UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson has stressed the need to channel financial investment into vital areas that can help secure sustainable development for all.
Mr. Eliasson, who spoke at the opening of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) annual Spring Meeting with the Bretton Woods institutions and UN agencies, said: “Placing our world on a sustainable path needs to be infused with a new global partnership for development”.
”This partnership must be based on equity, cooperation and accountability and it must aim for transformative change.
“In the wake of the 2009 crisis growth remains insufficient and the employment situation is dire in many countries. Inequalities are growing. The world’s wealthiest 85 people have as much wealth as the poorest half of our planet’s population,” he said.
The UN Scribe said while this year marks the 70th anniversary of the Bretton Woods institutions
and the 50th anniversary of UNCTAD, the world continues to wrestle with many of the challenges they were set up to address.
“Bold leadership is indeed needed for strengthened multilateralism and macro-economic policies must focus on a strong, balanced and sustainable recovery, with particular emphasis on jobs.
“Our task ahead is two-fold. We must ensure that hard-won development gains are preserved and as we now look beyond the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
“Our agenda for post-2015 should be ambitious, inclusive and focused on the concrete challenges for us and for future generations, as well as on strong institutions to meet these challenges,” Mr. Eliasson said.
Also addressing the meeting, Mr. Jorge Calderon, Acting Executive Secretary of the World Bank Development Committee, reported on the body’s annual session last week in Washington, DC., where, he said, the Committee’s Governors recognised that policy adjustments and appropriate coordination and communication will be required to fostering strong, inclusive and sustainable growth in today’s interconnected global economy.
PANA reports that the meeting also featured presentations by high-level officials from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
