Mr. Chairman,

I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

1. The Group of 77 and China wish to express our appreciation for the excellent work undertaken by the facilitator from Guyana assisted by Ethiopia and to the Group's coordinators from South Africa and Jamaica for their strenuous efforts, in collaboration with the partner countries, to achieve this consensual draft resolution under Agenda Item 18 on Follow-up to and implementation of the outcomes of the International Conferences on Financing for Development.

2. The Group have joined consensus on this resolution mindful of the critical importance of financing for development including those for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The mobilization of resources to address the persistent challenge of poverty and under-development, both within and among countries, is of critical importance and is fundamental to any progress we will achieve over the next fourteen (14) years as we implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
 
3. Having said that, the Group wish to express our disappointment and deepest concern regarding the future of this Agenda item and the working spirit of this Committee in which at the beginning of negotiations on this resolution, our development partners refused to engage on the original draft proposal that was tabled by the Group. Some of our developed partners also walked out of the ongoing discussions at that period in informal consultations.

4. This negative conduct cannot set a precedent for the future work of the Second Committee. The Group of 77 and China's efforts and hard work during long consultations in preparation of this draft text should be valued and respected.

5. The Group is on record that compromise agreements have been reached in various key areas and there remain a number of issues of principle that are important to, and fully endorsed by the Group that have not been adequately accommodated in the current text including but not limited to the Official Development Assistance (ODA), which remains essential financing for development in developing countries. We always urge that all ODA commitments must be fulfilled, especially those countries that have not met their targets to make additional concrete efforts, and continue their efforts to reverse the trend of declining ODA to the least developed countries, many of which continue to rely on concessional finance to meet sustainable development needs. It is our disappointment that the adopted resolution does not reflect the long-term interests and positions on the financing for development.

Mr. Chairman,

6. Let me explain the Group of 77 and China's position on an extremely crucial issue within this draft resolution, namely the suspension of the preparation of a Report by the Secretary-General on the implementation of the present resolution, on a one-off and exceptional basis, without setting any precedent for the annual periodicity of the report. This Report is an important political tool for Member States to obtain information on the follow-up to and implementation of the outcomes of the International Conferences on Financing for Development, which relates not only to last year's International Conference in Addis Ababa, but also to those held in Monterrey and Doha, respectively.
 
7. The G77 and China are of the view that the establishment of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) does not negate the continued importance and relevance of the Secretary-General's Report on the financing for development process. The IATF Report does not specifically take account of issues pre-Addis, which remain relevant to our discussions on financing for development. Rather, it focuses primarily on progress in the implementation of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the means of implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

8. SG reports on this matter have been issued since Monterrey, which has been a tradition that provided the GA an opportunity to carry out its strategic mandate, which should be preserved in order for the Second Committee to continue its deliberations on financing for development follow-up outcomes. The SG report also provides an opportunity to pronounce on the follow-up and review of the means of implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

9. In our perspective, there is no conflict between the SG's and the IATF report. The SG report provides a political guidance and complements the IATF report without creating any duplication. The full follow up process on the entire FFD matters is a work in progress and so we strongly believe that we need to continue to strengthening this process and all the reports are essentials inputs for this endeavor.

10. It is with much displeasure therefore, that we have agreed to forego the request for the Secretary-General to prepare a Report on the implementation of this resolution, on this particular occasion. This was not an easy decision due to the fact that it was done on the basis of the extremely difficult nature of negotiations on this issue and the related matters.

11. We reiterate that the outcome of resolution must not set a precedent for any future resolutions on this or other related issues.

12. Mr. Chairman, I request that this statement be placed on the record of this meeting. I thank you.