IPA

Introduction

The New York based Subcommittee for Poverty Eradication is a subsidiary body of the NGO Committee for Social Development - a substantive committee of CONGO, at the UN Headquarters, New York. It is comprised of a number of NGOs, representing constituencies spread across the world. The Subcommittee engages in advocacy work related to poverty eradication in various UN forums. The subcommittee has adopted the following position and recommends its inclusion in the formulation of the Post 2015 Global Development Agenda.

Principles and Values underpinning any New Development Framework

• Holistic in approach incorporating the social, economic, environmental and cultural dimension of well being
• Human rights based
• People-centered
• Predicated on ethical, universal, equitable and y sustainability principles
• Participative and inclusive
• Ensures gender equality
• Builds peace and security
• Addresses  systemically and structurally the root causes of poverty
• Promotes good governance based on rule of law including compliance with international laws.[1]

We the members of the subcommittee urge that particular attention be paid to the following aspects:

Poverty Eradication and Inequality … The growing inequalities among nations and within nations both in terms of wealth and income must be addressed. Commitment to the common good and the ethical practices that honor and protect the principle of equitable distribution of the earth’s resources is imperative if we are to have a common sustainable future. Focus on the most marginalized people in society, e.g. women and girls, the aged, person with disabilities, indigenous peoples and youth.

Participatory Structures … An enabling environment must be created at the neighbourhood level for people to become active agents in the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the development agenda. The model programmes, such as ‘People’s Planning Process and Sustainable Development, the Kerala Experiment[2] and for children and youth www.childrenparliament.in result in participatory democracy where people continuously monitor the processes and have their effective say in an ongoing way ensuring the realization of global development goals.

Care of the Earth … All development must be environmentally sustainable. Production and consumption must take into account how the common goods of the earth are used and protected. The 10-year framework for sustainable consumption and production patterns adopted by Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development[3] should be a guiding principle for a development framework.

Implementation of the Social Protection Floor … All States are strongly urged to ensure a human rights approach to social protection implementing ILO Recommendation 202 that urges all States to establish as quickly as possible a social protection floor.

Decent Work and Full Employment … Essential to advancing sustainable human development is decent work and full employment for all. The ILO has already prepared a Decent Work Agenda whose various components could be used as part of the post 2015 agenda. The Global Jobs Pact also has important elements that contribute to the commitment to full employment and decent work.

Global Financial and Economic Architecture … A new global financial and economic governance system is urgently needed that addresses:

• support for social infrastructure and employment creation
• a commitment to realistic targets with accountability in aid for development
• an equitable and effective  tax system
• adequate regulation of trade
• a sovereign debt work-out mechanism
• the need for transparency, regulation and accountability.

Aid for Development Effectiveness … Traditional development assistance needs to shift from the current focus on “aid effectiveness” to a more purposeful “development effectiveness” and must be instrumental in redefining the global partnership for development in ways such that it would make it a forceful enabler for the implementation of the post-2015 agenda.[4]

Additional Resources to help Developing Countries   

•  A Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) for development that is internationally coordinated and distributed under the auspices of the United Nations;
•  A portion of the resources presently allocated to the Military reallocated specifically to peace and development[5];
• Airline taxes, Billionaire’s tax and other innovative programs are recommended for individual countries.

Rural Development and Sustainable Agriculture … Rural development and sustainable agriculture with special consideration of the smallholder farmer is essential for food security. Food sovereignty must be incorporated into the Post 2015 Development Policies. “Investments in agriculture are more effective in lifting people out of poverty than investments in any other sector — they not only drive economic growth and set the stage for long-term sustainable development, they pay high dividends in terms of quality of life and dignity for poor rural people” said the President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Kanayo F Nwanze.

Corporate Social Responsibility … Implementation of the UN Framework for Business and Human Rights should be included in the Post 2015 Development Agenda. Governments need to develop mechanisms and regulations to ensure Corporate Social Responsibility and Accountability.

Gender Equality … The empowerment of women and girls and the protection of their rights must be at the center of the Post 2015 development agenda. Gender equality must be adequately addressed and maintained as a clear focus in relationship to its root causes and poverty eradication.

Sustainable Development Goals … The proposed Sustainable Development Goals for all countries need to be limited in number, time-bound, concise, action oriented, global in nature, easy to communicate and sensitive to the fact that ‘one size does not fit all’. There needs to be common goals with differentiated targets and indicators.[6] Incorporating the strengths of the Millennium Development Goals and learning from weaknesses will be a step towards ensuring success. All relevant stakeholders should be actively involved in realizing these goals. Sustainable Development Goals must be socially, economically and environmentally sound and gender sensitive.

Measurement of Development … Qualitative as well as quantitative measures of sustainable development must include social, cultural, environmental, economic and political aspect of wellbeing.

Monitoring and mutual accountability … An accountability mechanism must be established supported by a Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on development modeled on the UPR mechanism of the Human Rights Council. This mechanism should cover all relevant issues linked to human rights, trade, macroeconomic policy, the environment, financing and political participation. The UPR remit should be extended to considering information provided by such stakeholders as civil society and the private sector, in addition to governments. Information on reports and Universal Periodic Review findings should be made widely available through channels that actively target all relevant stakeholders.[7]

The New York based Subcommittee for Poverty Eradication
September 2012