“We Need to Localize and Integrate International Policy Development into Local Development Agendas” States Ambassador Elisaia of Samoa During GFDD Event at World Bank

GFDD co-hosted a panel discussion at the World Bank today as part of the 2016 Civil Society Policy Forum. The event, entitled Financing Tools for Reducing Social Inequalities, looked to engage with World Bank and IMF staff, their peers, and government delegations on a wide range of topics, including financing for development and international development generally as they convened in Washington DC for the Forum until Friday, April 15, 2016, the official
start date of the Spring Meeting. Reflecting on the financing achievements of UN development policy making in 2015, the panelists looked back at the Third International Conference on Financing for Development and the recent Paris Climate Meeting and attempted to address one central question: how can the Addis Ababa Action
Agenda (AAAA) serve as an instrument to reduce inequalities and encourage a people-centered approach to strengthening social development and care for the future of our planet?

The panelists included H.E. Ambassador Feturi Elisaia, Permanent Mission of the Independent State of Samoa to the United Nations and a member of the Board of the Green Climate Fund, Dr. Muthukumara Mani, Lead Environmental
Economist, World Bank, Dr. Catherine Anna Maria Pattillo, Assistant Director, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Strategy Policy and Review Department and Dr. Barry Herman, The New School, New York and Social Justice in Global Development.

The moderator for the session was Marc Jourdan, GFDD UN Program Manager and Executive Committee Member of the NGO Committee for Financing for Development.
Jourdan welcomed the attendees and introduced the speakers stressing the diversity of the panel and the opportunity for a meaningful discussion on the impact of financing solutions for social development.

Ambassador Elisaia confirmed that the current architecture of climate finance that was agreed to under the Paris Climate Agreement in December was a “step in the right direction” but he reminded attendees that for Small Island Developing States such
as Samoa it was also essential to ensure “simplified access to finance” for these states to ensure they can implement appropriate climate and adaptation policies. Pointing to the local development needs of his country, the Ambassador cautioned the audience that the international policy developments achieved last year at the UN “need to be localized and integrated into local development agendas”.

Dr. Mani gave an overview of the interrelation between the climate finance provisions of the Paris Agreement and the general development finance tools
included in the AAAA, before stressing that “sustainable development is the best tool available from a climate adaptation and mitigation perspective”. He called on all stakeholders to incentivize the private sector to invest in these policy agendas, given the extensive financial commitments required to meet the development targets set out over the next 15 years in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Dr. Pattillo next spoke to the initiatives
of the IMF connected to climate finance and the AAAA. She highlighted in particular the support that the organization had given to low income countries on inclusion issues, including on gender equality and within the energy sector. She informed attendees that the IMF was engaged in projects with several pilot countries.

Finally, Dr. Herman took the floor to give a critical presentation on the presence of social protection floors within the AAAA. He stressed "the
need to finance social protection floors" and promote potential solutions proposed by civil society at large, including that of his own organization Social Justice in Global Development which called for “strengthening and diversifying a nation’s tax base, while paying attention to achieving its desired overall progressivity.”

Jourdan then opened up the discussion for an engaged question and answer session with the audience who
challenged the speakers on a variety of topics including renewable energy and energy security, as well as the need to include people with disabilities in the financing for development discourse.

About the Civil Society Policy Forum:
The Civil Society Policy Forum (CSPF) has become an integral part of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group Spring and Annual Meetings, providing an open space for Civil Society Organizations (CSOs)
to dialogue and exchange views with World Bank Group and IMF staff, their peers, government delegations, and other stakeholders on a wide range of topics, including efforts to tackle poverty reduction, boost shared prosperity, secure financial stability, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth around the world.

This spring, the CSPF will convene in Washington DC from Monday, April 11 to Friday, April 15, 2016.

About the Spring
Meetings:
The Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group each year bring together central bankers, ministers of finance and development, private sector executives, and academics to discuss issues of global concern, including the world economic outlook, poverty eradication, economic development, and aid effectiveness. Also featured are seminars, regional briefings, press conferences, and many other events focused on the global
economy, international development, and the world’s financial system. This year’s Spring Meetings events will take place in Washington, DC, April 15-17, 2016.

Speaker Presentations:
H.E. Ambassador Feturi Elisaia, Permanent Mission of the Independent State of Samoa to the United Nations (Member of the Board of the Green Climate Fund)
Dr. Muthukumara Mani, Lead Environmental Economist, World Bank
Ms. Catherine Anna Maria Pattillo, Assistant Director, IMF Strategy Policy and Review Department
Dr. Barry Herman, The New School, New York and Social Justice in
Global Development

Related Links
http://www.worldbank.org/
http://www.un.org/
http://www.un.org/
http://icsw.org/
http://newsroom.unfccc.int/
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/