2025 High-level Meeting of the Development Cooperation Forum - Economic and Social Council, 9th plenary meeting, 2025 session
Economic and Social Council
Date: 12 March 2025
Language: English
Transcript: https://transcripts.un.org/fr/ecosoc/2025/9?lang=en
Transcripts available through this tool are created by using automatic speech recognition and are not official records nor official documents of the United Nations. Official records and official documents are available on the Official Document System of the United Nations.

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ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [0:02]:

Discussion? Colleagues, I call the meeting to order. I call to order the 9th meeting of the Economic and Social Council, and I'm declaring open the Development Cooperation Forum at its 2025 session. I would invite the Council to begin its consideration of agenda item number 10, Development Cooperation Forum. This year, the theme of the forum will be on And I quote, transforming international development cooperation from global dialogue to action. I'm afraid you're going to have to listen to me first. Excellencies, distinguished delegates, I'm very pleased to welcome all of you to the 2025 ECOSOC Development Cooperation Forum. As we all know, international development is at a critical point, and it must be said over and over again that development remains indispensable to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. We've made clear progress on a number of goals, even as others remain off track because of all the events of which we're all only too aware. It has to be said that the development landscape has shifted since 2015. But of course, that's inevitable because time has gone on and events have dramatically impacted and affected our plans, which is why Robert Burns, the famous Scottish poet, said, the best-laid plans of mice and men oft gang awry. And they've certainly ganged awry in the last 10 years, as we know. So we have to accept the reality of that situation. It is against this backdrop that we find ourselves in a moment of profound change. International development cooperation must be reformed to deliver effective results and to ensure impact in the areas that it is needed most. As we all know, the Secretary-General has just sent member states a letter indicating that reform is the order of the day as far as the UN organization is concerned. In addition, country capacity and domestic resources must be strengthened so that national governments can support their economic development in a truly sustainable fashion— sustainable not only from an environmental perspective but from a fiscal and financial perspective as well. With new innovative financing models and new technologies, development cooperation offers new opportunities. And yet in some cases, the quantity as well as the quality of ODA must be increased. In addition, the full resources and capacity of the private sector have to be harnessed as never before. The SDG financing gap stands, as we all know, at multiple trillions of dollars per year. We know the gap between what is required and what is happening is huge. With limited fiscal space, many developing countries find themselves without the ability to alter their own development trajectory. That is why, as President of ECOSOC, I've spoken repeatedly of the need for IFI reform, the need to strengthen the relationship between ECOSOC and the United Nations systems and the World Bank and the IMF. In fact, we just concluded a meeting between the executive directors of the banks and the IMF and the senior representatives of many, many member states here just last week. And that's especially important as we are all trying to agree on a new outcome document at the Financing for Development Conference that takes place in Seville at the end of June. Facing inevitable scarcity, we need to ensure that our collective dollars translate into higher-impact activities that are truly joined up and that are mutually reinforcing. Now more than ever— I might have to say this sentence twice— but now more than ever, there is no place for duplication, There's no place for inefficiency, and there's no place for needless competition for scarce dollars. We have to find a way to establish a more cooperative, efficient, and effective system than the one that currently exists. For funding, a one UN approach that uses a holistic approach to the humanitarian peace development nexus is essential. A renewed look at the UN development system is equally important in order to create greater coherence. And I have to stress that that coherence has to include all of the multilateral financial institutions and it has to include the private sector. That the notion that this is somehow a UN alone project or a UN and nation-state project alone is wrong. It has to include in an integral way what the IFIs are doing at every level and what the private sector is doing at every level. And we have to think through this question in a way that we've not done so much before. We also have to protect the development gains by addressing the drivers of conflict and social inequities As well as the climate crisis, which despite what anyone says actually exists, and we have to keep reinforcing that reality. Climate finance should be made more accessible since despite growing commitments, climate finance remains beyond reach for those who need it most, including those that are disproportionately affected by climate change's effects, including women and girls. And it's important to stress, and I have to say this because I do really do think it's exceptionally important, that development cooperation has to be country-led, by which we mean quite simply that it is up to nation states themselves to tell us what their priorities are, It is up to the rest of us to respect those priorities because the most successful examples of development have been those that have been led vigorously by nation states themselves, making difficult decisions about priorities, making difficult decisions about internal resources, Making difficult decisions about savings, making difficult decisions about corruption, and making difficult decisions about illicit financial flows. That's the only way we're going to get a more successful cooperation system that works with impact and effectiveness. A top-down approach that is driven. By the system won't work. For many developing economies, especially facing— those facing mounting burdens of debt, we have to come to grips with the fact that there can be no possibility of achieving the SDGs without meaningful changes. And this is proving hard. In our meetings last week, it was still clear to me that there is a profound difference of opinion about the seriousness of the debt crisis facing many countries and about whether or not this is indeed a global issue. And I think we have to continue to reinforce the importance of this debate and this discussion. So we need to examine how development cooperation can balance the immediate crisis response with long— longer-term resilience. And again, it has to be said that the distinction between humanitarian assistance and development assistance is no longer as absolute as it might once have seemed. In some cases, we're seeing humanitarian crises that are lasting for decades. In other situations, we're not making the transition from humanitarian to development assistance quickly enough. And we need to take advantage of the growing awareness of fragility, the growing awareness of conflict. This was a positive outcome of our meeting last week with the IFIs, where there was a very quick embrace by the IFIs of the importance of the World Bank and the IMF developing programs that can effectively respond to crisis situations and more effectively respond to the reality of fragility and weak governance in many, many nation states. So we have to move beyond rhetoric, although this is what we do here— we talk to each other. But we want to put country leadership at the heart of our discussions, and we also need to discuss what it means to support country-led coordination, deepen engagement with partners, and do a better job of aligning international support with national strategies. We have a unique opportunity and a responsibility over the next day and a half to make sure that we're contributing to this discussion and dialogue that is underway as we speak in every country and underway in every institution. This is not, if you'll forgive me, an academic discussion. This is a very real discussion that is affecting how countries are responding to the level of crisis that we see. So having said that, I will now declare the forum officially open and ask my friend, Li Junhua, who's actually my boss, the Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, to deliver a statement. Mr. Li, the floor is yours.


DESA · USG Economic and Social Affairs · Li Junhua [10:42]:

Thank you. Thank you, Mr. President. I'm honored to be quoted by you to be the boss for the 5 You have 2 minutes. Well, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, it is a great honour for me to address you on behalf of the Deputy Secretary-General. We meet at a moment of profound challenges in international development cooperation. The foundation of global solidarity is under strain. Official development assistance is shrinking. Some of the leading ODA contributors are retreating from their commitments. Critical humanitarian and development programs are disrupted. Nearly 600 million people could still be living in extreme poverty by 2030. The Sustainable Development Goals are off track. Meanwhile, international capital is fleeing developing economies. Key to supporting national priorities, has fallen below half of the total ODA. Climate finance, vital to our planet's survival, remains a small fraction of the required $1.3 trillion annually. Too many countries are burdened with unsustainable debt, shrinking physical space, and fragmented development systems, that does not align with urgent needs and priorities. In this dysfunctional system, women and girls bear the heaviest burdens, facing disproportionate impacts that threaten to erase decades of hard-won progress on gender equality. This trajectory is unsustainable. A major paradigm shift is needed. Please allow me to share a few pivotal points for action. First, prioritize the most vulnerable. We should forge genuine partnerships that deliver predictable, sustained support to the most vulnerable. Grants have hit a 20-year low, while the middle-income countries get the bulk of finance. We must act proactively to prevent the next crisis. Second, simplify and streamline. Development cooperation must rebuild trust by empowering countries to lead, aligning with their national plans and platforms, and focusing on concrete results with sustained impact. Third, respect national ownership. Developing countries are burdened with navigating complex challenges. Development cooperation must not impose parallel systems, but leverage countries' national systems already in place. Fourth, strengthening domestic resources mobilization and address the obstacles that developing countries face in doing so. A coherent approach to international development cooperation also requires support for a fairer global tax system robust international action against illicit financial flows, and comprehensive reforms to modernize financial institutions. Fifth, modernize the global development architecture. We need to strengthen the UN and the regional platforms to ensure alignment with national needs and priorities, and to foster greater coherence and effectiveness. South-South and triangular cooperation, regional development banks, and innovative financing models must be integrated into our global approach. Excellencies, distinguished delegates, dear colleagues, we must seize the opportunity presented by LIS 2025 DCF to inject new dynamism to enrich and inform other milestone events in coming months. I'm counting on each of you to bring forward ambitious and actionable recommendations to fulfill the promise with solutions. Learn from each other's success or failures as diverse actors and stakeholders in development cooperation. Together, let us find common ground where progress is needed and achievable. The world's most vulnerable, those living in poverty and at risk, cannot afford further delay. Let us act with urgency, foresight, and solidarity this moment demands. Development cooperation must be smarter, more effective, and rooted in country leadership. Let us rise to this moment and create a future where no one is left behind. Thank you, Mr. President.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [16:23]:

Thank you very much, Mr. Lee. Appreciate it a great deal. I'm now going to ask the ASG, Mr. Navid Hanif, who's the Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development in DESA, to introduce the report of the Secretary-General on trends and progress in international Development Cooperation, which is contained in Document E/2025/8. Thank you, Mr.


DESA · ASG Economic Development · Navid Hanif [16:54]:

President. UST Lee, UST Dohate, I want to especially acknowledge the presence of Chair of the Development Assistance Committee from OECD, Ambassador Carsten Stauer, who has joined us from Paris. Thank you, Mr. President, for this discussion at the Development Cooperation Forum. It is an honour to present the 2025 Report of the Secretary-General on Trends in Progress in International Development Cooperation. The report makes clear that we are at a decisive moment for international development cooperation. Together with the Development Cooperation Survey study, the report delivers an unambiguous verdict: the global development cooperation system is not effectively responding to the needs and priorities of developing countries and local communities at the front lines of our efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The report identifies 4 imperatives for transforming development cooperation to make it fit for purpose, supported by data that demands our collective attention and action. First, we must restore the integrity, impact, quality and effectiveness of official development assistance. ODA remains a vital lifeline for many countries across the developing world, yet it accounts for only 0.3% of donor GNI, far below the longstanding 0.7% commitment. Many donors are further reducing their ODA budgets, due to competing demands on their fiscal resources. As for the least developed countries, the situation is even more serious. These countries receive a mere 0.08% of donor gross national income, a figure that falls significantly short of the commitment for between 0.15% and 0.2% of donor countries' GNI to be allocated to LDCs. In light of these trends, the report calls for a renewed commitment to the 0.7% GNI target and for at least 0.2% allocated to LDCs, a target also reflected in the co-facilitators' draft of the outcome document for FFD4. But the data also reveals a troubling shift in allocation patterns, given growing competing needs for concessional finance. For instance, country programmable aid— funds that are delivered to developing countries and are the most stable and predictable form of development finance— stands at a historic low. Only 43.4% of bilateral ODA. In 2000, in-donor refugee costs accounted for 9% of total ODA. Today, the figure has risen to 25% of total ODA, which is spent within the borders of donor countries for the competing demands on these resources by refugees. But this shift has long-term investments— effects on investments in education, health, infrastructure and economic transformation, and they remain chronically underfunded. Notably, the FFD4 Outcome Document calls for reversing these trends, including the share of ODA delivered to countries and budget support. There is also a proposal for setting a new indicator and targets for ODA programmes at the country level. The second imperative: we must scale up and simplify access to climate finance. COP29 established a new climate finance goal of $300 billion per year by 2035, an important step towards the estimated $1.3 trillion needed yearly for mitigation, adaptation, and resilience efforts. The DCF survey shows that Small Island Developing States and low-income countries face formidable barriers when it comes to climate finance: complex eligibility requirements, lengthy application procedures, and high transaction costs. The architecture of climate finance must be reformed to facilitate direct access to vulnerable countries, streamline reporting mechanisms, and reduce reliance on debt-based instruments that compound fiscal pressures on already stressed economies. Third imperative: we must ensure development cooperation modalities are aligned with development impact, such as leveraging private sector engagement in a meaningful way. In 2024, DCF survey reveals a stark disparity. Only 19% of SIDs, 17% of LDCs, and 19% of LLDCs report blended finance as a commonly used form of development finance— less than half of what upper-middle-income countries report. To date, blended finance largely benefits middle-income countries, leaving high-risk sectors and vulnerable countries underserved. Blended finance can be particularly valuable in projects which have difficulty attracting private finance on their own due to high perceived risks, which is the case in many vulnerable countries. Yet, if we focus only on quantity targets, we will likely continue to increase blended finance in middle-income countries, where risks are lower and average ratios are higher. It is time for a new approach to blended finance as called for in the draft FFDO Outcome Document, one that puts sustainable development impact at the centre. This implies better measurement of impact along with better aligning with national sustainable development strategies and nationally determined contributions. Finally, we must modernize the international development cooperation architecture. To make it fit for purpose. The development cooperation landscape has changed dramatically. With the proliferation of actors, instruments, and financing mechanisms, there is increased fragmentation and transaction costs. Developing countries now face a complex web of bilateral donors, multilateral banks, vertical funds, and private financiers, each with different conditions, reporting structures, and priorities. This complexity drains administrative capacity and undermines national ownership, which was so eloquently framed by the President in his opening remarks. National leadership cannot be overemphasized. To fix these problems, first we must reform the architecture to address fragmentation and incoherence at the country level, and this starts with empowering country leadership, national plans such as integrated national financing frameworks, and within such plans, development cooperation policies should be the foundation for effective cooperation. Second, national plans should be the basis of country-led coordination through country-led platforms. The DCF survey shows that almost 40% of developing countries have no government-led platform for bringing together international actors and domestic stakeholders to discuss issues and review progress. Third, we must pursue bold reforms toward an updated international development cooperation architecture that brings greater coherence in policies and actions for sustainable development. A first step is strengthening the Development Cooperation Forum as the most inclusive global platform for policy dialogue and knowledge-sharing, advancing creative ideas to address the challenges laid out in the Secretary-General's report. Ladies and gentlemen, looking to FFD4, we have a unique opportunity to reset international development cooperation. The message of the Secretary-General's report and the DCF survey is clear: this moment calls for a new global partnership for international development cooperation, one that is predictable, responsive, and resilient, one that is driven by solidarity, trust, country leadership, and policy coherence for sustainable development impact. I wish you a most productive meeting for the next day and a half. Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [27:17]:

Thank you so much, Naveed, and thank you for your continuing leadership. It's critically important that we continue to work very, very closely together as we move forward. And I now would like to give the floor to Kristalina Duarte, who, as you all know, is the Under-Secretary-General and Special Advisor of the Secretary-General on Africa. And because we want her remarks to have ultimate impact, and we'll have no difficulty, I'm sure, hearing that from her, please deliver your comments from the lectern, Kristalina. Get up there and speak.


