Mr. President,

1. I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. I thank the Director of the Human Development Report Office of UNDP for the presentation made on the status of preparations and consultations for the 2014 report.

2. As this is the first chance at the level of the Executive Board to comment on the 2013 HDR, and as our comments have a bearing on the preparation of subsequent reports, the Group wishes to make its views on the 2013 HDR known.

3. The Group has in past years expressed its reservations with the direction taken in successive Human Development Reports, encroaching on areas that are sovereign rights of Member States, and the lack of transparency in developing reports touching on such sensitive matters. While we appreciate the improvements in the process of consultations with Member States in recent years, we feel that we should continue to work together with the HDR office in order to make the report a more useful tool.

4. The Group appreciates the focus on the global South in this year's report. However, the Group feels that the 2013 Human Development Report has missed an opportunity to situate what it calls the "the Rise of the South" in an appropriate context. Rather than working off the strength of some parts of the Global South to further support the development of the South, the report seems to have adopted an approach that the successes in some part of the South are sufficient to call for a reorganisation of global developmental patterns, and to call for a reorganisation of the South. Neither of these views reflect the realities of the South, nor of the views of countries of the South. The Group regrets that transparent consultations with the countries who are the subject of the report were not undertaken to understand these viewpoints.

5. The Group opposes the qualification of the principle of national sovereignty through an introduction of the term "responsible sovereignty" (page 116). While the Group is, and has always been a strong supporter of multilateralism - our national sovereignty is something that cannot be brought up for debate. We cannot let assumed concerns dictate our national sovereignty. The Group does not feel that it is for the UNDP to determine that "A better strategy is responsible sovereignty- that is, taking the long-term interests of the world as a whole into account when formulating national policy". The Group will not accept incorporation of this concept into any aspect of UNDP's policy formulation or programmatic conceptions at any point in the future. The group does not accept the categorization, in any manner, of the internal situation of countries without consultation with their governments. National sovereignty is and must remain the bedrock of the cooperative work of the United Nations system.
 
6. The Group has also noted the reference on page 119 to the creation of "A New South Commission". The report bases this suggestion on the premise that the forces coming together to form the institutions for South-South Cooperation, such as the G77, the Non-Aligned Movement and the South Summit are no longer valid. The Group of 77 and China feels that the premise itself is flawed. Notwithstanding the progress made by some countries of the South, current generations face many of the same deep rooted challenges that former generations faced. Global poverty, inequity and inequality continue to pervade many countries, and cohesive action by the UN system continues to be needed. The existing structures of representation for the Global South within the UN system, namely the Group of 77 and its sister organisation the Non Aligned Movement, are structures that are owned by the South, and work on existing and emerging challenges faced by countries of the South such as the global financial and economic crisis, food insecurity, climate change and natural disasters. These challenges cannot be addressed by the creation of a new organisation for the South which would duplicate existing groupings without having ownership by the members of those Groups. In any case, it is well outside the scope of UNDP or the HDR office to suggest this in a Human Development Report.

Mr. President,

7. The Group is of the view that a Human Development Report focusing on the Rise of the South would have been more useful in using examples where developmental models have had successes in the South which can be replicated elsewhere. This would include successful examples both of North-South, as well as South-South cooperation. The Group reiterates the importance of avoiding the temptation to analyse and evaluate South-South cooperation using the same standards as those used for North-South relations, or to try to project South-South cooperation as a replacement for North-South cooperation.

8. In a Human Development Report focusing on the Rise of the Global South, the Group of 77 and China feels that attention should also have been provided on increasing the participation of the south in the structure of international economic and financial institutions. If the South is seen as emerging, its participation through reformed Bretton Woods Institutions, including through the enhancement in the voting powers of developing countries in a time-bound manner, would be relevant to the analysis in the HDR. Consideration of the global institutions which affect the participation of the South are pertinent, as revisions to such institutions would serve to create more universal and thus legitimised institutions, where the voice and participation of developing countries is guaranteed.

9. Finally, the Group of 77 and China urges UNDP to continue to improve its consultations with the member states prior to issuing HDR reports, in accordance with, inter alia, the guidelines and criteria contained in UN General Assembly resolution 57/264. The utility of the Human Development Reports lie in the reports being accepted by all Member States and its suggestions being taken on board. Unfortunately, the trend of the report being seen as introducing political concepts rather than focusing on developmental concerns of developing and LDCs, do not encourage such acceptance.

10. The Group of 77 and China looks forward to a Human Development Report 2014 which will assist in formulating development strategies based on accepted facts, and we urge UNDP and the HDR office to engage with Member States to craft a 2014 report on this basis.

I thank you Mr. President.