Addis Ababa Action Agenda endorsed by General Assembly

As reported by IISD

The outcome of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD3), the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA) has been endorsed by the UN General Asselmby. Delegates in a plenary session adopted resolution A/69/L.82 tenitled ‘Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development,' which includes the AAAA as an annex.

In the resolution, the UNGA recalls its resolution 68/204 on the follow-up to the International Conference on Financing for Development, in which it decided to convene FfD3, as well as resolutions 68/279 and 69/278 on the modalities for FfD3; endorses the AAAA adopted by the Conference; and expresses its “profound gratitude” to the Government and people of Ethiopia for hosting FfD3 and for providing support.

Sam Kutesa, UNGA President, referred to the AAAA as a comprehensive framework for financing sustainable development with concrete deliverables, policies and actions that will support the implementation of the post-2015 development agenda and called on delegates to do “whatever it will take to ensure that the Addis Ababa Action Agenda is fully implemented.”

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that the AAAA, launches “a new era of cooperation and global partnership” and “provide the foundation for success” at the upcoming UN Summit to adopt the post-2015 development agenda in September, as well as at the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 21) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in December. According to the Secretary-General many initiatives were launched during the FfD3 in addition to the AAAA, including the Addis Tax Initiative, increased commitments from development banks, and a new financing partnership for women's and children's health. The AAAA provides a guide for action by all stakeholders, and a strong accountability mechanism, noting that “next year's first Financing for Development Forum will give the international community an important opportunity to assess progress in implementation.”

As clarified by the UN Secretariat, the implementation of the recommendations contained in the AAAA will give rise to additional UN resources and possibly extra budgetary resources and that the UN Secretary-General would submit a revised estimate report related to that matter (for the years 2016-2017) for consideration by the UNGA at its 70th session.

For further information on the AAAA in the context of the post-2015 development agenda see: http://sd.iisd.org/news/unga-endorses-addis-ababa-action-agenda/