GFDD/Funglode Call for Greater Cooperation in Technology Transfer and Innovative Financing for Development Mechanisms at ECOSOC Second Dialogue with Civil Society

On behalf of the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) and Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo (Funglode), GFDD’s UN Programs Manager Marc Jourdan delivered a joint oral statement to ECOSOC on Wednesday February 10th, as part of the second dialogue by ECOSOC with civil society on the longer-term positioning of the United Nations development system. Focusing on ways the UN may adapt to the new requirements of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, the statement calls for the need to strengthen technology transfer in developing countries and highlights the importance of innovative partnerships to free up new sources of development finance.

The two foundations emphasize the need for the international community to “promote North-North, South-South, and triangular cooperation, so that the technological gap between North and South does not widen”, and sustainable development is promoted
in the South.

Turning to the issue of financing, the foundations issue a word of caution that current investment patterns will fall short of what is required to meet the targets laid out in the ambitious Sustainable Development Goals. GFDD and Funglode make the point that innovative financing
for development mechanisms like the airline ticket tax, can complement more traditional forms of investment to fill this gap.

The foundations conclude that these opportunities need to be embraced “if we are to realize the transformative development agenda laid out in Rio in 2012”.

The Vice President of ECOSC, Ambassador Cerna of Honduras, who chaired the dialogue concurred with the intervention made by the foundations as he stressed
that “the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is universal in its scope, so civil society should be a key part of the development process”.

A copy of the statement is available in English here.

About the ESOCOC Dialogue on the longer-term positioning of the United Nations development
system
The Economic and Social Council, pursuant to its resolution 2014/14 convened, under the guidance of Her Excellency Ms. María Emma Mejía Vélez, Vice-President of the Council and Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations, a civil society hearing, with the participation of the representatives of NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC, on the topic of “Longer-term positioning of the United Nations development system”.

The ECOSOC Dialogue process consists of both formal and informal sessions held over an 18-month period, will serve as key input to the quadrennial comprehensive policy review (QCPR) of the General Assembly of operational activities of the UN system in 2016.

About the Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review
The Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review (QCPR) is the mechanism through which the General Assembly assesses the
effectiveness, efficiency, coherence and impact of the United Nations development system’s support to national efforts of developing countries to pursue their priorities and meet their development needs. It establishes UN system-wide policy orientation for development cooperation and country-level modalities of the UN system in response to the evolving international development cooperation environment.

Related links:
http://www.un.org/en/ecosoc/newfunct/civilsocietyhearing.shtml
http://www.un.org/en/ecosoc/qcpr/pdf/global_foundation_for_democracy.pdf
http://www.un.org/en/ecosoc/qcpr/index.shtml