Caribbean Community (CARICOM)

STATEMENT


BY


HER EXCELLENCY MS. JANINE COYE-FELSON
AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINARY AND PLENIPOTENTIARY, DEPUTY PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE
OF BELIZE
TO THE UNITED NATIONS


ON BEHALF OF
THE CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY (CARICOM)


AT THE


INFORMAL MEETINGS OF THE PLENARY OF THE PROCESS OF INTERGOVERNMENTAL NEGOTIATIONS ON THE POST-2015 DEVELOPMENT AGENDA, PURSUANT TO RESOLUTION 69/244 AND DECISIONS 69/550 AND 69/555









18 MAY 2015 PLEASE CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

Co-facilitators,

The Member States of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) wish to associate this statement with the statements of the Group of 77 and China and the Alliance of Small Island States.

In our view, review and follow-up of the post-2015 development agenda will provide for the necessary “checks and balances” of implementation.

The background paper is a useful reflection of how we might fashion these checks and balances at each level national, regional and international and we thank you for this.

We wish to address some of the questions you have raised.

Principles

The paper reflects many of CARICOM’s expectations of the objectives of review and follow-up: to track progress and achievements of the sustainable development goals and other sustainable development commitments – such as those set out in the SAMOA Pathway – as well as their means of implementation; address emerging development challenges and obstacles to implementation; facilitate exchange of experiences and mobilize support.

The main feature for tracking progress will be the set of global indicators that the Statistical Commission is currently developing and the data that those indicators will generate. CARICOM reiterates the need for support to strengthening capacity at all levels for the collection and analyses of data. We acknowledge the suggestion of the Secretary General for a programme of action and we also acknowledge the report of the Statistical Commission that highlights the need for investments to enhance national statistical capacity. We support efforts to this end.

We also must ensure that the development of indicators adheres to core principles including: universality, comprehensiveness (covering all goals and related targets), balance across the three dimensions of sustainable development, integrated, inclusiveness, and providing for timely, high quality, comparable, disaggregated data.

We see these principles similarly central to review and follow-up irrespective of level. CARICOM also agrees that the process itself should include the participation of all stakeholders including international organizations and other actors whose actions impact upon the development agenda. Moreover, In order that the process is not burdensome particularly for capacity constrained states, it should be adequately supported, build on existing mechanisms and provide for multi-speed reporting as appropriate.


Multi layered

CARICOM Member States recognize that review and follow-up will be a process of aggregating inputs starting from the national and moving upwards through the regional and international layers in order to develop a global picture of progress. In this sense, it will necessarily be multi-layered.

At the national level, country ownership will be key; we understand this to mean country driven but involving multi-stakeholder input and support.

CARICOM Member States have individually developed national long-term sustainable development strategies or plans, in some cases, through to 2030 and 2040. Connecting these plans with the global aspirations of the post-2015 development agenda will require time and support. It would be useful then to consider the option of a gradual phasing in of integration and then reporting on implementation. To be effective, it would also be useful to establish scope and periodicity and to develop common reporting formats or otherwise harmonized formats with existing reporting obligations where possible.

With respect to the questions raised in the background paper on the mechanics of the review – who should conduct, how will stakeholders be included – these in CARICOM’s views are outside the scope of the intergovernmental negotiations process. As much space should be given to countries to determine the most appropriate process that will lead to a robust flexible and effective framework for implementation, review and follow-up. It is enough for us here to define the core principles and leave it to countries to determine how to give effect to them.

Moving next to the regional level, General Assembly resolution 67/290 already establishes a basis for input from regional entities/commissions. Moreover, most regional commissions have already taken the decisive step to establish respectively their forum for sustainable development.

As you are aware, ECLAC has agreed to a consultation process to elaborate upon its forum. CARICOM Member States consider that such a forum could serve as a platform for sharing experiences, good practices and importantly building understanding of challenges in the implementation of global sustainable development commitments. It is important for us that the regional forum can effectively represent our unique challenges as SIDS and address the implementation of the SAMOA Pathway. To this end, we underscore the need for further strengthening of the sub-regional office of ECLAC and additional support to our countries to ensure appropriate level participation in decision-making. It will also require deepening and strengthening of synergies between the sub-regional office and the headquarter office in Santiago to ensure that inputs from the Caribbean are adequately reflected in ECLAC analyses and decisions.

The outputs from the various sustainable development fora and how they are fed up the chain of review and follow up must be addressed in a comprehensive and coordinated manner. In this connection, we consider that it will be necessary to provide guidance and support for timely reporting.

At the international level, we have already agreed in resolution 67/290 that the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) will conduct regular reviews on the follow-up and implementation of sustainable development commitments and objectives, including those related to the means of implementation. It is our expectation that the HLPF will allow for a global assessment of progress drawing on the various inputs including from the regional and national levels. It should cover all countries – developed and developing. We also anticipate that it will have other inputs including from other intergovernmental entities and also from other stakeholders.

You have raised practical questions on how to conduct the review having regard to the various inputs but you have not addressed what might the HLPF produce to support implementation. It would be a tremendous loss and a disincentive were review and follow-up be treated merely as a reporting without consequence and we speak of consequence not in terms of punishment or blame but rather in terms of catalyzing action for further progress. We are keen to hear from others how they see the HLPF particularly in its annual review promoting solutions to challenges that we will inevitably encounter in the implementation of the post-2015 development agenda.

There are many details that will have to be elaborated but we do not consider that the outcome of the post-2015 summit would have to delve into those details. We think it would be sufficient were the outcome to:

1. Confirm the role of the HLPF set out in resolution 67/290 and reaffirmed in resolution 69/214.
2. Confirm that the HLPF under the auspices of the ECOSOC shall conduct regular reviews on follow-up and implementation of the sustainable development goals and their means of implementation as well as other sustainable development commitments including in respect of countries in special situations such as the small island developing states.
3. Confirm the nature of the regular reviews under the auspices of the ECOSOC as determined in resolution 67/290.
4. Further:
a. Mandate the consideration of additional modalities to facilitate reviews which shall include modalities for the review of the SAMOA Pathway and other outcomes of major conferences
b. Mandate regional commissions to elaborate modalities: to support the Forum in its review functions, including with the collation and provision of data on respective regions taking into account where appropriate countries in special situations; as well as in relation to promoting and advancing regional best practices in the monitoring and evaluation of implementation of the Post 2015 development agenda
c. Mandate the availability of adequate resources to support developing countries’ preparation of reports for reviews and in particular to support strengthening of data capacity at national regional and international levels.
d. Mandate the UN system to ensure coordination and systemic coherence in collation and preparation of reports to support the Forum’s review functions.

Thank you.