Update on the Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing

The Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing was established in accordance with the outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) The Future We Want. As stated on the Committees website, The Future We Want recognized “the need for significant mobilization of resources from a variety of sources and the effective use of financing, in order to give strong support to developing countries in their efforts to promote sustainable development, including through actions undertaken in accordance with the outcome of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development and for achieving sustainable development goals.” The Committee’s first meeting was held at the UN Headquarters in New York, 28-30 August 2013. H.E. Ambassador Pertti Majanen from Finland and Mr. Mansur Muhtar from Nigeria were elected at its first meeting.

Co-chairs’ summary of first meeting

The Co-chairs’ summary of the first meeting approved its modalities of work and calendar of meetings:

•  Second Session: 2-6 December 2013 
•  Third Session: 3-7 March 2014 
•  Fourth Session: 12-16 May 2014 
•  Fifth Session: 4-8 August 2014 

Three thematic clusters, facilitated by Committee members have been set up:

• Cluster 1: Assessing financing needs, mapping of current flows and emerging trends, and the impact of domestic and international environments. t flows and emerging trends, and the impact of domestic and international environments. Facilitators: Mr. Reginald Darius (Saint Lucia), Ms. Liz Ditchburn (UK); 
• Cluster 2: Mobilisation of resources and their effective use. Facilitators: Mr. Nathan Dal Bon (Australia), Mr. Francisco Gaetani (Brazil), Mr. Zou Ji (China), Mr. Norbert Kloppenburg (Germany), Mr. Joseph Enyimu (Uganda);
• Cluster 3: Institutional arrangements, policy coherence, synergies and governance issues. Facilitators: Mr. André Lohayo Djamba (Democratic Republic of the Congo), Mr. Tonis Saar (Estonia), Mr. Amjad Mahmood (Pakistan).

Cluster 1 started its “intersessional work” immediately and “consultations” have already started on cluster 2.

“Open and broad consultation”

According to the introduction on the home page of the Committee’s website “the process will be carried out in open and broad consultation with relevant international and regional financial institutions and other relevant stakeholders to assess financing needs, consider the effectiveness, consistency and synergies of existing instruments and frameworks, and evaluate additional initiatives, with a view to preparing a report proposing options on an effective sustainable development financing strategy to facilitate the mobilization of resources and their effective use in achieving sustainable development objectives.” Nevertheless, its first meeting was closed not only to civil society organizations, but also to Governments.

According to the Co-chairs’ summary, the Committee agreed to four types of consultation: 

• multi-stakeholder consultations in the form of written contributions and dialogues; 
• dedicated periods reserved for interaction with Member States and other relevant stakeholders during each Committee session;
• interventions by outside experts (e.g., academics, think tanks, regional development banks and representatives from the private sector and institutional investors) at Committee meetings; and 
• regional meetings organised by UN regional commissions, in collaboration with regional development banks or other actors and with participation of interested Committee members. 

The Co-chairs will “share a document outlining communication and consultation activities with Committee members, with the understanding that this is a living document that can be reverted to in the December session.”

Arrangements for 2^nd session of the Committee

Again the session from 2-6 December will be closed. However, an interactive multistakeholder dialogue on Thursday 5 December 2013 from 10.00 to 13.00 hours that will be open to all. The dialogue will comprise:

10.00-11.00 Co-chairs’ briefing on the work of the Committee, followed by questions and answers from the floor

11.00-13.00 Presentations from a panel of four representatives from NGOs, business and industry sectors and other major groups engaged in the Rio+20 conference and Financing for Development process, followed by an open discussion with the audience

More information on this interactive multistakeholder dialogue can be obtained from: Chantal Line Carpentier (carpentier@un.org), Daniel Platz (platz@un.org) or Krishnan Sharma (sharmak@un.org).