28 August 2014: Participants discussed strengthening regional accountability and implementation mechanisms in the context of the post-2015 development agenda at a consultation organized by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). The meeting was part of a series of five regional consultations on accountability in the post-2015 agenda that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon asked the UN regional commissions to organize, to share perspectives on elements of a regional accountability framework that will be situated within a wider framework with global and national links.

In opening remarks at the August event, ECLAC Executive Secretary Alicia Bárcena highlighted challenges related to monitoring and accountability for the post-2015 agenda. She recommended that the region build on its institutional architecture as much as possible, noting “there are mechanisms in the region that may be useful for accountability.” On the post-2015 agenda, she said “ECLAC is reaffirming that equality is the aim, structural change is the way and policy is the means.”

UN Development Programme (UNDP) Regional Director, Jessica Faieta, who also serves as Chair of the UN Development Group for Latin America and the Caribbean (UNDG LAC), said the development agenda should be based on multi-sectoral and structural strategies, rather than piecemeal, sectoral interventions. She also emphasized the importance of building local capacities in accordance with specific societal needs.

Amina Mohammed, the UN Secretary-General’s Adviser on Post-2015 Development Planning, speaking via video, underscored the challenge of monitoring a non-binding agenda. She also highlighted the role of robust, reliable statistical systems to measure progress, and recommended disaggregated data to identify and address inequalities.

Participants recognized the potential for using the region’s subsidiary bodies to discuss the post-2015 agenda as well as to follow-up on and monitor it. These bodies include: the Caribbean Development and Cooperation Committee; the Committee on Population and Development; the Committee of High-level Governmental Experts; the Committee on Central American Economic Cooperation; the Regional Conference on Women; the Regional Council for Planning; and the Statistical Conference of the Americas.

The discussions from this regional consultation are expected to feed into the UN Secretary-General’s synthesis report that will inform intergovernmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda.

ECLAC Member States and UN agency representatives participated in the consultation, which took place in Santiago, Chile, from 28-29 August 2014, as part of the 29th session of the Committee of the Whole of ECLAC. [ECLAC Press Release] [IISD RS Sources] [IISD RS Story on ESCAP Consultation]