Third International Conference on Financing for Development -- Civil Society speaks out

Civil society and other stakeholders have issued a declaration at the end of a Civil Society Organization Forum for the Third FfD Conference taking place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Civil Society Declaration  

According to civil society representatives in the Declaration, the draft outcome document does not yet rise to world’s current multiple challenges, nor does it contain the necessary leadership, ambition and practical actions, while undermining agreements in the Monterrey Consensus and the Doha Declaration. They express regret that the negotiations have diminished the FFD mandate to address international systemic issues in macroeconomic, financial, trade, tax, and monetary policies. The FFD process, underpinned by the normative function and ethos of the United Nations, best enjoys the legitimacy to address these issues. Development processes should be led by countries under the ultimate responsibility of the States through participatory processes to include all right-holders and that, if this conference is to contribute to the means of implementation for the SDGs, the Rio principle of CBDR should be taken into full account.

The Declaration also addresses the additional steps to address gender equality and women’s empowerment which, they say, seem to speak more to “Gender Equality as Smart Economics" than to women and girls’ entitlement to human rights. They also show a strong tendency towards the instrumentalization of women by stating that women’s empowerment is vital to enhance economic growth and productivity. Financial inclusion or women’s entrepreneurship, moreover, should not displace attention from structural barriers for women ́s economic rights and full and equal access to and control over economic resources, such as the unequal distribution of unpaid care work, the lack of access to care services, and the persistent gender discrimination in the labour market. 

For full statement see: https://wwgonffd.files.wordpress.com/2015/07/cso-declaration-opening-plenary.pdf