UN · USG; Special Adviser on Africa · Cristina Duarte [27:54]:

There?


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [27:55]:

Yeah, that's it. You get the floor.


Speaker 8 [27:57]:

Sorry.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [27:58]:

You get the big mic.


UN · USG; Special Adviser on Africa · Cristina Duarte [28:04]:

Good morning to everybody. Good morning, Mr. President, good morning, Lee. Good morning, Naveed. I would like to start by asking your permission, Mr. President. May I? Can I deliver an out-of-the-box and bold intervention?


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [28:19]:

No, I expect you to give a speech that's completely conforming to the bureaucracy's language that you use all the time and to be entirely in conformity with those principles.


UN · USG; Special Adviser on Africa · Cristina Duarte [28:32]:

Thank you. So my intervention will be essentially analytical, analytical, and I hope that I will give a small and modest contribution to your call. You made a very clear call, Mr President, the need to rescue country-led processes. We need to understand why the President of ECOSOC today launching this call. You felt a need and you launched a call. What is the reason? So, protocols observed. I'm not so good in protocols. Development cooperation has never been more crucial than in today's deeply interconnected world. And when we talk about an interconnected world, we talk about globalization. Globalization has bound economies together, yet the multilateral institutions designed to regulate its forces are struggling to keep up. The current economic order has allowed wealth to accumulate in unprecedented ways, but it has also widened inequalities, as Mr. President named it, weakened states— the reason for the call of Mr. President— and marginalised billions of people. Today, you have 700 million people still lack energy access and 600 million remain trapped in extreme poverty. This contradiction highlights the urgent need to reassess the effectiveness of development cooperation in the modern world. To address this issue, I will focus on 3 key aspects. First, how international cooperation is shaped by the interplay between globalization and multilateralism. Second, the weakening of states as the primary actors in development cooperation and multilateral governance. And third, how these trends have culminated in growing global inequalities and what this means for the future of international cooperation. Let me start by the first one: how international cooperation is shaped by the interplay between globalization and multilateralism. We need to understand this feature of the system so we place, or at least we preserve, the space of development cooperation. We need to understand that globalization has essentially 2 features, very quickly. First, poverty alleviation is a byproduct. It does not belong to the DNA of globalization, so it's not an objective. Second feature, globalization produces on a permanent basis imbalances, so imbalances as systemic outcomes of globalization. Globalization is what it is. We need just to understand it, so we understand the value that development cooperation has now, let's say nowadays. So keeping in mind that globalization has essentially these 2 features— poverty alleviation is a byproduct and globalization produces on a permanent basis imbalances as systemic outcomes, the multilateral system has been essentially providing 2 key functions. The first function, as I said a couple of times, the multilateral system has been facilitating globalization, which is okay. We have, for example, World Bank, IMF, World Trade Organization. They have been Facilitate. So these institutions have promoted financial liberalisation, trade facilitation and large-scale infrastructure investments. These mechanisms have undeniable full economic expansion. This is the first function of multilateral institutions. Then you have the second function— we, this, in this room— is the function of— Control. Taking care, regulating the systemic imbalances produced by globalization. So multilateral frameworks are meant to counteract globalization's excess by fostering development cooperation, enforcing rights, addressing financial and environment instability. For example, the SDG framework, the Sustainable Development Framework, is exactly within this second function, trying to counteract the imbalances that are systematically produced by globalization. But what happened? Why did President Evgeny Kozak today feel the need to launch a call for country-led process? We need, in my opinion, to understand that the first function— or better, the second function Of globalization, the function that takes care of the imbalance produced by globalization, has been in a silent crowd-out. What is that second function? The regulatory function and the development cooperation function. So the second function, regulatory oversight and development cooperation, has been crowded out, increasingly marginalized. by the primary function. And when discussing in this room development cooperation, we need to be conscious that we development cooperation officers or soldiers have been in a silent process of being crowded out and you are struggling. You are struggling in this arena. And this led to 3 challenge outcomes. The first, regulatory deficits. The crowding out of this second function of the multilateral has produced huge deficits from a regulatory standpoint. And in fact, just to provide an example, weak oversight has been allowing the shift of profits to tax havens, resulting in $427 billion in tax losses globally. This is an indicator that indeed is one of the results of this crowding out. The second one, and I remember that I mentioned that in a previous ECOSOC event, is the lack of accountability. Global institutions lack enforcement mechanisms, as evident, for example, in the 2008 subprime financial crisis, when regulatory failures led to systemic collapse without meaningful reforms. Third result: multilateral inefficiencies that my colleague Li just mentioned. So bureaucratic inertia has hindered decisive action on global challenges such as climate change, exacerbating public scepticism towards multilateral governance. So we have this— how development cooperation has been shaped by the dynamics between globalisation and multilateralism. And you need to be conscious that within this dynamic, we need to fight on a permanent base for our space, the development cooperation space. Second issue: as a result of this process, we have been assisting in a silent way The weakening of states as pillars of international cooperation. This is the call that Mr. President just made. As globalisation has accelerated, states, the traditional actors in development cooperation, have experienced a silent yet significant erosion of their authority. And the decline of the regulatory and development cooperation functions of multilateralism has contributed to weakening the states in several ways. The first proxy of weakening of the states, the main players of development cooperation, is the erosion of social contract. This is the first proxy. And in fact, as we saw in the past, let's say, 60 years, the World War II economic model was built, as everybody knows in this room, on strong social contracts, where states play an active role in regulating economies, redistributing wealth and ensuring social stability. Today, that contract has been fractured. The second is the weakening and this weakening comes from both. Not only developing states have been under this silent weakening process, but also developed states. So this hollowing out of state capacity means that development cooperation, whether multilateral or bilateral, is increasingly dictated by market forces rather than a healthy and balanced correlation of forces among sovereign states despite the fact that full accountability to deliver development still lies in this side. We live a paradox. We are in the side of the world that we have the responsibility to deliver development through international cooperation, but the financial resources are not in that side of the world; financial resources are in a different side of the world. Then comes The third item: what are the consequences of this? Rising inequalities everywhere. The combination of these weakening states and globalization's unchecked expansion, because the second function has been crowded out, we have been facing a dramatic rise in inequalities. Intentionally, I will give you a couple of numbers from advanced For example, from '79 to about 2020, income growth for 90% of the developed— the population in developed countries was less than 0.5% per year on average, while productivity for those same countries increased by over 240%.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [39:25]:

Yes.


UN · USG; Special Adviser on Africa · Cristina Duarte [39:27]:

So there is this issue that weakening states have been unable to save, to preserve the social contract. And the same happened, let's say, in developed countries. This brings us the need to rethink, as Lee said, rethinking development cooperation for a just global order. So as you know, globalization has made development cooperation indispensable and this is the source of our value. Globalization needs us. They need us because globalization is a mechanism that if we leave it free is a permanent mechanism of producing imbalances, but this is globalization's nature. We, development cooperation soldiers, we need to fight to preserve our space because globalization needs us to keep the imbalance within an acceptable perimeter to avoid, for example, instability and conflict everywhere. And so, as I was saying, globalization has made development cooperation indispensable, yet our current frameworks are imbalanced. While institutions have successfully facilitated economic integration, they have failed to counteract its most damaging effects: inequality, environment degradation, and financial instability. A renewed development cooperation, as Navid mentioned, strategy must prioritise, first, stronger regulatory mechanisms. Enforce, for example, global tax policies to close the loopholes. Second, reinforce state capacities, country-led development cooperation process. And of course, we need to be more assertive regarding multilateral priorities. The focus of international institutions must move beyond facilitating trade And investment is okay, is good, is needed towards addressing structural inequalities and climate resilience. So the current trajectory is unsustainable. If development cooperation is to be effective in today's world, it must embrace a rebalancing of globalization, one where cooperation fosters not only economic expansion, but also social justice and human dignity. The time for incremental fixes is over. It's time for a bold remanaging of global governance, one that puts people at its centre. And the actual crisis is an opportunity for development cooperation to rescue again its own space. Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [42:27]:

Cristina, thank you so much.

As always, your comments hit home in ways that I think we all recognize whenever we hear you, so thank you so much for your leadership and for shaking things up. It's a very critical role that you play in our lives and in the UN system. We're going to take a brief pause while we rearrange the podium, as we say. There will be some people that we thank and who will leave the podium and others who will come. But thank you all for, for just giving us a couple of minutes to get some new people on the platform, and we'll go to the next stage.

Thank you. Thanks, Mr. Lee.

Good to see you.


Speaker 16 [43:14]:

Thanks a lot.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [43:28]:

Yeah, yeah, good.

Thank you. Good to see you, Naveed.


Speaker 18 [43:38]:

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's fine.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [44:47]:

So I'm going to invite the Council now to come back into order and we're going to begin our first panel discussion on making development cooperation work for today's world. And for those of you who wonder what I'm doing, I'm about to say a few words in French and then I'm going to introduce the moderator who's going to run the panel And looking forward very much to this discussion.

Mes collègues, colleagues, this roundtable seeks to set the scene for the rest of our discussions by addressing a fundamental question: What would international cooperation look like when placed? At the service of high-impact, high-quality development in a world characterized by systemic risks, multiple global crises, and evolving needs, priorities, and vulnerabilities of developing countries. I trust that this will prompt diverse exchanges, and a clearer vision of what international cooperation for development could look like when it is revitalized and results-driven. And most of all, as I said earlier and as my friend Kristina said, country-led by states. I would encourage speakers To also focus on specific ways of further aligning cooperation for development on— with the Sustainable Development Goals and for moving from global dialogue to action, which is very important for us to do.

I'm now very pleased to welcome the distinguished president— presenters for this discussion. But I'm going to ask my friend, my newfound friend, Mr. Shahrokh Fardoust, who's the research professor at the Global Research Institute at the College of William and Mary, to moderate the presentations. And I will then come back and moderate the discussion among all of you, questions and comments that will bring me back. But I will be listening carefully to the conversation. So, Shahrokh, you have the floor and you're in charge of this panel.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [47:30]:

Thank you, Mr. President. It is my great honour to have been asked to moderate this very distinguished panel for this very important gathering at a critical juncture. In the world economy. The panel hopes to open the door to an essential discussion and invites us to reflect on the core purpose of international development cooperation in today's world. As the global landscape continues to shift in uncertain ways, it is critical to reconsider the fundamental role of development cooperation and how it can best support countries addressing both emerging and ongoing issues. We also explore How to ensure that international development cooperation is truly guided by the needs, priorities, and vulnerabilities of developing countries? It's important that the support provided by the international community is tailored to what countries themselves identify as the most critical. Fostering a more effective, empowering approach to development— that is, country ownership— is critical. Additionally, the discussion will focus on how to secure sufficient funding for high-quality, high-impact international development cooperation striking a balance between immediate needs and long-term sustainable development goals. SDGs were on their way to reaching their goals. There were differences among countries, but progress was being made before the 2007-2008 global financial crisis, which was followed by the pandemic, COVID pandemic, and the war in Ukraine. And of course, the climate change has been going on, but was very much felt in 2023 alone. The damages from climate change, natural disasters around the world was close to $250 billion. Of which only 15% was insured. I want to thank the previous speakers, Mr. President, for their leadership and contribution which provided a strong foundation for action-oriented discussions with this panel. We would like the panel to discuss What is the core purpose of international development cooperation in today's world? How to ensure that international development cooperation is guided by needs and priorities and vulnerabilities of developing countries? And how to ensure sufficient high-quality, high-impact ODA, which was the only financial inflow for developing countries that was moderately rising until now, while private flows dropped precipitously. FDI and portfolio investment has dropped substantially into developing countries, so ODA is extremely critical, and especially to low-income countries. With that, let me turn to our panelists. It is my honor to introduce Mr. Carsten Starr, the Chair of the OECD Development Assistance Committee and who has served as Denmark's Ambassador to the OECD and UNESCO. He has over 40 years of experience in international diplomacy and development. Mr. Howard Nygaard is Deputy Director General at the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, leading the Knowledge and Innovation Department, previously a Research Director at Peace Research Institute in Oslo. He focuses on making Norwegian development aid evidence-based and effective. Panelists, I would like to invite you to consider the questions that have been raised for this panel and we will start with Mr. Carsten Starr. You have 5 to 7 minutes, sir.


