26 June 2012: The report of the Third High-level Symposium for the UN Development Cooperation Forum (DCF) has been made available. The report summarizes the discussions at the Australia Symposium – the last of three symposia held in preparation for the UN Economic and Social Council’s (ECOSOC) 2012 DCF – including lessons learned on how development cooperation can promote sustainable development paths.

The Symposium was co-hosted by the Government of Australia and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), and took place from 14-15 May 2012, in Brisbane, Australia. It was held under the theme, “Shaping a Sustainable Future – Partners in Development Cooperation,” and focused on the linkages between development cooperation and sustainable development. The Symposium resulted in a series of key messages and recommendations on, inter alia: the urgency of implementing sustainable development; the role of development cooperation in sustainable development; the need for greater focus on poverty eradication and sustainable development; and the need for a simple and aspirational post-2015 development framework.

Specifically, its recommendations for a post-2015 development agenda include that: development efforts should be guided by a set of goals within a single agenda; future development goals must be few and easy to monitor; the post-2015 development agenda must have sustainable development and accountability at its heart; post-2015 goals should address peace, security, rights, governance and the rule of law; sustainable development interventions should consider the broader context in which they are embedded; different types of partnerships must be pursued; sustainable development must be mainstreamed in countries’ aid policies; and the DCF has a role to play in the follow-up to the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20) and the definition of the post-2015 development agenda. [Publication: Report of the Development Cooperation Forum High-level Symposium, held in Brisbane, Australia, on 14 and 15 May 2012 (E/2012/83)]