Secretary-General, at Launch of Millennium Development Goals Report,

Calls for Renewed, Stronger Global Partnerships

Following are UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s remarks at a press conference to launch the 2013 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Gap Task Force Report, in New York on 19 September:

It is a great pleasure to see you again.  I am pleased to be here with our senior advisers from DESA (Department of Economic and Social Affairs) and UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) who will be able to answer some of your questions.

I am pleased to present this year’s MDG Gap Task Force Report.  I established this Task Force in 2007 to track progress on the international community’s delivery of commitments to strengthen the Global Partnership for Development — as defined by Millennium Development Goal 8.

In July, I reported a number of MDG successes.  Today I am pleased to report progress on MDG 8, the global partnership for development.

As the Report shows, tariffs on exports from developing countries are down.  Exports from developing to developed countries are up.  A larger proportion of exports from least developed countries are being admitted tax free.  Access to mobile phone technology and the Internet continue to rapidly expand.  Some medicines, such as those to treat HIV/AIDS, are becoming more affordable.  And the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative is near completion.  However, much more needs to be done.

While global economic trends are slowly improving, the crisis continues to take a toll.  For the first time in a long while, official development assistance (ODA) has fallen for two consecutive years.  The Doha Round of multilateral trade negotiations remains at an impasse.  Many more developing countries are in need of debt restructuring.  Essential medicines often remain unaffordable and hard to find.  Access to new technologies remains limited in developing countries.   Despite these challenges, there is much to build upon.

Donor countries continue to strive for — and some even surpass — the ODA target of 0.7 per cent of gross national income.  New countries and other partners are stepping up.  But all must deliver on commitments — on official development assistance, climate finance and domestic resource mobilization.

The international financial institutions are reflecting on more timely and efficient debt restructuring mechanisms.  With the help of pharmaceutical companies, there is more local production of generic medicines.  The Broadband Commission has helped countries establish policies to expand internet coverage.  And I hope that the upcoming World Trade Organization’s Ministerial Conference in Bali can make progress in breaking the logjam and reaping the development benefits of trade.

As we approach the 2015 MDG target date, we must accelerate efforts while we begin crafting the post-2015 development agenda.  These objectives will be front and centre next week.  We will showcase MDG successes throughout the week and at a special partnership event on Monday.

I will also use next Wednesday’s General Assembly special event to officially launch my report, “A Life of Dignity for All”.  It calls for a single, coherent and ambitious post-2015 agenda with sustainable development at its core and poverty eradication as its highest priority.

Greater progress towards the MDGs will fuel confidence and mobilize support for an ambitious post-2015 development agenda.  And our post-2015 efforts should build on the work begun and the lessons learned through the MDGs.  For all our work, we will need one thing above all:  a renewed and stronger global partnership — and we are here today to help advance that effort for one and all.

I thank you and I would like to briefly add one more thing on political matters.

I just wanted to say that I had a very good meeting this morning with the new Foreign Minister of Iran, Javad Zarif.  We discussed a wide range of topics.  My Spokesperson will have shortly a full readout.

I told Minister Zarif that I commend the efforts of the new Government in Iran in promoting dialogue with the international community.  I also praised the Government’s actions in releasing 12 political prisoners yesterday, including the human rights lawyer Nasreen Sotoudeh, as well as a number of women’s rights activists, political activists and journalists.

As you may remember, when I visited Iran last year, in August last year, I raised this issue and discussed with them and urged them to release all these people.  I am glad that they have finally taken action.

I told the Minister that I am pleased that the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran is now taking some concrete steps to fulfil the promises made by President [Hassan] Rouhani during his recent election campaign.  I am going to meet President Rouhani next week and we are also going to discuss matters of mutual concern very closely.

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For information media • not an official record