Denmark's statement
Post-2015 Agenda – Preamble and introduction
July 2015
Denmark aligns this statement with the statement made by the EU on behalf of the Eu
and its Member States.
I would like to thank the co-facilitators for their leadership and express our strong
support to the way you have conducted the negotiations. We would also like to thank
you for the new draft, which is a valuable basis for our further deliberations. We look
forward to the next 10 days of negotiations and to finalize the outcome document on
July 31st.
We support the transparent and consultative approach with which you have conducted
the sessions, and expect that the engagement of all stakeholders will continue. The
success of this process and the post-2015 agenda depend on the ownership and
engagement of all parties - governments, civil society, the private sector and other
actors.
We welcome the many revisions in the new draft and especially the efforts to better
reflect the balance of the three dimensions of sustainable development. We welcome
the references to gender, human rights, peace, leave no one behind, nondiscrimination,
and safeguarding and protecting the planet; it is key that these are
preserved, but also strengthened where appropriate.
We would like to highlight a few elements in the preamble and introduction where we
see room for improvement. These include the 5 Ps, the reflection of the goals and
targets, the means of implementation, gender equality and follow-up and review.
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Firstly, we welcome the efforts to communicate the agenda in brevity around the “5
Ps”. Yet, we also find that the transformative features of the agenda could be more
clearly reflected. This includes the interlinked overarching objectives of poverty
eradication and sustainable development as well as key principles including
universality, integration, and balance between the three dimensions of sustainability.
The preamble and the introduction should inspire political leaders and populations
around the globe to shift from business as usual. We should embark on a path towards
a sustainable future free from poverty, which is based on human rights, leaves no one
behind, and brings both people and the planet at the center, thus setting us on a path
that is profoundly sustainable in all the three dimensions of sustainable development.
Secondly, the SDGs constitute an indivisible and integrated set of global priorities. It
is important to ensure a balanced approach to the goals and targets and consistency in
references.
Thirdly, we find that is should be more clearly stated that the Addis Ababa Action
Agenda is an integral part of the universal post-2015 agenda. This should be
supported by a clear and balanced vision for the means of implementation based on
the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and thus include both financial and non-financial
means of implementation. It should also reflect the primary responsibility of
countries and the central place of domestic action and policies. Furthermore, we do
not see the need for the new paragraph on families (§38) in this section and therefore
call for its deletion.
Fourthly, follow up and review is essential for the effective implementation of the
agenda. This is also includes accountability which we do not see as constituting a
contradiction to implementation. The paragraphs (42-43) on follow-up and review
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still need more vision and ambition and should include reference to the engagement
of all stakeholders.
Lastly, we believe gender equality and the human rights of all girls and women
should be at the centre of our agenda and properly reflected in the preamble as well
as throughout the text. On this basis, the introduction should clearly state that all
legal, social and economic barriers to women’s empowerment should be removed.
Ensuring the human rights of women and girls also includes universal access to
sexual and reproductive health and rights.
As a final comment, Mr. co-facilitators, we welcome the reference in paragraph 22 to
the empowerment of vulnerable sections of the population. We believe that the text
should reflect that indigenous peoples are not just vulnerable but also have resources
and capacities that can drive sustainable development.
Thank you.
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