It is a truism that conditionalities have always shaped the relationship between donors and recipients. It is only reasonable for donors and lenders to require that their aid and debt relief be put to good use, especially towards the attainment of the universally agreed MDGs. On the other hand, it is also instructive to see the debate from the recipients' side. Only then can the reciprocity and mutual accountability perspective be brought into the picture.
A new world trade regime, as envisaged in the Doha 'development' round, can contribute to the achievement of the MDGs. The operationalisation of the five-point trade agenda discussed in this paper can help define more precisely the substance of MDG 8, with appropriate indicators and monitoring benchmarks. These points appear realistic and achievable since they have already been agreed as part of the Doha 'development' agenda. Unfortunately, progress on realising them remains elusive.
Similarly, the aid commitments and pledges made at Monterrey point to the way towards raising the volume of development assistance, which has seen a steady decline since 1992. But again, delivering on those pledges has been slow. Moreover, the fiscal prospects in the EU, Japan and US do not augur well for a major and sustained increase of official development assistance in the near future.
With regard to debt relief, the current pace of progress also suggests a discouraging trend. In response, the HIPC Ministers have made the following plea: (i) limit programme conditionalities to those essential to poverty reduction and economic development, and avoid micro-management; (ii) allow more flexible macro-economic frameworks for anti-poverty programmes and economic development, taking into consideration possible adverse shocks and low commodity prices; and (iii) develop methodologies for poverty and social impact analysis (PSIA) of all programme conditionalities so that countries can ascertain the appropriateness of policy reforms.
If the world is to attain the MDGs, an important condition will be that aid, trade and debt relief are driven by human development concerns. For example, each country will need adequate space to determine its trade policy according to its own development strategy and priorities, based on its economic, social and political conditions. This is essential for giving practical meaning to the concept of 'national ownership'.
The UN's roles in the areas of aid, trade, debt relief and technology transfer are important because they all relate directly to the prospects of achieving the MDGs. The UN, as a relatively neutral interlocutor between developing and developed countries - at both national and global levels - can help to ensure that the MDGs are seen as a 'global deal' and that the global development partnership as envisaged in MDG 8 becomes a practical reality.
The major international initiatives reviewed in this paper - Monterrey, Doha and HIPC - hold great promise to make significant contributions to the achievement of the MDGs. However, progress thus far has been extremely slow. The blame for the unsatisfactory advance can be attributed to several causes - both domestic and international - but it cannot be denied that slow action on key initiatives in the areas of aid, trade and debt will seriously reduce the likelihood of achieving the MDGs by 2015. Continued inaction in these crucial areas of MDG 8 which impact on the possibility of achieving the other seven MDGs for most developing countries also casts doubt on the seriousness with which developed nations are addressing the global partnership embodied in MDG 8 and its inherent notion of mutual accountability and joint responsibility.
|