OECD-DAC · Chair · Carsten Staur [53:21]:

Thank you, thank you very much, and let me say first of all that due to the time difference I woke up early this morning. And I rewrote my intervention, so now I am the prisoner of my own handwriting, which is not a very comfortable situation. But let me start with the obvious, that there is a very clear risk, put it that way, of a rapid backsliding in the volume of ODA this year. That will have an effect on the— especially on those who need concessional finance the most. In 2023, we saw the highest figure of ODA ever, $223 billion. This year is most likely to go down, and next year presumably even more. The reasons are country-specific. I think for many Europeans, one of the main reasons here are not the war in Ukraine, but the Russian aggression against Ukraine. And the security threat that Russia has become in Europe, which means that there is a need now to build up military capacities and capabilities. But anyway, if we look at the situation, it means that we will be facing a few years at least where we have less ODA at our disposal than we used to have. And that will, of course, create a number of challenges to us. ODA is not the only part of the international development architecture or the international development landscape, or however you will phrase it. There are other actors, there are South-South cooperation, there are IFIs, there are multilateral systems, there are international NGOs. We have a thriving private business also in the field, but ODA is still quite an important part of the tapestry of international development cooperation. There's no doubt in my mind that with less ODA, we need to refocus the use of ODA even more. It was originally intended to serve to the benefit of the poorest and most vulnerable, and I think we need very much to reconsider and to re-emphasize that purpose in the short term and in the longer term. And it's become even more important to do the right thing and to do it right. So where is ODA most needed? No doubt, humanitarian lifesaving, as we see these days and weeks. Also, an emphasis on low-income countries, on LDCs, on fragile and conflict-affected countries. We have data that shows that we have around 50 countries in this world which has— where more than 5% of their GNI depends on ODA. If you look at the most fragile countries, the extreme fragile countries, around 18, two-thirds of their external finance comes from ODA, one-third from remittances, and there are hardly any direct investments. So it's very clear that ODA has an important and an impact on those countries that are the poorest, the most vulnerable, the most fragile. So we not only need to direct ODA towards those countries, we also need to do it right, to be more effective, to have more impact, more results together with our partners and working, of course, based on national ownership. We know that there are challenges and problems in our way. We know the issues of fragmentation, of dispersion, of lack of cooperation, of lack of alignment. Basically, the whole notion that we also talk about as ownership, we also like to talk of whole-of-country ownership, whole-of-society ownership in that context, but we are aware of those things and we need to find a way proper forward where we can be more proactive and more forward-leaning in dealing with those challenges that have been building up for a number of years. We need to re-rank-fence ODA. On those countries and those contexts where it makes most sense and where there are no alternatives, and we need to reinforce it on alleviation of poverty and inequality. But we also need to tap on the ODA's possibility or potential to catalyze, to enable, to mobilize other resources. And that has been a very dominant part of the discourse now, and still, I think, with some merit, and it calls for us to use a higher share of ODA for that purpose. And here I talk about following up on MDB reform, on optimizing balance sheets, but also to channel more funding through the multilateral development banks. I talk about domestic resource mobilization as an area where ODA has been very, very limited, very, very scarcely used. In funding domestic resource mobilization, and we have a huge potential to do more on that front and to solidify the economies of our partner countries in a way that will basically be quite important. And then we talk about private finance. Promises were made in Addis 10 years ago. We have done something, we have moved forward, but not enough. We have created vehicles and instruments, and the challenge now is both to take it to scale and to coordinate better. I also want to say that at the basis of all this is the observation that ODA is only part of the whole picture. ODA, even if in the best of circumstances, even if we were— all members of the DAC were to devote 0.7% of their GNI to ODA, ODA would not be able to cover— it will be less than 10% of the financing need, the financing gap in 2030. So the enabling environment, the enabling capacities and the mobilizing capacities, the catalytic role of ODA, I think, is incredibly important. If we use ODA wisely in the years to come, if we tap into not only the financial ability of ODA, but also the technical expertise, the capacity-building potential, we will have, I think, a good opportunity to co-enable, to co-create more development and better development than we have been in the context of doing so far, but of course, especially in countries furthest behind. I fully agree with the Under-Secretary-General that we need to do it smarter, And I think there's an opportunity to do that. Now, the President, in his opening remarks, also said that there's no place for duplication, and I took a note of that. And it is true. There's no place for duplication. When resources get scarcer, we need to basically be able to optimize and to focus and prioritize much better than we have been doing in the past. If we are to do that— and I say it's not only there's no place for duplication, it's also there's basically no place for unnecessary and unproductive turf battles. That is also a clear risk in the present circumstances. I think the challenges are too many, the time is too short for that, and we need really to focus. We need to be pragmatic, we need to be unbureaucratic, and we need to have a clear focus on country leadership and country ownership. But if we do that, even if it is deplorable and regrettable that the most likely outcome is a decline in ODA in the years to come, come, there is still a resource in ODA that can be used very productively together with partner countries in a way that can boost and give credence to their development efforts. And I think we should use that opportunity and we should look at that upside, that potential upside, as much as we deplore the downside. Thank you very much.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [1:01:27]:

Thank you.


OECD-DAC · Chair · Carsten Staur [1:01:27]:

Thank you very much.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [1:01:29]:

Now we go to Ms. Crespo. Please, 5 minutes. Keep it to five minutes. Thank you.


Peru · Ashley Bartoja [1:01:39]:

Muchas gracias.

Thank you very much. My name is Ashley Bartoja, not Crespo.

Creo que estamos en un momento.

I think that we're at a very important moment, given the current debate about. Cooperation and we also need to look at other perspectives. My intervention refers to some of these aspects. On the current international stage which is marked by various interconnected phenomena like climate change, migration, inequality, new geopolitical trends, and disruptive technological changes, international cooperation is at a pivotal moment when it needs to take on a leading role and continue strengthening its strategic function as a tool which promotes development and multilateralism, facilitating multisectoral, multilevel, and multistakeholder dialogue and providing collaborative solutions in response to complex global challenges. In accordance— in line with what was pointed out in the Secretary-General's report, we observe Rising channeling of funds towards climate emergencies, global public goods, and humanitarian crises. While this rechanneling of resources is necessary to address immediate challenges, we should not sideline the principal long-term goal of cooperation. Which is, of course, to complement efforts made by states as they combat structural poverty and seek to reduce inequalities among the most vulnerable populations. Against this backdrop, there is a need to move towards a new development paradigm and that will involve Technical assistance programs, and knowledge exchange. With that in mind, it will be important to address the importance of matters such as artificial intelligence as this is simultaneously an opportunity and challenge in the current international cooperation and development landscape. Peru, alongside its Latin American partners, has at various fora raised the need to review the criteria which govern the international cooperation system, particularly the allocation of official development assistance, which only considers income per capita as a criterion for the measurement of development and which— because of this, we need to move towards a multidimensional development approach which appropriately takes into account vulnerabilities, structural divides, and inequalities of developing countries going above and beyond income. Peru alongside counterparts in the region is working to develop some suggested elements which we hope to bring to the Seville Conference so that they can be considered in the outcome declaration. The main goal here is to promote the multidimensional development approach and to have the complementary benefit of other indicators, allowing us greater access to financing for development mechanisms as developing countries whose access to these resources is curtailed as they are classed as high— middle-income or upper-middle-income countries. In that context, Peru recommends assessing the incorporation of social mobility as a multidimensional measurement of development given that this is linked to structural inequalities which persist in developing countries. Including middle-income and upper-middle-income countries such as Peru. Similarly, the inclusion of social mobility as an eligibility criterion for official development assistance could lead to more equitable and sustained access to— to international financing for development. Resources. Peru's International Cooperation Agency has been studying social mobility in all of its forms as conceptualized by the United Nations, like the equitable increase of opportunities that people can benefit in terms of health, education, and income throughout their life and between generations. Because of this, social mobility is associated with access to opportunities and information. Given that, this agency would like to call upon other countries and organizations to join us in our analysis of social mobility as a multidimensional development measurement indicator. It's therefore important to have active participation from technical cooperation bodies at the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development in Seville. That's because the conference will address development indicators which have an impact on financing for development and a direct impact on the international cooperation system. Such an action will allow us to show— to shed light on the multidimensional approach to measuring development indicators above and beyond the metrics of GDP. As underscored by our National International Technical Cooperation Policy, it's vital to reaffirm that international cooperation needs to be aligned with national development priorities of countries. We should consider that cooperation resources are few and far between and their value-add consists in their catalyst effect and the impact that they bring to development. I'd like to move to a few suggestions. Revising and formulating a new metric for measuring development with a multidimensional approach and universal scope to recognize vulnerabilities, structural divides, and real inequalities of all developing countries. I'd like to also request that the ECOSOC develop a study on social mobility as a multidimensional development indicator as well as its dimensions and possible applications in the context of international cooperation. We should update the only criterion for ODA which is income per capita as well as its methodology in terms of how this is accounted for. We should align international cooperation with national development policies and strengthen systems for follow-up monitoring and assessment to improve the quality and efficiency of cooperation, taking into account the principles of transparency and accountability. Dialogue needs to be strengthened, as does effectiveness and scope of South-South and triangular cooperation. We need to increase the contribution of developed countries, international organizations, and multilateral institutions to these forms of cooperation complementing ODA. We need to also promote mechanisms for financing for development to complement ODA and which should mobilize public and private resources, establishing governance frameworks to guarantee transparency and accountability when they are implemented. May I ask you to go first?


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [1:11:41]:

Please limit it to 5 minutes.


NORAD · Deputy Director General · Howard Nygaard [1:11:43]:

