Launch of the Development Cooperation Forum (DCF)

As part of the high-level segment of ECOSOC, the launch of the Development Cooperation Forum was marked by a half-day official event on 5 July 2007.

A plenary session with the participation of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the President of ECOSOC, Mr. Dalius Čekuolis marked the formal launch of the Forum (for statements see below). Summary...

Roundtables:

The plenary session was followed by two simultaneous roundtables:

• Promoting greater coherence among development activities of different development partners: the role of national aid coordination and management. More… Summary...
• Review of trends in international development cooperation: South-South and triangular cooperation. More… Summary...

Informal Policy Dialogues:

After the official launch, two informal policy dialogues were held:

• Strengthening national capacities and leadership in the partnership with donors - Special event, co-hosted by the Government of Switzerland, for high-level officials responsible for development cooperation in developed and developing countries. More…
• The role of civil society, legislative bodies and other stakeholders in promoting improved aid quality, including monitoring and reporting on results - Special event, co-hosted by the Inter-Parliamentary Union, for selected representatives from civil society, parliaments as well as international and regional institutions. More… Statement...

Stakeholder Forum:

Following the informal policy dialogues, a stakeholder forum was convened to discuss how the Development Cooperation Forum can promote enhanced oversight of aid commitments and aid effectiveness for the realization of the internationally agreed development goals. More… Summary....

• Brochure
• Programme
• Statements

     Plenary Session

• Opening remarks
  • Dalius Čekuolis, President of ECOSOC;
  • Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General, United Nations
• Statements from interest groups
  • Munir Akram, Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations in New York (on behalf of the Group of 77 and China );
  • Joao Gomes Cravinho, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Portugal (on behalf of the European Union);
  • Li Baodong; Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations at Geneva;
  • Richard T. Miller, US Representative on the Economic and Social Council to the United Nations, United States;
  • Walter Fust, Director-General, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Switzerland;
  • Mikhail E. Savostianov, Deputy Director, Department of International Organizations, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation.
• Roundtables
  • Promoting greater coherence among development activities of different development partners: the role of national aid coordination and management
  • Léo Mérorès, Vice-President of ECOSOC (Chair);
  • Abdoulie Janneh, Executive Secretary, Economic Commission for Africa (Moderator);
  • Zakia Meghji, Minister of Finance, Tanzania;
  • Le Hoai Trung, Director-General, International Organizations Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Viet Nam;
  • Olav Kjørven, Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Development Policy, UNDP;
  • Julian Lob-Levyt, Executive Secretary, GAVI Alliance, and Chief Executive Officer, GAVI Fund, Geneva;
  • Irene Freudenschuss-Reichl, Director-General, Department for Development Cooperation, Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs, Austria (Lead Discussant)
  • Review of trends in international development cooperation: South-South and triangular cooperation
  • Hilario G. Davide, Jr., Vice-President of ECOSOC (Chair);
  • Sha Zukang, Under-Secretary-General, UNDESA (Moderator);
  • Munir Akram, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations and Chair, Group of 77 and China;
  • Supachai Panitchpakdi, Secretary-General, UNCTAD;
  • Richard Manning, Chair, OECD/DAC;
  • Björn Stigson, President, World Business Council for Sustainable Development, Geneva

     Special Events

• Informal policy dialogues:
  • 1. “Strengthening national capacities and leadership in the partnership with donors” (co-hosted with the Swiss Government)
    • Walter Fust, Director-General, Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation (Moderator)
    • Victor Bernardo, Vice-Minister, Ministry of Planning and Development, Mozambique (Lead Discussant)
  • 2. “The role of civil society, legislative bodies and other stakeholders in promoting improved aid quality, including monitoring and reporting on results” (co-hosted with the Inter-Parliamentary Union)
    • Jomo Kwame Sundaram, Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development, UNDESA (Moderator);
    • Epiphane P.B. Quenum, MP, National Assembly of Benin (Lead Discussant)
• Stakeholder forum: “How can the DCF promote enhanced oversight of aid commitments and aid effectiveness for the realization of the IADGs?”
  • Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga, Deputy Speaker, Parliament of Uganda (Moderator);
  • Olav Kjørven, Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Development Policy, UNDP;
  • Chitriya Pinthong, Director-General , Thailand International Cooperation Agency;
  • Kumi Naidoo, Chief Executive Officer, CIVICUS - World Alliance for Citizen Participation;
  • Carlos Braga, Head, International Policy and Partnership Group, World Bank

Summary