Australia, The Netherlands and United Kingdom
Australia, the Netherlands and United Kingdom
Sustainable Development Goals Open Working Group, 10th Session, March-April 2014
Constituency Statement
Economic Growth, Employment, Infrastructure and Energy
• Strong, sustained and inclusive economic growth is essential to eradicate poverty and achieve sustainable development — it should be at the centre of the post-2015 agenda
- the sustainable development goals should tackle the barriers to economic growth and create a strong enabling environment for private sector investment and growth.
• To this end our troika welcomes the strong focus on economic growth in the Common African Position recognised in its pillar on structural economic transformation and inclusive growth.
• Infrastructure is essential for economic growth, allowing countries and communities better access to markets for trade, facilitating business growth and improving living conditions.
• Access to modern energy is crucial for sustainable development and links to the wider agenda, impacting and supporting progress on poverty reduction, health and education outcomes, economic growth, gender equality, access to water, and a shift to low-carbon development.
• As well as linking and supporting each other, economic growth, infrastructure and modern energy have links across the sustainable development goals, for example:
- access to infrastructure supports greater access to health services and education, and greater food security
- inclusive economic growth is boosted by greater equality and women’s economic empowerment.
• We propose a goal on strong, sustainable and inclusive economic growth and jobs including the following targets for consideration:
- create a sound macro-economic environment including by
: supporting stable and predictable fiscal and monetary policies
: strengthening tax policy to combat base erosion and profit shifting
- increase the number of productive and decent jobs and livelihoods, including by
: increasing the workforce engaged in waged and formal employment
: reducing the gap in employment between men and women, and between more or less disadvantaged groups including people with and without disability
: decrease the proportion of people not in education, training or decent employment
: investing in education, promoting labour market flexibility and increasing consumer demand; and
: providing a decent living wage
- access to financial services for all – including the ability to open a bank account and access basic credit
- create an enabling environment for entrepreneurs, business and investment including by:
: improving the quality of business regulations that are clear and consistently applied; and
: supporting policies that facilitate higher investment and promote competition
- promote an open and inclusive rules-based trading systems, including b
: increasing the least developed countries’ share of global trade and market access for least developed countries; and
: improving trade efficiency, including by reducing number of customs days and removing harmful tariffs
- increasing the share of global foreign direct investments to least developed countries
- implement and enforce national natural resource management regulatory frameworks to incorporate effective mechanisms for environmental and social sustainability
• We propose a goal on promoting sustainable energy and infrastructure, in which we have drawn on targets from other focal areas, like sustainable cities, including the following targets for consideration:
- ensure universal access to modern energy services
- double the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix
- double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency in buildings, industry, agriculture and transport
- phase out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption
- invest in infrastructure for sustainable development, including:
: improving access and accessibility to safe and sustainable transport
: improving access to ICT including mobile technology and broadband
: improving urban planning to allow businesses to thrive and prevent the formation of slums; and
: improving disaster and climate resilience.
- improve regional and trans-border infrastructure to promote effective regional economic integration and facilitate trade.
Sustainable Development Goals Open Working Group, 10th Session, March-April 2014
Constituency Statement
Economic Growth, Employment, Infrastructure and Energy
• Strong, sustained and inclusive economic growth is essential to eradicate poverty and achieve sustainable development — it should be at the centre of the post-2015 agenda
- the sustainable development goals should tackle the barriers to economic growth and create a strong enabling environment for private sector investment and growth.
• To this end our troika welcomes the strong focus on economic growth in the Common African Position recognised in its pillar on structural economic transformation and inclusive growth.
• Infrastructure is essential for economic growth, allowing countries and communities better access to markets for trade, facilitating business growth and improving living conditions.
• Access to modern energy is crucial for sustainable development and links to the wider agenda, impacting and supporting progress on poverty reduction, health and education outcomes, economic growth, gender equality, access to water, and a shift to low-carbon development.
• As well as linking and supporting each other, economic growth, infrastructure and modern energy have links across the sustainable development goals, for example:
- access to infrastructure supports greater access to health services and education, and greater food security
- inclusive economic growth is boosted by greater equality and women’s economic empowerment.
• We propose a goal on strong, sustainable and inclusive economic growth and jobs including the following targets for consideration:
- create a sound macro-economic environment including by
: supporting stable and predictable fiscal and monetary policies
: strengthening tax policy to combat base erosion and profit shifting
- increase the number of productive and decent jobs and livelihoods, including by
: increasing the workforce engaged in waged and formal employment
: reducing the gap in employment between men and women, and between more or less disadvantaged groups including people with and without disability
: decrease the proportion of people not in education, training or decent employment
: investing in education, promoting labour market flexibility and increasing consumer demand; and
: providing a decent living wage
- access to financial services for all – including the ability to open a bank account and access basic credit
- create an enabling environment for entrepreneurs, business and investment including by:
: improving the quality of business regulations that are clear and consistently applied; and
: supporting policies that facilitate higher investment and promote competition
- promote an open and inclusive rules-based trading systems, including b
: increasing the least developed countries’ share of global trade and market access for least developed countries; and
: improving trade efficiency, including by reducing number of customs days and removing harmful tariffs
- increasing the share of global foreign direct investments to least developed countries
- implement and enforce national natural resource management regulatory frameworks to incorporate effective mechanisms for environmental and social sustainability
• We propose a goal on promoting sustainable energy and infrastructure, in which we have drawn on targets from other focal areas, like sustainable cities, including the following targets for consideration:
- ensure universal access to modern energy services
- double the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix
- double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency in buildings, industry, agriculture and transport
- phase out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption
- invest in infrastructure for sustainable development, including:
: improving access and accessibility to safe and sustainable transport
: improving access to ICT including mobile technology and broadband
: improving urban planning to allow businesses to thrive and prevent the formation of slums; and
: improving disaster and climate resilience.
- improve regional and trans-border infrastructure to promote effective regional economic integration and facilitate trade.