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Statement by New York, 12 November 2003
Our deliberation is being held against the backdrop of the first High-Level Dialogue on Financing for Development, which took place two weeks ago. The President of the General Assembly deserves our sincere appreciation for the organization and excellent summary of the meeting and his presentation before us yesterday. To begin with, my delegation thanks the Secretary-General for his comprehensive report on the implementation of and follow-up to the commitments and agreements of Monterrey. Let me also align my delegation with the statement made by the distinguished representative of Morocco on behalf of G-77 and China. Mr. Chairman, Having said that, Mr. Chairman, my delegation would like to state some viewpoints that we believe are worthy of careful consideration as inputs for the resolution and future efforts to give practical expression to our commitments. They are as follows: 1. The President’s summary noted the many calls for a more precise mechanism to monitor implementation of the Monterrey commitments as we move forward. There is no doubt that we should honor our own respective commitments and therefore there is a compelling need for regular reports both by developed and developing countries, using a common set of indicators as a yardstick, to observe progress on a country-by-country basis. Other major stakeholders, in particular the Bank, the IMF and the WTO, should also take measurable steps to play their respective roles and meet their responsibilities. Since the link between FfD and the MDGs is clearly recognized, the reports will also serve as important barometers of our progress to achieve the MDGs, including the promotion of partnerships. To streamline their reporting responsibilities, developing countries could consolidate their report on FfD and their MDG Country report; 2. On the follow-up mechanism, the focus should be on strengthening the General Assembly and the ECOSOC to perform the special tasks assigned to them in the Monterrey Consensus. The second spring meeting of ECOSOC and BWIs and the WTO next year must be better organized. Indonesia sees the need for early preparation to ensure a more substantive meeting and recommends that the Committee of Development Policy provide expert advice for this goal. The thematic approach in this regard is worthy of our consideration in order to have a more focused, fruitful and action-oriented outcome. The ECOSOC substantive session also needs to include a dedicated segment on the progress of implementation of Monterrey and the MDGs; 3. Multi-stakeholder working groups or informal expert study groups within the framework of the FfD, with the specific mandate to accelerate progress on critical issues of the Monterrey agenda, as suggested by some, deserve further consideration. On the debt issue, as the majority of poor people live in middle-income countries, any approach should take into account the particular needs of indebted middle-income countries, leading towards a lasting solution to the debt problem; 4. It is critically important that all stakeholders should be on board and stay engaged. What is therefore urgently needed is strong leadership from the United Nations to ensure closer collaboration with other stakeholders. There is no better alternative than to make greater use of the United Nations, particularly the General Assembly and the ECOSOC, as a scorekeeper on macroeconomic, financial, trade and debt issues and policies. The newly established secretariat for FfD could serve as a prime mover for this purpose. Mr. Chairman, It is Indonesia’s belief that greater impetus must be given to the implementation process. It is important that we approach implementation with a clear sense of urgency if we are to meet the 2015 deadline for the MDGs. As a designated member of ECOSOC, thanks to the generous support we received yesterday, Indonesia will play the role of a catalyst to ensure the early achievement of the outcomes of recent UN conferences and summits, especially the FfD and the MDGs. I thank you
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