ADA Newsletter- JUNE 2023

Writer secretariat 23-08-16 10:39 count 25 Reply 0

Summit for a New Global Financing Pact - Paris 21-22 June

Hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron, the “Summit for a New Global Financing Pact” brought together ministers from around eighty countries at the imposing Napoleonic Palais Brongniart in central Paris. And unlike the others, this encounter wasn’t largely for the photographs: over two days the meeting saw substantive and unexpected progress made on a range of issues to do with the financing of sustainable economic development in the global South.

The summit was an ad hoc event, not part of the United Nations, G20, or other regular governance mechanisms. It was proposed by Macron last November following discussions with the prime minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, on her “Bridgetown Initiative” for global financial reform. Mottley’s plans first articulated at the COP26 climate conference in 2021, aim to mobilize hundreds of billions of dollars in new public and private financing for climate-related investment.
Unusually, Mottley’s ideas got traction both with developed country heads like Macron and EU president Ursula von der Leyen and with governments in Africa and among the “V20” group of climate-vulnerable nations. A remarkable consensus has arisen: on the eve of this week’s summit thirteen leaders from across the world issued a jointly written article calling for an urgent scaling-up of financial flows.
The summit filled out some of the detail. In a set of round tables on different topics on Thursday, followed by an evening dinner for heads of government and two hours of talks on Friday morning, a number of specific proposals were presented and agreed upon. Well, sort of agreed: with the summit having no formal ability to make binding decisions, the French hosts asked countries to indicate which of the proposals they could support, and then set out in the final communiqué what had been discussed and how it would be taken forward. It was a clever way of preventing the biggest countries from exercising veto powers and thereby generating a weak, lowest-common-denominator agreement.
The most significant announcement was that the richest countries had met their promise to reallocate US$100 billion of Special Drawing Rights, or SDRs, to pay for poverty reduction and climate adaptation measures in developing countries. SDRs are the reserve currency used by the International Monetary Fund in times of financial trouble. In 2021, a huge US$650 billion of SDRs were issued to help countries through the Covid pandemic. But the problem was that the IMF constitution requires that SDRs go to countries in proportion to their shareholdings in the IMF, so the vast majority went to the richest countries that needed them least. In October 2021 they promised to give US$100 billion back, to be spent in the poorest countries — but up to now, they had not done so.
After months of determined persuasion of his fellow leaders, Macron was able to announce in Paris that the figure had been reached. Only the most churlish of observers pointed out that the American contribution had still to be ratified by Congress, which might never happen.
You wait a long time for US$100 billion, and then two come along at once. Macron was also able to say that the US$100 billion in finance for climate change first promised by the developed world in 2009, and again in the Paris agreement of 2015, was also going to be achieved this year. A long time overdue, it was nevertheless a welcome statement that the developed world would (eventually) keep its promises. As several emerging economy leaders noted, those countries’ previous failure to do so has been a trust-depleting blight upon international relations for a long time.

role and impact of CSOs in this summit, which was more tokenistic in nature. With virtually no space for any dialogue or engagement in an outcome, what was expected from CSOs who were invited to come to Paris?
Perhaps those who organized CSOs to come to Paris, even minus the engagement space, may have a future process of influencing the intended transformation or at least some reforms.
People are asking about the motives of this summit more than the outcome.
Going forward would need some transparency in planning CSO engagement in a New Financial Pact.

The inside story marked this event as Summit of ambitions
Click here, to read the Gurdian opnion - https://amp.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jun/23/governments-paris-summit-finalise-climate-finance-roadmap

This month we have a few events lined up for you to participate, in during the High-Level Political Forum. Please have a look below-

Date	Event name	When?
Monday 10 July 2023	Launch of the report "Sustainable Development by Shifting the Power: Capacity Strengthening of Civil Society as a Key Tool for the Implementation of SDG 17",	Time: 07:30 to 09:30 NYC/EST / 11:30 to 13:30 UTC CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!
11 July 2023	VNR review through SDG 16+ lenses: How inclusive and transparent has the process been?	07:30-09:00 NYC/EST/ 11:30-13:00 UTC Click here to Register for the Event
Tuesday 13th July, 2023	Assessing Progress on Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development: perspectives from the Asia Pacific & European Regions	7.30 -9.00 NY time Register!
14 July 2023	Reception for Participants of the HLPF 2023 at the Permanent Mission of Republic of Korea	18:30-20:30 on 14 July (Friday) 2023 RSVP required.
Saturday 15 July	Civil Society Weekend Workshops at HLPF 2023 UTC “Sharing National civil society experiences, from VNRs to HLPF and the SDG Summit	09:30 to 15:00 NYC/EST / 13:30 to 19:00 CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Report launch: "Sustainable Development by Shifting the Power: Capacity Strengthening of civil society as a key tool for the Implementation of SDG 17"

Join us for the launch of the report "Sustainable Development by Shifting the Power: Capacity Strengthening of Civil Society as a Key Tool for the Implementation of SDG 17", developed collaboratively with 14 national and regional CSO platforms, this report provides an analysis of the transformative potential of capacity-strengthening initiatives for civil society and a review of its representation in the 2022 Voluntary National Reports (VNRs). With a focus on changing power dynamics, ensuring localization, and decolonizing practices, the report underscores the pivotal role that civil society organizations can play in delivering Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) when appropriately supported.

