Mr. President,
Let me start by thanking the co-facilitators, the Permanent Representatives of Austria and Jamaica, and their teams, as well as the secretariat, for their tireless efforts to produce this declaration. Thanks also to all delegations that engaged constructively in the negotiations.
Norway is pleased to have joined consensus in adopting the High-Level Political Forum’s Ministerial Declaration for 2017.
We would like to add a few remarks:
First, we fully endorse your introductory remarks, Mr. President, emphasizing the primacy of the 2030 Agenda. The purpose of this forum and this declaration is to review progress in the implementation of our joint commitments, as reflected in that agenda, not to renegotiate them.
The 2030 Agenda, with all its goals and targets, as well as the Addis Abeba Action Agenda, which is an integral part of the 2030 Agenda, remains our joint and indivisible agenda and our common roadmap for sustainable development, regardless of which elements are highlighted in this declaration.
Second, gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls is fundamental for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and all its goals and targets. With SDG 5 on Gender equality being one of the goals under review this year, we would have wanted more explicit language in the declaration on the importance of gender equality and on what needs to be done to realize a world where women and girls enjoy equal rights with men and boys. The shortcomings of the declaration in this regard do not, however, change the fact that the global community remains fully committed to implement all the goals and targets, including SDG 5 in its entirety.
Third, HLPF is the top of the pyramid of the UN System’s collective effort to follow up and review the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. Issues that have been thoroughly reviewed in a dedicated forum in the course of the year should be reflected, but not renegotiated by the HLPF. That should also apply to issues of financing and means of implementation, where we have a dedicated Forum for Financing for development. Reaffirming the outcome of our deliberations at the FfD forum would be the appropriate way to reflect these issues in the declaration.
Norway has no difficulties with the contents of para 21 per se, but we share the concern of other delegations that it does not fully reflect the delicate balance achieved in Addis Abeba and at the FfD Forum in May this year. That is why we chose to abstain when the paragraph was voted over.
Thank you.