Your Majesty, the Queen of the Belgians,Honourable Deputy Prime Minister Alexander De Croo,Ambassador Oh Joon, President of ECOSOC,Mr. Archarya, USG of the United Nations,Distinguished participants,Ladies and Gentlemen,
Please allow me to warmly welcome you to the third and final High-level Symposium in preparation for the 2016 Development Cooperation Forum, to be convened in New York in July.
It is my great honour to chair this meeting together with Deputy Prime Minister De Croo. I extend my sincere gratitude on behalf of the UN to the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium for hosting this important event.
Your Majesty, the Queen of the Belgians,
We, the United Nations, are greatly honored to have you as one of the 17 SDG advocates.
The highly valued presence and contribution of your Majesty shows the strong commitment of your country to development cooperation and to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
We are here – and we stand with you – in the wake of the heinous terrorists attacks against Brussels. We will not let terror win over humanity, solidarity and peace.
Development cooperation is such a vital way we work together, to secure the foundations for peaceful, prosperous and inclusive societies.
Our work must go on. Indeed, we must lift it to the next level.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The 2030 Agenda demands new ways of working and a change of mind-set from all development cooperation actors.
It inspires us to look closely at the inter-linkages between sectors.
It requires us to break down the silos that stop us from working together.
It compels us to understand better specific national and local situations, and tailor our actions accordingly.
And, it emboldens us to work through much broader partnerships that embrace all stakeholders – including the world’s most vulnerable people.
A renewed approach to development cooperation is key to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It can be a powerful lever for integrated and effective approaches to SDG implementation at all levels.
Distinguished participants,
We come together to share concrete examples of rethinking development cooperation for the SDGs.
“We” are decision makers and experts from developing and developed countries, Parliamentarians, civil society organizations, local and regional authorities, foundations and the private sector, and the multilateral system.
Knowledge sharing and mutual learning are what these three days are all about. Country-level and local experiences in particular bring life to the possibilities and challenges ahead.
Our first theme focuses firmly on the challenges of least developed countries and countries in other vulnerable contexts. Is development cooperation fit-for-purpose to help face these new challenges, in order to leave no one behind? This is a question we ask ourselves.
Our discussions this morning will draw on the fascinating workshops held yesterday on capacity building experiences and the role of digital transformation.
We will also look at how development cooperation can support domestic resource mobilization for increased investments in poverty eradication and sustainable development. This key issue features prominently in the 2030 Agenda and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda.
Last year in Paris, COP21 reaffirmed financial and other commitments to address climate change – an important step in implementing the universal 2030 Agenda. Today we will examine the distinctive role of development cooperation in addressing the special needs of vulnerable countries, in their efforts to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change. Integrated responses are needed to secure a sustainable future for all.
Tomorrow we will share experiences on how – in all countries – development cooperation institutions, national and local governments, regional, international organizations and civil society organizations need to adapt to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
Many of you will serve as panelists in the different sessions to share your efforts and steps so far, and let us learn from them.
I encourage all of you to engage actively in the discussions.
Our sincere goal is to foster focused and highly interactive exchanges, generating key messages and some practical, policy guidance.
This gets to the heart of the Development Cooperation Forum and its role as the global platform for multi-stakeholder dialogue on development cooperation.
Your Majesty,
Ladies and gentlemen,
We are all in this together. New partnerships and new forms of cooperation are crucial if we want to succeed in our shared goals.
I hope this meeting will inspire new ideas, spark new partnerships and deepen already existing relationships.
Let us make the most of this opportunity to share and learn together.
Thank you very much.
Please allow me to warmly welcome you to the third and final High-level Symposium in preparation for the 2016 Development Cooperation Forum, to be convened in New York in July.
It is my great honour to chair this meeting together with Deputy Prime Minister De Croo. I extend my sincere gratitude on behalf of the UN to the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium for hosting this important event.
Your Majesty, the Queen of the Belgians,
We, the United Nations, are greatly honored to have you as one of the 17 SDG advocates.
The highly valued presence and contribution of your Majesty shows the strong commitment of your country to development cooperation and to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
We are here – and we stand with you – in the wake of the heinous terrorists attacks against Brussels. We will not let terror win over humanity, solidarity and peace.
Development cooperation is such a vital way we work together, to secure the foundations for peaceful, prosperous and inclusive societies.
Our work must go on. Indeed, we must lift it to the next level.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The 2030 Agenda demands new ways of working and a change of mind-set from all development cooperation actors.
It inspires us to look closely at the inter-linkages between sectors.
It requires us to break down the silos that stop us from working together.
It compels us to understand better specific national and local situations, and tailor our actions accordingly.
And, it emboldens us to work through much broader partnerships that embrace all stakeholders – including the world’s most vulnerable people.
A renewed approach to development cooperation is key to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It can be a powerful lever for integrated and effective approaches to SDG implementation at all levels.
Distinguished participants,
We come together to share concrete examples of rethinking development cooperation for the SDGs.
“We” are decision makers and experts from developing and developed countries, Parliamentarians, civil society organizations, local and regional authorities, foundations and the private sector, and the multilateral system.
Knowledge sharing and mutual learning are what these three days are all about. Country-level and local experiences in particular bring life to the possibilities and challenges ahead.
Our first theme focuses firmly on the challenges of least developed countries and countries in other vulnerable contexts. Is development cooperation fit-for-purpose to help face these new challenges, in order to leave no one behind? This is a question we ask ourselves.
Our discussions this morning will draw on the fascinating workshops held yesterday on capacity building experiences and the role of digital transformation.
We will also look at how development cooperation can support domestic resource mobilization for increased investments in poverty eradication and sustainable development. This key issue features prominently in the 2030 Agenda and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda.
Last year in Paris, COP21 reaffirmed financial and other commitments to address climate change – an important step in implementing the universal 2030 Agenda. Today we will examine the distinctive role of development cooperation in addressing the special needs of vulnerable countries, in their efforts to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change. Integrated responses are needed to secure a sustainable future for all.
Tomorrow we will share experiences on how – in all countries – development cooperation institutions, national and local governments, regional, international organizations and civil society organizations need to adapt to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
Many of you will serve as panelists in the different sessions to share your efforts and steps so far, and let us learn from them.
I encourage all of you to engage actively in the discussions.
Our sincere goal is to foster focused and highly interactive exchanges, generating key messages and some practical, policy guidance.
This gets to the heart of the Development Cooperation Forum and its role as the global platform for multi-stakeholder dialogue on development cooperation.
Your Majesty,
Ladies and gentlemen,
We are all in this together. New partnerships and new forms of cooperation are crucial if we want to succeed in our shared goals.
I hope this meeting will inspire new ideas, spark new partnerships and deepen already existing relationships.
Let us make the most of this opportunity to share and learn together.
Thank you very much.
File date:
Thursday, April 7, 2016