Ambassador Thoms,
Professor Ocampo,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I would like to start by reiterating my gratitude to the Government of Germany for hosting the third, and last, high-level preparatory Symposium for the 2014 Development Cooperation Forum in Berlin last week.
I was struck by the professionalism and candor that the policy makers and practitioners brought to the table in Berlin. I am honoured to bring here to New York both their messages and their sense of urgency to prepare for the post-2015 development agenda, including a renewed global partnership for development.
The Symposium focused on development cooperation, in terms of financial and technical assistance. One overarching message was the critical role that effective development cooperation can play in the implementation of the post-2015 development agenda – especially if supported by a robust global accountability framework, taking into consideration the various forms of partnerships for development cooperation. We all agreed that there is no one-size-fit-all solution.
This is also a key finding of the two-year preparations for the high-level meeting of the DCF, which will take place here in New York on 10 and 11 July 2014.
The DCF preparations thus far have addressed the evolving nature and scope of development cooperation; how it should change to support a post-2015 development agenda; and how a renewed global partnership for development should be designed and could work in practice. These issues were the focus of analytical work and the high-level symposiums in Ethiopia, in June 2013, and in Switzerland, in October 2013.
The DCF Germany High-level Symposium explored the key contours of a global accountability framework for effective development cooperation post-2015.
Allow me to highlight a few main messages.
First, there is need to shape a clear role for development cooperation in the post-2015 era.
Second, work on global monitoring and accountability of development cooperation cannot wait until all the global goals and targets are agreed. It has to be an integral part of the ongoing debate on the design of a post-2015 development agenda and its implementation.
Effective forms of monitoring and accountability are therefore important to mobilize action and build positive momentum for change.
Third, the Berlin Symposium identified some potential aspects of a global framework for accountability in development cooperation. Let me highlight some here:
- Existing accountability mechanisms at different levels should be built upon and reinforced, not duplicated.
- Such an accountability framework should take into account the capacities of different actors and common but differentiated responsibilities. It should also support national ownership and empower citizens to engage in its design and implementation.
- Participants also reiterated the importance of providing incentives for all actors to engage on a level playing field and based on balanced relationships. The framework therefore needs to be about much more than monitoring compliance, but also promote mutual learning and exchange vital to genuine partnership and effective implementation.
- Lessons from accountability mechanisms, such as the use of peer reviews or specific provider targets, should inform the design of the framework.
- The framework should be supported by a good, reliable evidence base, to support good quality decisions. Data should be simple, comprehensible, and accessible to ordinary citizens.
Finally, efforts to ensure accountability for development cooperation commitments will have to be intrinsically linked to the global partnership for development and the rules of the game of the global economy.
The DCF preparations complement the work of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals and the Expert Committee on Sustainable Development Financing.
The high-level meeting of the DCF in July will be an occasion for a collective reflection on the role of different actors in development cooperation before the two processes conclude their work.
The DCF is well placed to provide a hub for the global monitoring and accountability framework on development cooperation commitments post-2015, while furthering its work on national mutual accountability and transparency. Building on its analytical work, the DCF can also help to ensure complementarities between different accountability mechanisms.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The 2014 DCF will be a unique occasion for the full range of development cooperation actors, including representatives of the private sector, to make a concrete contribution to setting out the development cooperation aspects of the renewed global partnership for development and its coherence with other policies and commitments that have an impact on development.
I encourage you to review the summaries of DCF preparatory meetings and alert your capitals of the high-level discussions in July. An invitation will be forthcoming.
I look forward to your questions and comments.