18 July 2014: The Co-Chairs of the Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing (ICESDF), Pertti Majanen (Finland) and Mansur Muhtar (Nigeria), met with UN Member States and stakeholders on 18 July 2014, at UN Headquarters in New York, US, to discuss the Committee’s progress and key messages that will be included in the final report from the Committee, which they said is expected to be concluded in August.

Stakeholders were invited to submit questions online prior to the briefing, and the event moderator, Thomas Gass, UN Department for Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), presented several of them during the discussion period. Gass highlighted that open, interactive sessions have been a feature of the ICESDF, and that the Committee has made use of inputs posted on its website in response to calls for input. He also noted regional outreach meetings held by the Committee. Gass informed participants that the Committee had just held an informal retreat outside New York City, and said the Co-Chairs would share some preliminary findings, without prejudging the final report.

Co-Chair Majanen emphasized the importance of the Committee’s work, recalling that, if you do not have something in the budget, it is hard to take action. He said the ICESDF is on track to meet its September 2014 deadline for developing a final report from its work. He indicated that the Committee’s work has been based on four pillars: the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); the principles of the Rio Declaration and the outcome from the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20); the Monterrey Consensus on Financing for Development (FfD), including its emphasis on using all forms of financing in a holistic manner; and a multi-stakeholder approach, including outreach to civil society organizations (CSOs), the private sector and other groups.

Majanen said the Committee began its analysis by assessing sustainable development financing needs, which he said were assessed to be large and challenging, but achievable. He emphasized that public and private savings globally are sufficient to meet the needs, but the current allocation of investment will not deliver sustainable development. Majanen reviewed the finance landscape and changes to it since the MDGs were developed, highlighting, inter alia: a rapidly changing global context, in which developing countries are experiencing rapid growth; this growth has strengthened the ability to finance sustainable development out of domestic resources; and, at the same time, the poverty reduction target of the MDGs has been reached. Nonetheless, he noted that almost a billion people live close to poverty, which needs to be addressed. He also noted that gaps in gross domestic product (GDP) per capita between regions have grown, and said income inequalities need to be addressed.

Majanen also said: public policies are crucial for incentivizing private investment and directing public investment; effective institutions and policies are essential for the effective use of resources and unlocking of resources; sustainable development financing has to be mainstreamed in national budgets; synergies across areas of sustainable development need to be emphasized; all financing flows should be used in a holistic way; the quality of finance matters; and the impact of international finance needs to be maximized.

Co-Chair Muhtar said the Committee has tried to identify a packet of policy measures and approaches, programs and instruments, and said countries can draw on that to develop their own finance strategy. He noted, inter alia: there has been an emphasis on tax reforms, seeking compliance and looking at identifying fairer, efficient tax systems; official development assistance (ODA) should be used; prudent debt management and a fair mechanism for debt work out is important; procurement systems should be strengthened and sustainable development criteria should be mainstreamed in budgeting processes; and reforms of subsidies are needed and subsidies should be channeled where they are needed. In terms of domestic private finance, he identified a need for incentives that would motivate the flow of resources and private sector financing. Muhtar also stressed: financial inclusion; greater reporting of principles that are adopted; and enabling environment and short-term incentives; partnering with the private sector for infrastructure reforms; meeting the goal of 0.7% of GDP for ODA; aid effectiveness, harmonization of procedures, targeting ODA on poverty reduction, attention to fragile states; South-South cooperation; managing the volatility of capital flows; and sharing information on international development practices.

Questions during the discussion period related to, inter alia: tax evasion, tax avoidance and the role of the UN in strengthening tax cooperation; the coherence and complementarity of the ICESDF and the Open Working Group (SDGs) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); the role of social protection floors as an instrument to address inequalities; the needs of indigenous peoples; and the transparency of private sector flows. [Event webcast][IISD RS Coverage of ICESDF][ICESDF webpage]