13 April 2015
DCF Symposium Discusses Targeting ODA to Poorest 20%
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The Development Cooperation Forum (DCF) High-Level Symposium discussed improving development outcomes by targeting official development assistance (ODA) to the poorest 20% of people in poor and middle-income countries.

The symposium - the first high-level event to take place in preparation for the 2016 DCF - was organized by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) and the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and hosted by the Republic of Korea.

It also aimed to also provide policy recommendations to the post-2015 development agenda and Financing for Development (FfD 3) processes.

ECOSOC10 April 2015: The Development Cooperation Forum (DCF) High-Level Symposium discussed improving development outcomes by targeting official development assistance (ODA) to the poorest 20% of people in poor and middle-income countries. The symposium – the first high-level event to take place in preparation for the 2016 DCF – was organized by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) and the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and hosted by the Republic of Korea. It also aimed to also provide policy recommendations to the post-2015 development agenda and Financing for Development (FfD 3) processes.

The symposium convened on 8-10 April 2015, in Incheon, Republic of Korea, and focused on the theme ‘Development cooperation for people and planet: What will it take?’ Participants discussed aligning commitments on financing and other means of implementation (MOI), and considered the implications of a universal development agenda for development cooperation in the post-2015 era. They took part in workshops on technology facilitation and capacity building, and on strengthening the impact of different development cooperation modalities.

ECOSOC President Martin Sajdik said the success of the post-2015 development agenda will hinge on effective review and follow-up, especially on “the full spectrum” of MOI, including financial as well as capacity building, technology transfer and other means. In this regard, he called for a flexible, multi-layered global framework that takes a bottom-up approach and builds on existing mechanisms. He highlighted that both financial and non-financial MOI are part of development cooperation.

Shin Dong-ik, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Korea, highlighted his country’s increased contribution of ODA from 2009-2013 by 20.9%, as compared with an average 2.8% rise by members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) over the same period.

A study commissioned by DESA from Development Initiatives and presented at the symposium, titled ‘Improving ODA Allocation for a Post-2015 World,’ makes the recommendation on targeting ODA to the poorest 20% of people in poor and middle-income countries (MICs). The publication calls for this objective to be adopted as a complement to existing targets of directing 0.5% of Gross National Income (GNI) toward ODA, and directing 0.15-0.2% of GNI as ODA to Least Developed Countries (LDCs). [UN Press Release] [Meeting Webpage] [Agenda] [Improving ODA Allocation for a Post-2015 World] [Presentation by Shin Dong-ik] [DAC Webpage]


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