Organizer: Forus
Date: Monday 10 July 2023
Time: 07:30 to 09:30 NYC/EST / 11:30 to 13:30 UTC (Click here to see your local time)
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!

Click here to discover the Report
Find the social media kit here

2.Assessing Progress on Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development: perspectives from the Asia Pacific & European Regions

Organizers: Forus, Asia Development Alliance, CONCORD Europe, Janic
Date: Thursday 13 July 2023
Time: 07:30 to 09:00 NYC/EST / 11:30 to 13:00 UTC (Click here to see your local time)

Click here to register for the event (To enable the inclusion and active engagement of participants, this meeting will have simultaneous interpretation in English, French, and Spanish.)

This side event seeks to promote policy coherence for sustainable development by fostering discussions at multiple levels, both vertically (local, national, regional, and global) and horizontally (across social, economic, and environmental dimensions). It will address pressing challenges within these dimensions, with a specific focus on climate justice in the Asia Pacific region.
The event's key outcome is to facilitate knowledge sharing, regional collaboration, and strategic alliances for collective action on policy coherence. It will assess progress on Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development in the Asia Pacific and European regions, offering stakeholder perspectives, national case studies, and recommendations for inclusive and accountable progress at various levels.

Discover our joint publication Climate Justice and Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development - Lessons from the Asia-Pacific Region

3.VNR review through SDG 16+ lenses: How inclusive and transparent has the process been?

Organizer: Asia Development Alliance
Date: 11 July 2023
Time: 07:30-09:00 NYC/EST/ 11:30-13:00 UTC (Click here to see your local time)

Click here to Register for the Event

This side event aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of the current state of promoting peaceful, just, and inclusive societies. It seeks to identify gaps and opportunities for improvement and determine areas where additional resources, policies, or actions are required to make progress toward these objectives. The event will analyze trends and challenges related to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) using international comparative data and monitoring reports from research institutions and civil society organizations, such as the Voluntary National Review (VNR) Report, Sustainable Development Solution Network (SDSN), and People's Scorecard (PSC). By examining the VNR through the lens of SDG 16, the event aims to enhance coordination and collaboration among various stakeholders, including governments, civil society, and the private sector.

Other side-events

Assessing Progress on Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development: perspectives from the Asia Pacific & European Regions

Organizers: Forus, Asia Development Alliance, CONCORD Europe, Janic
Date: Thursday 13 July 2023
Time: 07:30 to 09:00 NYC/EST / 11:30 to 13:00 UTC (Click here to see your local time) Click here to register for the event

(To enable the inclusion and active engagement of participants, this meeting will have simultaneous interpretation in English, French, and Spanish. )

This side event seeks to promote policy coherence for sustainable development by fostering discussions at multiple levels, both vertically (local, national, regional, and global) and horizontally (across social, economic, and environmental dimensions). It will address pressing challenges within these dimensions, with a specific focus on climate justice in the Asia Pacific region.
The event's key outcome is to facilitate knowledge sharing, regional collaboration, and strategic alliances for collective action on policy coherence. It will assess progress on Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development in the Asia Pacific and European regions, offering stakeholder perspectives, national case studies, and recommendations for inclusive and accountable progress at various levels.
Discover our joint publication Climate Justice and Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development - Lessons from the Asia-Pacific Region

another side-event

Civil Society Weekend Workshops at HLPF 2023
Join the Civil Society Weekend Workshop to enable an informal exchange of views, networking, and dialogue on key issues for civil society engagement on the 2030 Agenda

Where? Church Center, 777 United Nations Plaza (44th Street, off First Avenue)
When? Saturday 15 July 09:30 to 15:00 NYC/EST / 13:30 to 19:00 UTC “Sharing National civil society experiences, from VNRs to HLPF and the SDG Summit”
Sunday 16 July 09:30-13:00 NYC/EST/ 13:30 to 17:00 UTC: Planning for September, engagement at the SDG Summit, and public mobilisation.
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

All in 4 2030: Keeping the promise to accelerate the SDGs through effective partnerships with CSOs.

When? Thursday, July 13 starting at 08:00 NYC/EST/ 12:00 UTC (Click here to see your local time)
Where? Room 5. The format is hybrid so you can also join online.
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

What happened so far?

Last month we attended SDG 16 conference in ROME
At a time when intersecting global crises are posing unprecedented challenges to advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the International Development Law Organization and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy organised the fourth SDG 16 Conference from 30 May to 1 June 2023 in Rome, Italy.

Building on the outcomes of the 2019, 2021 and 2022 editions, the Conference reviewed progress and challenges related to SDG 16, focusing on conflict and shrinking trust in public institutions. The event also explored SDG 16’s catalytic role in responding to food systems and climate change crises. It will contribute to the 2023 SDG Summit and High-Level Political Forum as well as other intergovernmental processes.

C20 WG on SDG 16+ and Promoting Civic Spaces was held in Haridwar from June 17th to 19th, 2023.

C20 WG on SDG 16+ and Promoting Civic Spaces is holding an Intl conference which was inaugurated today in Haridwar by Former CM of Uttarakhand Ramesh Pokhriyal, Acharya Balkrishnan,C20 Sherpa Amb Vijay Nambiar and C20 Sous Sherpa Dr Swadesh Singh

List