We align ourselves to the EU statement.
Co-facilitators. Our ability to deliver this bold and transformative agenda will depend on successful means of implementation that – as Caricom stated – match the ambition of the agenda. We fully support a comprehensive global partnership as one of the 4 pillars of the agenda.
We are grateful to the co-facilitators of the Finance for Development process for their remarks yesterday and for setting out the broad range of finance and non-finance issues that the Addis Ababa summit will cover. In effect all the issues in goal 17 and the means of implementation associated with the other goals.
We welcome the contribution of the report of the UN Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Finance. The report is clear that sufficient finance is available globally for sustainable development. But we need to unlock existing resources and put in place the right policy measures to maximise the contributions of all flows. This will require action from developed and developing countries alike. The UK is proud to meet the target of 0.7% and calls on others to meet their commitments.
Alongside finance issues other `means of implementation’ will play a vital role. These include policy measures in areas such as tax, trade, technology, knowledge and skills.
It is essential that the FFD process and the post-2015 process are coherent and that we avoid duplication between them – as the co-facilitators of both processes have stressed. We hope our leaders will agree in Addis Adaba an ambitious global agreement. We will need to ensure it is incorporated as a core part the post-2015 development framework- FFD should be the MoI pillar.
Bearing in mind the need to ensure our work here does not cut across the preparations for the Addis Adaba summit, and that our final meeting will take place immediately after the Addis conference, we need to consider how best to use the time we have dedicated to discussing MOI. Building on the suggestion of a joint session with the FFD process, raised by the EU, perhaps our discussion in April could consider the form the Addis outcome should take in order to best fit within the post-2015 framework. We would also welcome the opportunity to hear from those who will be implementing this agenda.
On follow up and review, let me underline that we see the post-2015 agenda as a Universal framework with action required in all countries. This will require robust monitoring, accountability and review framework.
This should be open to all stakeholders at domestic, regional and international levels and be transparent and participatory. And it should aggregate up to provide a clear international picture on progress against all the SDGs – thus supporting collective international action and identifying where efforts need to be redoubled if progress is off track.
The following elements could all play an important role in helping to guide the elaboration of our monitoring framework.
· First, we need to remember that the principal point of accountability lies at the national level. So follow up and review needs to be country led – with national and sub-national review mechanisms so that progress against national commitments and targets can be carefully and transparently monitored, and citizens can hold their governments to account.
· Second, a regional review and learning mechanism could be useful for example through the UN regional economic commissions, to share learning. Peer reviews such as the Africa Peer Review mechanism we heard about earlier, could play a valuable role.
· Third, there should be a global review mechanism – not least to ensure we are holding each other to account for the means of implementation, but also to identify whether any areas where the collective effort needs to be enhanced.
· Finally, a data revolution needs to be at the heart of an effective monitoring and review mechanism. Disaggregated data is essential if we are to ensure that nobody is left behind.
