approach, where needs and capacities are voiced at country-level and considered at the global level?

Third, partnerships and collaboration are crucial. They promote effectiveness and transparency among the different stakeholders. Some such partnerships engage citizens directly in the monitoring of commitments.

The strong and diverse presence here, on this busy day, only underscores the relevance and timeliness of this topic. We look forward to your perspectives on these questions, drawing on lessons learned from your own experience. We would also like to know from you if there are other key questions — about global accountability and effectiveness in development cooperation post-2015 — that we should be asking in our preparations for the Symposium.

Without further ado, I would like to give the floor to Johannes Linn from the Brookings Institute, who will moderate our discussions.

Thank you.

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