I'll try to keep it to 5 minutes. Okay, Mr. President, friends of development cooperation, so the Sustainable Development Agenda is severely off track. By last count, only 17% of targets are within reach. A full third are either completely stagnant or even going in the wrong direction. 700 million people, as we've already heard, still live in abject poverty, and an estimated 600 million will still do so in 2030. At the same time, the system of international development cooperation is going through dramatic changes. Current estimates indicate that total official development assistance flows could be 25% lower in 2027 in an optimistic scenario. Total assistance flows have contracted before, but nothing like that. A 25% decrease in ODA necessitates a fundamental rethink of what development assistance is for and what it can achieve. Against that backdrop, the focus of this session is more pertinent than ever. The concept of development assistance has actually been surprisingly resilient for now close to 70 years. Yet many are now questioning the very concept of development assistance, the architecture of it, the mandate, even the rationale. So to that end, I would like to make 2 points. First, we are and have for a long time been asking too much of development assistance. For donors, the development assistance budget has become the pot of money we reach for to solve most challenges outside outside of our own borders. This has made development assistance stretched. Indeed, development assistance no longer is used only for poverty reduction, economic growth, and humanitarian assistance. Development assistance is now also critical for providing a broad set of essentially and essential global public goods, goods that benefit everyone, including us as donors. To reiterate that point, right, so a string of reports have described the problems facing ODA and the broader development agenda. To the point that they are now well known. We know that development assistance is being pulled in many directions and will not come close to satisfying the heightened ambitions, expectations, and needs that we see today. This is a problem of quantity and of quality. At the same time, in the last few years, we have actually seen record-breaking levels of development assistance. Assistance. These increases in financial flows, however, are mainly due to a form of crisis response, whether it's pandemic, the consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, or of humanitarian disasters. Financial flows to core long-term development aims have been stagnant or even decreasing, and the share of development assistance, as we have already heard, that can be programmed by countries themselves for long-term development is at an all-time low. Put simply, we are increasingly using development assistance to put out fires instead of preventing them. In a time of disruption and deep-seated changes, we need to safeguard the best of official development assistance, the best of the practices, the lessons we have learned throughout the decades of development cooperation, and ensure that they complement the broader financing for development agenda. But we also need to adapt and adjust. A critical question now is how will we do development cooperation in a time of geopolitical tensions, of multipolarity, of increasing pressures on domestic budgets, with record levels of displacement and migration, and underlying all of this, emerging global challenges that require global collective action. As part of this, we need to reinvigorate the idea of prevention, of resilience. That is true whether we're talking about extreme weather and climate disasters, conflicts, financial instability, or infectious disease. These are all problems with significant spillovers, but also problems that will not be solved merely by dealing with symptoms. The calls for change and reform of the system of development assistance have gained momentum in recent years. The critique is now coming from many different places. We need to find a way to harness that critique. Second, we have to come to grips with what development assistance can actually achieve. Everything good in all places is not a viable strategy. As we've reached for development assistance to solve an ever-broadening array of local and global challenges, we have also oversold what development assistance can achieve. We know that achieving prosperity, and even more importantly, halting the undermining of development, increasingly requires finding solutions to cross-border challenges, what is often referred to as global public goods. This task clearly goes beyond what development assistance or traditional development cooperation can do, but it is nevertheless an essential part of development and future development cooperation, as it requires genuine collective action. Development assistance sums up to a limited amount of precious funding. It can't do all we want it to do. But don't get me wrong, development assistance has been a tremendous force for good. Humanitarian assistance saves lives and protects basic human dignity of millions of people. Long-term assistance has improved health, provided education, ensured critical social protection that enables people to lift themselves out of poverty. In short, development assistance has made people's lives better. And it could do much more. 30 years ago, development economics and social science entered a credibility revolution. It might sound esoteric. Generally, there is not a lot of talk about randomized controlled trials in the ECOSOC chamber, But because of that, we now know a lot about what works, what works best, and perhaps most importantly, what doesn't work in development assistance. We also know that in development, the variation in cost-effectiveness is large. Many, maybe even most programs provide some benefits, but the best programs provide many more benefits at a fraction of the price. A simple ambition: if we doubled the effectiveness of just 1% of development assistance, that would be equivalent of increasing our available budget with a sum equal to Belgium's total development spending. At NORAD, we have a slogan for that. We call it Fakta har makta. I won't try to translate it. So we've been here before. Flows of development assistance decreased precipitously in the late '80s and early '90s. At that time, the reduction in financial flows was met with a reinvigorated emphasis and concentrated efforts to revamp the normative footing and the practice of development assistance. Out of this period, the idea of the World Bank as a knowledge bank was born. The ideas that would eventually inform the Principles for Effective Development assistance were hatched. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Paris Declaration for Effective Development Cooperation. The Paris Principles— results-oriented, locally-led, aligned and harmonized, and accountable— are as valid as ever. They provide a roadmap to improve and strengthen development assistance. The roadmap— a roadmap, it is about time that we followed. Thank you.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [1:19:52]:

Thank you very much. I think we had excellent presentations. The issue is there is a huge competition between development at the country level and dealing with global crises which are caused mainly by inadequate provision of global and regional public goods. Pandemics, climate change, wars and other issues that are cross-border can be prevented if there is adequate provision of global public goods. And fortunately we have the UN system. In place, but the system needs to now tackle these new issues which are happening much more frequently and pushing countries off track in reaching their Sustainable Development Goals. Of course, adequacy of resources, financial resources, is important, but the points that have been made by the panellists that it could be used much more efficiently, but handling both the SDGs at the country level and dealing with the global public goods requires very close cooperation among countries. And I think this is something that I'm hoping that will resonate throughout the day— the need for more intense and new type of cooperation to deal with crises and try to prevent them. Now, I would like to hand I'm going to give the microphone to the President for the interactive session.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:21:41]:

Thank you very much. We're going to have the— what is euphemistically called the interactive session. I'm delighted to— we've heard from the experts and now we're going to hear from the rest of us who are the non-experts, but nevertheless the views of us and our governments are exceptionally important. Just to say, colleagues, that the clock is ticking, so I will shut up quickly. I have 3 representations from groups who get 5 minutes, and then I have a long list of member states who get 3 minutes. And I just have to give you one other warning, and that is that you only get 3 minutes and your microphones will be cut off. Not by me, but by artificial intelligence that acts on an impersonal basis. Kings, ambassadors, experts, and others are all treated the same, and your microphones will be silenced and we will move on. So let me first start with the government of Iraq, who's speaking on behalf of the G77 and China. I'll then go to Nepal, and then I'll then go to Equatorial Guinea. Iraq, please.


Iraq · G77 + China [1:23:04]:

Mr. President, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, I have the honour to deliver this brief intervention on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. At this critical juncture, where global crises are deepening inequalities and reversing hard-earned development gains, international cooperation must rise to meet the moment. The Development Cooperation Forum is a vital space for ensuring that global cooperation— sorry, that global commitments translate into real impact for developing countries. The Group urged developed countries to fulfil their longstanding ODA commitments and to prioritise grants and concessional financing over loans, particularly to less developed countries , landlocked developing countries , and small island developing states , as enhancing development effectiveness, fragmentation, and development financing continues to pose challenges for developing countries, increasing transactions costs and misaligning resources with the national priorities. The Group calls on all development partners, including UN agencies, financial institutions, and bilateral donors, to align their assistance with the country-led development plans, scale up Bajaj supports and, and reverses the declining share of aid reaching developing countries. The climate crisis disproportionately impacts developing countries, yet climate finance remains insufficient. Developing countries require accessible grant-based funding for adaptation, mitigation, and loss and damage recovery. Technology transfer must be scaled up to ensure sustainable industrialization for security and clean energy transitions in developing countries. We call for removing barriers that limit access to essential technologies. The upcoming 4th International Conference on Financing for Development presents an opportunity for meaningful reform of the international financial system. Governance structure of multilateral development banks must be reformed to better serve developing countries. The group strongly opposes coercive economic measures, including unilateral sanctions, which undermine national development efforts and the achievement of SDGs. Finally, development cooperation must be centered on equity, country ownership, and the fulfillment of global commitments. The Group of the 77 and China remains committed to constructively dialogue and to work towards finding durable solutions and actions to ensure no one and no country is left behind. I thank you, Mr. President.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:26:17]:

I thank my delegate from Iraq. I now call upon and my friend, the Ambassador from Nepal, Ambassador Thapa, who, by the way, will be the next President of ECOSOC, so stay tuned. On behalf of the Group of Least Developed Countries, go ahead, Lok. Thank you.


Nepal · LDCs · Ambassador · Thapa [1:26:33]:

Thank you, Mr. President. Firstly, I appreciate the panellists for their excellent and comprehensive presentations. With only 5 years left to 2030, LDCs remain far behind in achieving the LDCs are facing disproportionately high impacts of multiple and intersecting global crises. The frequent global shocks, crises, and climate-induced disasters have further enhanced the extreme vulnerability of LDCs. Millions of people living in the LDCs are suffering from extreme poverty and hunger. External trade and private capital flows in LDCs remain Stagnant, so does the domestic resource mobilizations. Consequently, the debt situation in LDCs has reached alarming levels in recent years. Half of the LDCs are in debt distress or at high risk of it. Many of them spend more on debt service payments than in health and education. For this, international development cooperation is critical for for poverty reductions, capacity building, and economic growth, as well as for catalyzing and complementing to sustain the domestic resources in LDCs. Indeed, LDCs urgently need more grants and concessional resources, as highlighted in the Secretary-General's report, to ensure equitable and effective support for their sustainable development. Nevertheless, LDCs are facing a global ODA landscape that does not align with this urgency. Although ODA reached a record in 2023, it has not kept up with growing demands. It accounts for just 0.37% of donor country GNI. ODA to LDCs remains far below the target. Moreover, to our consternation, the composition of ODA has changed notably, with grants dropping to 63% of total ODA in 2022. Beyond issues of funding levels and composition, the current ODA landscape faces numerous challenges, including fragmentation, lack of donor coordination, budget circumventions, inequitable distributions, the inclusion of administrative and human resources costs, in country allocations and shifting priorities. Moreover, the agencies are rapidly proliferating. To take an example of Nepal, there are more than 250 agencies currently working in Nepal. A huge gap is left behind in the recipient country after the completion of project due to the practices of external audit and procurement mechanisms. Mr. President, against this background, let me highlight the a few points. First, developed countries must fulfill the commitment of 0.7% of ODA target for developing countries and 0.2% for LDCs. We must uphold the provisions of at least 90% of ODA to LDCs in the form of grants, in line with the 1978 DAC recommendations. Second, we must channel a substantial share of ODA toward budget support to enhance alignment with national development strategies, improve service delivery, and build resilience. Third, we strongly urge scaling of climate finance, especially through grants and non-debt-creating instruments with new and additional financing for climate. Developed countries must fulfill the commitment to climate funds and establish a minimum allocation floor for LDCs from the USD 300 billion commitment, with at least 50% dedicated to adaptation. Fourth, we must enhance support for capacity development and long-term governance ability of LDCs for sustainable development. Fifth, we must focus on country ownership, reduce fragmentation, and alignment of ODA with national policies, priorities, and strategies. In conclusion, Mr. President, we strongly call upon to further increase their support and development assistance to LDCs. This is not the moment of retreat from development assistance. FFD4 is a unique opportunity to assess progress made since Addis and take necessary measures to address the gaps and unfinished work. We are confident that the discussion and debate in DCF would contribute to a meaningful outcome in FFD4 and contribute to mobilizing development cooperation as a catalyst for enabling developing countries to pursue a self-reliant path toward a prosperous and sustainable future. I thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:31:35]:

You met the clock.

Je donne la parole à I now give the floor to my colleague from Equatorial Guinea on behalf of a group of African countries.

Member of this year's ECOSOC. Thank you, Anatolio. Go ahead.


Equatorial Guinea · Africa Group · Anatolio [1:31:52]:

Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. President, I'm taking the floor on behalf of the African group. First of all, I would like to express thanks and appreciation to all the members of the panel, the panelists. Thank you very much, Mr. President, for your excellent and brilliant presentations. This year's forum takes place in a critical time. Now more than ever, international cooperation must be strengthened and reoriented to ensure that global commitments are translated into tangible results. The African Group remains firmly committed to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, recognizing it as a universal roadmap for people, planet, and prosperity. In parallel, we continue to advance our own continental vision throughout the Agenda 2063, which charts the course toward an integrated, prosperous, and peaceful Africa. The convergence of these 2 agendas underscores the need for a renewed global partnership that aligns international cooperation with national and regional priorities. Excellencies, we wish to express our concern over the decline of ODA to Africa in recent years and call for a reversal of this trend. To ensure that development cooperation delivers real impact, resources must be mobilized in ways that strengthen national systems, enhance productive capacities, and foster economic transformation. The African Continental Free Trade Area is a concrete step in this direction, providing a framework for industrialization, value chain development, and deeper economic integration, and we encourage development partners to support the African Continental Free Trade Adjustment Fund. International cooperation can play a decisive role by facilitating investment in infrastructure, promoting trade facilitation, and strengthening the resilience of African economies. Technology and innovations are also essential enablers for sustainable development. Strengthened international partnership should facilitate technology transfer, capacity building, and investment in research and development, ensuring that Africa can fully leverage its potential and contribute to global progress. Furthermore, addressing systemic challenges in the global financial architecture is key to ensuring that development finance is fair, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of developing countries. In this regard, Mr. President, we urge at least 5 countries to contribute to the SDR-based hybrid capital channeling solutions developed by the African Development Bank by the end of 2025, and also look forward to an ambitious replenishment of African Development Funds. Africa continues to face high borrowing costs, limited access to concessional finance, and a lack of representation in decision-making processes with international financial institutions. Reforming these structures is fundamental to unlocking the resources needed to achieve both Agenda 2030 and Agenda 2063. To conclude, Mr. President, the African Group believes this Forum must serve as a platform for concrete action by fostering inclusive partnership enhancing financial mechanisms, and ensuring that development cooperation is aligned with national and regional priorities. I thank you, Mr. President.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:36:14]:

Thank you very much, Anatolio. Who have I got here? First speaker is the Dominican Republic, followed by Angola, followed by Thank you very much.


Dominican Republic [1:36:33]:

The Dominican Republic reiterates its commitment to multilateralism, sustainable and inclusive development, leaving nobody behind, and international cooperation in all of its forms. Small island developing states such as the Dominican Republic face various climate and economic risks and need to strengthen their capacity to adapt to climate change as well as vulnerabilities and structural challenges so that we can inter alia ensure our food security. Climate emergencies are compelling our countries to allocate a major part of our gross domestic product to offsetting the effects of these emergencies. And as we all know, any small island developing state in the Caribbean or Pacific can go from moderate prosperity to poverty in just the course of one natural disaster. Additionally, one of the most pressing challenges for developing countries is access to global public goods such as health, food security, technology innovation, and knowledge infrastructure. Access to these goods is essential for economic development, improving competitiveness, strengthening local capacities, and having an impact on the well-being of persons. It's therefore vital to create new international mechanisms which are inclusive and promote equitable access to strategic global goods, guaranteeing that developing countries can benefit from progress in technology, health, education, and other strategic sectors for development. The Dominican Republic reiterates its commitment to promoting international cooperation which is based on social justice, inclusion, and respect for human rights. Only with a genuine collective effort will we be able to ensure a sustainable, prosperous, and just future for all men and women alike.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:38:36]:

Muchas gracias.


