Thank you Chairman Belka for the privilege to speak to the Development Committee on behalf of the Group of 24. Congratulations for the conclusion of your very successful term as the Chairman of this body. First, let me start by commending this group for keeping the focus of its work on the very important topic of the 2030 Agenda. It is clear that our collective and individual achievements in implementing the MDGs have been remarkable; but it is also apparent that many challenges remain. To this end, we welcome the adoption of the ambitious 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the sustainable development goals, with their strong focus on eradicating poverty and achieving sustainable development in all its dimensions. We underscore the importance of country ownership and leadership, but stress that achievement of these goals must also be underpinned by a robust global partnership and credible means of implementation. Close cooperation with the IFIs and the UN is vital in this regard. Second, achieving development and growth targets will require boosting investment and improving the foundations for inclusive, long-term growth. Scaling up investments in quality infrastructure, including at the regional level, will be essential for improving productivity, reducing poverty, creating jobs, and promoting environmental resilience. Multilateral development banks, old and new, will have a critical role to play in this regard by strengthening their support for infrastructure development and financing. While we commit to strengthening our own foundations for financing, we call on the World Bank Group and other IFIs to increase their efforts to support domestic resource mobilization and combating illicit financing flows and harmful tax avoidance. Third, we note the proposed roadmap for the World Bank’s shareholding realignment. We stress the importance of a timely agreement on a formula that meaningfully increases the voice of developing countries and moves towards equitable voting power, while protecting the smallest poor countries. This is critical for the legitimacy of the World Bank. Finally, we call for strong and timely support by the international community and enhanced support, including through concessional financing, from the IFIs, to address the protracted refugee crisis in EMDCs disproportionately affected by the influx of refugees. Those countries are offering the world a global public good that should be met with timely and adequate measure. This is a global responsibility. Ignoring the problem will increase the costs, some countries might fall, refugees will rapidly move to more favorable skies, and more global instability would have been created. Thank you.
Development Committee Fall 2015 – G-24 Intervention Delivered by Alain Bifani