Like-Minded Group of Countries Supporters of Middle-Income Countries
170717 DC HLPF MICS
______________________________________________________________________
Intervention of the Like-Minded Countries Supporters of Middle Income Countries.
High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development 2017
71° Session General Assembly, New York, May 22-25, 2017
Mr. President,
I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Like-Minded Countries Supporters of
Middle Income Countries. We commend the Presidency of the Economic and Social Council for
convening the High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
The Group wishes to underscore that the high-level political forum, consistent with its universal
intergovernmental character, shall provide political leadership, guidance and recommendations
for sustainable development, follow up and review progress in the implementation of the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development. (based on para 2. A/RES/67/290)
We would like to call the attention on the importance to support and promote the principles of
universality, integrality and the need to leave no one behind in the current exercise, as recognized
in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and related processes.
Mr. President,
Our group considers fundamental to emphasize that middle-income countries still face significant
challenges to achieve sustainable development. This is particularly crucial for the international
community, given the large share of middle-income countries in terms of the world population
and the global economy.
In order to ensure that achievements made to date by Middle Income Countries are sustained,
efforts to address ongoing challenges should be strengthened through the exchange of experiences,
improved coordination, and better and focused support of the United Nations develop-
ment system, the international financial institutions, regional organizations and other stakeholders.
Policy coherence should be at the core of that cooperation and should be aligned with their
national development plans and strategies, promoting their national capacities and addressing
their vulnerabilities.
Mr. President,
We note with concern that there has been an important shift in the global distribution of poverty
to middle-income countries. Nowadays, more than 70 per cent of the world’s poor live in these
countries. (Based on para 41. E/2017/64) To address these challenges, we believe that national
experiences and capacities of middle-income countries need to be supported, strengthened and
promoted in order to facilitate their contribution to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The
multiplier effect of such cooperation will benefit other middle-income countries, least-developed
countries and even developed countries.
As a result, we believe that the concerns of the Middle-Income Countries should bring together
all groups of countries in special situations, especially considering that, as countries move from
a low-income to a middle-income level, the international cooperation is significantly reduced,
limiting their ability to address their specific challenges and achieve the ambitious goals of the
2030 Agenda. Therefore, we call for an open dialogue on “development in transition” and an
approach that encourages a new perspective to develop graduation policies that are sequenced,
phased and gradual.
Mr. President,
We call upon the United Nations development system to continue to support developing countries
in their efforts to achieve internationally agreed development goals and their development
objectives, and requests the system to address, within existing resources and mandates, the
special challenges facing the most vulnerable countries, as well as the specific challenges facing
the middle-income countries, in line with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda 7 and the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development. (Para. 10 A/RES/71/243)
We want to highlight the need for the continuing engagement of the international community in
Middle-Income Countries, which should be tailored to specific country needs, and the further
development cooperation of the United Nations system. We also recognize the need to devise
methodologies to better account for the complex and diverse realities of these countries, reflecting
the multidimensional nature of development and poverty.
Mr. President,
We conclude by stressing that achieving the sustainable development goals in their three dimensions
will be impossible unless the economic and social problems of the Middle-Income
Countries are addressed, and their active engagement is enlisted at both the national and the
international level.
Thank you.
______________________________________________________________________
Intervention of the Like-Minded Countries Supporters of Middle Income Countries.
High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development 2017
71° Session General Assembly, New York, May 22-25, 2017
Mr. President,
I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Like-Minded Countries Supporters of
Middle Income Countries. We commend the Presidency of the Economic and Social Council for
convening the High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
The Group wishes to underscore that the high-level political forum, consistent with its universal
intergovernmental character, shall provide political leadership, guidance and recommendations
for sustainable development, follow up and review progress in the implementation of the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development. (based on para 2. A/RES/67/290)
We would like to call the attention on the importance to support and promote the principles of
universality, integrality and the need to leave no one behind in the current exercise, as recognized
in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and related processes.
Mr. President,
Our group considers fundamental to emphasize that middle-income countries still face significant
challenges to achieve sustainable development. This is particularly crucial for the international
community, given the large share of middle-income countries in terms of the world population
and the global economy.
In order to ensure that achievements made to date by Middle Income Countries are sustained,
efforts to address ongoing challenges should be strengthened through the exchange of experiences,
improved coordination, and better and focused support of the United Nations develop-
ment system, the international financial institutions, regional organizations and other stakeholders.
Policy coherence should be at the core of that cooperation and should be aligned with their
national development plans and strategies, promoting their national capacities and addressing
their vulnerabilities.
Mr. President,
We note with concern that there has been an important shift in the global distribution of poverty
to middle-income countries. Nowadays, more than 70 per cent of the world’s poor live in these
countries. (Based on para 41. E/2017/64) To address these challenges, we believe that national
experiences and capacities of middle-income countries need to be supported, strengthened and
promoted in order to facilitate their contribution to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The
multiplier effect of such cooperation will benefit other middle-income countries, least-developed
countries and even developed countries.
As a result, we believe that the concerns of the Middle-Income Countries should bring together
all groups of countries in special situations, especially considering that, as countries move from
a low-income to a middle-income level, the international cooperation is significantly reduced,
limiting their ability to address their specific challenges and achieve the ambitious goals of the
2030 Agenda. Therefore, we call for an open dialogue on “development in transition” and an
approach that encourages a new perspective to develop graduation policies that are sequenced,
phased and gradual.
Mr. President,
We call upon the United Nations development system to continue to support developing countries
in their efforts to achieve internationally agreed development goals and their development
objectives, and requests the system to address, within existing resources and mandates, the
special challenges facing the most vulnerable countries, as well as the specific challenges facing
the middle-income countries, in line with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda 7 and the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development. (Para. 10 A/RES/71/243)
We want to highlight the need for the continuing engagement of the international community in
Middle-Income Countries, which should be tailored to specific country needs, and the further
development cooperation of the United Nations system. We also recognize the need to devise
methodologies to better account for the complex and diverse realities of these countries, reflecting
the multidimensional nature of development and poverty.
Mr. President,
We conclude by stressing that achieving the sustainable development goals in their three dimensions
will be impossible unless the economic and social problems of the Middle-Income
Countries are addressed, and their active engagement is enlisted at both the national and the
international level.
Thank you.