Dominican Republic [1:38:37]:

Thank you very much.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:38:37]:

The floor now to the distinguished representative of Angola, to be followed by the distinguished representative of Spain. The floor is yours.


Angola [1:38:49]:

Mr. President, international development cooperation must be a real and sustainable engine of transformation tailored to the concrete needs of developing countries. The Republic of Angola has made significant progress in its socio-economic transformation, aligned with the objectives of the National Development Plan 2023-2027 and Long-Term Strategy Angola 2050. Our commitment to sustainable development is reflected in the government's agenda for economic diversification, modernization, of infrastructure and reforms to strengthen the business environment. We have prioritized reducing dependence on natural resources by investing in strategic sectors such as agriculture, industry, the digital economy, and renewable energies. Human capital development remains also a priority, with significant investments in education and professional training, which are essential for the creation of skilled jobs and inclusive growth. Angola recognizes that international cooperation plays a central role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. However, for its effectiveness, it must be aligned with national priorities and promote structural transformation in developing economies. Angola advocates an approach that prioritizes productive investment, institutional capacity building, and the creation of decent jobs.

We need more equitable partnerships where beneficiary countries have an effective—

an active voice in defining and implementing their development strategy. Cooperation mechanisms must be more flexible, innovative, and focused on solutions that generate tangible impacts for the populations. In conclusion, Mr. President, Angola reaffirms its commitment to continue working with all partners in creating a new model of international cooperation that not only responds to global challenges but also strengthens the resilience and autonomy of developing countries.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:41:02]:

I thank you. I thank the representative from Angola. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Spain.


Spain [1:41:13]:

Thank you very much, President. International cooperation for sustainable development is clearly facing a decisive moment. We are seeing a rise in conflicts, the impact of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss, but also the problems faced by many developing countries, the lack of progress in poverty eradication and getting rid of inequalities to which we all pledged ourselves a decade ago when we unanimously decided that the 2030 Agenda would be our shared guide for our goals, and this places question over our trustworthiness as global societies and our ability to respond. 5 years ago, the rate— to compare our rates of progress towards the SDGs today to 5 years ago is concerning. We're far behind, and there's a clear need to improve international cooperation to be in line with current global expectations. To adapt to this reality, Spain believes that we have 3 major axes here. First, renewed and strengthened multilateralism. The multilateral system is facing governance issues and there are questions raised about it. Spain, more than ever, is in favor of multilateralism. However, we also need to have a system which works and which is able to resist challenges. Despite everything, as there are urgent challenges we need to respond to. And over recent years, we have been backing reforms geared towards maximizing the impact of the SDGs, a reform of the SDG system across the world, which more than ever focuses on transparency and allocation of resources, but also a reform which protects the heart of our collective actions and our vital principles such as equality, environmental sustainability, and climate justice. As well as the human rights approach. Second, more effective and aligned cooperation. With that in mind, we believe that we need to consolidate our approach with strategic alliances at various levels which are genuinely geared towards shared goals and developing policies for sustainable development, ensuring that we align multilateral initiatives with national and local sustainable development strategies. Spain supports initiatives working to achieve this goal, to foster interagency cooperation and place this at the service of support for partner countries. And more recently, we have also worked hand in hand with the UN and other international organizations Second, to foster financial planning, taking into account partner countries' needs with tools such as comprehensive international financing frameworks. Third, an international system needs to— the international system needs to be fairer and more accessible. The microphone was cut off.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:44:16]:

I'm afraid the time is— the clock has worked its injustice. If you can give us your full remarks, we're glad to make sure they're incorporated into the proceedings. Next, turn to Suriname, Indonesia, and then Slovenia. Suriname.


Suriname [1:44:37]:

Thank you for giving me the floor, Mr. President. We thank the panelists for their valuable insights. Suriname aligns itself with the statement delivered by the distinguished representative of Iraq on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and wishes to add the following in its national capacity. Mr. President, making development cooperation work for today's world cannot be done in silos. We firmly believe that international cooperation is a key driver of sustainable development, resilience, and shared prosperity. The impact of the global challenges clearly shows the need to enhance global regional, national, and local partnerships for sustainable development in order to encourage and expand concrete actions to make the SDGs a reality in the lives of our people. At the same time, it is important to continue investing in people, technology, and institutional frameworks to build a sustainable and just future. Making development cooperation work for the people on the ground also requires urgent and targeted action within a renewed financing for development framework. We believe that the upcoming 4th International Conference on Financing for Development presents an opportunity to close the gap between aspiration and financing through accelerated reforms and coordination within the international financial architecture. We have to ensure that financing mechanisms are responsive to the specific needs of developing countries, particularly the special circumstances of small island developing and low-lying coastal states, which are amongst the most vulnerable to the impact of climate change. As highlighted in the Secretary-General's report on trends and progress in international development cooperation, despite increasing as a share of ODA, climate finance, including financing for adaptation remains grossly inadequate to effectively address the scale of climate challenges, especially in the most vulnerable countries. We therefore underscore the importance of increased and more predictable financing for climate adaptation and mitigation while maintaining the separation between treatment of climate finance and development finance. Mr. President, in closing, we believe that national ownership in development strategies remains crucial to ensure that international development cooperation is guided by needs, priorities, and vulnerabilities of developing countries. I thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:47:17]:

I thank the distinguished representative from Suriname. I now call upon the representative from Indonesia, to be followed by Slovenia.


Indonesia [1:47:28]:

Thank you, Mr. President. We thank all the panelists for their insightful presentation. Indonesia aligns itself with the statement delivered by Iraq on behalf of the G77 and China and wish to add several points in our national capacity. Mr. President, 5 years to fulfill the 2030 Agenda, not only we are severely off track, the adequate means of implementation is still far of our reach. As pointed out by the Secretary-General and also raised by many speakers this morning, the shifting of donor priorities and increased fragmentation are among major challenges we face today. On this note, allow me to underline 3 points. First, advancing political leadership is crucial. In the midst of so many pushbacks, it is important for us to remain committed to the Sustainable Development Agenda through enhancing effectiveness, impact, and quality of our development cooperation. In this regard, as the co-chair of the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation, Indonesia calls for stronger country ownership with improved coordination among donors and partners. Second, advancing partnership to mobilize the required financing for development is critical. With the continuous depletion of ODA and many unfulfilled commitments from the developed countries, innovative financing mechanisms are the options to go. From Indonesia's experience, the INFF has been instrumental in optimizing and enhancing the allocation of different public and private financing resources, including through innovative financing instruments such as Green Sukuk, Blue Bond, and blended finance. The upcoming FFD4 is a golden opportunity for all of us not to be missed, to mobilize the required funding and partnership to turbocharging the SDGs achievements. Third, revamping the UN development system, including the UN Resident Coordinator System. This would be key in assisting governments to improve coherence between national priority priorities and resource allocation, as well as increasing governance capacity, building public confidence and trust among development partners. Mr. President, in closing, we believe that entering the UN's 80th anniversary, it's time to push for reform of the multilateral system, including the Doha Round, to ensure international development cooperation is better fit for purpose. Through this forum, the ECOSOC should lay the groundwork towards that end. I thank you, Mr. President.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:50:10]:

Thank the representative from Indonesia. I call upon Slovenia, to be followed by the representative of Oxfam.


Slovenia [1:50:20]:

Thank you, Mr. President. At the outset, I wish to thank the panellists for their insightful and informative remarks. Slovenia concurs with the findings of the Secretary-General's report on trends and progress in international development cooperation, and we welcome its recommendations. Allow me to raise 3 points. First, the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance is rising at an alarming rate due to armed conflicts, effects of climate change, and other crises. Slovenia underlines the importance of comprehensive solutions to the complexities of fragile contexts. The humanitarian-development-peace nexus is the key approach to break the vicious cycle of instability and conflict, promote peaceful, resilient, and inclusive societies, improve governance, and strengthen the capacities to form and implement development strategies. Second, Slovenia firmly supports locally-led development, which brings deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities, provides more relevant and targeted solutions, as well as increases ownership and accountability. We highlight the importance of social inclusion, in particular participation and leadership of women and girls in this process. While localization plays an essential role for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, ensuring additional funds and overcoming the financing gap remains a top priority, as stipulated in the Pact for the Future. Slovenia recognizes the importance of mobilizing public, private, domestic, and international resources and engage all stakeholders to do their part. Third, we must pay particular attention to the specific needs and challenges of the most vulnerable developing countries. For this reason, Slovenia supported the introduction of the multidimensional Vulnerability Index to address structural weaknesses and improve resilience of developing countries to external shocks. In addition, we underline the importance of broadening the donor base in support of the most vulnerable. The 4th International Conference on Financing for Development comes at a critical moment. With 5 years remaining until 2030, it brings a unique opportunity to strengthen the global development cooperation architecture architecture and make it more fit for purpose. To conclude, Slovenia firmly believes that Member States must deliver on the commitments set out in 2015 to ensure a safer, healthier, and more prosperous world for all.

I thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:52:58]:

I thank the representative from Slovenia. I now give the floor to the representative from Oxfam.


OXFAM · Civil Society Mechanism [1:53:07]:

Thank you. On behalf of Oxfam and the Civil Society Mechanism, we'd like to issue an appeal. Already various speakers have said we need a review in a world which is ever more stable and where there are more and more conflicts. We need more assistance and resources for development rather than less. First of all, that's because it's the right thing to do and we need to remind ourselves that now more than ever financing for development and assistance is a tool of international solidarity and cooperation, one of the few tools we have at our disposal for this and so it's more needed than ever to emphasize its value. But second, it's also an investment in peace. And hopefully in fewer conflicts in the future. We otherwise will see more wars breaking out in other regions of the world. We risk forgetting that when wars end, we also need to rebuild and we need to set the foundations of a lasting peace rather than this just becoming an intermission between 2 conflicts. So international solidarity is a tool for peace in and of itself. It shouldn't be competing with defense and security as often it is framed as part of some kind of false dilemma from donor countries. We therefore would like to clearly appeal for you all to understand that this is a decisive moment and that peace and stability shouldn't be sidelined in terms of budgets to the benefit of defense. We also need assistance and solidarity and international cooperation. Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [1:54:58]:

Thank you so much. Colleagues, we're now going to turn back to the moderator for a moment just to give the— because this is supposed to be interactive, we don't only talk, we also listen. So we're going to hear back again from the experts, and I'm going to turn it back to the moderator.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [1:55:16]:

Thank you, Mr. President, and thank you for all the questions from the Thank you very much, audience representatives of countries and groups. I would like to go back to our panel for not more than a couple of minutes of selecting the type of questions they want to respond to, but as a moderator, I just want to emphasize the important point that was made by Mr. Nygaard, regarding the Paris Principles, because much of what everyone is talking about today is going back to what was supposed to be the commitment of the international community for greater country ownership, accountability by donors as well as countries, recipients, coordination among the donors, Harmonization among the systems that the donors and the countries use, leveraging on the results, building country capacity, prudent fiscal management, and greater predictability of aid, which was the case until a couple of months ago, I think. But anyway, let's go to the panel.


OECD-DAC · Chair · Carsten Staur [1:56:37]:

Thank you very much, I can start there.

Thank you very much. Thank you for all the interventions; it's been really great to listen to that. First of all, I think it's important to say that a crisis is no good; a drop in ODA is not a good thing. And I do not believe in this kind of Ministry of Finance link that you can get more for less. That is not possible. But we have, when we are facing a crisis like this, as we will have over the next few years, we have— and I fully agree with our Norwegian colleague here— that we really need to look at what we are doing and to do it much, much better than we have been doing. So out of a crisis may come opportunities, and I think that some of the opportunities we have touched upon in this discussion. I think that one of the opportunities, and there might be different points of view in the room, is basically that we need to have a more holistic and more comprehensive view on development, climate, and nature. Right now, there are silos that are working next to each other, and we are sub-optimizing the possibility of much more collaboration at country level, at implementation level, between those 3 work streams. The second point I think is important, that is that we need to focus on the core of ODA and the LDC Ambassador of Nepal made that point, of course, and I made it also in my intervention. There is a core on poverty eradication, reducing inequality, on LDCs, on fragile and conflict-affected countries that have no other opportunities than ODA, and there it has to be at the focus of our attention. And then, of course, the notion on aid effectiveness, as was mentioned by a few. On that we have, over the last few years, realized— and there is a DAC paper out now for the high-level meeting that we have next week, which actually points to some of the problems that we have on aid effectiveness right now. And this is a time where we need to tackle not one of these problems, but all of them, and do it all at the same time, all at once. So that is a huge challenge for all of us. But I think we would need to do that. The notion of country ownership is really, really core to this. They have full support for that, but it's a country ownership, it's more than the government, it's also what we decide or determine as a whole-of-society approach. There are many actors in a society, and if we strive for resilience at societal level, we need to bring together all main actors in society in collaboration on the pathway forward. And on how basically countries need to develop, and I think that is an important point. Finally, I fully agree with Oxfam that development cooperation is also a peace project. It has always been that. Can we reduce tensions in countries working with governments in order to do so? The potential of bringing peace, prosperity, justice, agency, and voice to those who do not have agency and voice right now would increase dramatically. And it is a peace project and I fully agree that that argument has to be made much more forcefully. Thank you.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [1:59:58]:

Thank you very much. Would you like to go ahead?


