STATEMENT ON BEHALF OF THE GROUP OF 77 AND CHINA DELIVERED BY MR. RAYMOND LANDVELD, COUNSELOR IN THE PERMANENT MISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF SURINAME TO THE UNITED NATIONS, AT THE SECOND INFORMAL INTERGOVERNMENTAL CONSULTATIONS ON THE ORGANIZATIONAL MODALITIES OF THE THIRD INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT (New York, 28 April 2014)

Mr. Co-Facilitators,

We thank you for organizing this meeting. We appreciate the non-paper you provided in advance of this meeting to facilitate discussion among member states on the questions of scope and timing of the 3rd International Conference on Financing for Development. Here is our initial response.

We should recall that paragraph 43 of resolution 68/204 indicates that consultations should be on dates, format, organization and scope. We would prefer to keep the GA wording.

Mr. Co-Facilitators,

The International Conference on Financing for Development should be a priority for the United Nations, as it embodies a holistic approach to the interconnected national, international and systemic challenges of financing for development.

The financing for development process should be coordinated with the definition of the post-2015 development agenda, as both processes are mutually influenced and complement each other.

We would like to stress once again that achieving both the internationally agreed development goals and a holistic approach to support their achievements, demands a close dialogue and common understanding between developed and developing countries and, in this regard, the International Conference on Financing for Development should be a priority as we note with concern a visible deterioration of an enabling environment to support the sustainable development efforts made by developing countries, which calls for the urgent need to address the systemic issues of international development that would allow developing countries to catalyze their sustainable development efforts.

In the context of today's discussion, the Group would like to make the following five key points:

First, the Group of 77 & China reiterates its strong call that the 3rd FfD Conference must be held in the first half of 2015 in order to fully coordinate both intergovernmental processes of negotiations, the post-2015 development agenda and the financing for development, as they are both part of a single undertaking in favor of a new paradigm for international economic relations and development cooperation. We do not see any added value of the Conference if it is to be held in 2016 after the adoption of the Post-2015 Development Agenda.

Second, the Group sees the 3rd FfD Conference as a fundamental framework for the Post-2015 development agenda. This Conference should lay a firm foundation for an ambitious post-2015 development agenda promoting and supporting the national and international economic conditions needed not only for identifying the financial resources available for development cooperation and financing the sustainable development goals, attracting international flows, promoting fair international trade relations, debt sustainability, increasing international development assistance and technical cooperation for development and meaningfully addressing international systemic issues of the world economy. The Monterrey Consensus provides a holistic agenda and space for a discussion, with all relevant institutional actors, the way forward for a more fair and pro-development global economic system, needed for a transformative post 2015 development agenda.

Mr. Co-Facilitators,

The Group does not want to see a situation where a delay in discussing and agreeing on the organizational modalities makes the holding of the 3rd International FfD Conference in 2015 impossible due to logistical reasons. We would therefore strongly urge you to organize further informal consultations with a sense of urgency to expedite an early decision on this issue.

Third, while we appreciate your effort to advance discussions on the scope and timing of the Conference, we would like to recall the mandate emanating out of paragraph 44 of the UNGA resolution 68/204 which requires this process of informal consultations to deliberate upon the date, format, organization and scope of the 3rd FfD Conference. We would therefore like the informal consultations to concentrate on all of those issues together and not single out 'scope' upfront, which tends to make other issues secondary to this consideration.

Fourth, the Group of 77 & China believes that we already have a clear mandate on the scope of the Conference based on resolution 68/204. We are not convinced that further elaboration of the scope of the Conference is necessary or even practical at this stage. We do not support a re-negotiation of the resolution 68/204.

We further believe that 100% ex-ante clarity on the exact scope of the work of the Conference and its precise relationship with other ongoing processes may not be possible, given in particular that several important ongoing processes have not concluded their work.

Fifth, the Group believes that in its scope, the 3rd International FfD Conference must prioritize a concrete follow-up to the implementation of the commitments made by parties under the FfD process, including through the creation of an intergovernmental institutional mechanism to do so.

Mr. Co-Facilitators,

The Group is prepared to listen attentively to the views of other member states and engage constructively in this discussion. However, we would like to once again request you to conduct these discussions in a way to facilitate an early decision to hold the 3rd International Conference on Financing for Development in the first half of 2015.

On a procedural note, Mr. Co-Facilitators, we believe that from the next meeting of informal consultation, the established practice of the General Assembly on participation will be upheld.

I thank you.