The Council
adopted guidelines for the participation of the European Union in the fourth
UN conference on the least developed countries (LDC-IV), to be held in
Istanbul from 9 to 13 May 2011. As the world's largest donor to the
least developed countries, the EU considers that the outcome from Istanbul
should address three main objectives:
- combating
the vulnerability and fragility of the least developed countries and
further enhancing their resilience to shocks;
- creating a
favourable environment for the sustainable development of the least
developed countries;
- promoting
inclusive and sustainable economic growth for the least developed
countries.
The Council’s key
messages are as follows:
- the EU is
fully committed to the success of LDC-IV and is promoting a positive and
ambitious outcome, with the aim of accelerating poverty eradication,
with mutual responsibilities for all partners and taking due account of
the current global challenges as well as the changes in the global aid
architecture since the adoption of the Brussels Programme of Action for
the LDCs in 2001;
- the outcomes
of the major international development conferences, in particular the
recent 2010 High Level Plenary Meeting (HLPM) on the MDGs, provide an
important reference framework for the LDC-IV Conference. The EU
considers that the Council Conclusions for the HLPM remain fully
relevant for LDC-IV. The Council welcomes the Commission Staff Working
Document "EU Position in view of the Fourth United Nations
Conference on the Least Developed Countries, 9-13 May 2011", which
has provided important guidance for this EU position;
- the EU is
the largest donor to the LDCs. It has been the most successful
development partner at fulfilling its commitments, notably in terms
of market access, rules of origin and debt alleviation and has made
significant progress on ODA as well as on policy coherence for
development. The EU calls upon the other donors and development partners
to match its commitments and ambition;
- some LDCs
have achieved good economic growth and progress in development during
the last decade. However, overall progress has been uneven and
considerable work remains to be done, notably in Sub-Saharan Africa and
in countries in post-conflict and fragile situations, requiring
strengthened efforts on important social sectors such as health and education,
as well as agricultural development. The LDCs have the primary
responsibility for their own development, and their political commitment
to implement the necessary policy changes will be a strong signal that
they are determined to do their part to sustain high growth rates and
accelerate their graduation from LDC status;
- the EU
underlines the interdependence of progress in the LDCs with human
rights, gender equality, democracy and good governance, peace and
security, as well as with climate, agricultural and energy policies.
Sustainable development and long-term equitable and inclusive growth,
promoting inter alia decent employment opportunities, inclusive finance
and effective social protection systems as well as reducing inequality,
are essential for each LDC to reduce its vulnerability. The private
sector has a crucial role to play in this regard, and can have a
huge impact on people's lives through generating wealth and employment.
The potential of trade as an engine for growth and employment is considerable.
Trade policy and development aid, including technical assistance for
trade, need to pull in the same direction and exploit synergies;
- the EU
reaffirms its commitment to increasing its aid spending to reach 0.7% of
GNI by 2015 and to channel at least 50% of collective aid increases to
Africa while stressing that ODA is an indispensable element of a
meaningful global development partnership;
- all
countries have the responsibility to help developing countries to lift
themselves out of poverty and achieve progress towards the MDGs.
Progress in the LDCs is interconnected with the quality and coherence of
development partners' policies. Strenuous efforts should be directed to
improving the efficiency and effectiveness of aid mechanisms, and fulfilling
existing commitments. While over the past decade the EU has nearly
tripled the amount of its aid to the LDCs, the EU reaffirms its
commitment, in the context of the abovementioned overall ODA commitment,
to meeting collectively the target of 0.15 to 0.20% of GNP to the
LDCs, and calls on other donors to match these commitments .Emerging
economies should also provide their fair share of assistance;
- all other
available sources of financing for development should be mobilised as
well, primarily domestic resources, complemented by viable innovative
financing mechanisms, and support from developed countries, the private
sector, and emerging economies. The EU is seriously considering
proposals for innovative financing mechanisms with significant
revenue generation potential, especially for the poorest and most
vulnerable countries;
- the EU
strongly supports an LDC-IV outcome focusing on areas and measures that
can add value with regard to the specific needs of the LDCs, and which
should reflect the lessons learnt from the Brussels Programme of Action,
while maintaining coherence with the MDGs, when setting specific goals
for the LDCs. A long-term engagement through a renewed partnership with
the LDCs containing suitable measures is fundamental, in a rapidly
changing world, for tailored responses to country-specific
circumstances.
Having this in
mind the EU proposes the following issues to be prioritised in the
outcome of LDC-IV:
Combating
vulnerability
The EU sees
reducing the LDCs' vulnerability and fragility and improving their resilience
to cope with shocks and their capacity development as key elements and
priorities in their development processes. The following issues should
therefore be addressed:
- transition
from situations of fragility to peace and security, focusing on conflict
prevention, conflict resolution, peace building and state building;
- excessive
price volatility and food security, with specific attention to food and
energy prices;
- the capacity
of the LDCs to adapt to climate change, use of fast-start funding and
the Green Climate Fund;
- economic
diversification including through improved productive capacities;
- development
of human and institutional capacities;
- disaster
risk reduction, including the integration of DRR into national
development policies, strategies and planning;
Establishing
a favourable environment for sustainable development
The EU is
convinced of the essential need for an environment conducive to inclusive and
sustainable development, which must include respect for human rights,
democracy and good governance and strengthened partnerships for development
at all levels. Six key sets of issues should be addressed in this respect,
including:
- promoting
democracy and good governance;
- establishing
favourable national policies to mobilise domestic resources and leverage
international resources for development;
- promoting
the role of emerging economies and stressing the expectation that they
provide an increasing share of support to the LDCs;
- reinforce
the impact of remittances on economic and social development, including
through the reduction in transaction costs;
- responsible
lending and borrowing practices;
- ensuring the
coherence of public policies in both developed and developing countries
to promote development objectives.
Promoting
inclusive and sustainable economic growth
The EU
considers that an important aspect of inclusive and sustainable development
is more broad-based sustainable economic growth which generates employment
and which benefits all of the population. Five key sets of issues should be
addressed in this respect:
- developing
market-oriented productive capacities by supporting infrastructure,
including reliable energy supply and supporting agriculture;
- market
access, with a call to developed countries to provide full Duty Free
Quota Free access for all products from all LDCs, as the EU has done
with the autonomous Everything But Arms Initiative, and a call for
emerging economies and developing countries in a position to do so to do
more to open up their markets for LDC exports;
- environmental
sustainability and a green economy, including good management and
governance of natural resources;
- inclusive
growth with a focus on the most vulnerable segments of LDCs'
populations, education, health, nutrition, water and sanitation and food
security;
- contributions
from the private sector and the state, including provision of public
goods and services, public-private partnerships, corporate social
responsibility; Political momentum for inclusive growth and
sustainable development in the LDCs.
The EU calls
upon all partners to agree to establish a more systematic mechanism for
granting time-sensitive concessions to countries, which have recently
graduated, in order to make graduation more appealing and encourage LDCs to
focus on accelerating progress towards their graduation. The systematic
extension of the transition phase privileges to recently graduated countries,
as the EU has been doing, is one example.