1 December 2010: In meetings on 30 November and 1 December 2010, the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) concluded its 65th Session, taking action on several draft resolutions related to sustainable development. In total, the Committee adopted 40 draft resolutions and three draft decisions during the UNGA’s 65th session, including new texts on the International Year for Sustainable Energy for All and waste from chemical munitions dumped at sea.

The Committee would have the UNGA: decide to proclaim 2012 as the “International Year for Sustainable Energy for All,” ask the Secretary-General to consult with the relevant UN agencies in organizing and coordinating related activities, and encourage all Member States, the UN system and all other actors to take advantage of the Year to increase awareness of the importance of addressing energy issues for the realization of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The European Union stressed that expenditures for the Year should be met without seeking extrabudgetary resources.

On chemicals, the UNGA would invite the Secretary-General to seek the views of member States and relevant regional and international organizations, for circulation and further consideration during the UNGA’s 68th Session, regarding cooperative measures to assess and increase awareness of environmental effects related to waste originating from chemical munitions dumped at sea.

On sanitation, the UNGA would encourage all States, the UN system and other relevant stakeholders to take advantage of “Sustainable sanitation: the five-year drive to 2015” as a platform to promote action at all levels and increase awareness of the urgent need to reach the goal set out in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation of halving the proportion of people without access to basic sanitation by 2015, and urge them to encourage behavior change and policies aimed at increasing access to sanitation among the poor, complemented by a call to end open defecation as an extremely harmful practice for public health.

On globalization and interdependence, the UNGA would note with concern the continuing high rates of unemployment as a consequence of the global financial and economic crisis, recognize decent work as the best route out of poverty and invite donor countries, multilateral organizations and other development partners to continue to help Member States adopt policies consistent with the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Global Jobs Pact in order to promote a job-intensive recovery and sustainable development; and stress the need for all countries to harness knowledge and technology and stimulate innovation to improve competitiveness, benefit from trade and investment, and promote sustainable development.

On industrial development cooperation, the UNGA would emphasize the need to promote gender equality and the empowerment of women at all levels, and in decision-making processes in the context of industrial development; stress the importance of access to modern forms of energy, renewable energy and advanced energy technology for the realization of the MDGs; and call for continued use of official development assistance (ODA) for sustainable industrial development and industrial development cooperation between developing countries and those with economies in transition.

On agriculture development and food security, the Committee would have the UNGA: stress the need to enhance production, productivity and sustainability, while calling for the timely realization of the 2009 G-8 commitment to mobilize US$20 billion over three years for sustainable agricultural development; stress the need to achieve those aims through public and private investment, better access to markets and credit for smallholder farmers, improved land-use planning, crop diversification and commercialization, sound water management, strong agriculture value chains, and rural infrastructure investment, as well as by empowering rural women as critical agents of rural development and food security; call for efforts to boost the agricultural sector’s ability to predict, prevent and address the impacts of climate change and extreme weather, recognizing the consequences of the global food crisis for the realization of the MDGs in developing countries and the need for Africa to embark on a “green revolution” to boost agricultural productivity, food production and regional food security; and urge Member States and international organizations to pursue policies and strategies to improve the functioning of markets and ensure equitable access for all, while calling on the World Trade Organization (WTO) to promote policies favourable to enhanced agricultural trade.

In relation to the 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, also known as Rio+20), the Committee would have the UNGA: call for a one-day high-level session, on 20 September 2011, on “Addressing desertification, land degradation and drought in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication,” with an aim to contribute to preparations for the UNCSD; welcome the 26 February Nusa Dua Declaration as a contribution to the UNCSD, call for the effective, active participation of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in the Conference preparatory process and call on global and bilateral donors, as well as other countries in a position to do so, to support effective participation by developing-country representative participation in the plenary meeting; request the Secretary-General to contribute to the preparations for the UNCSD in terms of promoting a holistic approach to sustainable development in harmony with nature and sharing national experiences on criteria and indicators for measuring it, and ask the Secretary-General to create a trust fund to pay for the participation of independent experts in the interactive dialogues; and call upon Governments, all relevant global and regional organizations, UN funds and programmes, international financial institutions and others to ensure effective implementation of and follow-up to the commitments, programmes and time-bound targets adopted at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), and encourage them to report on concrete progress in that regard. The Group of 77 and China (G-77/China) expressed worries over the lack of funds to finance the participation of at least one representative from each developing country in all preparatory meetings for the UNCSD.

Finally, the Committee took note of the Secretary-General’s report on an overview of the major international economic and policy challenges for equitable and inclusive sustained economic growth and sustainable development and of the role of the United Nations in addressing these issues in light of the New International Economic Order (document A/65/272) as well as the Secretary-General’s report on the role of microcredit and microfinance in the eradication of poverty (document A/65/267). [Summary of 30 November meeting] [Summary of 1 December meeting]