2010 UN Summit

Members of civil society organizations that are part of the Social Watch Network were invited to participate at six thematic roundtables that were part of the UN "MDG Summit" that took place 20-22 September 2010 in New York.

The UN High Level Plenary Meeting on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) gathered Presidents and Prime Ministers around the world to review efforts to combat poverty during the past decade and discuss the next steps to follow at a time of an unprecedented combination of global crises (climate change, food, energy, financial and economic).

Next September the presidents and prime ministers of the world will meet in New York to assess a decade of antipoverty efforts and discuss the way forward in moments of unprecedented combination of global crises in climate, food, energy, finances and the economy.

An event organized by Social Watch, CIDSE, Heinrich Boell Foundation and NGLS entitled "Raiding the public till: The financial crises and the MDGs" will address these challenges and emphasize the imperative of harnessing the aid, finance, debt and trade dimensions of “global partnerships for development” (known as MDG 8) to support national strategies and contribute to achievement of all the other goals.

Just three days before the MDG Summit, the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Social Watch and Global Policy Forum organize a high-level panel: "Towards a new development paradigm. Rethinking the concepts and measures of development and social progress". The event aims to help broaden the current development discourse by linking analytical discussions of alternative measures and models of development and well-being with political discussions about the concrete actions needed to achieve progress in poverty eradication and social justice. 

The reality of poverty and inequities, as perceived from communities and grassroots is different from the top-down views. The contributions of citizen groups from over 60 countries for the Social Watch Report 2010 entitled "After the Fall. Time for a New Deal" shows that we are a long way from attaining the Millennium Development Goals. Further, Social Watch research shows that poverty reduction has globally slowed down since 2000. It concludes that a comprehensive redefinition of our approach to development is needed.

President Armando Guebuza of Mozambique, Helen Clark, Head of the UNDP, René Ramírez, minister of planning of Ecuador, German parlamentarian Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul along with UN officials and over 50 diplomats were present in New York for the launch of the SOCIAL WATCH REPORT 2010 on 17 September 2010. The findings of Social Watch were part of discussions on the new development paradigm hosted by the German mission to the UN on the eve of the MDGs Summit. The event was co-organized by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Social Watch and Global Policy Forum.

Source: ITUC

The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) is calling on governments to commit to introducing a financial transactions tax (FTT) at September’s United Nations Development Summit to help tackle global poverty and accelerate action on jobs and climate change.

Several speakers from the Social Watch network and its member and allies intervened during the UN General Assembly hearings with civil society and the private sector in New York last June 14 and 15. The hearings were convened in preparation of the UN Summit on the Millennium Development Goals that will take place next September.

Source: UN Millennium Campaign
The world is still on track to achieve the Millenium Development Goal (MDG) target of cutting the rate of extreme poverty in half by 2015 says a new report by the United Nations a few months before a major General Assembly meeting in September is to review progress so far. Many countries are moving forward, but unmet commitments, inadequate resources, lack of focus and accountability, and insufficient dedication to sustainable development have created shortfalls in many areas. Some of these shortfalls were aggravated by the global food and economic and financial crises. Download the report (PDF)

In preparation for the Summit on Least Developed Countries (LDC-IV) which will take place in Turkey next year Social Watch is participating in a series of events at the regional level and international level.  Most recently Social Watch was invited to participate on May 19, 2010 in a Panel Event on Resource Mobilization for LDCs’ Sustainable Growth and Development at Columbia University.  

Source: NGLS
The final selection and approval of active participants (speakers and respondents) for the General Assembly Hearings with NGOs, Civil Society and the Private Sector to take place in New York 14-15 June 2010 has been announced. The informal interactive hearings, requested by the UN General Assembly and convened by the President of its 64th session, H.E. Dr. Ali Abdussalam Treki, are meant to provide input to the preparatory process for the ‘MDG summit’ (High-level Plenary Meeting) on 20-22 September 2010.

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