Key discussion topics at the Fifth Ministerial Forum on Development included economic and fiscal policies, which participants agreed are critical to addressing inequality and reducing poverty.
Participants stressed political will, social investment and pro-poor spending to overcome poverty and achieve the MDGs, and recognized social protection programmes in Latin America as examples of how Africa could boost its sustainable development.
29 May 2012: At the Fifth Ministerial Forum on Development, around 40 social development ministers and representatives from 28 countries in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean discussed approaches to addressing poverty and hunger. The Forum included African representatives for the first time, and aimed to increase South-South cooperation and exchange.
UN Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator Helen Clark opened the meeting. Organized by UNDP’s Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean and supported by the Spanish International Aid and Development Agency, the Forum took place in Brasilia, Brazil, from 29-31 May 2012.
Key discussion topics included economic and fiscal policies, which participants agreed are critical to addressing inequality and reducing poverty. Participants stressed political will, social investment and pro-poor spending to overcome poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Forum participants recognized social protection programmes in Latin America as examples of how Africa could boost its sustainable development. They also highlighted development solutions such as financial aid for low-income families as long as their children remain at school and present themselves for health care. They emphasized the need for pro-poor growth as well as redistribution policies to tackle inequality, noting the 2015 target for achieving the MDGs. [UNDP Press Release] [Opening Speech by UNDP Administrator]