EU Presidency Statement - Follow up to Summit Outcome on Development and ECOSOC reform

EU PRESIDENCY STATEMENT BY SIR EMYR JONES PARRY, UNITED KINGDOM PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE, ON BEHALF OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, INFORMAL CONSULTATIONS OF THE UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY PLENARY ON THE FOLLOW-UP TO THE SUMMIT OUTCOME ON DEVELOPMENT AND ECOSOC REFORM, New York

Co-Chairs,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Acceding Countries Bulgaria and Romania, the Candidate Countries Turkey and Croatia, the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Serbia and Montenegro, the EFTA country Norway, member of the European Economic Area, as well as Ukraine align themselves with this declaration.

Let me begin by congratulating you on your appointment to conduct the informal consultations on Development and ECOSOC reform. I would also like to thank you for your letter of 18 November outlining our way forward. Today I will offer general EU comments on your proposals. We stand ready to turn in future debate to answering the more specific questions that you have put to us in your letter.

Co-Chairs,

Much has been achieved in 2005 on development, including at the European Union, G8 and African Union Summits, culminating in the World Summit in New York in September. There have, for instance, been unprecedented levels of commitment to achieve 0.7% of GNI for Official Development Assistance, with timetables for many countries, as well as the generous Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative.

We agree that the World Summit Outcome offers many important conclusions on Development. Indeed, we argued throughout the negotiations that Development was the bedrock of the Summit itself. At the Summit our leaders reaffirmed their commitment to implement the goals and objectives of the major UN summits. They agreed on the need for "urgent action on all sides" to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, and made specific commitments in a number of areas. They agreed to adopt by 2006 ambitious national development strategies backed by increased international support.

As you say in your letter, action is underway within and beyond the UN on a range of issues. Agreements at the Summit are being taken forward at the national and international levels: in national poverty strategies and bilateral development programs; and in multilateral work on many issues. They are under review in the GA and its Committees, including to prepare major meetings in 2006. The follow-up action includes increased and more effective aid, debt relief, innovative financing, pro-development trade liberalisation, strengthened humanitarian funding and coordination, and climate change. Next month's WTO Ministerial is a crucial next step in the area of trade.

The EU is strongly committed to the implementation of the Summit agreements on Development. And of course it is the implementation of those commitments that must now be our focus.

Co-Chairs,

ECOSOC reform is also an EU priority, in line with conclusions in the Summit Outcome. The Council needs to become a more effective and relevant multilateral instrument in the economic, social, environmental and humanitarian fields. The EU welcomes a strengthened role for ECOSOC in ensuring follow-up of the outcomes of the major UN conferences and summits, including the internationally agreed development goals.

As you know the EU has submitted a paper setting out its detailed views on ECOSOC reform. We have also seen the contributions from Pakistan and the Russian Delegation.

Let me turn to your proposals on how to organise our work on these important issues.

We agree that the overall method you propose is the right one - open, transparent and inclusive consultations of the General Assembly, dealing with the issues on their own merits and without linkages. We agree that our work must be based firmly on the World Summit Outcome. And it must be driven by member states, under your guidance. But I would agree with the Ambassador of Jamaica that the Secretariat has an important contribution to make in this are and in other areas like Management, for example by providing information. But in a process that is driven by member states, with decisions to be made by member states.

We welcome your proposal of dealing in alternate weeks with the issues of follow-up to the Summit Outcome on Development and ECOSOC reform. These are clearly inter-linked and overlapping. But Development is of course more than just ECOSOC reform. And ECOSOC reform, like ECOSOC's mandate, goes wider than Development issues.

We agree your proposal for a GA resolution that calls on all member states, UN entities and relevant stakeholders to fulfil their responsibilities in the Development sphere. As you say, the resolution should focus on the role of the UN system in such follow up.

We also agree your proposal for a further GA resolution that invites ECOSOC to adapt its work in order to perform the functions set out in the World Summit Outcome.

And we agree with the questions that you have asked member states to address as we take forward this work. We should focus on those questions, and avoid re-opening the substance of the Summit Outcome so that follow up action can be prompt and effective, including the work that must be undertaken and is already underway in many different fora. The EU will deal with those questions carefully in future debates. Let me offer now three general comments to keep in mind in our further work.

First, on development, we need to ensure proper follow-up in implementation of our decisions. For this it is essential to make maximum use of existing bodies and arrangements, and where appropriate to improve our existing methods of work. The provisions of GA resolution 57/270B offer a good framework for these efforts.

Second, on ECOSOC reform, the World Summit Outcome provides a full and clear description of ECOSOC's primary functions. Our task now is to offer ECOSOC the right orientations to develop these roles, without micro-managing ECOSOC's work.

Third, we agree with you on a sense of urgency in our work. The Summit conclusions on Development and ECOSOC are vital for the achievement of the MDGs and other internationally agreed goals. We should lose no time in implementing those conclusions.

Co-Chairs,

The EU is therefore committed to support the approach you have proposed. We will engage fully and constructively in this process, with you and all other member states.

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• EU Speaking Points - ECOSOC Reform (9/2/2006)
• EU Speaking Points - Informal Consultations on ECOSOC Reform  (30/1/2006)
• EU Speaking Points - Follow up to Development Commitments contained in 2005 World Summit Outcome  (16/1/2006)
• EU Speaking Points - ECOSOC Reform (13/1/2006)
• EU Presidency Statement - ECOSOC Reform (20/12/2005)
• EU Presidency Statement - Summit Outcome Document: Revised Budget Estimates (14/12/2005)
• EU Presidency Statement - Mandate Review: UN General Assembly Consultations (14/12/2005)
• EU Presidency Statement - Follow-up to World Summit Outcome on Development  (13/12/2005)
• EU Presidency Statement - ECOSOC reform (8/12/2005)
• EU Presidency notes - Informal meeting on UN Management Reform (6/12/2005)
• EU Paper on ECOSOC Reform (24/10/2005)
• EU Presidency Statement - ECOSOC Co-ordination Segment: Towards achieving internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the Millennium Declaration (6/7/2005)
• Déclaration de la Présidence de l'Union européenne - Réunion spéciale ECOSOC (18/4/2005)