Peru · Ashley Bartoja [2:00:04]:

Muchas gracias.

Thank you very much. I think that there's a consensus here about the importance of reaffirming multilateralism centrality given these current challenges we face. Obviously, this is a major challenge because, as has been pointed out by various delegations, official development assistance is falling. So we need to underscore that this ODA needs to genuinely reflect the interests of countries who need that cooperation. Also, it's important to seek new mechanisms out. We need to be more open-minded. Year after year, we have been seeing more of the same, the same principles, and we haven't managed to get rid of the gap that we see between developing and developed countries. Moving on, I'd also like to echo what was stated by the representative of Oxfam. It's so important given that— because ODA is a tool for peace and that's part of why it is just so important. Thank you.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [2:02:16]:

Thank you very much.


NORAD · Deputy Director General · Howard Nygaard [2:02:18]:

Thank you. So let me just make 3 brief So first, I'm actually— maybe I shouldn't be positively surprised, but I'm actually struck by the level of consensus or overlap, or at least how highly correlated a lot of the comments are. A lot of what we talk about here is basically already, and Carsten mentioned this as well, covered by the Paris Principles for Effective Development Cooperation. So I think it's a good idea to return to some of that. And ensure that we use those principles as the roadmap it can be. We also hear a lot of calls and suggestions and ideas for how different parts of the system can be reformed. Obviously, we now see, and very happy to see that from Norway's side, that the efforts and the energy around UN reform has also increased. That's incredibly important at this moment in time. But thirdly, and related to that, I think what's important now, right, as we move forward, is that we learn from the past. We know that we keep the lessons on what is effective and also what isn't effective, and keep the best parts of the system, because there actually is many parts of this system that works very well. So keep those parts. And then when we go through the reform efforts, figure out what can be streamlined and what can be made more efficient going forward. Thank you.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [2:03:48]:

Thank you very much. Ms. Duarte, please.


UN · USG; Special Adviser on Africa · Cristina Duarte [2:03:53]:

Thank you.

I'll be very quick. Allow me to approach this with my African mindset. First, I'd like to say that I think we need to be very careful when discussing development cooperation, not to narrow the conversation to ODA. Development cooperation is much, much more than ODA. Actually, one of the panellists said that ODA is no more than 10% of the financing needs of the developing world. So if we narrow our conversation of development cooperation only to 10% of the envelope of assets, allow me to use the same expression that I used in my intervention: we are crowding out ourselves. And so we need to be very careful. Second, development cooperation has a portfolio of assets that now are becoming more important than ODA. Data, knowledge, and I would like to provide the example of the UN system. From a UN system standpoint, financial resources are not our main comparative advantage in the development cooperation arena, and unfortunately We have been playing a role that financial resources are our main comparative advantage. The UN system has data, knowledge, trust and footprint. From an African standpoint, Africa has been profiled as a continent deprived of financial resources, wrongly. We have money. Africa loses $500 billion on an annual basis. So there is a mismatch that development cooperation needs to understand between the demand and the supply side in the development cooperation arena. What Africa needs today from development cooperation is not marginal ODA, but is to use that ODA to help Africa stop losing money. Development cooperation, by doing so, brings to the table additional value. If development cooperation starts seeing all their assets beyond ODA, it means that development cooperation has the tools to help African countries to change their risk profiles, to tap international markets in a much better position, and to go get the money where the money is. because the money is not here. The money is not in this room. The money is, as everybody knows, outside this room. And this is what I understood, what the President of ECOSOC said, country-led processes, because if we adopt country-led processes, you will understand in the case of Africa that Africa doesn't need Oh, yay! Africa needs a set of assets to help Africa build strong country systems, strong country systems, so that it can get more resources. My time is over, by the way.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [2:07:31]:

Thank you very much. I would like to go back to the President and for him to go back to the artificial intelligence.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:07:41]:

Thank you. Thank you very much, colleagues. I'll give you the name of the next 5 speakers: the Russian Federation, United Kingdom, Cuba, Croatia, and China. So I'll start with the Russian Federation.


Russian Federation [2:07:59]:

Mr.

Chair, thank you for your attention.

Thank you.

Developing countries are encountering unprecedented challenges, and today that's already been actively discussed.

The key aim of official development assistance should be tackling hunger and poverty, yet it's important here to use the interlinkage with all of the SDGs.

The development of infrastructure, healthcare, education, climate resilience—

all of this helps to fight poverty. At the same time, there's a need to strengthen the alignment of assistance provided to beneficiary countries with their national development strategies.

This is the only way to make the shift from scattershot short-term projects toward predictable long-term support for national priorities.

Assistance, don't duplicate efforts and erode its efficiency. And in this regard, key obstacles are, inter alia, unilateral coercive measures. Also the lack of desire of developed countries to ensure exchange of technologies, which deepens inequality, including digital inequality. Including in the area of artificial intelligence. Furthermore, in the run-up to the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, I'd like to note that we have the opportunity to reform the system of international financial cooperation. Russia remains a responsible international donor. The total value of the official development aid provided by our country over the last decade has doubled to reach an average of roughly $1 billion We are providing assistance to least developed countries in terms of developing industry, agriculture, energy, and food insecurity, and we'll continue to do so.

An important mechanism is writing off debt.

I would like to close by wishing every success For the presidency of South Africa in the G20, their approach dovetails with our own, and they—


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:10:55]:

the microphone has been cut off. Thank you so much. I now turn to the United Kingdom, followed by Cuba.


United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland [2:11:07]:

Thank you, Mr. President, for convening this important discussion on development cooperation and for the remarks Thank you, Mr.

President. Accelerating progress on the Sustainable Development Goals has never been more urgent, nor development cooperation more important.

We must work together in partnership to address the interlinked challenges the world is facing today, from extreme poverty and diverging global growth to the climate and nature crises, to rising fragility and vulnerability And against all that is the backdrop of reduced ODA. We know development cooperation and the UN and international financial institution system must change and adapt to these new realities and challenges. This conversation is one we must have in partnership, working with and in support of countries who are leading their own development journeys. The 4th Conference on Financing for Development will be a key moment to make progress on this agenda and to secure consensus on a modernized development finance landscape fit for current and future challenges. As the UN turns 80, we must also look afresh at the wider multilateral and UN development architecture, identifying concrete actions to address defragmentation, to drive efficiency, and strengthen coherence across the system while enhancing cooperation in areas with the greatest transformative impact. The UK will continue to champion reforms to the UN's development system, the wider multilateral and global financial system, to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. We need to redouble our efforts to scale up action to unlock more finance. This includes reforming multilateral development banks, addressing high levels of debt, scaling up prearranged finance to make the system more responsive to shocks, and mobilizing greater levels of private capital. We see these as key priorities, and we welcome the collective commitment to deliver this at the Financing for Development Conference and across other key moments and summits this year. In this moment, we have a real opportunity to build a system that is stronger, more resilient, effective, and efficient, and based on genuine partnership. The UK looks forward to working with all of you to drive this forward.

I thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:13:38]:

I thank the delegate from the UK and now call upon the distinguished representative from Cuba, to be followed by Croatia.


Cuba [2:13:49]:

Thank you, President. President, distinguished colleagues, my delegation would like to align with the statement delivered by Iraq on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. We're meeting at a pivotal moment when international cooperation for development is facing unprecedented challenges, but also opportunities to transform our actions and move towards a more equitable and sustainable future. 0.37% of the GNI of donor countries, far from the objective of 0.7%. It's unacceptable that ODA continues to fall in real terms and that available funds are diverted away from the countries who need them most towards other purposes. We would like to call for the developed countries to abide by their financial commitments and for the creation of adapted financing mechanisms which taking into account the realities of developing countries. The 4th International Conference on Financing for Development to be held in Seville in July this year is a vital opportunity to renew commitments and to agree upon structural reforms to strengthen international cooperation. Given that, we would highlight the importance of the proposal made by the G77 and China to begin a transparent and inclusive multilateral process under the auspices of the United Nations to come to an agreement on a common interpretation of the parameters and objectives of ODA flows. This is of the utmost importance to ensuring that financing for development is not diverted from its goals. Throughout our history, Cuba has demonstrated cooperation when rooted in solidarity and when selfless, shown how this can be a vital pillar for development despite the economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed by the United States against our country, we have maintained our health, education, sustainable development, and cooperation programs with dozens of nations, particularly in Latin America and Africa. In our experience, we would stress that international cooperation cannot be molded by the imposition of extraneous agendas. Each country has the right to define its own development priorities without interference or political preconditions. President, the international community must shoulder its historic and moral responsibility towards the peoples of the South. Cuba reiterates its commitment to solidarity, cooperation, and building a fairer, more inclusive, and more sustainable world. Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:16:50]:

From Cuba, and I now give the floor to the representative from Croatia, to be followed by the Ambassador Thank you, Chair.


Croatia [2:17:02]:

Croatia became a development cooperation provider in 2011 and has since continuously worked on building partnership and enhancing overall effectiveness of our development cooperation. Our volume of official development assistance has constantly grown, and in 2023 it amounted to €180 million, which is an increase of 38% compared to 2022. Over the years, Croatia has been increasingly diversifying its development cooperation toolbox, moving away from traditional forms of support towards technical assistance and other non-financial forms of support that encourage knowledge sharing. We have also been sharing our experience of war and post-war transition and recovery with countries facing similar challenges. This has proven to be immensely important, particularly in the field of mine action, with our total financial support to addressing mine action challenges in Ukraine only amounting to more than €10 million. Concurrently, we have invested increasing efforts in improving our development cooperation framework. In February 2024, the Croatian Parliament adopted a new Act on International Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Assistance.

Aid.

This act integrates international legal frameworks from the EU, OECD, and the UN into Croatian national law, updating key concepts and principles to ensure compliance.

Furthermore, it expands the range of entities eligible to implement development projects, including civil society organizations and the private sector. It also introduces modern financial instruments to facilitate facilitate their participation, leveraging a broader range of resources and expertise in development cooperation efforts. We have also engaged in a 2-year project with the OECD aimed at improving strategic planning, legal framework, as well as strengthening communication capacities and visibility of international development cooperation. Recognizing our efforts in enhancing development cooperation, Croatia earned their participant status in the OECD DAC as of August last year. Croatia continues to focus its development cooperation on democratic transition and capacity building, education, health, protection of women, children, and youth, food security, digitalization, and green transition. Also, as previously mentioned, by building upon our experiences of post-conflict recovery and peacebuilding, Croatia is determined to further demonstrate its commitment to stability and progress. I thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:19:38]:

I thank the distinguished representative from Croatia. Before I call on the Ambassador of China, I want to just warn some countries that in a few minutes I'm going to have to go down to 2 minutes in order to get everybody in, but I'm not doing it yet, but I just want to give everyone else a warning. I call on the Ambassador of China to speak on behalf of his country.


China · Ambassador [2:20:02]:

Thank you, Mr. President. China congratulates the UN on convening the 2025 Development Cooperation Forum and thanks the panelists for their presentation. China aligns itself with the statement by Iraq on behalf of G77 and China. Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals is a shared mission of all governments, and the Forum plays an indispensable role towards this end. The current transformation and turmoil in the international landscape has made certainty an increasingly scarce global resource and has hit hard the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, which requires us to uphold solidarity and mutual trust strengthen international cooperation and jointly face the challenges. I'd like to share the following observations. First, we should practice multilateralism, support the UN's central and coordinating role in international development cooperation, jointly resist deglobalization, unilateralism, and protectionism, advocate inclusive economic globalization, and create a favorable environment for development that features women cooperation and common prosperity. Second, we should make poverty alleviation more prominent on the agenda as geopolitical conflicts, economic fluctuations, and climate change, among a multitude of crises, have exacerbated extreme poverty and inequality. We should funnel the limited resources to poverty reduction as a priority, pay attention to the role of women in poverty alleviation and strive to leave no country and no one behind. Third, we should expand equal and cooperative global partnership. Developed countries should earnestly provide official development assistance and increase financial and technical support for vulnerable countries. Developing countries, on the other hand, among themselves, should continue to deepen South-South cooperation step up experience exchange and capacity building, and enhance their organic drive and sustainability of development. China, convinced that development holds the key to various problems, is committed to promoting high-quality development with a high degree of openness, granting zero-tariff treatment to all LDCs it has diplomatic relations with, fully liberalizing access for investment in the manufacturing sector and sharing development opportunities with all countries in the world. China actively promotes global development. At the G20 Summit, President Xi Jinping outlined China's 8 actions for global development. We stand ready to strengthen cooperation with all parties in key areas such as food security, SDI, and green transformation, and to continuously make new contributions to the cause of sustainable development globally. I thank you.

Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:23:01]:

I thank the Ambassador from China very much for his comments, and I now give the floor to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.


UNHCR [2:23:20]:

The 2030 Agenda provides a universal integrated vision for sustainable development. Sustainable development rooted in human rights and the principle of leave no one behind. Refugees, internally displaced, and stateless persons are among those often left further behind. By mid-2024, over 122 million people were forcibly displaced, with 70% living in low- and middle-income countries, often in fragile contexts, for more than 5 years. Achieving the SDGs requires improving their circumstances and harnessing their potential. Yet the impact of displacement on sustainable development remains insufficiently reflected in global and regional development processes. When adopting the Global Compact on Refugees, member states and development actors committed to step up support for refugees, host countries, and host communities, and include the impact of displacement into policies and planning to ensure that they are not left behind in SDG progress. The GCR process has enhanced development engagement in country level responses to forced displacement. Key initiatives include the Multi-Stakeholder Pledge Framework, launched at the Global Refugee Forum in 2023, Regional Situation Support Platform, and other joint efforts aiding host countries. UNHCR calls for strengthened consensus and action on expanding development finance to address forced displacement while ensuring equity and upholding the Global Compact for Refugees commitments. Integrating forcibly displaced persons into national development plans and recognizing and quantifying the fiscal impact on host countries. Recognizing refugees as a global public good and accordingly supporting expansion of dedicated financing mechanisms that promote burden sharing, like the IDA window for host communities and refugees and the Global Concessional Financing Facility. Finally, developing data systems to track development finance flows for forced displacement. UNHCR stands ready to fully support and contribute. Thank you very much.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:25:16]:

I thank the representative from the UNHCR and now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Ukraine.


Ukraine [2:25:25]:

Mr. President, let me thank you for convening this important event, which provides an excellent opportunity to exchange views and the best practice of this sphere of development cooperation. We are at a critical juncture facing stagnation in the process towards the SDGs due to complex interlinked threats and challenges. Challenges such as conflicts, climate change, food insecurity, poverty, inequality, financial gaps. Development cooperation must play a pivotal role of addressing these challenges. Ukraine remains committed to these Sustainable Development Goals the national, regional, and global levels. However, the full-scale war against Ukraine has significantly undermined our progress in achieving these goals. SDG 16, which calls peace, justice, and strong institutions remains our most pressing challenge. By its very nature, war contradicts these fundamental principles. Yet Ukraine stands firm in its commitment to this SDG agenda despite aggressions, we continue our efforts. Among other actions, we have adapted SDG targets and indicators, ensuring they're even in wartime. We track progress towards 2030. Strengthen international cooperation leverage partnership to sustain critical development projects, establish new financial models, realigning resources to balance intermediate recovery and long-term sustainability. This war is not just a Ukrainian crisis, it's a global test of resilience. Our ability—


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:28:23]:

I'm sorry that to the delegate from Ukraine, the time is up. I give the floor to the delegate from Thailand, followed by India, Korea, and Colombia. So Thailand next, please.


Thailand [2:28:45]:

Yes.

Thank you, Mr. President. In 2015, the UN and Global Goals set to eliminate poverty, protect the environment, and promote prosperity by 2030. However, as of today, only 17% of these targets are on track. This underscores the urgent need for stronger cooperation between Global North and South to address challenges such as climate change, conflicts, and geopolitical shifts. Thailand is fully committed to the 2030 Agenda. We have integrated SDGs into our 20-year national strategy and 5-year development plan and established a National Committee for Sustainable Development led by the Prime Minister. At the international level, Thailand do it through Thailand International Development Agency, or TICA, focusing on South-South and triangular cooperation. By fostering strong partnership, we advance SDG 17, Partnership for the Goals, and drive inclusive sustainable development. Our approach translates policy into action, emphasizing food security, public health, employment, energy, and the environment. Mr. President, beyond our work with the UN, Thailand collaborates with a diverse range of partners to maximize our impact. We engage with our Global North partners including AFD, GIZ, JICA, KOICA, LuxDef, MACHAV, as well as the Global South partners such as APC Colombia, TICA, Morocco, and Peru. These partnerships strengthen our commitment to inclusive and effective international development cooperation. Thailand is on track to rank 45th in SDG progress. We reaffirm our commitment to turning dialogue into action. Together, we can overcome global challenges and to ensure that no one is left behind. Thank you very much, Mr. President.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:30:53]:

Thank you very much. I give the floor to the delegate from India and then the Republic of Korea, and then we switch to 2 minutes. So India and Korea, 3 each.


India [2:31:06]:

Thank you, Mr. President, and I thank the esteemed panelists for the enriching discussions today. While India aligns itself with the statement delivered by the distinguished representative of Iraq on behalf of G77 and China, I would like to make a few remarks in our national capacity. Ladies and gentlemen, India's approach to development cooperation is guided by the principle of Vasudeva Kutumbakam, which translates to the world is one family. This ancient Indian philosophy underpins our commitment to South-South cooperation as a partnership among equals based on shared experiences, common objectives, and collective action. India's development cooperation is characterized by 3 essential features. Number one, it is demand-driven, responding to the priorities identified by our partner countries. Number 2, it is free of conditionalities, respecting the sovereignty of our partners. And number 3, it is non-prescriptive, acknowledging that each nation must chart its own development path. We have demonstrated this approach through initiatives like the International Solar Alliance, the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, and our extensive capacity-building programs under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation. These initiatives exemplify our commitment to share our development experiences and technical expertise with fellow developing nations. India's success in digital transformation offers valuable lessons, and we are ready to share our digital public infrastructure, including our unique identification system, digital payment platforms, and open-source solutions that can accelerate inclusive development. India remains steadfast in its belief that the varying capacities and unique challenges faced by different nations should be recognized in the discussions around development cooperation in order to address the structural inequalities in the global economic system. The current international architecture must be reformed to better represent the voices and interests of developing countries. This includes democratizing international financial institutions and the United Nations to ensure more equitable participation in global decision-making. India stands ready to work with all partners in fostering a development cooperation framework that is truly responsive to the needs and aspirations of people worldwide. Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:33:28]:

Thank the representative from India, and I now give the floor to the Republic of Thank you, Mr.


Republic of Korea [2:33:34]:

President. I also thank the panellists for their insightful comments today. Today's international development landscape is characterized by the growing numbers of actors, modalities, and instruments. While this dynamic offers new opportunities, it also presents risks we need to mitigate, including fragmentation and coordination challenges. With that in mind, I'd like to highlight the following principles. Which have been key to enhancing development effectiveness in today's complex environment. First, country ownership needs to be re-elevated by strengthening the alignment with the country priorities and tailoring the implementation approaches to country-specific situations and needs. Second, we need to refocus on results. Our cooperation and investment must have a lasting impact and sustainable development. In the context of increasing new modalities, measuring results becomes particularly important. For example, blended finance, a delivery modality intended to mobilize private capital, often emphasizes the volume of mobilized private capital rather than its impact. In this regard, actively adopting methodologies that monetize the social and environmental values generated by each dollar of private investment can reposition development results at the center. Lastly, the inclusive partnerships are crucial in generating the virtuous cycle in development effectiveness and contribute to strengthen country ownership and a focus on results. The active engagement and participation of diverse stakeholders can strengthen country ownership by reflecting local needs in national development objectives, while also strengthening development impact monitoring. In this regard, Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation, launched as the outcome of the 2011 Busan High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness, was able to shift the international development cooperation paradigm from a donor-driven, aid-centric approach to inclusive development-centric partnerships. Excellencies, distinguished colleagues, the Republic of Korea has increased its ODA budget by 65% over the past 3 years, upholding our commitment to the international community. Despite our collective effort to increase development finance, we are also faced with a widening SDG financing gap, compounded by the increased demands on humanitarian assistance and climate finance. This highlights the necessity of enhancing the quality of development cooperation while strengthening the effective use of limited resources. I hope our discussion at the DCF this year will contribute to revitalizing development effectiveness in FFD4 and beyond. Thank you, Mr. President.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:36:38]:

That's the way of the world. Colombia, please.


Colombia [2:36:45]:

Excellencies, as we reflect on the future of sustainable development, Colombia would like to reiterate its commitment to the 4th FFD Conference. We believe that this conference should take concrete strides to counter the rollback we've seen of the 2030 Agenda and ensure that we can meet the Sustainable Development Goals. International cooperation is vital to reach this objective. It's vital that official development assistance maintain its role as principal source of assistance, but also it needs to evolve to be more inclusive, using criteria not merely based on the income of countries. We reiterate the importance of abiding by the commitments entered into by developed countries in the field of ODA, including the 0.7% of GNI target. The 4th Conference for Financing for Development should provide solutions so that middle-income countries can have barriers lifted to access concessional financing based on donations rather than loans. The capitalization of multilateral banks is also vital in that connection. Middle-income countries play a key role in the protection of global public goods and meeting our shared environmental goals. In a complementary way, we need to continue to strengthen South-South and triangular cooperation using existing mechanisms to cast light on these cooperation modalities in the attainment of the SDGs. Finally, given that the financing gap to reach the SDGs is so huge, the 4th conference— the speaker's microphone is cut off.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:38:48]:

Thank the delegate from Colombia. Ambassador, thank you so much. I now turn to Qatar, followed by Paraguay and Vanuatu.


Qatar [2:38:58]:

Thank you, Mr. President. We would like to join the statement given by the G77 and China delivered by the delegation of Iraq, and we would like to add the following in our national capacity. We would like to welcome once again the adoption of the outcome document of the Summit of the Future, the Pact for the Future, and its 2 annexes in September 2024. We look forward to concluding the 4th International Conference for FDD with concrete commitments for providing resources, undertaking the needed reforms, and strengthening global policies on implementing the Sustainable Development Agenda. At the national level, Qatar continues to implement its Sustainable Development Plan, Qatar's Vision 2030, which is based on 4 main pillars: human development, social development, economic development, and environmental development. Early in 2024, Qatar launched the 3rd phase of its National Development Strategy 2024-2030. In this regard, Qatar has made many achievements in the economy, education, health, environment-friendly facilities, infrastructure, and business sector efficiency. Mr. President, at the international level, the State of Qatar will spare no effort in continuing to play its role in strengthening joint international efforts. We have strengthened our partnerships with United Nations specialized agencies and organizations, and we have entered the second phase of our partnership with the UNDP for 2024-2028. We are also a major investor in the Development Impact Accelerator Labs initiative. We are also implementing the Doha Programme of Action for Least Developed Countries for 2023-2031 through our partnership with the USG for Least Developed Countries. We have also launched an initiative in partnership with the World Bank Group to provide debt relief in order to increase investment in education and community development in developing and least developed countries. This is in addition to allocating 20% of our SDR holdings in the IMF, amounting to approximately $1 billion, to the expansion of concessional lending to low-income countries. In conclusion, we will continue to provide humanitarian and development support to countries and communities facing humanitarian emergencies and developing challenges that exceed their capabilities. The microphone has been cut off.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:40:59]:

Thank you from Qatar very much. I turn now to Paraguay, followed by Vanuatu and Azerbaijan.


Paraguay [2:41:06]:

Gracias, señor.

Thank you, President. I'd like to also thank the organizers of this important meeting. Regional and global challenges in a world of constant flux require a robust international response to improve the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of international development assistance. There are 2 principles we should heed here: joint and collaborative alliances, and looking at the realities and needs of each of our countries, particularly the most vulnerable. Because of this, we'd like to mention the measurement of ODA, which today is only based on one criterion— economic growth. It doesn't take into account other multiple forms of vulnerability. Structural gaps which persist are also vital indicators to genuinely measure a country's development in all of its 3 dimensions. The Republic of Paraguay understands these global challenges in a particular way because we don't have a coastline and therefore our access to international markets is limited and this increases challenges for our development. We therefore reiterate the importance of having fair and equitable representation at multilateral fora. These specific challenges need to be recognized and addressed as appropriate. We would like to call for a review of this criterion. My country has a national development plan and in it recognizes international assistance as a vital way of complementing our actions to bring about development. We seek to increase its efficiency. To do so, we propose focusing assistance on priorities laid out at national level with better coordination for studying the impact of them with all of these cooperation plans and projects. We also reiterate Paraguay's commitment to the revitalization of international cooperation, which needs to be outcome-driven, and we support multilateral initiatives to achieve this. The speaker's microphone is cut off.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:43:12]:

Sorry, the mic has a way of just cutting you off, so people are going to have to adjust to the slightly lower number. We're going to have a few more speakers and then we're going to turn back to the panelists. I'll call on the following: Vanuatu, Azerbaijan, Laos, Bangladesh, Armenia, and Costa Rica, and that's it for this morning. Vanuatu, 2 minutes.


