Briefing for UK-based Civil Society Organizations by Ambassador Pertti Majanen, Co-Chair and Liz Ditchburn, member of the UN Expert Committee on Financing for Sustainable Development

According to Ambassador Perrti Majanen, Co-Chair of the UN Expert Committee on Financing for Sustainable Development, the post-2015 development agenda is a “dream and it needs paying for”. Both he and Liz Ditchburn from the UK Department for International Development, who is also a member of the Committee, gave an important briefing to UK-based civil society in London on Friday 15 November 2013.

In introducing the work of the Committee, Ambassador Majanen pointed out that the Millennium Declaration and MDGs constitute one of the greatest efforts of mankind and have been very successful but leaves many challenges. It is important to see that the MDGs are completed by 2015.

The Committee, of which Mansur Muhtar of Nigeria is the other Co-Chair, comprises 18 experts from South and 12 from northern countries. It only makes recommendations and is not a decision-making body. As it is intergovernmental, it cannot totally ignore some of the political issues. In its work it is dealing with financing development cooperation, banking issues, public sector and private sector capabilities.

Its substantive discussions are still to start, while further decisions have been made about its three clusters. (Liz Ditchburn of DFID is one of the leaders of Cluster 1.) The Committee is also embarking on an outreach plan at the moment, with meetings being organized, along the lines of this one, as it wishes to reach out to all stakeholders. Its members will be listening, recording and learning.

In moving towards its final outcomes, it will be looking at ways to improve on Monterrey and Doha. Ambassador Majanen recognized the importance of the private sector and creating an enabling environment to attract additional financing therefore partnerships with it. He noted that in Monterrey there wasn’t an attempt to get commitments from private flows. This needs to be done now. As he said, the final document should go into action-oriented practical recommendations that are easily understood.

Relationship between OWG and Expert Committee on Financing for Sustainable Development

In answer to a question, Ambassador Majanen said that the Committee’s report has to go to the General Assembly in August at the same time as Open Working Group (OWG) report. He emphasized that efforts would be made to ensure contact between the two groups and that they would be looking at ways to ensure a better division of labour between the two bodies. The work of the Committee will be an evolving process, while the OWG will have finished its substantive sessions by the end of February. This will avoid unnecessary duplication and double-tracking.

While the Committee sessions are closed he stressed that there would be daily open briefing sessions and that he and the members of the Committee welcome inputs including from civil society.