Toespraak Koenders 'Ontwikkeling Financieren'
23 oktober 2007, Verenigde Naties, New York
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Mr Chairman, colleagues,
Today we are discussing the urgent question if and how we will be able to finance the Millennium Development Goal’s so they can still be reached by 2015. Many countries still lag behind in reaching many of the MDG’s so we need to step up our efforts and keep our promises. Many G7 countries and new emerging donors have not come up with additional finance. ODA even decreased last year, the trade negotiations that promised to finalise a so called development round are stalled; many countries still have to wait for the HIPC-process of debt reduction to be dealt with and many developing countries have not yet stepped up their efforts to invest in human development. The Secretary-General signalled a mixed picture of progress and setbacks in his report on Follow up of the International Conference on Financing for Development. Serious work and responsibilities lie ahead for all of us.
[the main challenges]
Mr Chairman,
Today we are witnessing growing inequality between and within states. The world economy is growing which is a crucial and positive development, but at the same time we are faced with the three fundamental challenges:
• Poverty and the unequal distribution of wealth
• Poverty and climate change, and.
• Poverty and the unequal distribution of security.
These three are interlinked in a complex manner. Our efforts should focus on solving these three fundamental challenges by acting urgently.
[poverty reduction and the MDG’s]
Mr Chairman,
First, by stepping up our efforts. In the countries where the MDG’s are off track, measures have to be taken in the domestic arena to ensure progress in fields like progressive taxation, democratic accountability and transparency. In support of these national efforts, international efforts -both through transfer of funds and through political dialogue- can and should also play a larger role of great importance. The Netherlands has been a consistent 0.8% donor for decades and we have added in the new cabinet period 700 million dollars extra to start addressing the environmental adaptation agenda for LDC’s. In spite of all the promises made in the past few years, worldwide development aid even dropped by 5% last year.
As international community, let’s implement the Monterrey-agreement. We fall way short of our targets. If we are to attain the Millennium Development Goals, we need to reverse this trend. The EU decision to raise its ODA-level in accordance with specific targets and a timetable for the coming years can now to be realized. We expect more G7 and non-traditional donor countries to join us in delivering the agreed 0,7 UN target.
Second: the enhancement of the quality and effectiveness of our ODA-spending. At least as important as the levels of spending. Over the years, the international aid architecture has become increasingly complex. Funding decisions and budget allocations are increasingly linked to performance and accompanied by demands for more transparency and better accountability. Also we need to limit conditionality to key areas only. This is positive and very much needed, but major challenges remain, as also signalled by the Secretary General: effective ownership, lower transaction costs, and predictability of aid less bureaucracy and endless rules, regulations and reports. I call on the UN-agencies to reverse this negative trend of more and more paper work. What really counts are results on the ground. Monitoring of results and follow up on mutual commitments on country level are essential. This requires strong leadership, and the involvement of parliaments and civil society. That is: the people on the ground. We have to make sure that in Accra, September next year, the Paris Declaration can be taken a step further – towards a double accountability.
But even more stable and predictable funding is not enough. I will increase the amount of multi-year core funding for UN organisations that perform well and – in the near future – for One UN country programmes. I call on all donor countries to do the same. In this light I look forward to contribute to the elaboration of principles of ‘Good Multilateral Donorship’.
Third: trade. Trade and phased integration into the regional and the world economy are essential pre-conditions for economic development and poverty reduction. The poorest countries need to be supported with their integration in the world trade system, but we must also allow them to protect their own markets for some time against –sometimes unfair- competition that affects vulnerable sectors, development of rural areas and food security.
[climate change and fragile states]
Mr Chairman,
Since Monterrey there are more challenges. Global security issues and climate change place us before new hurdles on our way to MDG-achievement. We have to re-think our financing mechanisms to stay ahead of these developments. I would, in conclusion, like to share my ideas on these issues with you as food for thought for our discussion.
First, when it comes to climate change, we have to bear in mind that the poorest countries are the main victims of the more extreme weather conditions, of the droughts and floods. A temperature rise of only two degrees will destroy the coffee sector which is so crucial to Uganda, the country I visited only a few months ago. I consider this issue to be of great importance to the Monterrey review: how can we improve our responses to climate change? What does this mean for our levels and ways of ODA-spending and other financial mechanisms? At the G8-meeting in Heiligendamm, some steps have been taken in the right direction, seriously considering the goal of 50% fewer emissions by 2050. I hope at the UN climate summit in Bali later this year, we will see this constructive attitude to be turned in substantive action. But this also is a matter of restructuring our financial flows and new innovative steps and public- private partnerships. I hope we will be able and willing to answer some of the questions ahead of us by our meeting one year from now in Doha, Qatar, on the basis of the pollution pays principle, shared responsibility and additionality.
Mr Chairman,
When it comes to fragile states, we should recognize that in these states most of the bottom billion people live in sheer misery. Effective assistance to these states is still lacking. There is not enough money, nor is there effective cooperation in multi-donor trust funds or between development, diplomacy and defence. This is unacceptable.
[conclusion]
Mr. Chairman, ladies and gentlemen,
In Doha next year, we are obliged to show the world that we do not take our previous promises for granted. New developments and challenges have to be taken into account. Emerging issues – innovative finance, new donors, harmonisation, South-South cooperation, to mention just a few- need to be carefully studied and selected to be dealt with substantively in Doha.
Sometimes we are puzzled by the complexity of the matters we discuss. However, complexity may never be an excuse for passivity. The Netherlands therefore remains committed to actively participate in and contribute to the Financing for Development process. We are calling on all to step up their efforts. The world is more and more characterised by political, economic and cultural fault lines. That is no longer acceptable.
Thank you.