Vanuatu [2:43:38]:

Thank you, Mr. President. Let me start by thanking the organizers of this forum. Indeed, it was a last-minute invitation, but by God's grace, we are here to do presentations, just to thank the panelists as well as aligning ourselves to the statement delivered by Iraq on behalf of G77 and China. In December 2024, Vanuatu experienced a 7.4 magnitude earthquake resulting in a traffic loss, a tragic loss of life, and extensive destructions on essential public infrastructures in the central district in Port Vila. And that's roughly estimated to 50 billion vanuatu, which is equivalent to $400 million. This forum outcome should put a strong emphasis on specificities of small island developing states, and in particular, facing the challenges of rebuilding from natural disasters. MVI should be part of all the inputs of this forum as well. It's resonated to emphasize the importance of aligning our development assistance with national priorities, namely the People's Plan 2030, as well as the LDC smooth transition and the government's new 100 Days plan just released last week. I think in terms of the other issue as well is the debt servicing that should be part of this forum and international financing institutions should be encouraged to reform but also modernize its approach to enable supporting members who are most in need. Decision-making as well should also include those who are most in need. In terms of regional mechanisms. We have a Pacific Resilient Facility that we actually call on partners to support us in terms of supporting the resilience, but also preparing for natural, but also recovering. In terms of international front, I just wanted to emphasize the importance—


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:45:39]:

I now turn to the delegate from Azerbaijan. Thank the delegate from Vanuatu very much. Azerbaijan, followed by Laos PDR. Azerbaijan, please.


Azerbaijan [2:45:54]:

Thank you very much, Mr. President, Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. We would like to thank the organizers and the President, His Excellency Mr. Bob Rae, for convening this important forum. Dear colleagues, we are 5 years away from Sustainable Development Goals of 2030s, yet the world faces serious global development challenges. To overcome those challenges, we all need to show leadership and take responsibility in our capacity. Although we, Azerbaijan, faced ethnic cleaning, occupation, and socioeconomic challenges in the early years of independence, we managed to build a strong independent country with a self-sufficient economy. Azerbaijan successfully transformed itself from an aid receiver into an emerging donor country. In addition to supporting people affected by disasters, Azerbaijan fosters sustainable development by implementing projects in countries experiencing economic challenges. Azerbaijan has provided humanitarian aid and development assistance to over 140 countries, including 43 least developed countries. Our activities which focus on education and training infrastructure, clean water, health, climate action, and reducing inequality contribute to achievement of 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. As the current president of COP29, Azerbaijan has played a key role in supporting LDC and Small Islands Developing States throughout the COP29 process, offering financial and logistical assistance to ensure that developing countries can actively participate in climate negotiations. Since 2020, the total value of humanitarian, financial, and technical assistance provided by Azerbaijan has exceeded $350 million. We remain committed to fostering new partnerships, expanding our global reach, and advancing South-South cooperation to drive meaningful progress on the Sustainable Development agenda. However—


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:47:58]:

Sorry, 2 minutes, just 2 minutes. Lao PDR, followed by Bangladesh and then Armenia, and finally, the last speaker, Costa Rica. Lao PDR.


Lao People's Democratic Republic [2:48:09]:

Mr. President, let me thank the panellists for your insightful presentation. Kaleli International Development cooperation face fundamental challenges in addressing the needs and priorities of developing countries, particularly the countries in special situations. Drawing from reports on the trends and progress in international development cooperation, despite record-high ODAs, current allocation patterns are often misaligned with country-specific development needs. Shifting towards crisis and humanitarian responses has diminished resources available for long-term development. While diversification has occurred, it has also led to increased fragmentation. National ownership and alignment with actual needs remain crucial but require adaptation to new global realities. The 2025 Development Cooperation Forum offers a platform to rethink and recharge development cooperation's role. To ensure effectiveness, this must prioritize national ownership and align with national priority, especially for the least developed and most vulnerable group. Furthermore, we must also address the growing divisions in development cooperation by enhancing coherent across various modalities—

north-south, south-south, or triangular—

ensuring resources are directed to areas most in need. We anticipate that the upcoming 4th International Conference on Financing for Development can provide critical opportunities to revitalize existing commitments and adapt policy to meet emerging challenges enhancing the overall quality and effectiveness of—


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:50:10]:

Thank the delegate. I now call on the representative from Bangladesh, followed by Armenia and Costa Rica.


Bangladesh [2:50:19]:

Thank you, Mr. President. We also thank the distinguished panellists. We note the Secretary-General's report and fully support his priorities. We stress that the international cooperation must rise to meet the moment, ensuring no country is left behind. Bangladesh firmly believes in a development partnership model that is inclusive, demand-driven, and centered on country ownership. This principle guides Bangladesh's engagement with the UN development system, and we thank you, Mr. President, for emphasizing this in your opening remarks. Bangladesh aligns itself with the statements delivered on behalf of the G77 and China and the LDC Group, and would like to make a few points in our national capacity. First, illicit financial flows cost developing countries an estimated $1 trillion annually, which is 5 times more than the ODA they receive. We emphasize the need for a greater international cooperation in combating illicit financial flows to boost the domestic resource mobilization efforts of the developing nations. We do not, however, undermine in any way the need for the ODA. This leads to my second point. We call on development partners to fulfill their ODA commitments and prioritize grants and concessional financing over loans, ensuring that support does not exacerbate debt distress. As much as we are keenly looking forward to the FFD4, Bangladesh believes that international development cooperation is not just about financing; it is about equality, resilience, and sustainability. Development cooperation must deliver high-quality, high-impact solutions and be responsive to evolving needs for a better future shared by all. We shall upload the full statement online.

Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:51:50]:

That's the spirit.


Armenia [2:51:51]:

President of ICAC, dear colleagues, the role of international development cooperation has never been more critical than it is today amid multiple and interconnected crises that impose unprecedented demands on development efforts and challenge our collective efforts to realize the 2030 Agenda. Strengthened multilateral cooperation, innovative solutions, and inclusive approaches are essential to not only address existing development challenges, but also overcome the long-term structural constraints. Fostering multi-stakeholder partnerships, knowledge sharing, and capacity building are fundamental in providing countries with skills, resources, and institutional frameworks necessary to address vulnerabilities, build resilience, and achieve their development aspirations. Science, technology, and innovation can play a crucial role in accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and creating new opportunities for more resilient resource-efficient and resilient development efforts. Furthermore, international development cooperation must be responsive and adaptable to shifting realities on the ground. Rising poverty and inequalities, economic stagnation, climate change, conflicts, and increasing number of humanitarian emergencies require closer coordination and synergies across development, peacebuilding, and humanitarian action, bridging emergency response with sustainable development efforts. Dear colleagues, as the funding gap continues to be a significant barrier for the majority of countries to achieve sustainable development, Armenia advocates for enhanced cooperation to mobilize stable, long-term, and adequate financing, foster innovative financial mechanisms, and improve access to concessional financing, especially for countries in special situations and middle-income countries. In the lead-up to FFD4, it is crucial to advance ongoing discussions to unite around a transformative development financing framework and global financial architecture. Architecture that fosters resilience, global economic growth, and supports the achievement of the SDGs. Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:53:51]:

Costa Rica, please. Señor Presidente.


Costa Rica [2:53:55]:

President, we must aspire to more inclusive, effective, forms of cooperation which are aligned with the genuine needs of developing countries. Allow me to refer to the following points. First, we need to increase official development assistance and access to concessional financing. North-South cooperation must be strengthened to benefit upper-middle-income countries like Costa Rica which still face wide structural development gaps. Second, we need to rethink the criteria for measuring progress in sustainable development, whether they complement or go beyond GDP. The current international cooperation system remains anchored in traditional criteria based on GDP per capita, which excludes many countries in development transitions like my own country from the support that they still require. Costa Rica calls for adopting a multidimensional approach to development which evaluates not only economic growth but also multidimensional indicators of the 3 dimensions of sustainable development. Third, South-South triangular and multistakeholder cooperation must be strengthened to transmit knowledge, innovative ideas, experiences, and technical skills leveraging countries' strengths and comparative advantages. President, FFD4 is a crucial opportunity to renew the commitment to ODA, to improving the quality and impact of development cooperation, and proposing reforms to the international system. Costa Rica reaffirms its commitment to renewed international cooperation based on equity, efficiency, and multilateralism. Let's work together to make this vision a reality. Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [2:55:46]:

Muchas gracias.

Thank you very much, Costa Rica.

We now heard from the last speaker this morning in this— I'm very sorry that we have not been able to hear from anyone, although I must tell you that remaining speakers that had made it— expressed an interest to make a statement in advance through registering in the e-delegate portal will be accommodated in Panel Discussion 2 this afternoon. So ye of little hope, there's still moments of redemption possible. I'm now going to go back to Mr. Fardoo to invite brief final remarks from panelists, and I emphasize the words brief, and then we'll adjourn for lunch. So, Shah Rukh, over to you.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [2:56:30]:

Okay.

Thank you, Mr. President. I understand we have only a few minutes to respond to excellent questions that have been raised. Much of it has to do with Paris Principles again. I think it's a good time to revisit those principles and update them if they need it, and also making sure that the international financial institutions, including the regional multilateral institutions, are sufficiently the resource to be able to meet the multiple crises that have come our way and unfortunately may be the new feature of the world economy, but they could be met through prevention and building resilience and economic reforms at the country level. Now, I would like to go to— would you like to Go first.


NORAD · Deputy Director General · Howard Nygaard [2:57:27]:

Okay, thank you. I'll be brief. I appreciate the fact that I'm standing between you and lunch, so I'll be very brief. I'd just like to thank all the delegates for contributing to a very rich discussion, and I'll note that it's quite easy to see a lot of common ground here, and I think that's a good starting point for moving forward. So, thank you.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [2:57:57]:

Would you like to—


OECD-DAC · Chair · Carsten Staur [2:57:59]:

Thank you very much. Cristina Duarte put the question forward, why so much focus on ODA, because development is so much more than ODA? And that's true. It is much more than ODA. South-South cooperation growing and vibrant and really important. There are more non-DAC partners, more non-DAC countries that have a development cooperation agency than there are DAC members that have it. So it's clear that it is much more than ODA. At the same time, ODA is at the centre of a lot of what we do. ODA pays for 80% of all the funds and programmes in the UN. ODA pays for a lot of the replenishment of IDA, IDA21. ODA is core to a lot of the other things that are in Addis Ababa Action Agenda. When we talk about trade, we also talk about aid for trade. When we talk about international finance, we talk about capitalization of banks. When we talk about debt, we also talk about debt relief, which is ODA. When we talk about private business and private investments, we talk about the enabling role of ODA to raise that. We talk about domestic resources, we also talk about ODA for domestic resource mobilization. And when we talk about science and technology, we also talk about ODA for those purposes. So it is incredibly important how we, first of all, raise ODA. Hopefully, we can avert too drastic a decline, too drastic a drop in ODA, because ODA is really important. And I think we need to work together to make sure that there's a political narrative out there about that and the importance of ODA. and also how it contributes, as we talked about last time, to peace and to broader public goods. But there is also something that does not— is not a question about ODA. If you pursue innovative financial mechanisms, that is not necessarily a lot of ODA into that. If you pursue policy coherence, that's not about ODA. It's about making our policies right and make sure that we do not do, as individual countries, something that harms other countries with a legitimate interest. When we look at transboundary effect of policies, countries are really, really poor at analyzing and at deciding and taking into account the effect of their policies on other countries, and it is one area where there are huge opportunities in the context of FFD4 to move beyond ODA in a very, very important point.


Moderator · Shahrokh Fardoust [3:00:21]:

Thank you.

Thank you very much. Ms. Crespo.


Peru · Ashley Bartoja [3:00:31]:

Gracias.

Thank you. I think it's important for us to reflect about the challenge to cooperation posed by new technologies and artificial intelligence. The level of development isn't about North and South anymore. We should be looking at it within each country because we are seeing rapid change and it's going to be a huge challenge to contend with that. I think we need to reflect and genuinely look at how we can approach this new concept of development given these new technologies and most especially AI. Thank you.


ECOSOC · President of ECOSOC · Bob Rae [3:01:30]:

I want to thank everyone. I want to thank you, Shahrokh, for your work as a moderator. I want to thank all of our panelists for participating. I want to thank all of you for being so patient and listening and also contributing so much. As you know, we, we had more people wanting to speak than we had time, which makes life difficult. I congratulate some of the fast talkers in the room for having managed to get all your thoughts into 2 minutes and appreciate it very much. This concludes this part of the forum. The council will reconvene at 3:00 PM in the chamber. Our first action at that time will be an filled vacancy on the Organizational Committee of the Peacebuilding Commission, which we hope will not be too contentious. And immediately following, the Council will continue with the Development Coordination Forum Panel Discussion Number 2, which is called Improving Modalities to Better Respond to Evolving Needs, Vulnerabilities, and Priorities. That seems to me to cover pretty much anything, so we look forward to that discussion, and we'll be going tonight until 6 PM. Thank you, and thanks to the translators. Thank you very much.