– As delivered –
Statement by H.E. Tijjani Muhammad Bande, President of the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly
15 January 2020
Ms. Sheila Redzepi, Vice President of External and Corporate Communications, World Bank Group.
Mr. Axel van Trotsenburg, Managing Director of Operations, World Bank,
Excellencies,
Distinguished Delegates,
I commend you for your engagement here today in the initial weeks of the Decade of Action and Delivery to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
We know that to fulfil our commitment to the people we serve that the international donor community must accelerate access to development finance. However, official development assistance is declining.
The successful nineteenth (19th) replenishment of International Development Association (IDA) resources is therefore crucial to ensuring that we leave no one behind. I commend the fifty-two (52) countries, including the six (6) first-time donor governments who have taken action to make the world a better place for us all.
I look forward to learning more about the ambitious package which aims to make gains on Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, namely SDG8: Decent Work and Economic Growth, SDG 13: Climate Action, SDG 5: Gender Equality, and to address governance and fragility through SDG 16.
Excellencies,
Inequalities within and between countries are deepening and threaten the development of societies. IDA focuses on key public services, such as education and health, to reduce inequalities in some of the poorest countries.
Moreover, since 1985 IDA has recognised the unique challenges of Small Island Developing States, inserting an exception as well as the consideration of vulnerability criteria. Furthermore, many Small Island Developing States have access to IDA despite exceeding the income per capita eligibility threshold. This is crucial to meeting the specific needs of Small Island Developing States.
IDA’s unique value-add in this space ensured the replenishment of IDA at a time when other vital global funds also sought replenishment: such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and the Green Climate Fund.
The successful replenishment of these funds demonstrates the political will and commitment to multilateral action to address the most pressing issues of our time and is a major win for international development cooperation in the last year.
We know that to fulfil our commitment to the people we serve that the international donor community must accelerate access to development finance. However, official development assistance is declining.
Excellencies,
The IDA Private Sector Window was an innovation under IDA18. I am pleased to note its continuation, which I am confident will assist private sector in overcoming risks and other obstacles to investing in the world’s most vulnerable countries.
To guarantee its success, it is crucial to ensure country ownership and alignment with national sustainable development priorities. We each have something to learn from one another, and on the path to 2030 collaboration with the private sector is essential if we are to reach the targets of the 2030 Agenda.
Indeed, we must recognise that we need access to finance to reach these targets. Moreover, there is the additional challenge of the rising debt levels in many IDA countries through the proposed Sustainable Development Finance Policy under IDA19. There is much work to do.
Excellencies,
There is an urgent need to bridge the financing gap to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. We must note that IDA represents only ten per cent (10%) of official development assistance. We must fulfil our ODA commitments if we are to actualise the Goals which were agreed upon here in this building.
It is our responsibility in this decade to make gains, to take action, to implement the SDGs. The architects of the 2030 Agenda provided us with the blue print for a better future, but to build this future we must unlock financing for development.
I thank you.
