23rd Meeting of ECOSOC 2016 Integration Segment

Concluding Integration Segment, speakers in Economic and Social Council stress importance of seeing 2030 Agenda as single mandate for all 2016 Session, 23rd meeting.

• Categories: Meetings & Events / Economic and Social Council
• Video Length: 02:45:21
• Production Date: 4 May 2016
• Asset Language: Arabic; Chinese; English; French; Russian; Spanish
• Corporate Name: DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS - DESA
• Subject Topical: INNOVATION; SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
• MAMS Id: 1618304
• Parent Id: 1616661

Description

Integration meant bringing countries, regional actors and United Nations entities together to recognize that the recently adopted 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was one mandate for the benefit of all, the Economic and Social Council heard today as it concluded its integration segment.

The annual segment promotes integration of the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. The 2016 session aimed to develop policy recommendations that would guide implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

Wu Hongbo, Under-Secretary-General for the Department of Social and Economic Affairs, said that while 2015 was a year of landmark agreements, 2016 would be the year for implementation. The segment had provided an opportunity to bring together different competencies, experiences and challenges in coordinating the three pillars of sustainable development. Furthermore, the meetings served as a crucial tool for examining key policy questions and there would be many new and unique issues that would require continuous search for innovation solutions.

The United Nations would continue to support the design and implementation of the 2030 Agenda, he said. Several activities had already been undertaken by the Department to support those goals, including in strengthening and integrating analytical mechanisms in the areas of economic, social development and population, as well as data and financing. In working towards sustainable development, the Department involved participation by a wide range of stakeholders including academia, the scientific community, civil society and the private sector.

The Department had also collaborated with other United Nations entities to build a coordinated approach, which was necessary to deliver as one, he said. It was providing analysis and recommendations to guide discussions at the country level. Most recently, that had included the report of the Secretary-General on the Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review. The Department would continue to support intergovernmental deliberations as they were an integral part of mutual understanding and learning.

Also taking to the floor, Sven Jürgenson, Vice-President of the Council, said that integration, across all sectors and between stakeholders, while challenging was essential for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda. Exchanging knowledge and information would generate a range of strategies for implementing the Goals and achieving the targets. The segment’s debate had highlighted that successful integration lay in instilling ownerships at all levels. He highlighted several key messages that stood out during the three-day discussion, including that every country faced its own unique challenges and required specific policy solutions.

Moreover, innovation did not always need to be based on new technology but could be achieved by applying existing technologies in a new way. A process of building on past successes and learning from failures was essential as well. It was equally imperative that the appropriate use of innovation technologies and other tools be considered, especially given the scope and scale of the 2030 Agenda. The multilateral system would need to support, catalyse and complement national efforts. The Council would take the role of promoting and supporting coordination in the review of the Agenda on an annual basis. Going forward, the integration segment would continue to offer a unique opportunity to bring together key development actors to assess progress and build coherence.

Today’s meeting included a panel discussion on “Policy innovation and integration — views from the multilateral system”, during which five experts discussed how policy innovation at the national level could be bolstered by initiatives through international and regional platforms. They also touched on what integration would imply for the United Nations as it aimed to improve its response to emerging challenges.

Opening the panel, Christian Friis Bach, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Europe, said implementing the 2030 Agenda required breaking down barriers at the national, regional and international levels. That included in the United Nations system as well. Major challenges remained in the area of project funding, and he called for new innovation funding mechanisms and a shift in seeing the 2030 Agenda as a single mandate.

Maged Abdelaziz, Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Africa, said that nearly 390 million Africans still lived in extreme poverty. A paradigm shift would be needed to accomplish the policy of “leave no one behind”. Africa’s Agenda 2063, a development plan for the next several decades, focused on industrialization, agricultural growth and human development, as well as building resilience to climate change.

Michael O’Neill, Assistant Secretary-General and Assistant Administrator, and Director of the Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), said that there had been a great deal of progress in the last 10 and 15 years, particularly with the “delivering as one” initiative. The new 2030 Agenda, however, had inspired the international community to pursue a “win-win” perspective, one with which it could pursue development, as well as be kind to nature. He highlighted the role of Governments in fostering business–friendly environments to allow enterprises to thrive under a sustainable model.

Lakshmi Puri, Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director, Intergovernmental Support and Strategic Partnerships Bureau, United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women), discussed implementation of the 2030 Agenda in a gender-responsive manner. Innovation offered a path for seizing opportunities, as gender equality was inherently about social, economic and political innovation. United Nations entities must empower gender equality institutions, as well as “engender” economic, social and other bodies.

Elliott Harris, Assistant Secretary-General and Head of the New York Office, UNDP, said United Nations agencies should find ways to integrate policies upstream to understand how they affected other areas. In doing so, it would discover policies that considered “transmission channels” and “spillover effects” from some sectors into others.

Today’s panel was moderated by Farooq Ullah, Executive Director of the Stakeholder Forum for a Sustainable Future.

Also participating in the discussion today were the representatives of Chile, Iraq and South Africa.

Representatives of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) also joined in on the panel discussion.

Panel

The Economic and Social Council began the day with a panel discussion on “Policy innovation and integration — Views from the multilateral system”, moderated by Farooq Ullah, Executive Director of the Stakeholder Forum. It featured presentations by Christian Friis Bach, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Europe; Maged Abdelaziz, Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Africa; Michael O’Neill, Assistant Secretary-General and Assistant Administrator, and Director of the Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); Lakshmi Puri, Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director, Intergovernmental Support and Strategic Partnerships Bureau, United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women); and Elliott Harris, Assistant Secretary-General and Head of the New York Office, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).